The course started out with trail running for what seemed to be about a mile and I then came to the first obstacle of the course, Shriveled Richard. This was my second Savage Race and I recalled the Pennsylvania race also started with this same obstacle, but that was in June on a very nice sunny day and this time it was cold!
But still how many of these obstacles are truly unique? Sometimes it feels like there aren't any other obstacles than what we already see. However, at the recent OCR World Championships speaking with racers from around the globe we have only hit the tip of the obstacle iceberg.
The course was both amazing and brutal and beat me up but I was glad I went. It’s not often that I have completed a course and felt like I did after Shale Hill, if you can dominate the Shale Hill course, then you can probably conquer almost any other OCR course in America! The course is the best I have run to date.
The hype and buzz within the World’s Toughest Community (WTM) has been crazy since the date and location was announced back in May. Tough Mudder decided with its fourth WTM to really change things up and step away from the home venue of Raceway Park in Englishtown New Jersey, and take the show out to Las Vegas. I can say I am glad I raced last year so that I did one at Raceway, but I am very happy for a change of venue. While no two events are the same, even if at the same location, the change will keep everyone guessing. Personally I think this change will have an impact on the final standings, while it will likely still be the same few ultra-elites in the top 10, I think we may see a new winner for both the male and female.
OCR Sandy continues his 2014 OCR journey with another double race weekend. I could tell right away, the day was going to be much sunnier and hotter than the previous day in Ohio at OCR World Championships and I knew hydration would be a key for this race. I opted to wear my CamelBak hydration backpack and carried extra GU gels with me. I started the last wave of the day.
Charity Fick shares her and her husbands experience this past summer at the Dirty Dash in British Columbia, Canada. Find out if their superman and superwoman costumes game them superhuman skills on the obstacles.
The MIAMI Mudders started as a lunch time running group to stay in shape for the Navy’s Physical Fitness Test. All of the members were part of the crew of the USS MIAMI and after a while, the group decided to test ourselves by signing up for a Tough Mudder. The nine guys that competed that challenge were the “original” MIAMI Mudders and a couple of us “caught the OCR bug”. Read about how Bone Frog Challenge really brought the team together.
The day of the Filthy Fun Mud Run started out a cold and rainy October day. I was in the parking lot very early and wondered how many people would show on such an ugly morning. It didn't take long to see that Filthy Fun Mud Run would have a decent showing for what turned out to be a great local event.
NYC City Challenge Obstacle Race had a lot of the typical obstacles you would expect for an OCR, such as a rope climb (with and without knots), ladder wall climbs, dual water jug carry (for a decent distance), wall climbs, net climbs, and monkey bars. What separates City Challenge Obstacle Race from most other OCR’s is the lack of mud or water obstacles making it a truly unique urban race experience starting on the fame Icahn Stadium track.
Rugged Maniac returned to the Georgia International Horse Park to bring their 5k to one of the most OCR-friendly venues near Atlanta, willing and ready to change the minds of some people who thought their course from the previous year left low expectations compared to other major companies in the industry. I can honestly admit I was one of those people after racing last year, with my best description as “It was alright” this year that changed.
