January 19, 2013

Virtual 5K Details and Prizes!

In just six short days, I'm going to be 31 years old. There is nothing special about that number, but I thought it would be fun to host a Virtual 5K on my birthday, since a 5K is 3.1 miles and I'm turning 31.  As I've said before, you can run OR walk the 5K, and you can do it whatever time of the day you'd like, wherever you'd like (even on the treadmill).

Just make sure you note your finish time... I will have a form on the blog that day for you to fill out a couple of questions, so that I can post the results. The prizes are not going to be given for the fastest times, but as a random drawing for EVERYONE who completes the Virtual 5K; so please don't feel like your time is "too slow". Nothing is too slow! I would also like to post some fun stats, like the number of different states/countries people run in, the oldest runner, the youngest runner, etc. So I might ask some random questions like that.

As far as the prizes go, here is the plan: I have 31 prizes, all having to do with my favorite things (or things I have a love/hate relationship with, like running!). If you successfully complete your 5K, you will automatically get 10 entries into the drawings. There will be 23 separate drawings (one for each of the prizes shown below--some of the prizes have more than one of the same item, so I will pull more than one name for those).

You can divide your 10 entries up however you'd like. If there is something you really want badly, you can use all 10 on that one item's drawing; or you can split them up among (up to) 10 items. Picture it as 10 raffle tickets, and 23 jars you could divide them up into. Your choice how you divide them up. I will pull a winner (or multiple winners) for each prize.

Now, I would have LOVED to give away amazing prizes like running shoes, Garmins, Under Armour clothes, etc., but I don't have close to that kind of money. Almost all of these prizes are self-funded (read: I bought them or bought the supplies and made them); so while they aren't uber-expensive, they are priceless, because I made them with my own bare hands. I am also going to be shipping these (except for the scale), so I will ship anywhere in the world.

On to the good stuff... the prizes!


I will make this to order--you tell me the color and measurement.


This was donated by reader Rach at Operation Rosebud (her family
has a contest of who can spend their birthday money the most creatively,
and this is how she wanted to spend it... pretty fun, right?!)

Instead of using the wasteful paper sleeves for your carry-out
coffee or tea, you can throw this in your purse to use instead



A nifty little wallet for your tea. I like to use this to keep
my tea from getting smushed in my purse. (Yes I carry
tea bags in my purse)

This is the scale that I reviewed recently. Another love/hate relationship
of mine is with the scale! ;)


This book is SO inspiring! Whether you are a runner, or
you are hoping to become one, these are stories from real
people about running.

You know I love The Biggest Loser--and cooking. This is the "Flavors of
the World" cookbook.

Another Biggest Loser cookbook--Simple Swaps

My VERY favorite thing--dessert!

For anyone looking to document a journey to 26.2

I keep a written running journal, writing down my distance,
time, and pace. It's fun to look back on and see all of
my improvements!

A food journal is a MUST in my opinion when you are trying
to lose weight. This is a small pocket-sized notebook that I covered.




This is one of the DVD's that I reviewed recently. You watch
this while you are on your treadmill, and it looks and feels like
you're running through different parts of the world. This one is
"hike", which means it goes a little slower, possibly with more incline

This is a VA DVD that you watch while on an indoor bicycle

This VA DVD is called Compass, which is much slower--more
of a leisurely hike than running. For viewing while you're on the
treadmill.

The Biggest Loser weight loss planner--lots of recipes, meal
ideas, and exercises, as well as tips from the contestants. The
lovely Ada Wong (my Ragnar teammate) is in here!


Perfect for carrying a bottle of wine
to a friend's house (not that I do that
often, or anything...) I will embroider
your initial on the front, if you'd like.

A PDF download of my top 31 favorite recipes--I've calculated
all the nutritional info, as well as Weight Watchers Points on all
of the recipes!

This is a cover for a Weight Watchers 3-Month Journal (journal not included, sorry)

Hopefully everyone finds something that interests them on that list! 

It's still not too late to sign-up, so you can do so here. I will remind you at least one more time before Friday, but just in case, here is what you need to do to participate:
1) Sign-up if you haven't already.
2) This isn't for sure yet, but I am going to try and make a race bib for you to print out if you'd like. Not necessary, but I think it would be fun! 
2) On Friday, anytime and anywhere you wish, run or walk 5K (3.1 miles). Note your finish time.
3) Take a picture (of you, of your shoes, of your Garmin, your treadmill readout, whatever...) Not sure if I'll be using these yet, but it would be nice to have just in case!
4) Come back to my blog and fill out the form no later than Saturday night (1/26).

That's it! I spent all day working on this post, so I need to get it posted... now.


40 comments:

  1. Wow you have been busy, I live in the uk and will be taking part . This is such a great idea

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm excited to take part! I love the way you're doing the prize drawings too. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a great array of prizes! I can't wait.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great prizes Katie and such a fun idea! I took a break from running over the holidays, but got back into it last week. The weather has been so all over the place here (just outside of Toronto). Last weekend was so friggen warm and on monday it's supposed to be -20!! I haven't run a full 5k since my race back in November so I'm determined to this Friday, even if I freeze my butt off :D

    ReplyDelete
  5. I laughed at your last sentence because I was just thinking about how long it took you to write your blog entry for today. I believe it took you all day! The prizes look fantastic and so personalized with the 'Katie Craft' stamp! :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. The prizes are great! You're almost a celebrity to me, so it's especially neat seeing so many handmade things you've made! I couldn't be more psyched for this.

    Please tell your mum good luck on her 5k!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I am so excited for this! I've been using your running plan you posted back in November. This will be my first 5K. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity!

    ReplyDelete
  8. This is so flippin creative - I'm in! I hope you are seriously considering becoming a WW Leader, your journey and energy would help to change lives.

    ReplyDelete
  9. You are so nice and better then new shoes because you put time and energy into it!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thank you for taking the time to do this virtual 5K. The prizes are great! You are such an inspiration! I never thought it possible for me to run until I started reading your blog. Since last spring I have ran two 5ks and lost 55lbs! Thanks again for being such a great inspiration. Looking forward to Friday.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I think it is awesome that you are doing this. We should be doing something special for you on your birthday! Looking forward to running the 5k although it will most likely be on my treadmill. Morning temps here have been <10 and I have become spoiled with the treadmill although I much prefer outside.

    ReplyDelete
  12. You are an amazing woman! Thank you for putting this together and taking the time to make such creative prizes! I have recently started the C25K program so not quite up to the 3.1 miles yet but I will walk/run if need be! I can't wait!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I just might sign up. I'm training for my first 5k in April (I'l be in Week 3 of my plan on this week) so maybe going the whole 3.1 on Friday would be good to see how much I can improve in the next 3 months.

    I think you'd be a phenomenal WW Leader, too. =)

    ReplyDelete
  14. I want everything that U madee ;)
    I hope I win atleast one thing.
    This q is a bit premature...but
    will you be mailing or using feddex? At times the stuff gets stolen. But if I win something will worry then ;)

    Thumbsup for all your hard work ♥

    ReplyDelete
  15. I'm still on the fence on whether I will be able to do this in Friday, though I really want to, since I haven't done a 5k that you have to sign up for in a while. I had a fun suggestion though. One of my favorite things about a lot of 5ks is that there is usually a charity attached. Had you considered the possibility of choosing a charity that you like and people could donate to it in honor of your 31st bday? Just a thought :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It didn't even occur to me when I started this--definitely something to keep in mind for the future!

      Delete
  16. I'm on Week 3 of Ct5K so this is fun practice! I won't be able to run it all, but hey, it's fun to see how quickly I can do it! Since it's BEYOND FREEZING here in Germany, I'll have to treadmill it while my daughter is at preschool! Perfect!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Katie,
    Nothing about the Virtual 5K (although I should try it!) but I just wanted to tell you that I look forward to your blog every day! I love that you lost so much weight and were so willing to share your story with the world. It's tough, I know! So THANK YOU!

    ReplyDelete
  18. I would have so loved to do this! But I'm having knee surgery on the 25th so I will cheer everyone on from the couch!

    ReplyDelete
  19. What a fun idea and you are SO generous to provide such rockin prizes! I will be 31 on Feb 5, so I am definitely in for your Virtual 5K!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Can I do 3.1 miles in the elliptical?? I don't like the treadmill?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha, I don't like the treadmill either! Personally, I wouldn't count the elliptical; but also, I'm not there with you, so I would never know the difference ;)

      Delete
  21. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Awesome, you're so generous! Thank you for shipping internationally, means I can be in to win :)

    I'm excited about the race, trying to beat my PB although I may have been a bit enthusiastic when I set it. Oh well, gotta shoot for the stars right?

    ReplyDelete
  23. Katie, the fact that you put so much time and effort into this, to make us readers excited, makes things things you're raffling off SO much better than sneakers, Garmin's or clothes!!Thank you so much for doing this!!!!

    Bridgette

    ReplyDelete
  24. What fun this will be Katie. I'm really looking forward to my 5K, and am hopeful it won't be TOO cold! The prizes are amazing. If I ever won anything, I would have a hard time choosing. But I'm guessing that's a moot point, since I never never never win. Thanks for taking the time to do all this Katie. It's gonna be grrrrrrrrreat!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. & over here in New Zealand I'm hoping it won't be too hot! lol

      Agreed, it's gonna be great :)

      Delete
  25. Super excited to run "with you" on your birthday. It's such a neat idea and you are being so generous with the prizes.

    ReplyDelete
  26. I love this idea!!! I won't be ready for the 5K just yet, but I'll be checking in to see how everyone does. :)
    You may have already addressed this question, but are you selling the coffee sleeves? I know you did the gockets before, but I wasn't sure if you're selling these. I would love to purchase a few for myself and gifts for others. :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. What fun prizes! I'm looking forward to the 5k. :)

    ReplyDelete
  28. A race bib sounds awesome! lol. I think I will totally be using all 10 towards the dessert cook book. haha

    ReplyDelete
  29. I am already signed up (yay!), but I have a question. I told a friend of mine about this virtual race, she really wants to sign up, but she can't usually run on Fridays, can she run on Thursday for it to still count?

    ReplyDelete
  30. How fun! Thanks for this Katie! I needed something to break up the dull winter! My friend and my hubby are going to do it too! I JUST got hubby starting to run so he is going to walk his. I'm so proud of him! Question... how did you make the running journal - is it just a spiral notebook in a cover? I'm sure I wouldn't win -I don't have that kind of luck. HAHAHA I'm pretty decent with a sewing machine - I would love to make something like that!

    ReplyDelete
  31. I'm so in :) Just filled out the form! Yay!

    ReplyDelete
  32. Love the coffee sleeves! #4 and #5- are those crochet? If so - sure would love to see a pattern or detials on how to do stitch! Gorgeous
    sallen 322 at yahoo

    ReplyDelete
  33. I love the coffee sleeves too! Did you make them? If you did I'd love to buy a couple if you're willing to sell them!

    ReplyDelete
  34. I'd love a race bib for my bib plaque!

    ReplyDelete
  35. Hi I'm Samantha Bucholz, I don't remember if I signed up for the 5k is there a way to check?

    ReplyDelete
  36. Such a wonderful thing you're doing for your readers - and such a fantastic idea! Love the prizes! Ones that are made by hand make the best gifts ever, Katie. You've done a great job on them.

    ReplyDelete
  37. I want one of the running journals! I don't keep good enough track of my working out. I should.

    ReplyDelete

I used to publish ALL comments (even the mean ones) but I recently chose not to publish those. I always welcome constructive comments/criticism, but there is no need for unnecessary rudeness/hate. But please--I love reading what you have to say! (This comment form is super finicky, so I apologize if you're unable to comment)

Featured Posts

Blog Archive