Light that candle and celebrate because you all deserve it. A milestone year of creativity, chaos, and charity as we celebrated our 20th year, and look on to the FUTURE. Thank you for making CHIditarod XX epic!
$138,614
In Hunger-Fighting Fundraising
23,442
Pounds of Food Donated
19,535
Equivalent Meals!**
On February 17, 2025 we hit our $1 million milestone of money raised since our inception, but you guys KEPT GOING… more than $135,000 was raised to help make sure food insecurity is addressed in communities across Northern Illinois through our grant program. On race day, 60 teams dressed up, bribed, bonded and left with some pretty cool awards. 300 Volunteers signed-up and made CHIditarod XX happen.
Join us in congratulating our fabulous winners!
The Food Drive
First and foremost the CHIditarod’s purpose is to fight hunger, all of our teams must come with at least 69 lbs of food and/or toiletries (or $125 to buy the pound equivalent), but so many teams go above and beyond. This year we partnered with our friends at Nourishing Hope for the food drive portion of our event. CHIditarod XX collected enough food and funds to provide more than 19,535 meals for Chicago’s hungry. Thank you CHIditarod participants for being amazing all-stars and for making a difference in the lives of many, many people.
Food Drive Champions:
Hank You Very Much • 1,929 lbs
Not only did this team dress up as some hallmark characters played by America’s Dad, but they were the dad’s that stepped up! In their third year this team hustled to bring the pounds and take home the trophy!
Second Place:
The Chivengers • 1,050 lbs
Third Place:
Johnny’s Hockey Club • 534 lbs
An enormous THANK YOU to everyone for such a strong showing in our annual food drive. You help us make sure no Chicagoan goes hungry.
Epic Fundraising
Fundraising is the powerful force behind the CHIditarod Foundation’s hunger-fighting grant program. Expanding our reach to fight hunger across all of Northern Illinois last year, we have provided over $600,000 in grants to date to nonprofits who share in our mission to end hunger. This year our racers, volunteers, checkpoints, and organizers — with the help of their families, friends, and communities — raised more than $135,000 in support of this community grants program.
We will once again be able to support community-centered initiatives that address hunger, food scarcity, and education via the CHIditarod Grant Program. We have fundraised over $1,000,000 over the years thanks to the hard work of fundraising teams, combined with the generosity of the community and the care of people supporting one another, help us fulfill our mission to ensure everyone has access to food.
Fundraising Champions:
The Chidiots • $43,837
Deciding one 1st place fundraising trophy isn’t enough, the Chidiots returned with their ringer Emily Belke to out match us all with more than $15,000 dollars ahead of the next team, the Chidiots are truly the team to beat.
2nd Place Fundraising:
Nomeward Bound • $25,563
3rd Place Fundraising:
3GS&T • $15,508
4th Place Fundraising:
SixPack Attack • $8,944
Checkpoint Fundraising Champions:
Mundus Absurdus at Phyllis’s • $3,934
CHIditarod, The Race
Yes, CHIditarod is indeed still a timed race, and when it’s cold on the first weekend of March, it’s easy to stay cozy inside a checkpoint. These teams hustled to the finish with their eyes on the prize!
–These results are under review–
The Judges Call!
Best in Show: Friends from the Abyss (1797)
Dressed in handmade Mrs. Frizzle costumes, each one on theme with their presentation, the five Friends had five lessons set up, one for each Checkpoint. Scientists themselves, they presented the Judges with lessons on everything from the official state fossil of Illinois (the Tully Monster!) to outer space and more. With a cart top that flipped into a classroom, actual PowerPoint presentations, and bribes on each topic, Friends from the Abyss took us on the best possible ride on The Magic School Bus!
Best in Bribe: Nomeward Bound
The Raven hands you a large black egg. It begins pulsating in your hands. You fear opening it. Is that The Tell Tale Heart beating inside…? Fortunately, it contained no guts, but many punny gifts, including an Edgar Allen Wrench, Corvidarod stickers, an original, hand-written poem for each Checkpoint in old-school script, and more. The Nomes once again blew us away with their clever and detailed bribing skills
Best Costume: Fieri Godmothers
Eatin’ dishes and grantin’ wishes. This team didn’t skip a detail embodying the patron saint of restaurant workers, Guy Fieri. The iconic hair, flaming bowling shirts, and the award ceremony you could see their wings glowing on the dance floor – that’s what we think it means to eat and leave no crumbs.
Rookie of the Year: Jurassic Kart
This rookie team impressed us with how they played the game – hilarious inflatable dino costumes first got our attention, but their build really impressed us – down to the bloody goat in the mouth of their cart-mounted T-Rex. Along the way, they learned about Sabotage from a Judge and tied together a group of carts with their Caution tape. These first timers brought energy, enthusiasm, and humor and we look forward to seeing them back!
The Creative Arts Award for Use of Unusual Materials: The Chivengers
The Chivengers brought their pirate ship and Crow’s Nest to the event in spectacular fashion. From a perfectly curved hull, masterfully built and sealed, to the fine details of gold mullioned windows, we were happy to see this team hasn’t lost their touch when it comes to making duct tape magic!
Best Art Cart Champion: ChiditaDawgs
We knew it was a hot dog theme. We knew it entailed four carts. We knew it was big. And we were still blown away. This 20’ long Chicago dog made it into the Yard, and all the way to Phyllis plus three other Checkpoints. Beautifully built on the outside, it was a legit kitchen on the inside, slinging over 400 regular and veggie hot dogs all day long. Every time we think we’ve seen the biggest and best from The Secret Gentlemen’s Club, they manage to blow our minds once more.
Checkpoint’s Choice
Master Judges at each Checkpoint have the power to bestow a prize befitting of a specific kind of chaos, pageantry or just all around silliness.
Phyllis’s Musical Inn • Wigs Jacked for Jesus
The ladies came dressed to the nines this year as wonderfully cartoonish paper dolls. Everything was on theme, from the hand-drawn dress cutouts, to their purse-shaped bribes. With fantastically long eyelashes and gigantic foam wigs, they handed out their paper Birkin-bag gifts while showing off their on-theme manicures. We loved every detail!
Output Lounge • Sovereign Cartizens
This group of cheeky monkeys and their big bananas sensed no evil, as they were too busy having fun. At Output, they rocked the bar with their karaoke performance, engaging everyone, from volunteers to other teams, in a Metallica singalong.
Roots Pizza • The Altar-Natives
The ladies of this first-time team took the term “runaway bride” seriously, donning sneakers with their dresses and actually running between Checkpoints with a cart they secured by contacting a VP at Walgreens. Upon arrival at Roots, they whipped out Ring Pops and became wedding officiants, marrying Judges Chris and Nicole, a real life, engaged couple!
Midwest Coast • Third Coasters: Hanks but no Hanks
How could we not give an award to this cart, dedicated to one of the most award-winning actors of our time? With a cart built like the fortune teller from Big (and a related cart that was an Oscars red carpet), this team covered the wide range of Tom Hanks roles, and they even brought their own volleyball.
Five Star
Due to personal reason this team has requested not to be included.
ChiditaLove
Sometimes someone just blows us away with their passion and their drive to embody everything that makes Chiditarod great. Ryan from Midwest Coast Brewery came to our event and loved the race so much that he decided to help us even more by giving us a new checkpoint home. MWC as a checkpoint has embraced all things Chiditarod, from fundraising, running a food drive, giving us a new racer meeting venue and helping us share our love of all things Chiditarod with families and neighborhood friends.
Racer Survey Results Are In!
Best Checkpoint: Midwest Coast Brewery
Quite a showing from this BRAND NEW checkpoint! Their enthusiasm to join the Chiditarod was on full display with their Jurassic park themed checkpoint. They were spinning tunes, racing dinos and even had a spinning fossilized mosquito in amber!
Dick Dastardly Award: The Crow Bar (aka the Chip Inn) by HMS Reunion
What is possibly the largest sabotage undertaking we have ever seen. HMS Reunion got a retired checkpoint to pose as a fake checkpoint. With the support of a whole crew of Corvids from other teams they dropped hints leading up to race day, successfully parodied the hallmarks of a Chiditarod Checkpoint, and crafted unique cards and activities for racers to enjoy. By the end of the race the bar was full, and many racers got tricked into an extra stop on their journey to the finish line.
Check out the Making of webpage for more fun details!
People’s Choice Award: It’s a TIE
This is a Chiditarod FIRST! Two teams carry the crown for People’s Choice. A round of applause to…
Ravin’ Ravens by Cartasrophe
From the Disco ball egg and the friendship bracelets, this raven team had you entranced! And even let you join in on the fun with the Corvid DJ booth.
The Miss Frizzle Eras Tour by Friends from the Abyss (1797)
Their pop-up top school bus reveals ERAs of nostalgia that clearly tickled at the hearts of swifties, parents, and/or the kids at heart. And those details clearly did not go unnoticed.
** 1.2 pounds of food per meal is the conversion used by Greater Chicago Food Depository and Feeding America
We cannot express how thankful we are and how far the food raised, as well as money, that will help support those in need at a time when groceries are more expensive than ever before. The CHIditarod Foundation is committed to making sure food is accessible to everyone in the greater Chicagoland area. Our grant program gives out both programming as well as infrastructure grants. In 2024 we gave out $115,00 in grants to non-profits Northern, IL. We could not do this work without the generosity of everyone who fundraised. Check back on our Grants Page for more information.
About the Race
The annual philanthropic spectacle raced through Chicago’s West Town neighborhoods, with each team visiting five checkpoints: Five Star, Phyllis’s Musical Inn, Roots Handmade Pizza, Output Lounge, and newcomer Midwest Coast Brewery. Each checkpoint hosted our costumed superstars with immersive themes, contests, and interactive opportunities. Our friends at Cobra Lounge graciously stepped up to host the Start and Finish Lines. We wrapped up the awards ceremony at Sleeping Village where there was music, munchies, and mega dancing. All bars have generously agreed to donate a portion of their proceeds to The CHIditarod Foundation to aid in our epic mission of fighting hunger in Chicago, in a time where it will be needed more than ever before.