SoCal Super/Sprint Weekend

Map

super

5a6d7c88a3ac98c46db8b7dd-o

5a6d838ea3ac98c46db8beac-o

5a6ef3b36b0054e254277109-o

5a6d97716b0054e254270ea3-o

Capture

5a6ebd2ba3ac98c46db90a02-o

Saturday January 27, 2018 SUPER Race Review

Well it finally came; Spartan Season opener right here in our own backyard: Chino, Ca. Nearly 2 months of training lead up to this very morning, a moderate 43 degrees at 7:30am in Prado Park. The mist was still rising and clearing as the Elite males and Female took off at 7:30 and 7:45 respectively. After getting checked in and finding the start line, I began to change out of my driving clothes into my race gear. Shoes needed to be switched, jacket removed, and headphones pumping my warmup jams.

With 30 minutes until my start time, I took in the scene of the venue. Some of the Elites were already at the 3 mile mark, working on Hurc Hoist and many of them struggling. This had me worried right from the get-go. That obstacle was my annual nemesis for 2018. But I continued to focus and get my muscles ready for the 8.1 mile, 27 obstacle and relatively flat race ahead of me. Soon, Male 25-29 age group was called to the starting corral and I made my way up near the front, about 3 rows back and then it hit me: I FORGOT MY GLOVES!!

Gloves are not a necessity for most racers, but I have learned that they help speed up a few areas like rope climb and Hurc Hoist since you can let the rope slide without major burn or tears on your hands, so I always try to keep them handy (no pun intended.) I tried to wave down my grandfather about 25 yards up to have them ready as I ran by, but he couldn’t find them fast enough. I was already off to a bad start trying to hunt for them in Laynas stroller. After about 10 seconds, I ran ahead without them, now with a crowd of men ranging from 17-29 years old. I had some work to do…

The first 2 miles held your standard starting obstacles including over walls (2 back to back 4’ walls), O.U.T (over one wall, under then next, through the third) and hurtles (2 back to back 3.5’ high poles you must get over without hurting yourself on the sharp square edges). They also through in a 6’ over wall and the first of 2 barbwire crawls. So far so good, and I was making great time. I was in 10th at this point but I didn’t know who ahead of me was in the 25-29 group and who wasn’t, so I set my target on ALL of them. Grey shirt, shirtless guy with black pants, etc.

At mile 2.5 we hit the first gauntlet of obstacles (more than 4 in a 0.5 mile length) and they were grip intensive. The 105lb Atlas stone is one I have seen improvement on in every race. A quick walk with it, 5 burpees, and a walk back and it was behind me with no time lost. I made it across Olympus using only the chains which was a first and saved a bit of time from my typical chain-hole-chain-hole method. Next was my favorite accomplishment of the race. Running only about 20 yards after dismounting Olympus was the Yokahama tire flip: 400lbs of solid rubber needing to be flipped one way and then back again unassisted. I had been training for this very moment for the past 3 weeks and I was mentally ready for it! I won’t lie, it was a struggle and it was HEAVY. But with every ounce of physical strength I could muster and multiple loud audible grunts, it was over… 1 to go. With the cheering of Layna and my grandpa in the background and the direct pump-up from a gentlemen standing right next to me, I got the second flip over and done with. YES! Unfortunately, the victory couldn’t be enjoyed for long since right away, not 20ft stood Hurc Hoist. I knew this was going to be the hardest part of the morning. I gave it 2 college tries and it didn’t budge. Over 100lbs of dirt and rocks needing to be lifted STRAIGHT UP 20+ feet and I couldn’t get my 125lb frame to move it 3 inches. I ran to the burpee zone to take my penalty. Luckily, I have been practicing burpees and I got 30 of them finished in less than 2 minutes and was on my way.

The final obstacle of the gauntlet was a new one: mud misery. The hardest part about it was not losing your shoes in the 2ft deep muddy sludge water; all 15-20 feet of it. Keeping my hands dry and my shoes on I moved forward to the bucket brigade. I have been practicing this carry nearly every day at work, carrying my Home Depot bucket filled with rocks from building to building and I can say it paid its dividends! These buckets were lighter than what I practice with so I made great time on the 1/8 mile circle passing mostly female competitors that started earlier, but gaining on the men I had targets on. A short jog ahead lead us up to the spearman. I have been pretty good at this in my last 4 months and so I picked out one that looked shorter and pulled in my rope. I threw, hit, stuck, and then it began to slide out. I held my breath and after 2-3 seconds, it fell. Now, I know the rules and this was a failure by technicality, but right behind me stood a course official and she happily said “That counts!” I knew it didn’t, but I was NOT about to argue with a course official to DO more burpees, so I said thanks and left before she could change her mind: but she was right, I DID get it on the target J.

From that point I moved to the extended “super” section of the course. Until that point, we were still on the Sprint (red) course. This path lead us through some bushwhack area of the dried up lake with fallen trees and dead reeds surrounding us with only a narrow path most of the time. It was a good 2.5 mile section with 6 exclusive Super obstacles, not to be see Sunday for the Sprint. They included the bouldering style Z-wall, the second, longer, barb wire crawl, twister (aka the burpee maker for most), 8ft wall, Stairway to Sparta, and bender. I made it through all of them penalty free and cruised at a heavy pace while passing many earlier competitors, hoping most of them were in my group!

After those, we were heading back to the festival area for the finish, but a few other key issues laid in waiting for my arrival. First on the list was the sandbag carry and again, gained on the men ahead of me and passed 3 female racers. Similar to bucket, this I had practiced for some time at work and it is getting easier and easier! The longest of the small hills followed and I really dug my toes in and passed the guys I gained on in the carry. From the top of the small hill I could see the final gauntlet and hear the music from the festival area. Only one thing to do before I got there, and it was an unexpected doozie! Plat drag and never been an issue for me before, but today it was extra challenging. Large mounds and divots were made from previous drags and after 2 attempts on one rope, I moved to one I though looked flatter. Same story. Third rope I got about ¼ of the way and it staled again. I quickly ran out, lifted it and moved it 2” past the hump, ran back and pulled! Finally got it to the post and began to drag it back to the start where the rope was taught. Gosh! That gassed me out more than the penalty burpees at Hurc!

With visible frustration from all the work I just lost on that one obstacle, I moved forward to a few of my favorite finishers. Multi-rig was first and I swung my way through to the bell and dismounted with angelic grace and the awe of a few spectators who were watching. I sprinted up to the 30ft tall A-frame cargo net, did my signature front flip off the top to a growing amount of fans who also ‘awed” and cheered for the spectacle. “Elite flip” as it’s called is always a crowd pleaser. A 15ft tall rope with a bell at the top was the next one and for someone who usually can do it with no feet, I struggled to find a good rhythm even using my legs for help. But a loud “RING” meant no burpees for me and I slide down fireman style to the ground below. From there, it was rolling mud: 3 deep trenches and 3 tall mud mounds designed to slow down even the most seasoned and veteran runners; and it did! Crawling to the last mound the dunk wall and 5ft deep muddy water pit was visible just below. A full submerge is REQUIERED to pass the wall and it’s a classic photo obstacle so smile and forget the frigged water when you come out the other side. 2 obstacles to go in the next 50 ft and then a short, all out sprint to the finish!

Slip wall is designed to do just as it suggests. A rope can be used for help but soaking wet from the muddy pit just before, it makes for minimal help. Another one I usually excel easily on left me clinging for dear life at the top. My shoes were soaked and caked with mud, leaving me no traction for the dripping plywood wall. But I struggled over the top to spider crawl the back side to the ground. 1 left… Invert wall is a 30 degree revered angled wall that you just need to get over and slide down the back side and then that sprint to the finish I mentioned.

I crossed the line in 1 hour and 27 minutes. Heart pounding and head reeling, the first race of the year was over. I finished out in 7th place (it was initially 8th to explain why I have 8 fingers up in the photo) but adjustments and penalties are taken into account afterwards. This finish was good enough to qualify for a reginal race (top 10 move on) and that was the main goal of today so I felt accomplished and relieved that the pressure was off right out of the gate.

In addition, I gained some valuable knowledge about the course to help with Sunday’s race and I would make SURE I didn’t forget my gloves to start with.

A huge thank you to II-VI OS for the pants and shirt I was able to wear pre and post-race and to Past Parallel for the fantastic running compression pants that kept the mud out, the muscles firm, and the durability to handle everything thrown at them. Looking forward to another great, shorter, race tomorrow!

Sunday January 28, 2018 SPRINT Race Review

Since most of the course as the same as the Super, minus the 6 Super course exclusive obstacles, this report will only capture significant changes from the SUPER Race Review.

The hardest part about a second day of racing? Getting out of bed. Legs sore, body tired, lips chapped, and a mental desire to sleep for a week is difficult to overcome at 5:15am on a weekend. But after a hot shower, hardy breakfast and some loud music, I was back on the road again, riding solo this time to let Layna sleep. I arrived extra early so that I could try and get a better look at that Hurc Hoist and find out any tricks I could find to make it easier for me. First thing I noticed upon arrival to Prado Park though was the wind. It was noticeably warmer than yesterday at 6:45am but the wind was brutal. Most people in line for the shuttle were wearing buffs and large sunglasses to keep the particles clear of eyes and mouths. After the short shuttle ride to the venue, I bee-lined straight to the Hurc Hoist. As luck would have it, a volunteer was standing right there and I started a generic conversation. By the end though, I had the courage to ask the joking sounding question; “So, which of these is the lightest one?” Without missing a beat or a moment’s hesitation, he pointed to the 3rd bag from the left in the corner. “That one. If you can get to that one first, it looks the smallest. New ones are 135lbs by the way.” For the record, Friday morning on the scale, it read 128.5lb. If he was telling the truth, these bags SHOULD weigh more than I do. I wasn’t allowed to touch the rope before my race time but I studied it hard and prepared mentally to hoist that bag up 30 ft without doing burpees today…

After the national anthem was sung at the start line, we were off for my first Sprint of 2018. I recognized the winner from yesterday’s race and tried to keep him in my sights, but by the first mile marker, he was long gone.

Fast forward to the hurc hoist, my target bag was available and I ran straight for it. I pulled myself up onto the fence line and threw myself back to the ground and the bag lifted! I did it again, and again, and by the 4th pull I was 1 more from the top. My hands were screaming for mercy though and it took everything to not let go. If you drop the bag from more than 3”, it’s 30 burpee penalty, regardless of if you got tit to the top or not. I heaved one last time and hit the top and then foolishly let the rope slip through my hands until I was 5 feet from the bottom and then griped bare handed the rope to keep it from smacking the ground. The burn was significant at first, but I was VERY lucky to not break any skin. I did it! It was not easy but no burpees here today. I nailed the spear without any question of legitimacy and ran passed Serena Williams. Yes, THAT Serena Williams. (I honestly didn’t know it was her at the time. I learned later that she was there and then I did recall seeing her right after the spear throw.)

I picked a much better plate drag path and had little issue getting through this time. The multi-rig was reconfigured to contain only rings which were a piece of cake. I passed the finish line in 55:56, 7 minutes behind the leader and landed another top 10 spot for the competitive age group division in 9th place. More importantly though, it was a clean race, my first solo clean race ever meaning I had 0 penalty burpees to perform and thus saved valuable time and precious energy.

I ended up running a second “fun lap with a few friends for active recovery and to capture some photos that I can’t normally get while in race mode. It was a totally successful weekend in my eyes though with a double qualification for Reginal Championship Series races with my back to back top 10 finishes. It was great to have family at one and friends at the other to share in the excitement and victory.

A huge thank you to II-VI OS for the pants and shirt I was able to wear pre and post-race and to Past Parallel for the fantastic running compression pants that kept the mud out, the muscles firm, and the durability to handle everything thrown at them

In two weeks (Feb 10-11), I will be traveling to Fort McDowell in Arizona for another Super/Sprint weekend.