The obstacle racing landscape is dominated, at least in the social media groups, by a few organizations. In reality, the obstacle racing landscape is vast and diverse, with everything from international corporations to local mom and pop races run by enthusiasts who want to share the love of OCR with those in their community. Then there are other events, ones which many may have heard of but never actually done.
Tomorrow night some of the best in the world battle it out on the ESPN League Championships. Following the College Championships format which aired its second season earlier this summer. The League Championships pits countries, cities, and regional teams against each other. BattleFrog and ESPN invited some of the best in the world to complete on this short course. Tune in at 9pm eastern time tomorrow to see all the action.
Shale Hill Adventure consistently known as one of the being a hidden gem of OCR has their annual 24-hours of Shale Hell coming up soon. One lap on this course is enough for most but those looking to take it further can challenge themselves with up to 24-hours of running and hundreds of obstacles, on August 6-7 starting at 10am. If 24-hours of continuous obstacles are a bit extreme Shale Hill Adventure also offers what "mini-hell" with a 5k, 10k, and 8-hour running options starting on Saturday, August 6.
A few months ago, I did an interview here on MRG about a new coaching platform we were getting ready to launch. It generated a good deal of interest from the OCR community, so I wanted to stop by and give people an update on our launch group.
Tough Mudder continues its international expansion with an event this fall in one of the most beautiful places in the world, Bali. Tough Mudder Bali is set to take place on October 1-2, 2016; the international OCR series heads to the island nation in Indonesia. For those looking for the ultimate racecation, this could top them all. Planning a honeymoon around that time, Bali could be a legionnaires dream spot combining the love for all things obstacle racing and mud runs as well as the idyllic island nation.
Spartan Race is taking over the airwaves this week with a new Spartan Strong episode released yesterday, the premiere of season 3 of the US Championships Series as a part of the Road to Tahoe tonight on NBC Sports, and finally tomorrow night the series finale of Spartan: Ultimate Team Challenge on NBC. It's a busy week for Spartans!
As the “Spartan: Ultimate Team Challenge” season concludes with the two-hour Thursday, July 21 telecast (8-10 p.m. ET/PT), the winning teams from past episodes will race against each other on the most demanding Spartan course ever devised. The longer course and more challenging obstacles will put the teams through their toughest race yet as they push through the pain to win the $250,000 grand prize.
Civilian Military Combine is prepping for its relaunch this fall in Brooklyn, New York to be held at the U.S. Army Garrison Fort Hamilton. The original hybrid obstacle race combines both a functional fitness pit with a traditional obstacle course offering a one of a kind experience. The television network SNY will be on hand to film the event and air the premiere on September 25th following the September 10th event.
Last weekend, Battlefrog Series made it's second stop in the Great White North with the Trois-Rivières BattleFrog about two hours outside of Montreal, Quebec. Longtime obstacle racer and Olympian turned race director Marco Bedard created a truly unique course and experience for all in attendance.
Last night BattleFrog's CEO Ramiro Ortiz joined ESPN's SportCenter host Darren M. Haynes to talk about obstacle racing and the upcoming ESPN League Championships Season 1 which premieres on ESPN on August 2 at 9pm ET. Ortiz and Haynes talk about what OCR is and how it has progressed in the United States and beyond in the last couple of years.
