Holiday Challenge 2019
November 28–December 24
The Details
Row, ski and/or ride 100,000 meters or 200,000 meters from November 28 to 11:59 p.m. December 24.
Indoor rower, SkiErg and BikeErg meters only (no on water/on snow meters please). You can combine meters from each machine to reach the challenge goal. Note: BikeErg meters are counted as half when applied to the challenge. Learn more about BikeErg meters below in How To Participate.
Support great causes with your meters! Read about this year’s charities below.
This is an individual challenge. Teams are not used for this challenge.
The Kids' Holiday Challenge allows kids (aged 16 and under) to participate at 50,000 meters.
Adaptive athletes can choose to participate at the 50k, 100k, or 200k levels.
Deadline for entering meters: 11:59 pm GMT (6:59 pm ET), January 4th.
Daily Workout Calendar
New for this year, we've created a day-by-day calendar of suggested workouts to help you complete your goal.
Holiday Challenge Charities
There's also a charitable giving aspect to the Holiday Challenge. Here's how it works: For every person who rows, skis or rides 100k during the challenge, Concept2 will donate $.02 per kilometer (1000 meters) to your choice of this year's charities. Once you get beyond 100k, we'll donate $.04 per additional kilometer. In order for your meters to count, however, you must choose a charity from the front page of your Logbook (or select "Let Concept2 Choose" if you don't have a preference). For kids and adaptive participants, the $.04 rate will take effect at 50k. Note: BikeErg meters count for half the distance when calculating your Holiday Challenge meters and any related donation.
Thank you for all your hard work for the 2018 challenge. See the following table for a breakdown of how much you all raised.
CharityAmount DonatedKafue River Rowing$7,491.49Protect Our Winters$14,005.71World Bicycle Relief$15,935.32Little Bellas$7,567.49
Making Additional Donations
Many of you have asked about donating personally to the charities selected for the Holiday Challenge. For those of you interested, we ask that you please send your donations directly to the charities. You can find information on how to donate on each charity's site (see links above). Thank you for your generosity!
How To Participate
You must have an Online Logbook at concept2.com (it's FREE!) and all of your meters must be entered into your Online Logbook. If you don't already have one, visit the Online Logbook home page and follow the directions to register. Kids' Challenge participants need to set up an individual logbook (using a parent's email address is fine).
Choose your charity from the main Logbook page. This will be available to do from mid-November and can be done at any point before the end of the challenge. Note: It's possible to choose either "Do Not Donate" or "Let Concept2 Choose" as an option. People who do not choose a charity will not be eligible for a pin if they reach 200,000m
Under the Profile tab, enter your current mailing address. This is to ensure we have your correct mailing address for mailing your pin (see below for how to qualify).
After your workout, record your meters in your Online Logbook. Note: BikeErg meters are counted as half when applied to the challenge, so a BikeErg workout of 40,000m would give you 20,000m towards your challenge score. This is done automatically, so if entering workouts manually in the Logbook, please enter them as normal.
Visit the Challenges page in your Online Logbook. When you've reached your goal, the Challenges page of the Online Logbook automatically recognizes your achievement and displays instructions for claiming your rewards.
Incentives and Rewards
The incentives and rewards available depend on which goal you achieve. Note: BikeErg meters are counted as half when applied to the challenge.
Level 1
Participants who complete 100,000 meters are entitled to the following incentives and rewards:
A free downloadable certificate of achievement
Access to the Holiday Challenge shop through our third-party fulfillment vendor (availability varies by country)
Level 2
Participants who complete 200,000 meters or kids and adaptive athletes who complete 50,000 meters are entitled to the following incentives and rewards:
A free downloadable certificate of achievement
A free Holiday Challenge pin: Pins are sent to the address on file in your Online Logbook. Please ensure you have entered your full name and a valid/complete mailing address and chosen a charity by the end of January 4 GMT in order to receive your pin. Pins will ONLY be sent to people who have a full and complete address and have chosen a charity (or chosen "Let Concept2 Choose" or "Do Not Donate"). Please note that pins will be shipped in mid-January, after the Jan. 4 deadline for entering challenge meters. Allow 6-8 weeks for delivery.
Access to the Holiday Challenge shop through our third-party fulfillment vendor
Preparing for the Holiday Challenge
If completing 100,000 or 200,000 meters in a month is a new challenge for you, here are some ideas to help you prepare:
Don't be intimidated! Every year people who have never completed long distances complete the challenge.
Gradually build your workout time. Try adding an extra 1000 meters per day, especially if you don't usually complete 7000 meters at a time.
If you don't usually workout every day, try working out for several days in a row. The workouts can be short, but see how it feels to row/ski/ride more often.
Keep some stretching in your routine or add it if you haven't been doing it regularly.
Think about when you will fit your extra Holiday Challenge workouts into your schedule. If it requires you to workout at a different time of day than usual, try it out ahead of time to see how it feels.
Plan ahead so that you can make up any missed meters due to travel or other commitments.
Pace yourself! Many people have commented that the Holiday Challenge pushed them to do more than they ever thought they could, and it felt great! On the other hand, it is not wise to make a sudden jump in the amount of rowing/skiing/riding you do, so keep this in mind. You can build your daily meters gradually, even during the challenge itself.