The Iron Jay is back! For those that don’t know what the Iron Jay Challenge is, it is a fitness challenge that happens annually at Elizabethtown College. It began in 2012, and according to Director of the Bowers Center for Sports, Fitness and Well-being Whitney Crull, the Iron Jay can be best described as “a fitness challenge ran by the Employee Wellness Team, that is open to all Etown students, faculty and staff.”

This challenge may seem intimidating, but rest assured, it is impossible to do in one sitting. The Iron Jay Challenge goes on from Oct. 1 to Dec. 10. The nice thing about the Iron Jay Challenge is that, according to Crull, “ach participant tracks their own physical activity throughout the fall semester to complete either a Full Jay (140.6 miles) or a Half Jay (70.3 miles).”

So, you might be thinking: miles? Is there a specific way I am supposed to achieve those miles? 

It does not matter how you achieve the miles, as Crull says, “Participants can choose to use any form of physical fitness such as walking, running, swimming, biking, fitness classes, sports, stretching and more, to use towards their ‘miles.’  Prizes are awarded to those that complete either the Full Jay or Half Jay.”

If you are thinking that the Iron Jay might be a little too much, or if you want to start logging your miles, one other fitness challenge exists that can satisfy miles, or just a challenge if you are up for it. That challenge is called The DeArment Classic. 

“The Diane DeArment Classic is a fall bike ride which meets at Lebanon Valley Rails to Trails Lawn Trailhead and rides to Mt. Gretna and back with a lunch in between.  This has been a long standing event with the Employee Wellness Team, but has been renamed this year to honor an Employee Wellness Team member and employee of the College that passed away recently,” Crull explained. 

This challenge is approximately 10 miles long (round trip). The DeArment Classic is on Saturday, Oct. 23 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.