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AORE Campus Challenge Began at Lees McRae College on Monday, Sept. 16 through Oct. 13

After landing in second place in the Southeast region and 21st overall in 2017, Lees-McRae has once again been selected to join fellow colleges and universities across the nation competing for the coveted title of National Outdoor Champion.

The challenge, which begins on Monday, Sept. 16 and lasts until Sunday, Oct. 13, “is a Mother-Nature-meets-March-Madness competition with 98 schools from across the country going head-to-head for four weeks to see who can get the most people outside and active,” according to the AORE Campus Challenge website.

The challenge asks participants to download the Campus Challenge app and track their activities for points. The school with the most logged outdoor activities (points) wins the title of National Outdoor Champion. Other recognitions and prizes include Outsider of the Year, regional winners, recognition awards, and free gear.

Additional competition brackets with Lees-McRae student, faculty, staff, alumni, parents, and High Country community member divisions will also be ongoing throughout the competition.

Just a few of the outdoor activities that can be tracked in the app include biking (of all types), camping, climbing (both indoor and outdoor), fishing, hiking, outdoor service projects, running (of all types), hammocking, skateboarding, slacklining, walking, and yoga.

Each activity must take place for a minimum of 30 minutes and have occurred between Sept. 16 and Oct. 13.  

AORE, the Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education, “is the premier organization dedicated to serving the needs of recreation and education professionals in non-profit settings. Through AORE, members have a mechanism to interact with and affect decisions made by public land managers and the human powered outdoor recreation industry. AORE is committed to promoting ecologically sound stewardship of the natural environment and serves as a collective voice for its members regarding topics of regional and national concern,” according to the website.

For updates throughout the competition, follow the Lees-McRae Outdoor Challenge Instagram or like the Lees-McRae College Outdoor Campus Challenge 2019 Facebook