The Challenge Factory discussion

Choose your race:
Signing up for your race is the easy, exciting part of it all. The task for this section is to read one book for the race you choose. It should be a book that puts you in your happy place!

Relay teams must run the same marathon together. Each relay team member must read a book to complete this section. Neither team member can proceed with training until both members complete this section.

Choose from among the popular races listed here.

1. Big Sur International Marathon in Big Sur, California - read a book set in California, or that has a MC who comes from California, or with an author who has three letters from the words BIG SUR INTERNATIONAL in their name.
2. New York Marathon in New York, New York - read a book set in New York City, or that has a MC who comes from New York, or with an author who has three letters from the words NEW YORK CITY in their name.
3. Chicago Marathon in Chicago, Illinois - read a book set in Chicago, or that has a MC who comes from Chicago, or with an author who has three letters from the words CHICAGO ILLINOIS in their name.
4. London Marathon in London, England - read a book set in London, or that has a MC who comes from London, or with an author who has three letters from the words LONDON ENGLAND in their name.
5. Paavo Nurmi Marathon in Turku, Finland - read a book set in Finland, or that has a MC who comes from Finland, or with an author who has three letters from the words PAAVO NURMI in their name.
6. Berlin Marathon - read a book set in Berlin, or that has a MC who comes from Berlin, or with an author who has three letters from the words BERLIN GERMANY in their name.
7. Tokyo Marathon - read a book set in Tokyo, or that has a MC who comes from Tokyo, or with an author who has three letters from the words TOKYO JAPAN in their name.
8. Paris Marathon - read a book set in Paris, or that has a MC who comes from Paris, or with an author who has three letters from the words PARIS FRANCE in their name.
9. Dublin Marathon - read a book set in Dublin, or that has a MC who comes from Dublin, or with an author who has three letters from the words DUBLIN IRELAND in their name.
10. Rome Marathon - read a book set in Rome, or that has a MC who comes from Rome, or with an author who has three letters from the words ROME ITALY in their name.
11. Athens Marathon - read a book set in Greece, or that has a MC who comes from Greece, or with an author who has three letters from the words ATHENS GREECE in their name.
12. Great Wall Marathon - read a book set in China, or that has a MC who comes from China, or with an author who has three letters from the words GREAT WALL in their name.
13. Marine Corps Marathon - read a book set during any war, or that has a MC who is a Marine, or with an author who has three letters from the words MARINE CORPS in their name.
14. Grandma's Marathon - read a book set in Minnesota, or that has a MC who is a grandma, or with an author who has three letters from the words DULUTH MINNESOTA in their name.

Task Completed

Race chosen: Dublin Marathon
Book& Author: Normal People by Sally Rooney
Date Read: 2,22,23
How it fits: set in Dublin

You're ready to gear up and start training! You must read one book for each kind of training run to complete this section. Relay teams may divide the tasks between them as they see fit.
After these 4 books are completed, roll a single die for your next prompt. Relay teams only roll once for the team.

https://www.random.org/dice/

Your four kinds of training runs are:
1. Regular runs. The base of your training where you just go out and rack up miles. You may read any book you like to complete your regular run.

2. Intervals. These are speed workouts. Either read a book in 24 hours -OR- read a mystery/thriller that gets your heart racing to complete this run.

3. Hill Repeats. These build leg strength. Read a book that pushes your boundaries - whether it's a different genre, longer than your usual, or demanding in some other way (your interpretation - tell us how).

4. Long Runs. These build endurance. Read a book that is at least 300 pages long to complete this run.

COMPLETED THIS SET

Your four kinds of training runs are:
√1. Regular runs. The base of your training where you just go out and rack up miles. You may read any book you like to complete your regular run. Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng 3.2.23

√2. Intervals. These are speed workouts. read a mystery/thriller that gets your heart racing to complete this run. Death's Dark Valley by Paul Doherty 2.25.23

√3. Hill Repeats. These build leg strength. Read a book that pushes your boundaries - whether it's a different genre, longer than your usual, or demanding in some other way (your interpretation - tell us how). I'm a history buff but for some reason not interested in Mesoamerican history - but, I read this book - it wasn't bad! tho I did almost make it DNF a few times:) Victors and Vanquished: Spanish and Nahua Views of the Conquest of Mexico by Stuart B. Schwartz 2.26.23

√4. Long Runs. These build endurance. Read a book that is at least 300 pages long to complete this run. The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict 3.4.23 338 pages

Way to go Denise! Now that these 4 books are completed, roll a single die for your next prompt. Be sure to set the app to just one die, as I only have results for 1 through 6.

https://www.random.org/dice/

Roll of one die revealed: 5

5 = You get a horrible cold during your training and have to take it easy for a few weeks. You can run minimally, but you'll heal faster if you truly rest and let yourself get better first. Spell out FRUSTRATED -or- read a book where a MC has to put off a large task in order to recover from an illness (say who and what).

Erica wrote: "5 = You get a horrible cold during your training and have to take it easy for a few weeks. You can run minimally, but you'll heal faster if you truly rest and let yourself get better first. Spell o..."

I'd like to read the book where the MC has to put off a large task due to illness - and I'm looking at book synopses to see if I can find any -until then, I'll start the spell out and if I get halfway through that before I find the book I'll stick with the spell out.

For spell outs, you may use the author's first or last initial or the first letter of the book's title (you may opt to ignore a, an and the in a title).

COMPLETED

Spell out FRUSTRATED

F - Finch, Charles (author) A Death in the Small Hours by Charles Finch 3.29.23
R - Rutherford Park by Elizabeth Cooke 4.14.23
U - The Unfortunate Englishman by John Lawton 4.7.23
S - Stagestruck by Peter Lovesey 3.16.23
T - This Time Next Year We'll Be Laughing: A Memoir by Jacqueline Winspear 3.10.23
R - Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt 4.17.23
A - Alexander, V. S. The War Girls 3.29.23
T - Turgenev, Ivan On the Eve 3.29.23
E - The Exiles by Christina Baker Kline 3.17.23
D - Denise Mina Exile by Denise Mina 3.13.23

I've completed the above set.

Your training is going well and you are ready to run some tune-up races! You will run three different kinds of races. Relay teams may divide the tasks between them as they see fit.
After these 6 books are completed, roll a single die for your next prompt. Relay teams only roll once for the team.

https://www.random.org/dice/

1. 5K Race. A short and fairly speedy race. Read a book of 200 pages or less in a single day -OR- read a book of over 200 pages in two days to complete this race .

2. 10K Race. A bit more effort and taxes the body more. Read two books that are over 200 pages long to complete this race.

3. Half marathon. The half marathon is a demanding event that is a good indicator of your overall training. Read three series books to complete this race. The books do not have to be from the same series.

Erica wrote: "

Your training is going well and you are ready to run some tune-up races! You will run three different kinds of races. Relay teams may divide the tasks between them as they see fit.
After these 6..."

Thank you Erica!

COMPLETED

√1. 5K Race. A short and fairly speedy race. Read a book of 200 pages or less in a single day Aristotle and an Aardvark Go to Washington: Understanding Political Doublespeak Through Philosphy and Jokes by Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein 4.18.23

2. 10K Race. A bit more effort and taxes the body more. Read two books that are over 200 pages long to complete this race.

1. Sonechka and Other Stories by Lyudmila Ulitskaya 4.26.23 448 pages
2. The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson 4.28.23 309 pages

3. Half marathon. The half marathon is a demanding event that is a good indicator of your overall training. Read three series books to complete this race. The books do not have to be from the same series.

1. But For The Grace by Peter Grainger 4.22.23 D.C. Smith Series #2
2. Seeing a Large Cat by Elizabeth Peters 4.23.23 Amelia Peabody series #9
3.Precious and Grace by Alexander McCall Smith 5.2.23 No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series #17

Ready for the next part!

After these 6 books are completed, roll a single die for your next prompt.

https://www.random.org/dice/

Erica wrote: "After these 6 books are completed, roll a single die for your next prompt.

https://www.random.org/dice/"

rolled a 5

5 = You get stuck behind a group of friends running a race together so you have to spend more energy to get around them - only to run into another set of friends soon thereafter. Spell out BLOCKADE -or- read a book where the MC experiences a serious blockage in his or her plan (say what it is), or with the word Block(s) or Blocked in the title.

read a book where the MC experiences a serious blockage in his or her plan (say what it is)

In Two Leaps Across a Chasm: A Russian Mystery by Nikolai Aleksandrov 5.6.23, Yuri Kirilov is blocked in many ways from getting to his friend Orlovsky who had called him from a city far away and asked he meet him in front of a certain hotel at a certain time. Kirilov takes a flight to this city and proceeds in a taxi to the hotel. However, the streets are all blocked around the hotel because of a major traffic accident and it takes him a very long time to get to the front (this accident we discover later is related to a problem his friend is having but his friend was not in the accident). He waits for a couple hours and his friend does not show. He is grabbed by a person he does not know and is finagled into getting a room in the hotel. The room turns out to be the one his friend was staying in but his friend is no longer there. He finds a spent bullet and worries, trying to figure out how to find his friend. A Party militia comes to the room to seemingly arrest him but through a complication they don't and he is given another room he has to share with a man who later turns out to be with another militia. This book was written when Yeltsin became the head of the government in Russia and there are so many militias and conflicting heads of departments it is a big confusion. The book follows this confusion and Kirilov continues to be blocked from finding his friend from various departments of govt and militias. Finally he does find his friend and is able to get him back to Moscow.

You have done all of the hard work getting ready for your event. It's the night before the race - now you just need to set up for tomorrow and get out there and do it! To complete this section, read one book for each task. Relay teams may divide the tasks between them as they see fit.
After these 5 books are completed, roll a single die for your next prompt. Relay teams only roll once for the team.

https://www.random.org/dice/

1. Race expo - most marathons have a large expo where lots of running gear is sold - read a book where a character goes to or works at an expo.
2. Pasta dinner - read a book where the MC cooks or eats a lot of pasta.
3. Set your alarm - read a book that is alarming to you in some way (explain how).
4. Lay out your clothes - read a book where the MC is a real clothes hound.
5. Morning ritual (beverage, food, gear) - read a book where any character has a set ritual for something that they always do (explain what).

√1. Race expo - most marathons have a large expo where lots of running gear is sold -
---read a book where a character goes to or works at an expo. Sam Mazur, one of the partners of a digital game company, attends and works at a Gaming Expo in Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin 5.17.23

√2. Pasta dinner -
----read a book where the MC cooks or eats a lot of pasta.
Robert cooks a lot of pasta for his partner because she is "starving" after a full afternoon of tough dance rehearsal for a performance. Rupture by Ragnar Jónasson 6/1/23

√3. Set your alarm -
---read a book that is alarming to you in some way (explain how).
Hate Is My Neighbor by Tom Alibrandi 5.8.23 - This book has many depictions of hate groups, white supremacists, fascist which are very alarming. It is chilling to read of the hate and prejudice these people have for others in the United States. Killing, blowing up houses - and so much violence all in the name of so-called "racial purity" Alarming, to say the least.

√4. Lay out your clothes -
==== read a book where the MC is a real clothes hound. A main charahter, Estella Stadler, is a real clothes hound in The Secret, Book & Scone Society by Ellery Adams 5.25.23

√5. Morning ritual (beverage, food, gear) -
==== read a book where any character has a set ritual for something that they always do (explain what). Don Tillman in The Rosie Project 7.19.23 has a ritual for almost everything he does. One example is his Standardized Meal System whereby he shops for and cooks the same meal depending on the day of the week. He has the same meal plan for every Monday, another meal plan for every Tuesday, etc. His organizes his refrigerator: one shelf for each day of the week, plus storage spaces for common resources, alcohol, breakfast, etc. and stock data on the back of the door.

Hi Erica

Do you consider a World's Fair as an expo? I do but I thought I better check with you first.

Denise

Yes I think that's basically the ultimate in expos!

Erica wrote: "Yes I think that's basically the ultimate in expos!"

thank you!

Sorry to bother you again Erica! I need clarification, please. Is:

"Pasta dinner - read a book where the MC cooks or eats a lot of pasta."

meaning

MC cooks a lot of pasta or eats a lot of pasta or is it MC cooks (anything) OR eats a lot of pasta?

I hope that question made sense.

No worries! I meant an MC who cooks a lot of pasta or an MC who eats a lot of pasta. It's a very common prerace meal (carbo-loading).

Erica wrote: "No worries! I meant an MC who cooks a lot of pasta or an MC who eats a lot of pasta. It's a very common prerace meal (carbo-loading)."

got it! thanks again!

COMPLETED

√1. Race expo - most marathons have a large expo where lots of running gear is sold -
---read a book where a character goes to or works at an expo. Sam Mazur, one of the partners of a digital game company, attends and works at a Gaming Expo in Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin 5.17.23

√2. Pasta dinner -
----read a book where the MC cooks or eats a lot of pasta.
Robert cooks a lot of pasta for his partner because she is "starving" after a full afternoon of tough dance rehearsal for a performance. Rupture by Ragnar Jónasson 6/1/23

√3. Set your alarm -
---read a book that is alarming to you in some way (explain how).
Hate Is My Neighbor by Tom Alibrandi 5.8.23 - This book has many depictions of hate groups, white supremacists, fascist which are very alarming. It is chilling to read of the hate and prejudice these people have for others in the United States. Killing, blowing up houses - and so much violence all in the name of so-called "racial purity" Alarming, to say the least.

√4. Lay out your clothes -
==== read a book where the MC is a real clothes hound. A main charahter, Estella Stadler, is a real clothes hound in The Secret, Book & Scone Society by Ellery Adams 5.25.23

√5. Morning ritual (beverage, food, gear) -
==== read a book where any character has a set ritual for something that they always do (explain what). Don Tillman in The Rosie Project 7.19.23 has a ritual for almost everything he does. One example is his Standardized Meal System whereby he shops for and cooks the same meal depending on the day of the week. He has the same meal plan for every Monday, another meal plan for every Tuesday, etc. He organizes his refrigerator: one shelf for each day of the week, plus storage spaces for common resources, alcohol, breakfast, etc. and stock data on the back of the door.

I rolled one dice and got 4

4 = You can't get your shoes tied comfortably - they either feel too tight or too loose, so you keep obsessively retying them. Spell out SHOELACES -or- read a book where shoelaces are mentioned.

COMPLETED


shoelaces - "I was tying my shoelaces when Martha Simone called me to see how I was doing on protecting Felix." p. 372 Shell Game: The V. I. Warshawski Series by Sara Paretsky 7.24.23

Rolled one die and got 5

Actually, you are on to your next prompt! There is one more die roll after you finish this one though. Good luck!



Today is the big day!! You have worked long and hard for this. To complete this section, read one book for each task. Relay teams may divide the tasks between them as they see fit.
After these 4 books are completed, roll a single die for your next prompt. Relay teams only roll once for the team.

https://www.random.org/dice/

1. Early miles: Smiling - at the beginning of a marathon everyone is generally very excited and happy because today is the BIG DAY. Read a book where one or more characters are very excited and happy about an event. Say what the event is.
2. Mid miles: This is getting hard - as the race miles build up, most runners start to experience some fatigue. The body definitely sends signals that it is working much harder. Read a book where a character gets into a situation that becomes progressively more difficult as time wears on. Say what the situation is.
3. 20 miles: Why did I sign up for this??? There is often a point in a marathon where runners begin to doubt themselves and have serious second thoughts about what in the world they are doing out there. Read a book where a character has serious self doubt about a course of action they have set out on. Say what it is.
4. Race finish: Exhultation, hunger and exhaustion. You have DONE IT! At the end of a marathon you are depleted of all energy stores but also ecstatic because of your accomplishment. Read a book where a character completes some monumental effort and is now wiped out but also happy. Say what it is.
5. (optional - after your die roll is complete...) Sign up for another race! Lots of runners feel a let down after the intense cycle of training for and running a marathon. One common result is that many will start looking for their next race challenge shortly after their marathon finish. If you are among this infected group, simply go back to Section I and start again!

Thank you for writing this challenge it was fun!




√1. Early miles: Smiling - at the beginning of a marathon everyone is generally very excited and happy because today is the BIG DAY.

Read a book where one or more characters are very excited and happy about an event. Say what the event is. In Good Night, Irene by Luis Alberto Urrea 9.28.23, Irene and Dorothy have volunteered for the Red Cross during World War II. Their duties are to dispense coffee and donuts in the European Theater of the war - even on the front lines! After training they wait in England for their "Clubmobile" wherein they will be making the donuts and coffee to dispense. Finally, the day arrives they get their Clubmobile, named Rapid City - they are very excited and happy to start their journey.


√2. Mid miles: This is getting hard - as the race miles build up, most runners start to experience some fatigue. The body definitely sends signals that it is working much harder.

Read a book where a character gets into a situation that becomes progressively more difficult as time wears on. Say what the situation is. In Like Never Before by Ehud Havazelet 7.27.23, Birnbaum goes to visit his son David - he just calls and says he is coming and to pick him up at the airport the next day at noon. He and his son have barely been in speaking terms since his son's high school days.Birnbaum is disappointed in his son for many reasons, two of which are: he keeps marrying non-Jewish women, he squandered his change of being a highly successful architecct. Birnbaum thinks everything will be ok because he has bought travel brochures and is going to pay for David, his family and himself to wonderful destination - anywhere in the world they want to go. Birnbaum is picked up at the airport but immediately feels his son's disdain and quickly thinks its been a terrible idea and he wants to go home. He persists and goes to David's home, where things go from bad to worse until David mocks his father for thinking he can take them somewhere without consulting their schedules, their needs and desires. Birnbaum returns home the next day.


√3. 20 miles: Why did I sign up for this??? There is often a point in a marathon where runners begin to doubt themselves and have serious second thoughts about what in the world they are doing out there.

Read a book where a character has serious self doubt about a course of action they have set out on. Say what it is. in Winterkillby Ragnar Jonasson, 7.26.23, Ari Thor has many self doubts - about staying in the small village in northern Iceland to work as a police inspector, about being a recently promoted police inspector during an investigation into a possible suicide or murder, self doubt about spending time with his ex-girlfriend with whom he shares a son, self doubt about seeing a woman that he had a less than pleasant experience with years earlier. Ari Thor is full of self doubts.


√4. Race finish: Exhultation, hunger and exhaustion. You have DONE IT! At the end of a marathon you are depleted of all energy stores but also ecstatic because of your accomplishment.

Read a book where a character completes some monumental effort and is now wiped out but also happy. Say what it is.
In The Coffin Dancer by Jeffrey Deaver 9.23.23, the MCs Lincoln Rhyme and Sachs set out to catch a long-wanted and vicious criminal nicknamed the Coffin Dancer. The effort is monumental as they have tried to capture, outwit and outlast him before but another chance has arisen that they might do so. Through so many series of him and days and days of outwitting them and them outwitting him, near misses, twisted identities, frustrations, murders, - they finally catch him.


5. (optional - after your die roll is complete...) Sign up for another race! Lots of runners feel a let down after the intense cycle of training for and running a marathon. One common result is that many will start looking for their next race challenge shortly after their marathon finish. If you are among this infected group, simply go back to Section I and start again!

You have one more die roll...

https://www.random.org/dice/

(I admit this is somewhat backwards but it's how it turned out)

Erica wrote: "You have one more die roll...

https://www.random.org/dice/

(I admit this is somewhat backwards but it's how it turned out)"

do you mean there is another lap of the race or #5 optional is not optional??? Sorry, I'm confused

I had one more spell out to finish it off (each section had a die roll).

Erica wrote: "I had one more spell out to finish it off (each section had a die roll)."

OK I got a 4

4 = A band at the 15-mile marker is playing one of your favorite songs and it really jazzes you up. Spell out ROCK-N-ROLL.

FINISHED 12.28.23


R - Ragnar Jonasson The Girl Who Died 10.10.23
O - Our Woman in Moscow by Beatriz Williams 10.18.23
C - Tracy Chevalier A Single Thread 11.30.23
K - William Kent Krueger Mercy Falls 10.28.23
N - Ngaio Marsh - Died in the Wool 10.8.23
R - Ruth Rendell Speaker of Mandarin 12.18.23
O - The Owl Always Hunts at Night by Samuel Bjørk 12.28.23
L - Lyndsay Faye The Gods of Gotham 11.5.23
L - Leena Lehtolainen My First Murder 11.9.23

FINISHED 12.28.23

CONGRATULATIONS!!! YOU FINISHED YOUR MARATHON!

Erica wrote: "CONGRATULATIONS!!! YOU FINISHED YOUR MARATHON!

"

Thank you!!