Run into 2021 with Gary Robbins and his Winter Scavenger Hunt

In June, Canadian trail runner and three-time Barkley Marathons racer Gary Robbins and his team at Coast Mountain Trail Running (CMTR) introduced a running scavenger hunt. That virtual challenge ended in September, but Robbins is back with another, the CMTR Winter Scavenger Hunt, which kicked off on Tuesday. As it says on the event website, the Winter Scavenger Hunt is a “celebration of movement, training and running” that will run from now until January 31. Registration is open until December 14, but the 60-day hunt features 20 different running challenges, so it’s best to sign up soon.

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This challenge is open to walkers, hikers and runners around the world, just like the first scavenger hunt that saw participants from more than 20 countries. The guidelines for the 20 challenges in the Winter Scavenger Hunt aren’t listed, but the event website notes that the longest that participants will have to run is one hour. The majority of the challenges, though, should take 35 to 45 minutes. This is a great, fun way to motivate yourself to train without committing to a daunting ultramarathon challenge (which one might have expected Robbins, an avid ultrarunner himself, to create). 

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When participants complete a challenge, they receive a virtual badge, which will be added to their online trophy case. Some of these challenges and their corresponding badges include titles like the Chocolate Run (which sounds mysterious and delicious all at once), the Nog Jog (equally intriguing) and the Bublé Run. We have no idea what these challenges entail (participants might eat chocolate, drink egg nog and sing Michael Bublé tunes as they run), but there are other badges with more obvious objectives. For example, there are two run streak badges, there’s a relay and there’s a 5K. 

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What’s most important with this is to remember that you can take it as seriously or lightly as you want, which organizers note on the website. It’s meant to be a fun way to work your training in when you might not want to because of the dark and the cold. CMTR is also accepting donations for a pair of good causes, and 100 per cent of the proceeds from the race will be donated to the CMTR Scholarship Fund (a new initiative that will provide under-privileged runners with financial support to help them enter running events) and local food banks in B.C. 

To learn more about the CMTR Winter Scavenger Hunt, check out the event website, and to donate, click here.

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