WEEK ONE: RACING TO REYKJAVIK

hawkins410

Congratulations Amazing Racers!
If you have made it to the Starting Line in Leavenworth, you are now ready race across Canada, over half the Atlantic, and end the first leg in
Reykjavik, Iceland!

The distance is 5621 miles and this will be the longest leg of the race!
We are headed around the world.
We have full teams!
So let’s go for it!

Why Iceland, you ask? For starters, just take a look at Iceland in the Fall:

Please enjoy the following two YouTube Videos to see around Iceland! The first video was made by the Icelandic Tourism board and is performed by a local Songwriter/Singer. Rated PG.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI52dp3r2o0

The commercial was so popular that tourists from all around the world copied it and imitated it! Rated G.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKtQUzipqbU&feature=youtu.be

In order to help you with your packing, here is a little instructional video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ano1nvxGADc&feature=youtu.be

Jules Verne made Iceland the beginning of his "Journey to the Center of the Earth" for a good reason! Iceland is situated right over the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, and the country is in the middle, or on top of, two tectonic plates.You can dive or walk through the rift!

A small island country, roughly the size of Kentucky, Iceland has approximately 323,000 residents, 94% of which are of Icelandic descent. Known as the “Land of Fire and Ice”, the country has over 10,000 glaciers, 130 volcanoes, and countless waterfalls

Luckily for us, they just cancelled the Katla Eruption Alert!

No journey is complete without at least one visit to a glacier!

Then there are the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis)! This is the best time of the year to see them!

CHALLENGE #1: “Let’s Say Halló in Iceland!” (10 pts.)

One of the first things that visitors mention when returning from Iceland, besides the wide open spaces and raw beauty, is the friendliness of the Icelanders. In a recent poll of countries in the world, they placed third on the “happiness” scale. They are a very well educated (school is paid for through college by the government!), healthy, and active bunch! Their food is mainly locally grown or fished fresh from the sea, and it is one of the most self-sustainable countries in the world, relying on local geothermal energy to heat the water that comes from their glaciers. No pollution! (Unless a volcano erupts, but that is a different story).


But many say the happiness is due to the strong social bonds they have:

Holding hands across the Mid-Atlantic Rift

Communal swimming in the natural hot springs (clothing optional in many of them):

Dancing together:

Helping your neighbors round up their sheep:

Even working together to stop a lava flow from destroying a town!

So, in the Spirit of Iceland, teams are going to say “Halló” to their teammates!
Many of you have already introduced yourselves, which is AWESOME,
so follow directions carefully.

1.Friend each of your teammates. If they don’t accept your request, try again. Make sure you put a heading in your request, such as “Amazing Race - Fall Fun!”, we are team mates! If after two tries over the course of the entire week, they do not reply, inform your Team Captain. YOU will NOT be penalized if you do not get an acceptance!

2. Tag @MissionEnforcer

3. State what town/province/state/country you are from and give a brief description of where you live (pictures are fun, but not necessary).

We have a multi-national group and we’d like to learn about you!
Halló!

CHALLENGE #2: “Drum to a Viking Beat!” (10 points)

In an underdog steal, Iceland was the smallest country to make it to the last 16 at Euro 2016. When they arrived back to Reykjavik, they were greeted by 10,000 enthusiastic fans (a large portion of the total Icelandic population!), who gathered to celebrate their success.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mFbsB6Qlaw&feature=youtu.be

Called “The Viking Chant” or “The Geyser Dance”, this combination of drum beating & hand clapping has become widely popular.

To earn your 10 credits for this challenge, try to follow along with the Viking Chant in the video above. Repeat two times (total of three). You should have the hang of it by then!

Next, we are going to our own Cardio Drumming! I chose this as our first physical challenge because I thought it might be a new form of exercise for many of you. It was for me, and I really got my heart pumping with it!

AS ALWAYS, YOU MAY MODIFY!! I don’t expect you to have a large exercise ball handy, nor do many of you have drumsticks readily available, so you can use a variety of whatever you DO have at hand. Pots and pans are good for holding balls. Pillows can go inside of baskets or plastic trashcans (I put weights in the bottom, so they don’t go flying when I beat them). You can even use the back of your couch! Instead of drumsticks, just clap your hands or use long spoons or wooden ladles! Improvise!!

This is an exercise in creativity, AND it is a great calorie burner.

PLUS IT IS REALLY FUN AND GETS THE HEART RATE GOING!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihA7ne5goEc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ASLnjUi72n8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4Ex_Zv4pbA

Over the next couple of days, try each video at least twice (each routine is approximately 3 minutes). Then, either repeat each video at least one more time, OR make up your OWN ROUTINE to your OWN MUSIC! May I suggest: “Jungle Drum by Emiliana Torrini”. That is the music in the intro videos.


To summarize:

[*] Viking Chant/Geyser Dance: Three times through
[*] YouTube Videos: 3 Videos, 2x each
[*] One routine to your own music and your own beat (or just repeat the 3 videos)

AS ALWAYS, YOU MAY COUNT THE MINUTES SPENT ON THE CHALLENGES TOWARD YOUR EXERCISE MILES/MINUTES!

CHALLENGE #3: “Fill Up at the Foss!” (5 points)

A Foss is a waterfall in Iceland. There are 10,000 glaciers and Iceland Waterfalls are perhaps the country's most recognizable series of attractions. They're everywhere! Its collection of waterfalls rivals any other country in sheer power and raw beauty. Use the following links to see falls that range from powerful and wide river-type monsters like Dettifoss, Gullfoss, and Goðafoss to tall and narrow ones like Glymur, Háifoss, and Hengifoss. Also, the country sports classic waterfalls such as the rectangular Skógafoss, unique waterfalls such as the trapezoidal Dynjandi, and even waterfalls imitated by art such as Svartifoss. Water, water, everywhere!!

The water is so good and pure on Iceland that you can drink it out of the tap, out of the hose, or straight from one of the fosses.
So, we are going to drink it up!

To earn your five points for this challenge, you need to drink one-half your bodyweight in ounces per day, for at least 5 out of the 7 days this week.

For example, if you weigh 160 pounds, you will drink 80 ounces of water, or 10 cups of water a day, for at least 5 days. We realize it is not as easy to drink as much water in the cooler temperatures of the fall as it was during the summer, so if you weigh more than 200 pounds, you may stop after 100 ounces. It is a good suggestion to drink at least 8 ounces as soon as you get up because your body has become dehydrated overnight. Then sip throughout the day! Guzzling is not suggested!

Points for this challenge can not be given until at least Friday.
You know, 5 out of 7 days.

So, as they say in Iceland,
“Skál”!

Oh, I almost forgot! There are no McDonald's in Iceland! No wonder they are so healthy there.