1,000's of people flocked to Flagstaff, Arizona to escape the heat of the valley and to compete in the Terrain Race on July 21st. While the valley hit temps of 116 degrees, Flagstaff was an absolutely beautiful 75 degrees.
Wet, muddy, humid and hilly. These four words perfectly describe the Terrain Race in Slinger, Wisconsin. This race was held at Little Switzerland, a small midwestern ski resort located about 30 miles northwest of Milwaukee. When we pulled up to the venue, the hills really did not seem too intimidating, especially considering the standard 5k distance of this race.
I've rarely ever had a big issue with jumping into the fire with new gear, if it works as anticipated and I don't have to think about it at all it's a win. Occasionally, I will be blown away by the performance of a product and the entire time I'm running I mentally craft the product review with flowery superlatives... that I forget once my endorphins abate. During the 24 Hour Terrain Relay, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to test the following gear:
Each lap of approximately 5 miles featured three different loops; Technical, Strength, and Speed. Each of those loops needed to be completed in order, and only the final number of loops completed by the time cut-off at 2pm on Sunday, there were no partial miles awarded for any unfinished laps. Each obstacle must be completed within 3 tries or penalty lap/exercise was incurred.
Wow…what a weekend! The North, South, West, and East were all represented by thousands of you muddy, amazing humans! From the beginner to the best, you all came out and represented in full force, and we love you for it.
This is the race SO many of you have been waiting for since the season kicked off. While Saturday racers had to rely on the insanity of the course itself, Sunday racers were treated to proof that Norm Koch has indeed made some dirty deals with a particular underground entity. Rain, wind and cold took out many a racer on this already incredibly challenging course, and even without all that on Saturday, when it came to numbers on the UB, over 800 started, but less than half finished.
I've been testing the Icebug Zeal since December 3, and after a month or so of only seeing photos I was really excited to get my feet into 'em. I'll use the term "into" quite literally, as the radical midsole design envelops most of your foot, designed for lateral stability and an overall low 6mm drop from heel to toe.
