THE STORY

The Beauchamp family began hosting “The Chili Dog Race” on Super Bowl Sunday in 1989. Bill Beauchamp borrowed the idea from a race he had run at Baltimore's Memorial Stadium. His goal was to do something physical before eating all the Super Bowl Sunday junk food, and to make his friends participate with him. Neighbors and friends gathered at the Beauchamp's house for a 4-mile run and post-run chili dogs and beer.

After the Beauchamps moved from the neighborhood, Bill continued to return to their old house, every Super Bowl Sunday, sometimes with close friends and sometimes alone, to run 4 miles along the original race route. The old neighbors took up hosting. Old traditions, like the toilet paper finish line, gave way to new traditions, like winners signing the big paper mâché hot dog. Somewhere along the way, a $5.00 race fee was instituted to provide a cash prize to the race winner. Then, in 2009, Bill was diagnosed with ALS. The 2010 race was the first to see the $5.00 race fee become a donation to the ALS Association.

Bill passed away December 12, 2012, but the race lives on in his honor. Each year, we are humbled by the number of participants who attend, and we are overcome by the generosity of the donations. The 2022 race was the 33rd running of The Chili Dog Race, the 12th since it became an ALS fundraising event, and we raised over $3,000.00.

Here's to hoping we get to 50 years of Chili Dog Races, but more importantly, a cure for ALS!

-The Beauchamp Family -- Jan, Ally, Steve & Maggie

GALLERY