Friday, June 24, 2011

Flashback Friday FUN: City Chase!

This Saturday I will be participating in my 5th Toronto City Chase. You can read all about my previous adventures here, here, here and here. My team-mate L has completed City Chase in Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. These events are such a good time and clearly we keep going back for more!


After completing the Toronto event together last year [along with 2 of our friends], L and I agreed that we were going to take it a little bit lot more seriously next time - competing as opposed to just participating. That's not to say there is anything wrong with participating; I have had an absolute blast every single time, and it sure makes for a fun race report when everything is documented on camera.


With the race upon us, we have been doing whatever we can to prepare for a successful day. Of course, there is only so much preparation to be done for an event like this; the general idea stays the same, but we have no idea what could be thrown at us. We'll get our hands on a clue sheet one way or another, then figure out clues using our knowledge of the city and various resources (internet, phone-a-friend, etc. are allowed and encouraged!) and spend the day running and/or taking public transit all over the city to complete 10 tasks within before the 6 hour deadline. They don't call it the Urban Adventure Series for nothing, and I have had some crazy experiences.


We've been pouring over previous clue sheets, re-familiarizing ourselves with city parks and other locations that are used frequently, marking up maps, lining up our support teams at home who will be ready to Google for us at a moment's notice and of course getting pumped up!


A truly successful City Chase comes down to luck in a lot of cases. You never know where you're going to hit line-ups, or a long wait for a Subway or Streetcar ride. Some lucky teams might catch a ride to their next destination if they spot a certain specially marked car (other forms of private transport are prohibited!) and there is also an opportunity to earn "Passing Lane" cards, allowing a team to bypass the line at a Chase Point of their choice.


We've raised over $50 [thanks to L] for the featured charity, Right to Play, which will earn us a bonus Chase Point to be collected during the race.

We've also entered a contest which could potentially earn us a free Chase Point; we were asked to display the City Chase logo in a creative and original way. Here's what we came up with:

big thanks to Red for some help on this!

last night's project :)

Whether or not luck is on our side tomorrow, we're going to work our butts off and see what we can do. But don't worry, we'll still have fun in the process.


Stay tuned!

27 comments:

SupermomE13 said...

That looks like a super fun race. Have fun and good luck!

And I am not a cyclist and don't know a thing about bikes, but I love the green color. :)

Hey, I would really appreciate it if you could help me spread the word... I have a huge fundraising giveaway going on right now with over $650 worth of prizes http://seemomrunfar.blogspot.com/2011/06/totally-awesome-fundraising-giveaway.html
Thanks so much!

Laura said...

Have a great time this weekend! These always look so fun...except the bugs and gross stuff like that....

Anonymous said...

good luck marlene!
what a fun race. u guys will have so much fun. yay

Lindsay said...

I'm confused as to how Red helped. It's not like you're neighbors. Have fun chasing a city. Don't feel obligated to post pics of tarantulas or snakes.

B.o.B. said...

have fun! looks like a total blast regardless of how you place. :)

TNTcoach Ken said...

How many shoes did it take??????

Janice {Run Far} said...

Jealous!!!! That sounds like a serious adventure, and one I would love to try someday. Have fun!

Jen Feeny said...

Love the shoe idea!!!!!!!! You are going to have such a blast this weekend, can't wait to hear all about it!!!

Anonymous said...

That sounds like SO much fun! I can't wait to hear how this crazy adventure pans out! Good luck! :)

Runners Fuel said...

How fun! We have one of those here, and I'm thinking about participating next year.

Amy said...

FUN! I love how you're taking it so seriously this year. Good luck!

Sandy said...

Looks like so much fun! I would love to do this sometime. Good luck!!!

Gotta Run..... said...

I LOVE LOVE LOVE these kinds of events. Always helps us remember to not take this sport to serious.

Have a blast girl!!

Denise said...

i can't believe this is the 5th one already! have a great time, hope you have perfect weather!!

love the symbol, very creative.

J said...

Good luck this weekend! Have lots of fun and I hope you win the contest! I love the shoes!

Char said...

You're going to have so much fun. I'm curious about this year's team uniform. Will it be a reprise of last year's animal print skirt or have you go something else in store?

Robin said...

Have fun!

Aron said...

Have a blast!!!

kristen said...

One day I'll sign up for city chase... (maybe next year)

Have a great time! Hope you compete well.

Nicole said...

SO FUN! I want to do this with you one year!!!! :) ENJOY! cant wait to hear about it!

Courtney @ I CAN DO THIS said...

oh my gosh, have so much fun!
I remember reading about the last one you did and being so jealous!

Richelle said...

Have fun at the City Chase! You and your teammate seem extremely prepared for the race, but you're definitely right... anything can happen!

Very creative idea with the shoes!

Michelle said...

Can hardly wait to hear THIS race report! So fun!

Cynthia said...

Have fun!!! This sounds like an amazing time :)

Mark said...

Hope you have fun!!!

Anne said...

Can't wait to hear all about it!! :)

Q said...

That looks like a ton of fun, I look forward to hearing about it!