UrbaCity challenge taking contestants

Urba City challenge taking contestants.

Rachel Lallouz, Staff Writer ~

For its sixth consecutive season, the Victoria UrbaCity Challenge, presented by MAXIMUS Canada, will test the minds and bodies of close to 300 participants in a strategy race course running throughout Victoria’s urban jungle.

On Sunday, June 12, the city streets will swarm with challengers paired up in teams of two or four, pushed to demonstrate their fitness and problem-solving skills – all in support of the Island Prostate Centre.

“The challenge is not just about racing and having fun, it’s about the unique social and community giving experience,” says Jonathan Willcocks, founder of Pinnacle Pursuits Inc., the company who designs and manages the event.

“You will do more in your own backyard than you might all year, while having a blast and raising money for a good cause. What more could a person want?”

Willcocks explains that the event’s objectives are threefold:

To create an annual, self-sufficient fundraiser to support the Island Prostate Centre to build community in the city by bringing together people of all abilities in a celebration of downtown Victoria to highlight key Victoria businesses which support the vibrant downtown community.

Participants, he says, support these objectives by racing through between 15 and 20 challenge stations around the city, answering skill-testing questions and completing various team-building exercises and mini-scavenger hunt style quests.

“People are tired of the norm that involves racing for the sake of racing or of contributing a corporate cheque to a cause without a clear strategic purpose,” says Willcocks, who emphasizes the challenge’s people-centred focus.

“They are searching to be a part of that team-mate and community-based interaction.”

Four different levels, ranging from the skill-testing Brain Category to the physically exerting Braun category, ensure a level of inclusivity for all in the challenge.

Participants looking for an even more challenging race can sign up for the Ultra Racer category, while co-workers can sign to be included in the four-person Corporate Face-Off teams.

“I wanted to create a race that isn’t about doing that same 10 kilometre walk or run,” says Willcocks.

“The people that win are not necessarily the fittest people. They are the ones who are the best at strategizing with their team mate or team mates, who re-evaluate, and who make careful choices with their partner.”

Last year, the challenge raised over $50,000 for the Island Prostate Centre, and Willcocks says this year’s goal will be the same.

Donations can be made online to specific teams, team members, or through corporate sponsorship and challenge station sponsorship at www.urbacitychallenge.com.

Each two-person team registering online in either the Brain, Braun, or Ultra Racer category pays a fee of $125, while four-person corporate teams must pay a fee of $700.

Department of National Defence participants registering in either a team of two or four will be able to use the promotional code “DND20” to receive 20 percent off their regular fee.

“Ultimately, the challenge will allow us to embrace unique experiences together, to stretch out of our everyday comfort zones, and to connect to each other in new ways,” says Willcocks.

“I think that’s what life is all about.”