CHALLENGE #1

The need for more affordable housing in our community is great. The reason everyone is racing today is to raise funds and awareness for the new Escondido build project (details HERE), which received nearly 300 applications for the 10 homes that will be built. Get your team to the build site, located at 245 East El Norte Parkway in Escondido. When you arrive, please pull into the gravel/dirt driveway. Please be mindful not to block the sidewalk, and do not park on El Norte Pkwy in the bike lane. If you do not feel comfortable parking your vehicle in the driveway, you will need to find street parking in the surrounding neighborhood.

Once on site, work together as a team using the provided PVC materials to create an exact replica of the PVC house seen HERE. Once finished, and approved by the staff on site, take a memorable team picture with the house you built while the build site is visible in the background as a way to bless the upcoming project.

*Be aware that Challenge #9 is also located at this site so this is a location you probably don’t want to skip…

CHALLENGE #2

Get your team to Red Door Escape Room, located at 7007 Friars Road, Suite 212, in San Diego. Once there, locate the Habitat designated puzzle posted on the store front window. Work together as a team to solve it and reveal the 9-letter secret code word (hint: it’s something you are helping to provide to Habitat families through your fundraising efforts and being a part of this adventure race). Once you think you’ve solved it, take a celebratory team picture with the puzzle or the Red Door logo and submit the secret code word to HQ for verification.

CHALLENGE #3

Get your team to any of the many Home Depot locations around the area. Once there, grab a measuring tape and start measuring Home Depot employees heights (after asking their permission of course) until you find someone that is between 5’4” and 5’8” tall. This person should be wearing some sort of Home Depot attire or an ID badge to prove they work there. Then take a fun team picture with your perfectly sized friend and the measuring tape stretched vertically next to them so their height can be verified. If HQ can’t verify the height from a distance you might be asked to take a closer picture of them or film a video actually measuring them.

CHALLENGE #4

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. To honor kids everywhere that are fighting cancer, take a proud team picture showing off your hands once every member of your team has gotten their fingernails painted gold (the international color for childhood cancer awareness) using real nail polish. This challenge is in honor of the ACCO's "Pedi-Cure" program. You can learn more about it by clicking HERE.



CHALLENGE #5

Get your team to the Escondido Habitat ReStore located at 2239 Auto Park Way in Escondido. Once there, locate the challenge area that has a variety of construction gear for everyone on your team to put on. Once you are properly geared up take a video of your team all completing the Group Sit & Stand Challenge. Basically, your team members will all be standing shoulder to shoulder in a tight clump/circle with your backs all facing in and your arms interlocked. Slowly lower the entire interlocked group to the ground until you are in a seated position with your butt on the ground, and then slowly stand back up while remaining interlocked. To watch a video of a group successfully completing this challenge click HERE.

CHALLENGE #6

In order to win this race you’ve gotta have the need; the need for speed! This summer reinvigorated a love for one of San Diego’s most famous films. To honor the Top Gun legacy and San Diego’s role in it you have two challenge options. You only need to complete ONE:

1. Get your team to the restaurant where the famous Top Gun closing scene was filmed (as seen HERE). Once there, find at least one stranger nearby (either in the bar, on the patio, or just somewhere nearby if it’s closed when you arrive). Then take a fun video of your team singing a portion of “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling” to the stranger while the famous bar is visible in the background.

2. To honor the famous beach volleyball scene (as seen HERE), find any regulation beach volleyball court around the area (must have sand and a net). Once there, take a fun video of your entire team lining up, running onto the sand, and “diving” for an imaginary ball and landing on your front. The dive doesn’t need to be a hard impact at all, just a slow head first slide is perfectly fine as long as everyone ends up laying in the sand as a result.



CHALLENGE #7

Get your team to the Rancho Bernardo Community Church, which has been very supportive of San Diego Habitat over the years, and is located at 17010 Pomerado Road in San Diego. Once on site, go to the northeast section of their north parking lot and find the Habitat staff to complete the Sledge Hammer Strength Challenge. Each of your team members will take a turn holding an 8 pound sledge hammer out from your body at roughly 90 degrees. The staff member will time how long you can hold it there without dropping below that 90 degree mark. They will then create an average based off of the times for each team member, and will submit that time and a few pictures of your team competing to our HQ. Not only will you get credit for completing the challenge but the team with the overall longest average time will also win a prize after the race!

CHALLENGE #8

Every 5 seconds there are roughly 10 children around the world that are born into poverty. This staggering statistic shows why we need organizations like Habitat and supporters like you. To help grasp just how large this global problem is, complete the “5 Second Challenge”. On a mobile device have any one team member successfully use the stopwatch function to get the timer to stop at exactly 5 seconds. Once they’ve got it, have someone take their picture as they proudly display their device with 5.00 seconds clearly visible. This should be done using the stopwatch function and not the countdown/timer clock. Everyone can be attempting the challenge but only one member needs to complete it successfully. As every 5 seconds passes keep in mind some good news too, that in that short time frame there are also $240,000 donated to charities around the world.

CHALLENGE #9

Get your team to the current Habitat build site, located at 245 East El Norte Parkway in Escondido. When you arrive, please pull into the gravel/dirt driveway. Please be mindful not to block the sidewalk, and do not park on El Norte Pkwy in the bike lane. If you do not feel comfortable parking your vehicle in the driveway, you will need to find street parking in the surrounding neighborhood.

Once on site, have a staff member assist you to complete the Nail Driving Challenge. You’ll pick two of your team members to compete against one another to drive 5 nails into a 4x4 as fast as you can. At some point during the contest take a picture or short video of the two competing and submit it to HQ. Then, after a champion has been crowned take a fun picture of your entire team working together to lift the champion up to your shoulder height, as best you can, in a glorious (but safe) display of victory! Then let the champ down slowly, allowing their feet to touch the ground first.

*Be aware that Challenge #1 is also located at this site so this is a location you probably don’t want to skip…

CHALLENGE #10

Written by a long-time San Diego resident, the edited book cover shown HERE, is just one of the stories this author wrote about homes, which is ironic because in recent weeks many news outlets have been writing about this person’s home. Anywhere around the area find an actual copy of this book and take a silly team picture holding it, to honor the legacy this influential local author.

CHALLENGE #11

Get every team member a large (16 ounces or so) open-top paper, plastic, or foam cup and fill it with water. Then somewhere outdoors, line up shoulder to shoulder and balance a full cup on each team member’s head. Once everyone’s cups are balanced, hold hands with the team members on either side of you and take a video of your team working together to all take 10 steps forward without anyone touching their cup or having it spill. If someone’s cup spills make sure to encourage them and then refill any spilled cups and start again as a team. After your team successfully travels 10 steps together dump the cups to prove they were full, and celebrate!

CHALLENGE #12

The heat this summer has been almost unbearable. The only thing hotter might be what you’ll experience if you complete this challenge! Get to any Dave’s Hot Chicken location around the area and get an order of their “Reaper” chicken tender. Then take a video of your team members, at the same time, all consuming a separate bite-sized piece of this extremely spicy food. Just before your bite be sure to show that it's actually the reaper flavor on the packaging and then film for at least 30 seconds after the bite to document your reaction. Disclaimer, this will likely not be pleasant, which is exactly the point. Because a team that suffers together, grows together.

CHALLENGE #13

Located in the residential Bankers Hill neighborhood, the Spruce Street Suspension Bridge is a hidden pedestrian suspension bridge that spans 375 feet long, with a beautiful vista of the Sessions Canyon below. As a team, walk out to the middle of the bridge. Once there, have someone take a picture of your team while you all attempt to jump in the air at exactly the same time. The challenge will be to not only communicate with the person taking the picture so that they can capture your team as you’re all jumping, but also overcoming any fear of heights as you all jump on a structure that often sways, and dangles 70 feet above the canyon below!

CHALLENGE #14

Since the word “Escondido” is Spanish for “hidden”, instead of building a home in this community, this challenge will require you to find one. Get your team to Grape Day Park in Escondido. Located within the park are a series of walls displaying tiles decorated by local school children. Once there, work together as a team to locate the tile shown HERE, of a home drawn by Victor Gonzales. Once you’ve found it, take a team picture with someone on your team pointing to that tile. To help you narrow down it’s location you can find this tile on Wall #2.

CHALLENGE #15

Located in Seaport Village, what was formerly the old San Diego Police Headquarters, has been converted into an outdoor mall appropriately named The Headquarters. Get to this location and find the somewhat inconspicuous attraction labeled “Jail Cells and Police Exhibit”. Once inside, explore the fully restored 8 cell jail block, historic photos and police memorabilia. Then take a memorable photo using the surroundings as creative inspiration. Maybe have your entire team spread out across the police line up for your mug shot while pointing at the person next to you, or reenact everyone working together to pull off an elaborate jailbreak of one of your teammates! The exhibit typically opens by 10am but if it’s not yet open when you arrive you can stage your creative photo at the gate leading into the exhibit.

CHALLENGE #16

Anywhere along the way find a wooden paint stirrer and take a video of your team completing the Paint Stirrer Challenge. Have two team members face each other and balance the stirrer flat across the tip of one team member’s pointer finger (see an example HERE). Then have both team members work together to transfer the balanced stirrer from one team member’s finger to the other team member’s outstretched pointer finger without having it fall off or using any other part of either team member’s hand or body to support it. A successful transfer occurs when the first team member is able to remove their finger completely and the stirrer remains perfectly balanced on the second team member’s finger.

CHALLENGE #17

The City of Escondido is home to one of the most unique gardening programs in the state. The City boasts two community gardens with 106 garden plots available for residents to use. Although the City supports the gardens, community volunteers manage each of them individually. Get your team to the Senior’s Community Garden of Escondido, located near 601 West Lincoln Avenue in Escondido. Pull into the parking area and access the garden through the gate near the porta-potty. Once inside find the rock painting supplies and have each team member create their own beautiful painted rock (click HERE for some inspiration). When finished, take a fun team picture with everyone displaying their creations and then have each team member go somewhere in the garden and hide their rock for someone else to find in the future.

CHALLENGE #18

To build anything great, whether that’s an organization like Habitat for Humanity, or an affordable home for a family in need, requires great leadership and people working together. Scattered around the city are a number of statues of humans, many of whom impacted this place in significant ways. Find any life-size statue of a human and take a fun team picture with the statue reacting wildly as if you’ve just met your longtime icon. Then after this event, live each day in a way that will make people want to build a statue of you in the future.

CHALLENGE #19

Yesterday was National Tattoo Story Day (it’s true, look it up). As a community, in order to lift each other up we first have to listen to each other, and value the stories that make someone who they are. Take a video of your team and any stranger that has a tattoo while they explain what that tattoo means to them. The tattoo must be visible at some point during the video.

CHALLENGE #20

The California State Senate has deemed the month of September as Firefighters Appreciation Month — a month to honor, pay respect to, and celebrate these extraordinary men and women. To raise awareness and support firefighters, their families, and the communities they protect, take a video of your team completing "Stop, Drop, and Roll" while any regulation/operable fire extinguisher is visible in the background, or you are standing in front of an actual fire station. Be sure to yell each step of the fire safety technique as you all do it together and make sure the fire extinguisher or fire station is clearly visible at some point in your video.