Pub Race USA

Race details

2008-05-07T16:33:00.000-07:00

The date is going to be SATURDAY MAY 31st, 2008.

We can also tell you at this point, where the race is going to start!

Be at Sloop Tavern in Ballard. The address is 2830 NW Market St. The race will start promptly at 2pm, so be there at 1.30pm to check in and get ready / discuss tactics with teammates and ways to sabotage other racers. More information on the starting pub can be found here.

The sun is out, spring is in the air, and you know what that means...

2008-03-04T17:14:00.000-08:00

PUB RACE!

It's been a long time coming, but sometimes you need to take a step away in order to come back bigger and better and drunker than ever before.

At this point all I can tell you is that the race is coming, and before too long. What I'm looking from you all now is an expression of interest. The more teams we have this time will directly influence the race and how we run it. It will probably be held in late April / early May.

So, fellow not-so-anonymous alcoholics, grab your team mate, kick 'em square up the arse and get them motivated and in training! The time for drunken racing is nigh!

If you're on this list you've run the race before. Send me an email if you're interested in running again, and if so, who you're running the race with. Conversely, if you've grown up and want to remain eternally sober, email me and tell me to stop bugging you :)

At some point in the not too distant future I'll email out with more information, but for now, I'm just looking to gauge the size of the field for the race. Register now by emailing me (or leaving a comment)!

Congrats to "punk in drublic"

2007-05-15T13:24:00.001-07:00

Hey guys,

Thanks to everyone for racing on Saturday. It was a bloody awesome time, and without you all the race wouldn't have been the race it was. Thanks also to everyone who has mailed Bob & I with photos and feedback from the day - we enjoy planning it as much as you do racing it!

Congrats must go to Travis & Andy for finishing in first place - these guys were unstoppable from the get-go, but Gint & Tony never let them get too comfortable, finishing a close 2nd. Well done guys!

I got some feedback on the day from people who missed out on shirts but perhaps wanted some. If you would like one, send me an email with your shirt size and if there's enough demand we might be able to get another run of shirts printed up.

We'd love to see all your photos from the day, I'm working on putting together a bit of a collaboration so please send me 1 or all of your photos and i'll put them all online together and let everyone know!

The next race will probably be slotted in for late summer / early autumn, so stay tuned to your emails or the blog for details of the next race!

Thanks again guys!! You guys are awes!

J Rod & bobuhl!!

Merch!

2007-05-04T10:07:00.000-07:00

Hey all, for those who wanted T-shirts... this is the final design:

Recap of the Rules

2007-04-26T15:06:00.000-07:00

RULES

* You have to get around on foot or by public transport. No designated drivers, taxis, bicycles, scooters, skateboards, or any other kind of transport are allowed.
* Yes, this means hitch-hiking isn't allowed either ;)
* Drinks must be proved, so save your receipts (if you can't prove it, it doesn't count).
* Drinks must be FINISHED - no dregs!
* A standard drink is a bottle of beer or a 30mL / 1 oz shot of booze.
* Teams must complete all challenges in each leg of the race.
* A pint of beer or stronger-than-normal shot / drink doesn't equal 2 standard drinks. We consider this ways of getting drunker if you want to.
* Teams cannot separate. All drinks and challenges must be completed as a team.
* No pissing in public.
* All drinks and challenges in each leg of the race must be completed in that leg of the race before proceeding onto the next.
* You cannot use e-mail or Internet during the course of the race to find locations of pubs / where to complete challenges.
* How you complete a task is up to you, but you must follow all of the above rules.
* Breaking of any of these rules results in your team being disqualified and infinite ridicule.

PLAYOFFS

* The first 6 teams to the checkpoint before the last leg of the race will enter the Pub Race Playoffs. These 6 teams will have an extra leg of the race to complete before the final leg, to determine the true Pub Race champions.
* There will be extra challenges to complete as well.
* Teams that do not make the playoffs proceed directly to the final leg of the race.
* The winner is the first team across the line with all drinks and challenges completed.

CHECKLIST

On the day, you will need:

* A backpack
* Lots of water
* A mobile phone
* A notepad and pen
* A digital camera
* A bus-pass or change for the bus

You will need these items over the course of the day, and should have these with you before leaving the starting location.

Only 10 days until registration ends!

2007-04-10T20:43:00.000-07:00

Hey Racers, I thought I would take a minute to introduce myself and pass along some more information about the upcoming Pub Race.

First I want to say that I am truly honored to help organize this magnificent event. Jacob and I have been working hard over the past few weeks scouting locations and brainstorming ideas to guarantee that the Pub Race is the most fun you will ever have getting smashed on a Saturday afternoon. For you doubters that are saying "No way, nothing could top that one Saturday tailgate/St. Patty's Day/wedding/etc" I challenge you to tell me I'm wrong after the Pub Race (unless you went to a tailgate before a wedding on St. Patty's Day - we can't compete with that).

Anyways, the last day to register is Friday, April 20th. That's only 10 days from today and about two weeks before the actual Pub Race. Registration only requires a team name and a quick email, so find two minutes to let us know that you want in. Space is limited and you do not want to get a reply to the tune of "We're full. I warned you about this. Slackers."

Also, because we're all responsible adults it should go without saying that you will not be driving away from the Pub Race, so logic would indicate that you won't be driving to the Pub Race. Sure, you can get a taxi to Finn MacCool's, but if you're cheap like me you will want to find a bus that gets you close to the Starting Line.

You can take the 71, 72, 73 from downtown, the 43, 49 from Cap Hill, or find something else that works using the following link:

http://tripplanner.metrokc.gov/cgi-bin/itin_page.pl

Tons of buses run through the U-District, so hopefully you will not have trouble getting there on time. And speaking of being on time, we expect to start promptly at 2 pm, so please aim to show up by 1:45. If you plan to grab some lunch prior to the event (Finn MacCool's has a full menu - available on their web site), please plan accordingly.

That's it for now, we'll keep you updated as more info becomes available :).

Teams

2007-04-06T13:21:00.000-07:00

These are the registered teams for the race:

Dan & Mike - "Mike & Dan"

Rhyan & Jason - "Team Mallory"

Dana & Justin - "TBA"

Scott & T.J. - "Team Pepi"

Dave & Cary - "Nudie Magazine Day"

Eli & Jeni - "TBA"

Ondrej & Janelle - "TBA"

Dave & Arlen - "the two pwnies"

Chris & Craig - "TBA"

Eli & Cindy - "TBA"

Anthony & Kerry - "Team Caramel Sauce"

Zoanna & Barry - "Team Blacked Out"

Travis & Andy - "punk in drublic"

Gint & Tony - "The Blooze Brothers"

Missy & Jodie - "The Legless Ladies"

Tom & Ryon - "bottle in front of me"

Julie & Melissa - "Seeing Double"

Angie & Heather - "TBA"

Luke & Jason - "l33t r4c3r5"

Geoff & Jin - "Great Lakes... of Beer"

Registrations Open

2007-04-05T10:08:00.000-07:00

Hey pub racers! We've got the course pretty much nailed down, with a few minor details to suss out, but for the most part, we're set to open registrations! Same deal as last year, we're having a cap of 20 teams to initially gauge interest, and if we can recruit enough helpers for the various checkpoints we'll extend out the number of teams.

Before I get into how you register, we're changing the format of the race a little this year... a couple of things you should know about this year's race compared to last:

The race will encompass more of Seattle than last year.

There will be more challenges, and more harder challenges.

There won't be as many drinks this year, for most of the teams. We found people were too shitfaced at the end of the last race. It'll be only slightly less, and more spread out.

The rules are yet to be finalised, however, in addition to each regular leg of the race this year, the first SIX teams to get to the penultimate checkpoint will enter the PUB RACE PLAYOFFS. These six teams will have an extra leg of the race to complete (with extra challenges) before the final leg, to determine the true Pub Race champions. Teams that don't qualify for the playoffs proceed directly to the last leg of the race.

The winner will be the first team from the six playoff teams to cross the finish line with all drinks and challenges completed.

How do I register?

You must register as a team. Email Jacob or Bobuhl!! (links on the right) with your team details - we need the names of the two people in the team, and a team name. The registered teams will be posted on this blog.

Where is the starting point this year?

Finn MacCool's Irish Pub. See more details on the Date / Time section up the top on the right.

Will there be merch again this year?

Yes, details to come.

Get me a beer!
OK, head over here.

Any other q's? Post a comment or e-mail us :)

April Fools!

2007-04-02T13:14:00.001-07:00

Hehe just kidding.... April Fools :)

To everyone who mailed me back offline upset about it being away from Seattle, you may rest assured the race will be run around the metro area of Seattle.

There's only 6 short weeks until the race, and we plan to open registration towards the end of this week once we've got things a bit more nailed down.

Updates

2007-04-01T20:40:00.000-07:00

Just wanted everyone to have a bit of an update here... planning is going very well indeed. We have some excellent ideas planned, and have also named a starting location.....

Doolins Irish Pub! in Vancouver!

Take I-5 north a couple of hours into Vancouver, and it's on Nelson St in the heart of the city.

We're going international this time around!!

Stay tuned for more details as they come to hand....

There's always a sequel

2007-02-16T16:24:00.000-08:00

Yes, the hype is true. The pub race is BACK! The coming of summer this year will be welcomed in much anticipation in late spring by nothing other than the 2nd Seattle Pub Race.

Stepping up to the plate this year, my good mate Bobuhl (pronounced with exuberance, as "bob-oo-lay!") is going to help me plan this one out. We've learnt a lot about running a race around Seattle from the last race, such as two key points: 1) make sure all the bloody pubs are open, and 2) make sure the last pub is a boozer so we don't all get kicked out!

That said, keep this date free:

Saturday May 12th, 2007

It's back... start to get ready folks!

More Photos

2006-09-16T13:44:00.000-07:00

One of the teams, Wes & Scott have been kind enough to share their photos of the day with everyone.

Hooray for booze!

This looks like the first photographic account of the day's events & challenges that I've seen since the race. If any other teams wish to share their photos, please e-mail the links to either me or Teresa and we'll put them up :)

Photos

2006-09-13T11:37:00.000-07:00

I know a lot of you, especially those on the race, and now cringing at the thought of drunken photos of yourselves, but also mixed with similar feelings of excitement about seeing your fellow racers completely rat-arsed around the city :-)

You've all been waiting so patiently, believe me, the wait was worth it :-)

If you guys have any other photos you want put online, feel free to mail them to me. Thanks again to Teresa (good on ya Tezza!) for helping me organise the race and to you guys, the proud drunken racers, it was awesome to be able to bring this Aussie tradition over here and make it a huge success :)

We're looking to do this twice a year, in Spring and Autumn, so watch out around May-ish for the next installment of the pub race where Justin & Marques defend their championship!

And the winner is...

2006-09-11T09:23:00.000-07:00

The day started off with a slight problem - on the way to the starting point we passed the first pub, and it was closed! A quick phone call to a less-than-sober pub-owner giving him a bit of a heart-starter saying there's 50 people coming by woke him up promptly and things were underway.

The race was very very close, everyone was running and doing vodka shots trying to fight for first place. However, at the end of the day, the winners were Marques and Justin!

Followed in 2nd place by Stina and Ben.

Thank you very much to all the teams that participated, we certainly had fun organising the race and seeing you lot run around the city like drunken hooligans :-) I'm slowly piecing together photos from everyone, so watch this space for links to people's photo albums from the day!

Here's what's up for grabs

2006-08-29T22:32:00.000-07:00

First placed team gets the trophies, 2nd gets the medals!

The race is now just over one week away! The course and challenges have been planned, we hope you've been training :-)

Announcing, the starting point!

2006-08-17T20:33:00.000-07:00

The pub race has been slotted in to start at 12:30pm at FX McRory's Pub at the south end of Pioneer Square. The address is 419 Occidental Avenue South, but fear not, there are directions to the pub on their website.

We feel it pertinent you all eat before embarking upon this drinking mission - so order some lunch while you're at the pub - and probably best with soft drink, you'll have enough booze over the course of the afternoon! The race should kick off about 2pm.

We would like to go on record by saying that team costumes or uniforms are definitely encouraged... feel free to pad up like these blokes on the last race...

Howzat?!

Or, if that's not your thing - order a T-shirt! (See below)

Race Swag

2006-08-14T13:23:00.000-07:00

The race and challenges have been been pretty much planned out, and we are all set to go for the 9th of September.

For those that are interested too, we're going to be printing T-shirts (see attached). These will cost about $15ea and will ensure your immortalised coolness for not only race day but for eons to come. These are purely an on-demand item, so I'm only going to get enough shirts printed for teams that _really_ want them. There's a pretty long turn-around for printing and shipping compared to the number of days before the race (only 26!) so at the end of this week i'll be placing the order.

If you would like your team to be decked out on the day, please let me know ASAP and i'll arrange for shirts to be printed for you guys. They can come in pretty much any size, so let me know what size too.

And if you haven't got your team in yet, now's the time!

Teams

2006-07-20T10:30:00.000-07:00

...and for all of you who are analyzing the order, thinking your team deserves to be higher because of either (a) drinking prowess and proven ability or (b) sheer coolness, stop. The order doesn't mean a damn thing.

Keep in mind, team outfits are not required, but will affect your team's coolness points.

Marques & Justin

Meredith & Ann

Dana & Justin

Ragan & Craig

Matt & Chris

Ming & Matt

Stina & Ben

Tony & Gint

Rick & Rhyan

Divya & Gautam

Hanna & Jin

Dan & Mike

Cary & Bob

Andrea & Brian

Farah & (?)

Chris & Jordan

Ross & Jenny

Jason & Liam

Wes T & Andrea

Wes C & Scott

The Amazing Pub Race!

2006-07-11T11:26:00.000-07:00

The what now?
You read correctly, The Amazing Pub Race. This is an event that was organised a few times back in Australia, and while the summer's about I want to run it here too.

If you've heard of and like the Amazing Race, then you're going to love the Amazing Pub Race.

The race is run in teams of two from a known starting point, proceeding from pub to pub, stopping at various checkpoints and completing numerous challenges along the way. You only know where you're going next once you reach a given checkpoint. Basically it’s a day of running around the place drunk and having fun.

Your organisers
Jacob Lucas and Teresa Batten. If you have any questions you should contact either of us.

This is a fantastic idea! When is it?!
As of now, the race is slotted in to be run on Saturday September 9th, start times and location to be announced.

What are the rules?

You have to get around on foot or by public transport. No designated drivers, taxis, bicycles, scooters, skateboards, or any other kind of transport are allowed.

Yes, this means hitchiking isn't allowed either ;)

Drinks must be proved, if you can't prove it, it doesn't count.

Drinks must be FINISHED - no dregs!

A pint of beer or stronger-than-normal shot / drink doesn't equal 2 standard drinks. We consider this ways of getting more drunk if you want to.

Teams cannot separate. All drinks and challenges must be completed as a team.

No pissing in public.

All drinks and challenges in each leg of the race must be completed in that leg of the race before proceeding onto the next.

How you complete a task is up to you, but you must follow all of the above rules.

Breaking of any of these rules gets your team disqualified and infinite ridicule.

The winner is the first team across the line with all drinks and challenges completed.

Teams

Teams consist of 2 people and will be posted here as they sign up.

Random Questions

Who can sign up?

Anyone! Tell all your friends. The list here will be the definite list of teams. We'll be capping the race at 20 teams.

How do I sign up?

Email the organisers, it's that simple.

Do I have to drink?

To be eligible to win, yes. But you can complete the race for fun if you want to.

How much drinking am I expected to do?

As a general rule this is about 2 drinks per pub. The total is about 13 drinks for guys, and a few less for girls, but this will be spread over the whole race, with much running around to sober you up. You should be ok.

What do I need to bring?

As a minimum: A backpack, lots of water, a mobile phone, a notepad and pen, a camera of sorts, sunscreen and a hat if it's sunny, and your bus pass. Your team will need these items over the course of the race.

How do I know what pubs I need to go to?

You find out once you reach each checkpoint. We'll give you a list of pubs to go to and challenges to complete.

What constitues a drink?

A drink is considered a middy of beer, or one standard shot of >30% alcohol. This includes scotches, bourbons, tequilas, and things like that. Midori, Baileys, and other "mixer" alcohols aren't allowed as there's not enough alcohol in them.

What Do I Wear?

Comfortable clothes. Make sure that you will be able to get into the various pubs in these clothes. We recommend sneakers because you may be doing some walking/running.

I'm weak and can't complete the race. What do I do?

Phone ahead and forfeit, meet us at the finish line so we can all point and laugh.

My teammate has had too much and can't keep going, can we continue?

Yes, you can drink for your teammate to support him/her and continue on the race - it's a team effort to win!

More information will be posted here in due course, but sign up now!

*** DISCLAIMER: Your own drunkenness is your own fault. Not ours :-) Anything you do to hurt yourself or others is not our responsibility!