Urban Challenge

by Lori Hill

Think of this as Quizzo for athletes instead of barflies. Sporty but city-savvy types will excel in this scavenger hunt that combines high-tech hijinks, clever questions and serious strategy. Urban Challenge asks Philadelphians to test their knowledge of the city while thinking on their feet; the task is to find a total of 12 checkpoints after deciphering riddle-like clues. Teams of two have five hours to complete the race, on foot or using public transportation (this could be a serious liability in Philly), taking snapshots of themselves with a UC-provided digital camera to prove their presence at each checkpoint. This is not for the casual Philadelphia history buff. UC revels in the obscure and the tricky. Some of last year's checkpoints could stump a lifelong resident (the "Icelander" statue in Fairmount Park, locating a particular bench in Rittenhouse Square). Cheating is encouraged, though. Cell-phone calls, text messaging, asking people on the street for help, running in to the Free Library -- it's all legal. (And look out for someone called the "Skip Man"-- he's like a get-out-of-jail-free card to skip a checkpoint.) Play begins with a trivia contest at Dave and Buster's; the team with the most correct answers gets a head start. Winners of this (slightly geeky) endurance contest will get a free trip to New Orleans to compete in the November National Championships for $50,000. Urban Challenge helps benefit the National Prostate Cancer Coalition, which will be providing information and screenings on race day. And don't try sneaking off to play pinball at D&B's. They'll find you, you wimps.

Urban Challenge, Sat., June 21, 8:30 a.m. (registration begins at 7 a.m.), $75 per person, begins at Dave and Buster’s, 325 N. Columbus Blvd., 602-308-4868, www.urbanchallenge.com/philadelphia.

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