MACOMB, IL – They're back to vie for the title.
Twenty-two returning Survival Challenge contestants will descend on Macomb July 2-6 to give it a go again.
Macomb residents Ian and Jordan Szechowycz created their Survival Challenge eight years ago on their rural McDonough County property. And fun fact: host Jordan will be the female rep from their challenge's first year. Ian noted that he and Jordan have not been in the planning stages of this year's event since she's a contestant. During work weekends to prepare the course, she has left Macomb entirely to stay with family so that the integrity of the game remains intact, he added.
The 22 players (plus two from production) from past competitions in Maine (10 former players), where the first challenge began, and Macomb (12 former players), when the Szechowyczs took over eight years ago (one male and one female from each year) will come together to give it a go once more. The Survival Challenge, which started in Maine in 11 years ago, was an event that Jordan took part in during its first year, and she loved it so much, she made her husband, Ian, compete during the event's second year. From there, the Szechowyczs, who have been fans of 'Survivor' since it debuted in 2000, became active participants in the annual Maine challenge. When the property owners in Maine decided to close shop, the couple brought the challenge from the east coast to their 140-acre property in rural west-central Illinois. They ran their first event in 2017 in Macomb.
'To even the odds this year between Macomb and Maine there are also two long-term volunteer spots, people who have never played but have been around since the inception,' Ian explained. 'There are two contestants playing who have won the challenge (a male from when it was hosted in Maine and a female from its time in Macomb). They made the pitch that their unfinished business is they want to win twice.'
According to Ian, some of the players playing this year are people who were removed from the game for medical reasons, such as a broken bone or dehydration, while others were voted out and removed because they were the last to complete a challenge.
Alex Reese from season five, which was the last year the event was held in Maine, will be one this year's contestants. In a video interview, Reese, who is 37 and originally hails from England and now lives in New York with his husband, came across the original 'Survival Challenge' most likely in a forum or in a news article, he recalled. Because he was a big fan of the television show (and loved the state of Maine), he decided to apply. He told the interviewer he was a little surprised when he learned he'd made the cut for season five.
'I was really excited, but there were also moments of panic, like 'what I have I gotten myself into?!,'' he laughed. 'I'm now feeling so many of these emotions again. It was overwhelming at first, and I remember trying to play it cool because I recognized the returning players, and I'm not that great in group scenarios at first, so I was trying to manage all of that. But I really thoroughly enjoyed all of it, and I don't take it lightly that I'm back representing everyone from season five. I'm going to put my all into it.'
Katie Marcado was also part of the final season in Maine. Marcado, who is 49, is special education teacher in northern Illinois and a cancer survivor. She learned about the challenge as she played online reality games in the early 2000s; however, after getting married, the games fell by the wayside until someone invited her to take part in a Harry Potter- themed game and this led to her learning about the Durham Warriors Survival Challenge, which was in need of female contestants.
'They really encouraged me to apply and so I did and I got accepted. I remember starting to think I'd better get into shape, and I remember living on the 35th floor in downtown Chicago trying to start a fire on my balcony with flint, which was not successful,' she said with a smile. 'But the experience was just a lot of fun and really exciting. I was just really proud that I was the last woman voted out on my tribe and I was the last one of the last people voted out before the merge.
'Now I'm a new mom {Katie and her husband, Paul, became parents to Jovanni, who they adopted in January), I've been thinking how I'm going to fit in some exercise time to prepare,' Marcado added. 'I just really want to have this mindset of like I want to be open and have organic relationships and alliances that will develop. I don't really want to think about all the preconceived notions as I'm in a very different place in my life now.'
Beginning Thursday, July 3, spectators are welcome to attend the event to watch in person, but if they're unable to make the trek to Macomb, there will be a Facebook Live feed that runs throughout the event. In addition, there's free parking in a nearby field, with a shuttle service making frequent runs. The public is welcome to come-and-go as they please to watch the event unfold.
In the past selected participants had to make a minimum donation of $350, which is given to charities selected by the Survival Challenge Board, Ian explained. However, this year, they put a stronger focus on fundraising and upped the minimum donation to $1,000. As usual, a portion of the registration donations go toward running the event, a portion will to their usual charity, the Western Illinois Regional Council, and a portion will go to the charity of the players' choice. Contestants, who travel to McDonough County from all over the world, play for bragging rights only. The Szechowyczs came to Macomb in 2007 to attend Western Illinois University, and upon graduating, they opted make their home in Macomb. Ian is the director of digital spaces for University Technology at WIU and Jordan is a kindergarten teacher at Lincoln Elementary School. Giving back to their community is a priority, Ian shared.
'We bought our property in 2014 with an event in mind. We love Macomb, which is why we started our own event. We thought we'd do some level of teambuilding events for companies and groups, and in 2017 we had the opportunity to host an event,' he told The Community News Brief in an earlier story. 'We got together a good group of people who wanted to put on a good game, and we ran that first year as a charitable event. We always wanted to give back and provide something that brought people to Macomb and put our community on the map.'
Former Survivor winners and players have taken part over the years, from video messages, such as a special message from fan-favorite Rupert Boneham, to in-person meet-and-greets during the annual event to playing alongside the Macomb players. The much-detested Richard Hatch, the first winner of Survivor when it debuted in 2000; two-time winner Sandra Diaz-Twine; 2016 winner Adam Klein and former player Rick Devins, among others, have made their way to Macomb in previous years. When asked about possible special celebrity guests this year, Ian was quick to answer.
'We never disclose that ahead of time, but you never know,' he said. 'You'll have to watch to find out!'
In the 'regular' years, they receive around 150 applications, with 24 players selected. The Survival Challenge Board vets the applicants and selects players (and alternates). Applications run Jan. 1-Jan. 31 each year. Ian stressed that the casting and production teams ensure close to 50-50 in terms of male and female participants, and make it their goal to have a diverse cast, not only by race and ethnicity, but also by age. To ensure access to all, a pool of scholarship money is available to remove barriers, he added.
'One of our goals is to make this the most authentic experience possible, but for individuals who might not get on the 39-day show we really try to open it up to all ages over 18 and all abilities {with doctor's approval}. No matter where someone's at in their life, they should have the opportunity to apply, participate and/or be a spectator,' he pointed out. 'Our intent is to create access to participate and to support diversity, equity and inclusion within the Survival Challenge community.'
The couple has a production team of 15 people from around the United States who put the annual event together. The group starts meeting in September to plan the next year's event. John Vataha, who created the original Survival Challenge in Maine, is the Macomb challenge's 'Jeff Probst' (the host of CBS' Survivor). He travels to Macomb to host the event, while the production team and volunteers take care of logistics and behind-the-scenes work. Just like the television show, there are no real 'gimmies' in the real-life version of the challenge.
The groups are divided into two to four tribes, competing first as teams in challenges that are inspired by Survivor, but that are unique in their own respect. The production team comes to the table with ideas that they've come up with and also ones they've seen on the U.S.-based Survivor, as well as the show's international versions. While they try not to do the exact challenges as seen on TV, because some of the American-based show's challenges have become iconic staples, some version of those might be incorporated into the five-day event. Because of the demands, medical staff is on standby during the challenges, as well as conducting wellness checks at the beginning and end of each day. The game, much like the television series, is played in all kinds of weather.
For more information, including directions to the property to watch the 2025 event, visit survivalchallenge.net. For live stream and updates, go to facebook.com/SurvivalChallenge.
