Part II of my adventure to finding some alternative fitness goals was signing up for the Calgary Spartan Race.
Spartan Race is a series of obstacle races of varying distance and difficulty ranging from 1 mile to marathon distances: the Spartan Sprint (3+ miles of obstacle racing), the Super Spartan (8+ miles), the Spartan Beast (12+ miles), and the Ultra Beast (26+ miles - one of two marathon obstacle courses along with Mudderthon). Spartan Race also has a time-trial obstacle course race that is one mile in length, and has a military series in which obstacles are designed by the United States military. Spartan Race's parent company, Peak Races, hosts the Spartan Death Race, 48+ hour extreme test of endurance and resilience. In a Spartan Race event, "participants will confront obstacles ranging from extreme to absurd that gain their inspiration from sources as varied as Spartan training, Navy SEAL training and American Gladiators".[1] ESPN describes the Spartan Race as "a true test of will."[2]
While Spartan Races vary in distance from 1 mile to marathon distances, the obstacles themselves also vary and are unpredictable. Participants must complete the obstacles or perform burpee penalty exercises. Many obstacles are present at each Spartan Race. Unlike other companies, Spartan Race does not provide a course map or list of obstacle to their participants until race day. Frequently presented obstacles include:
1.
Fire jump:
participants leap over flames. This obstacle is typically at the beginning or
end of a race. The fire jump has appeared in nearly every Spartan Race, though
certain venues do not allow fire.
2.
Barbed wire
crawl: a crawl through mud under barbed wire. Participants must stay low to the
ground as to not get injured by the wire. Crawls range from 20-100+ yards in
length. The wire crawl has appeared in every Spartan Race to date.
3.
Over-Under-Through:
a series of obstacles in which runners must first climb over a wall, then under
a wall, then through a tire or square hole placed in a wall. This obstacle is
often repeated three or more times in a row and appears in almost every Spartan
Race.
4.
Spear throw: from
a distance of 10-20 yards, athletes must throw a wooden spear into a target. If
the spear does not stick, a penalty of 30 burpees is assigned. The spear throw
is present at every Spartan Race with the exception of state parks that do not
allow weapons. Typically, the spear throw is near the end of the race.
5.
Wall climb: as
the name suggests, runners must climb over a wooden wall. Walls range from 4-8
feet and are often in sequence. This obstacle may be repeated throughout the
course.
6.
Object carry: A
signature obstacle, the object carry is often the most challenging. In a
Spartan Sprint, this obstacle typically appears once. In a Super Spartan,
twice; in a Beast, three times or more. The object to be carried may be a tire,
rock-filled bucket, or sandbag. Both the bucket and sandbag weight between 30
and 70 pounds. Men must carry heavier objects than women.
7.
Herculean Hoist:
athletes must hoist a cement block or heavy bucket off the ground using a
pulley system. This obstacle is similar to the "lat-pull" exercise
machine, but is more difficult because the rope is often muddy and slippery.
8.
Tyrolean
Traverse: Spartans must traverse a single rope that is hung horizontally
between two posts or trees. The rope is hung over a body of water, so if
competitors cannot traverse the rope, they will fall into the water and swim.
9.
Traversal Wall:
the traversal wall is similar to a bouldering wall.
10. Slippery Wall: a wall built at an incline (roughly 45
degrees) that is covered in soap or grease. Runners may try to sprint up the
wall or use a rope for assistance.
11. Gladiator Arena: before the finish line, athletes must
pass through the "gladiators" who try to knock down runners using
their pugil
sticks.
(Taken from the Spartan Race Wikipedia
Page)Spartan Race Calgary (August 17, 2013)
http://www.spartanrace.com/calgary-obstacle-racing-spartan-sprint-2013.html
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