“What the Hell am I doing here?” I thought to myself as I stood in a pack of about 40 men and women in the Elite heat of the BattleFrog Race in WV. My only previous OCR experience had been almost a year earlier at the Super Spartan in VA. Despite running in the Open heat, I’d put up a pretty competitive time which gave me some confidence heading into the BattleFrog race; however, my confidence began to fade once I arrived.
As if it were not exciting enough with challenging obstacles and live demonstrations featuring U.S. Navy SEALs and a McDonnell-Douglas 600 Special Mission Bird helicopter, leaders of BattleFrog today announced that its NY-NJ-CT event is shaping up to be a United States of America vs. Canada challenge with top-ranked obstacle course race athletes from both nations announcing that they will compete on Saturday, August 2, 2014 in Englishtown, New Jersey.
Upon leaving my hotel for Battlefrog’s Greater DC event the receptionist said to keep an eye out for deer in the road while driving to the venue. To me, nothing else can better explain just how “out there” this venue was. And it made for an excellent race. From the race, to the festival, to the volunteers and workers, this was one very well executed event. Despite being new to the OCR scene, Battlefrog has set a very high bar.
A quick thunder storm came in Friday night at Carolina Adventure World to set the tone for the race weekend in which Battle Frog held its second event ever. The storm cooled the air for a little while that night, but it wasn't enough to save anybody from the blistering heat to come during the race. The sun was already shining bright by the time the elite heat racers took the start line. For anybody who hasn't been to an OCR at Carolina Adventure World, it is one of the most underrated and unexpected terrains for a course in the Southeast.
BattleFrog’s second event picked right up where the Atlanta event left off last month. There was no chance of them experiencing a Sophomore Slump in Carolina this Saturday. A 15k Obstacle Course Race that is designed by and operated by US Navy Seals, this is a world class OCR that offers Cash Payouts for the 15k Elite Heat Runners, a 5k event, and a 1k Fun Run OCR for children. With fitness competitions in the Festival Area, inflatable bouncy play zones, great music blaring from the PA’s, and Seal Team demonstrations throughout the day along with helicopter fly-overs, even when you weren't running you were having fun and staying fully entertained.
The Inaugural running of the BattleFrog Series Race kicked off this past weekend with a Bang. Literally. An Obstacle Course Race designed and operated by current and former Navy Seals was marked by all of the Military Pageantry customary at patriotic celebrations around the country. Helicopter fly-overs, Seal Team Demonstrations, the sounds of (blank) rounds being fired, and the occasional boom of an artillery simulator explosion set this apart from a casual mud run the moment you parked your car.
