Everyone understands how tough it is to find balance within our lives for general "adulting" (paying bills, going to work) and being able to train to be our best in the Obstacle Course World. I don't want to say anyone person has more challenges in achieving balance than another, however, I find being a parent adds an extra level of difficulty to this equation.
There exists a growing concern regarding low completion rates as of late. As OCR innovates to challenge veteran racers, events have seen low 100% completion rates. Hillary Greene looks at the 2018 OCR World Championships and the Obstacle Racing industry as a whole.
It all started over 6 years ago at a free kickboxing class. There was a woman in there who mentioned she was doing a race in two weeks and asked me if I wanted to do it with her. She said it was a Spartan Sprint and since I’m up for anything I figured why not. I signed up..did the race and just like the tagline says...I KNEW AT THE FINISH LINE! I was hooked.
The past decade has seen incredible growth in extreme physical challenge events. In addition to our beloved Obstacle Course Racing, there’s made-for-television American Ninja Warrior and the oddly mesmerizing CrossFit Games.
When Spartan announced a few days before this year's World Championship race in Lake Tahoe, that the course would be shortened by about four miles, I secretly let out a sigh of relief. However, I wasn't ready to experience a DNF and the stages of grief after not finishing a race.
A few weeks ago I declared my frustration with negativity pervading OCR in my piece, “OCR Community Must Lead the Fight Against Trolls.” As a direct result, I took on the Nashville Tough Mudder (TM) Half course as a lone wolf to test a hypothesis.
I wanted to prove it is possible to get better and lead a normal life and compete at a high level. I hope to inspire others to step out of their comfort zone and try something different like obstacle course racing to feel a sense of accomplishment;
Making Obstacle Course Racing (OCR) financially feasible is no easy task. It takes an enormous amount of money just to open the gates for a major race. To cover the high fixed costs of putting on an event, race promoters look to attract more participants to each venue. But while attracting new racers to OCR is necessary for growth, both as a sport and for the individual promoter, they also face the continuing challenge of creating an event that challenges the more experienced or elite athletes while not discouraging the amateurs or first-timers.
In a sport marked by overwhelming positivity, there is a disturbing growing trend toward negativity and destruction on OCR social media outlets. I am frustrated by this shift, and the issue hit home when trolls attacked a teammate and all-around badass of a lady recently.
The 2018 OCR season has been a real eye-opener for me. I’ve already dealt with a medial DNF, earned a nice broken foot and, as I type this, sit here with all kinds of patterns of kinesiology tape on my back, applied by a chiropractor at a licensed PT facility. As I age, I find I’m more susceptible to injury, and those recovery times seem to lengthen after every birthday.
