As mentioned earlier, Kim and I participated in the CitySolve Urban Race on Saturday as team Paff Finders.  We arrived at the Ginn Mill around 11:30 to get our registration finalized and to get more information on the race.  The event was supposed to start at noon, but I think the overwhelming number of teams pushed the start back a bit.  While registration was being finalized, they decided to have the costume contest, which was originally scheduled for after the race.  It came down to two guys dressed as Jolly Green Giants and two girls dressed as Octomoms.  The winner was decided by crowd applause, and it ended up being the Jolly Green Giants.  They had my vote.

Closer to 12:30 is when the race actually started.  All teams were gathered in the parking lot behind the Ginn Mill for some last minute rule reminders, more instructions, and our first puzzle of the day.  Two of the staff held up large pieces of paper with the following question on them.  Which movie was filmed in Denver?  Depending on the correct answer was the intersection that we had to go to to pick up packets containing the rest of our clues.

Kim and I both started looking for the answer online using our phones, which is totally allowed.  We started at the bottom of the list of answers and went up.  Unfortunately, the correct answer was the first one in the list, Die Hard 2, which was filmed in a large list of cities.  Once we had found the correct answer it was pretty obvious which intersection everyone was heading.  I guess we should have just followed the crowd, but we quickly made up time running past most of the walkers at the back of the pack.  Once at 22nd & Curtis, we grabbed our packet, and started walking while reading through the list of puzzle clues.  The remainder of the race would consist of solving the puzzles, going to the place in the answer, and getting a picture there with both of us in it.  You were only allowed to use your own feet and public transportation.  No taxis, cars, bikes, rollerblades, etc.  Kim and I decided early on to just run the entire thing, though it ended up being a little longer than expected.

Below are the clues that we had to answer, listed in the order they were given to us, but not the order that we solved or took our pictures.  If you click on each clue you can see our picture for each, except for #3, which we skipped.  Every team was allowed one skip.  We skipped this one due to it being on of the furthest points away from the starting location.

1. Rita can’t fine you at this meter…locate any Denver’s Road Home to end homelessness meters.
2. This one smells sweet…you’ll need to unscramble the 2 words below to find the 1-word vacation get away located in downtown.
   GOAL MAIN
3. Are you going to the fair? There’s a restaurant whose name is an herb in the Golden Triangle where Simon and Garfunkel would probably dine. (We skipped this one, the answer was Parsley & Bailey)
4. This one’s dy-no-mite! A 1970’s sitcom has the same name as a hamburger joint.  You must find the restaurant on Colfax to get credit for this one.
5. This one’s tasty…this CITYpoint is located within 3 blocks of Civic Center Park.  Complete the crossword below to find your next destination:
   (There was a 3 item crossword puzzle with the following clues)
   Any relatively small group of soldiers.
   Shortbread, lemon drop or chocolate chip; singular.
   US capital city.
6. You might need to clean this one up…head to the lounge in LoDo whose name suggests that you might cry if you did this to milk.  Once there you’ll need to check in with a CitySolve Creative Team Member and they’ll instruct you on what to do next.
7. DETOUR: Gold or Sold (choose one of these options below – you will NOT get extra for doing both)
   Gold – Take 3 different photos of the word “GOLD” written on any album cover.
   ~OR~
   Sold – Take 3 photos of 3 different “SOLD” signs.  “FOR SALE” signs will not count unless there is a “SOLD” sign on it.  Teams may NOT create the “SOLD” sign.
8. Wake me up before you go go…this restaurant, located within a 1/4 mile of Coors Field is probably the most often used as a function on an alarm clock.
9. Are you smarter than an 8th grader…figure out angle C of the isosceles triangle below (you’re doing 8th grade math).  Angle A equals 40 degrees and sides 1 and 2 are equal.  Take the answer to angle C THEN ADD Rockies’ Helton and Giambi’s jersey numbers THEN ADD 379 to find the numerical address located on 18th Street in downtown.
10. Nothing can stop…THE ANIMAL! It’s off to Commons Park where you’ll need to meet an Animal Fitness staff member in front of the park by the stone wall.  They will direct you through a fitness obstacle course.  When you’ve successfully completed each task make sure you take a photo of your team along with t he Animal Fitness staff member. You WILL have 2 photos.  If your team only has 1 photo, you will incur a 20 minute penalty.

There were also two bonus questions.  We solved the first one but not the second:

1. Find a license plate (does NOT have to be attached to a vehicle) that has the letters “C” and “S.” The letters needn’t be in consecutive order, but MUST be part of the actual license plate number.  You’ll receive 10 minutes off your time for completing this bonus.
2. Since Denver is a pretty active city your team needs to find ALL of the following:
   Sign that reads “hiking”
   3 people on bicycles
   Bumper sticker with “skiing” on it (must be a bumper sticker, but does not have to be on a vehicle)
   You’ll receive 15 minutes off your time for completing this bonus.

We had a little help from our friend Ken for some of the puzzles, which is also allowed.  By the time we reached #9, we had most of the clues solved and mapped.  So we just followed the map along the planned route and snapped pictures.  We solved the remaining in this order: 5, 1, 4, 7, 2, 6, 10, and finally 8.  Yesterday I calculated the total distance covered to be over 6.5 miles.  It was a tiring race, but well worth, especially when we arrived and finished in 3rd place!  There were nearly 100 teams, so this was a pretty solid performance, and it gets us free entry into the national championship in New Orleans if we decide to compete on Halloween weekend.  The winner there takes home $5,000.