Banshee Accountability Challenge- Oregon Trail Edition

Have you had a hard time finding motivation to work out during the pandemic? Or maybe you are missing your weekly running group and the camaraderie that comes from gathering together and knocking out miles on the road or trail? If you are anything like us this year, you are probably craving connection, a bit of accountability, and perhaps most importantly, a little fun!

Welcome to the first edition of the Banshee Running Accountability Challenge: Oregon Trail Edition! Your goal will be to form a wagon team and work your way from Independence, Missouri, all the way to Oregon City, a total of 2,054 miles in ten weeks. Sound daunting? Don’t worry. Unlike in the game (or in real life… hello, Donner Party), everyone will make it to the end of the road. And no experience with the video game is needed to join a group of your friends on this epic journey!

OBJECTIVE
To get to Oregon, put together a wagon team of up to five people (total) and register for the challenge with your team name. Each week, your team will have a mileage goal to make it to a well-known destination. Along the way, there will also be special challenges to earn extra prizes! 

Remember, this is about accountability, so cheating does not make any sense. Use this as an opportunity to connect with friends, keep each other moving and healthy, and take on some fun and silly challenges.

REGISTRATION
Registration is open now and closes on Sunday, October 4th. Each team will start on the first Monday after they register and the challenge lasts 10 weeks (so if you register on Tuesday, Sept. 15th, your wagon will start on Monday, Sept. 21st). Based on when you register, the dates for your challenge will be one of the following: 

September 14th - November 23rd
September 21st - November 30th
September 28th - December 7th
October 5th - December 14th

Once your team is signed up, each member will receive a detailed email from us with instructions on tracking progress, special challenges, ways of sharing photos, ideas for communicating with your team members and others on the trail and any other pertinent information you need to begin your journey! 

FORMING A WAGON
Because the goal is community and accountability, each person who signs up for our challenge will be in a wagon with up to 4 other people (5 maximum per wagon). If you have a group of friends that you would like to register with, choose a wagon captain to register as a "Private Wagon." There will be a prompt to create a name and a password for the team wagon, which the captain will share with up to 4 of their friends. Each friend should then register using this wagon name and password.

Remember that your start date depends on when you register: make sure you all register within the same week so that you all start together. 

If you do not have anyone else interested in joining your wagon, you can either create a Public Wagon or join an existing Public Wagon. No password needed for the public ones. Once there are 5 people in a wagon, no one else will be able to join that group. 

Cost: $40/person

Registration includes 10 weeks of mileage goals, a tote bag with the Oregon Trail logo, special challenges to collect pins for your bag, and access to the Banshee Accountability Challenge-Oregon Trail Edition Facebook group where you can connect with others on the trail!