This is a long one, since I broke down all of the obstacles, but there are lots of pictures! This past Saturday I had the opportunity to participate in my first obstacle/mud race: the DC Spartan Sprint Race (which was actually in Maryland). My younger sister and her boyfriend came, too, and we completed the course together. It was a lot more fun that way than it would have been to go through by yourself!

On the morning of the race, we made the trip over to southern Maryland. The drive went smoothly and we arrived at the parking area, where we were directed into a spot. The Spartan folks did a great job organizing the parking. It was 2.5 miles from the race, so we were shuttled to and from the race, all of which went really well. There were lots of fun signs to entertain us along the way, too.

Once we arrived at the “festival” area where the race start/finish were, we breezed through registration.

 With the above sign in mind, we pinned on our bibs, attached our timing chips to our wrists, and put on our headbands (which also had our bib number on it to help identify us on the course). It was time to Spartan Up!

We had a bit of time to hang out, since we had arrived about 90 minutes before our designated start time (per the race organizer’s instructions). So we watched the elite men finishing, and worried about how tired we would be based on how they looked. We also checked out a few other obstacles that you could see from the festival area.

Finally, it was time to head over for our start! I was getting excited. To get into the starting corral, you had to climb over a wall that was probably about 5 feet tall (basically the same height as me).

We stood in the starting area while an announcer got everyone pumped up and ready to go. There was a lot of chest banging and fist pumping going on as everyone prepared for a 4.3 mile run with 18 obstacles.

Finally we were off! I wasn’t wearing a watch, but I think we started right on time. We started out by heading into the woods for a short trail run before we reached our first obstacle. Passed another funny sign along the way.

The course was set up so that most of the obstacles were located around the festival area, with trail running through the woods in between. For some reason, I hadn’t been expecting to be running trails or just hadn’t considered it, so that was a fun surprise!

I’m going to break up the rest of the report by obstacles. As you’ll see, a lot of my photos are kind of blurry or just aren’t good quality. My waterproof camera did just fine (it became completely submerged at least three times), but there were plenty of times where I was too muddy or wet to clean off the lens.

Over-Under-Through

After a brief stint in the woods, we arrived at our first obstacle. You had to climb over the first wall (probably 5 feet tall), crawl under the second one, and go through a window cutout on the third one.

Under-over-under-over-under

Our next obstacle came shortly after the first. We had to climb under a plank of wood with a net attached to it, go over a wall, and repeat. Then it was off into the woods again.

Rope hill climb

I think this one counted as obstacle #3. As we were running through the woods, we came to an area where it was backed up (this only happened about two or three times on the course). There was a steep hill and a rope attached to a tree at the top. You had to climb the hill using the rope to help pull yourself up.

Inverted wall

Next we arrived at an inverted wall. This one was challenging for me, thanks for my height disadvantage! The wall was slanted towards us, and we had to climb up and over it.

My little sister gave me a boost, and then her boyfriend gave her a boost. He was able to do most of the obstacles unassisted, except for the ones that required teamwork. Since I went over it first, I was able to snap a picture of the two of them coming down the other side of the wall.

Tire Drag

This one had tires attached to a post by a rope. First you had to drag your tire out until the rope was fully extended, then you had to run back to the post and pull the tire back by the rope. They had men’s and women’s tires.

Barb Wire Crawl

Right after the tire drag we arrived at a barbed wire obstacle. They had pits with really thick mud and you had to crawl through it under barbed wire. This is where my camera became submerged for the first time! We were totally caked in mud after this one.

Big Cargo

Immediately after the barb wire crawl we looped around and climbed over a big cargo net. This one was a bit scary for me. The apparatus shook a bit, the cargo net moved a lot while people were climbing it, and everything was wet and muddy and slippery. It doesn’t look that freaky, but it felt a lot different when you were actually on it!

Shortly after this obstacle we arrived at mile 1.

Hero Hoist

Just after passing mile 1, we arrived at our next obstacle. This one required you to pull a large sand bag up to the top of a structure using a rope and pulley. Once again they had men’s and women’s bags. My sister and I teamed up on this one. The hardest part was lowering the bag back down. You weren’t allowed to let it drop and the rope was really muddy and slippery.

Sand Bag Carry

After the hero hoist we ran/walked through the woods for awhile, up and down hills (some were pretty steep!). Then we arrived at our next obstacle, where we had to carry a sand bag down a steep hill and then back up it. Coming back up the hill was very challenging because it was muddy and slippery. I actually fell and slid down the hill a bit before finally stopping myself with my left forearm (cutting my elbow on a rock in the process). This one was one of my favorites, though!

Rope Climb

Just before mile 2 we arrived at the rope climb obstacle. You started out in a pool of muddy water (that nearly came up to my shoulders!) and climbed a knotted rope. You had to ring the bell at the top. I like climbing ropes, and the knots allowed me to use my legs to help. But I didn’t like how people kept falling off of the ropes into the water. I was afraid someone might fall on me!

If you couldn’t make it to the top, you had to do 30 burpees. Which is what the people over on the right of the above photo are doing. Thirty burpees was the penalty for any failed or skipped obstacle.

Concrete Block Drag

Mile 3 was mostly made up of trail running through the woods. Shortly before the end of the mile we arrived at another obstacle. This one required us to drag a concrete block by a chain down a steep hill and back up. Everyone had the same weight for this one. There was a Spartan guy yelling like a drill sergeant at this one! This obstacle was another one of my favorites. I guess I like challenges like this.

7 ft. & 8 ft. Walls

Shortly after the mile 3 marker, we arrived at the 7 ft. and 8 ft. walls. We had to get up and over each wall. The 7 foot wall had a red step (a 2×6 piece of wood screwed into the wall) about a foot off of the ground for women only, and the 8 foot wall had steps. I still needed a boost for the 8 foot wall because I couldn’t reach the ledge at the top. The women had formed a line where the two steps were. You would help boost the person in front of you and then the person behind you would boost you.

Rolling Mud

This was one of the toughest obstacles for me! There were four muddy hills with mud water pits in between. You had to go up and over each of the hills and through the muddy water. It was so slippery that you needed a boost just to get out of the pit and then someone at the top of the hill had to pull you up. At one point I slid down a hill on my knees. Since the mud was rocky, my knees and shins got all scraped up on this one.

Slip Wall

Don’t worry, we’re getting close to the end now. Immediately after the mud hills, there was a slanted wall with knotted ropes. The wall was super slippery because it was all muddy and wet. I watched several people make it to the top and then slip and slide all the way down, often taking others out with them. After seeing that, I decided to skip this one. My sister’s boyfriend was the only one who did it. I would have liked to, but I didn’t want to risk getting hurt!

Traverse Wall

Next were vertical walls with blocks screwed in at angles. You had to go across the wall using your hands and feet on the blocks. Unfortunately I was too short for this one, too, and couldn’t reach from one to the next.

Spear Throw

This was a fun one! Try and throw a spear into a hay bale. 30 burpees if you miss. My first spear went sideways and just hit the target. You only got one try, but they let me try again after a Spartan official showed me the proper technique. This time my spear went straight at the target and hit it, but it fell off. Oh well!

Gauntlet

After the spear throw it was back into the woods for more running. We hit mile 4, and knew we were getting close. The last two obstacles came up right at the finish line. First was the gauntlet, which involved running through a bunch of suspended punching bags that were hanging over a mud pit. The pit dropped off halfway through!

Fire Jump

Right at the end, we jumped over a fire and ran across the finish line. Done!

I’m not sure that the people crossing the finish line in the above picture actually did the race, because they are super clean and we looked like this:

After that we headed over to the area they had set up for everyone to hose off. There were also men’s and women’s changing tents. We got most of the mud off and put on some dry clothes. Then we collected our race shirts, signed the ‘Wall of Valor’, and caught the shuttle back to the parking area.

Overall I had a blast. The obstacles were fun and also challenging. My sister’s boyfriend and I both said we would definitely do another one. My sister, however, says she wouldn’t. We’ll see if her opinion changes over time 🙂 She’d had enough by the end. The next morning my upper body was super sore. My legs were sore from the scrapes and bruises, but my muscles felt fine. This is what my legs looked like the day after:

It’s much more impressive in person, I promise 🙂 AROO!

Disclosure: I was provided with a free entry to this event in exchange for blogging about my experience. All opinions are my own.

Which obstacle would be your favorite? Which would be your least favorite?

This was my final week of base building before the real fun begins. And by that I mean more mileage, 6 days of running per week, and the addition of speed and tempo workouts. But more on that later this week.

Monday- Rest.

Tuesday- 5 mile run. This was probably one of the worst runs I’ve had in awhile, but I got it done. I had to dash back to the house twice in the first 2 miles to use the restroom. After that, I threw in the towel and hopped on the treadmill (Treadmill Tuesday rides again!) to finish out the last 3 miles.

The reason this run was so not fun was a combination of things. I was full from dinner, felt bloated, was having stomach issues, and my upper back was hurting/felt tight. The crazy thing is my legs felt awesome. Go figure.

Wednesday- Rest. We went to the fair! It happened to be the night the pet show was taking place, and there was someone there with a 10 week old bloodhound puppy. So cute!

Okay, and the chocolate lab puppy is cute, too…

Thursday- 4 mile run on the roads around our house. Once again, I did an out and back to Black Hollow Hill and once again I conquered the hill! Woohoo.

I had the “three amigos” (as I’ve nicknamed them) cheering me on this week.

Friday- 5 mile run in the morning before work on the treadmill.

Saturday- Spartan Sprint Race (4.3 miles). This was my first obstacle course race and it was a blast. My little sister and her boyfriend came, too, and it was a lot of fun to go through it as a group. There was lots of mud and my waterproof camera became completely submerged at least three times in muddy water (it’s still alive). We survived and finished bloody and bruised, but not broken. (I’m not kidding about the bloody and bruised part).

Full race recap coming tomorrow morning. I got lots of pictures!

Sunday- 6 mile run in the morning on the W&OD Trail with my friend, Jackie. I was super sore from the Spartan race, but it definitely did me good to get out and move.

I was planning on running 10-12 miles, but I only had 6 on my schedule and that’s what I ended up doing. My legs were just sore from all of the cuts, scrapes, and bruises. But my entire upper body was as sore as your legs are the day after a full marathon.

Total Miles: 24 miles

Today I’m headed up towards the DC area to spend the weekend with my Dad and sister. Tomorrow morning my sister, her boyfriend, and I will be headed up to Maryland for the DC Spartan Sprint race! Barry was supposed to come, too, but unfortunately he had to work.

I’ve been looking forward to this weekend for awhile. I’m pretty excited, because this will be my very first mud/obstacle race! The Hansons even have 4 miles on my schedule, so it was meant to be. Look how much fun we are going to have:

According to their website Spartan Race has been the global leader in obstacle racing since 2005. So it’s definitely the one to do for my first obstacle race! Tomorrow morning my little sister, her boyfriend, and I will face a 3+ mile course of mud and 15+ obstacles. In case you’re not familiar with mud and obstacle races, especially of the Spartan variety, here’s a video:

They better not knock me down with those things towards the end, though! I’ll just run through yelling “Don’t hurt me, I’m in marathon training!”

I’m looking forward to crossing the finish line tomorrow and then giving our best Spartan warrior yell. AROO!!

Have you ever done a mud or obstacle race?

Another Runners Tell All link-up is here! This month, the we’re talking about nutrition: how you fuel for race day and what types of fuel you use during a race. I’m pretty traditional with what I eat the day before a race: pasta! I don’t usually carbo-load the night before long runs, except for the longest of my long runs during training.

I also typically increase the amount of carbs I eat a few days before a big race. All the bread!

On the morning of a race or long run, I always drink a cup of coffee and have some type of Power Bar or Luna Bar. I also like to have a Honey Stinger Waffle pre-run/pre-race, but I’ve found that they’re too crumbly for me to eat on the run.

When it comes to actual running and races, I carry and use fuel on anything longer than 6 miles. I used to only use Shot Bloks, because my stomach couldn’t tolerate anything else.

But last year I got tired of having to chew the Shot Bloks while running, especially in the later miles of a race or long run. In the summer they would be too chewy and in the winter they’d often freeze. So I started using various types of gels. My favorites are Gu’s (especially Salted Caramel) and Honey Stinger gels.

I believe in the power of gels so much that I even left them for Santa last Christmas, to help keep him going!

Now a days I will typically carry a couple of gels and a small Ziploc snack bag of Shot Bloks. That way I will have both to choose from. It’s amazing how something that tastes good at mile 3 can become completely unappealing at mile 15.

What do you fuel with pre-run and during your run or workout?

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This week I continued to build my mileage during the base building phase of training. I was blessed with a few cool days with low humidity that made for some pretty enjoyable runs.

Monday- Rest.

Tuesday- 5 mile run on the treadmill. It ended up being another “Treadmill Tuesday” with Sven, continuing the theme of the past few weeks. Soon my Treadmill Tuesdays are going to be spent at the track, though!

Wednesday- Rest.

Thursday- 3 mile run in the morning before work. It was barely 50 degrees, and I was actually a bit chilly during this run. At least this time the polar vortex didn’t produce temperatures down to -31 like last time. Friday- 4 mile run on the roads around our house. Even though I ran in the middle of the afternoon, it was relatively cool and not very humid outside. Glorious! Another great thing about this run? I made it all the way up Black Hollow Hill without taking a walk break! That’s only the second time I’ve ever done that. According to my Garmin data, the hill is about 200 feet in elevation gain over 0.75 miles. But the first 125 feet of that happens during the first 0.4 miles, which I think is what makes this hill so tough. Saturday- 10 mile long run on the Dora and New River Trails. It felt more like April than July outside, with the temperature hovering around 60 and a steady rain throughout my run.

For some reason my pace was about a minute per mile slower than usual for the first half of the run. Then things picked up a bit and I ended the run with an average pace about 20 to 30 seconds per mile slower than usual. It felt like the same effort level and I still had a really enjoyable run, so I guess it was just a bit of an off day pace-wise.

I also saw a lot of deer during this run, including these two cute fawns!

Sunday- 5 mile run with Kim on the Dora Trail. The temperature was cool like it was on Saturday, but it wasn’t raining and was a lot muggier. This picture is kind of deceiving, as I think that’s the only time we saw the sun all day:

When we got back to the parking lot, a train was just making its way through town. I decided to try and grab a picture of it, with the post office and the courthouse clock in the background. I had intended to get the train a bit more in the picture, though. Next time.

Total Miles: 27 miles