By Kelsey Caudill

Hundreds of UK students will exercise and stuff their faces simultaneously on Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium.

The second annual UK Habitat Krispy Kreme Challenge 5K is the only local race that requires participants to stop at the halfway marker and devour a dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts before finishing the race.

The race starts at 10 a.m. Those still interested in participating can register from 8-9:30 a.m. on Saturday. Registration for the Krispy Kreme Challenge 5K is $25 per person. Grand prizes will be awarded to the first place male and female. People of all ages are invited to join the race.

UK Habitat Vice President Dan Wavering said there is also a competitive 5K for those who do not want to try the doughnut challenge. Registration fee for competitive runners is $21 per person.

The regular 5K is broken down by age groups. Prizes will be awarded to the top three male and female runners in each category.

This event is a fundraiser for Lexington Habitat for Humanity hosted by the UK Habitat chapter. This year all proceeds will go toward a build that UK Habitat and the Second Presbyterian Church of Lexington will start on April 15.

­­“It’s kind of a nice tie in that the family that they’re going to support is actually going to be there for the race,” said Megan Meserve, resource development coordinator for Lexington Habitat for Humanity.

Pierre and Henriette Ngog, the recipients of the new home, will be present for the Krispy Kreme Challenge 5K. Their son Jacques will blow the air horn at the start of the race.

UK Habitat President Joe Tarantino said he hopes this event will raise awareness for Habitat for Humanity and encourage more people to get involved.

“What a lot of people don’t know is that Lexington Habitat is quite an outstanding affiliate for our region and they build anywhere from 15-20 houses per year,” Tarantino said. “It shows that there’s a lot of work to be done here in our own community.”

Wavering said last year about 300 runners signed up for the race and they raised $10,000 for Lexington Habitat for Humanity. He said they’re expecting about 500 runners this year.

Meserve, who has been collaborating with UK Habitat to set up the event, said she expects the proceeds to be about the same as last year. Although they received a larger grant from one of the event sponsors, Bike and Build Inc., last year, more participants have signed up this year, Meserve said.

Other sponsors of the event are Big Ass Fans, UK Federal Credit Union and Krispy Kreme.

Wavering said what makes this event stand out is that it is different from other fundraising events.

“There are tons of fundraising events on campus, but I don’t think there’s any that are as unique as this one,” Wavering said. “We’re combining two things that don’t go together at all.”

Meserve said the Krispy Kreme Challenge 5K is a fun way for people to give back to their community.

“People think that in order to support Habitat you have to come out to the build site and swing a hammer,” Meserve said, “But this is another way you can get involved and support our mission of providing simple affordable housing.”