As a mother of two, a personal trainer and a competitive racer, I am fiercely passionate about encouraging the next generation of obstacle course racers. So when an opportunity came up at Phoenix Evolution (an OCR gym located in Chandler, Arizona) to coach 25 kids, ages 5-13, I could not have been more excited.
This past weekend, I raced the SoCal Spartan in Chino, California. Prado Regional Park was a beautiful venue, the weather was great, and everyone was so excited to kick off the U.S. 2018 racing season for the Spartan Series.
Kansas City Family Timber Challenge starts with a quick pep talk to the kids (no parents allowed). The kids then help to get the families excited, and just like that you are on your way as you high-5 the cowbells over the starting line. This is the start of Family Timber Challenge.
I've rarely ever had a big issue with jumping into the fire with new gear, if it works as anticipated and I don't have to think about it at all it's a win. Occasionally, I will be blown away by the performance of a product and the entire time I'm running I mentally craft the product review with flowery superlatives... that I forget once my endorphins abate. During the 24 Hour Terrain Relay, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to test the following gear:
Spartan Race's Director of Sport Joe Distefano and Vice President of Production Mike Morris take Margaret cover the Spartan Race World Championship rules, cutoff times, and the whole experience - what it will be like on the course for athletes running the Beast - and Ultra Beast courses this weekend at Lake Tahoe. Rules, tips, debunking Joe De Sena's advice to "just stay home" and much more.
Evan heads back to Tempest Academy to continue to hone his free running skills.
Evan runs a military inspired obstacle course at the Newport-Mesa YMCA and tries works our with Spartan SGX coach Cody Ayala
Evan takes to the steps of Culver City with Darrell Michnowicz of Raw Calisthenics. Expect plenty of body weight exercises, plenty of stairs, and a total lack of shirts.
In the never ending quest to become Spartan Strong, Evan trains with SGX coach Ashley Seeger at her workout, "Becoming Badass."
Why in the name of Odin would you want to do something that would even have the possibility of reducing attendance? Did this not occur to anyone? The feedback from the average racer, looking to move up a notch in challenge has been overwhelmingly bad! And remember, people "vote with their feet!". For every comment, there are dozens who feel the same and just won't be considering your race.
