My 2023 OCR season closed on December 2-3 at Skipper Ranch near Sebring, Florida. The Central Florida Trifecta weekend would my third of the series (Colorado Springs and Seattle), marking the most races I’ve done since 2017.
Having previously ran the course when it was located in Mulberry, Florida, the Ranch presented an entirely new level of “suck” for me that pointed to weaknesses in my game.
HIP FLEXORS
The swamp crossings during the Beast on Saturday were a trudgefest through knee-thigh deep water and plant material that grabbed your feet and shoes while the roots and the cattle pasture terrain wreaked havoc on your feet and ankles as well. But it was the hip flexors in my case that paid a heavy toll. It’s been a very long time, maybe since I was a kid, that we played in a swimming pool or lake, “running” through water and the amount of power and force it takes to drive your legs through the resistance of the water.
I couldn’t wait to be out of the water and on an obstacle.
After a total of 15.5 miles on Saturday, my hips and lower back were on fire. I questioned my life choices and if I would even be able to go on Sunday! But I did, and this is how it all went down.
Saturday – Spartan Beast 12/2/2023
Flight delays and a late arrival to the AirBnB after 1:00 am, meant I didn’t even get to meet my weekend housemates before sleeping for about 3 hours and heading out at 5:00 am for my 7:30am start time.
In the chute, the scattering of bleached cow bones should have been an ominous warning of the mental game to come on the Ranch! As we left the start line just after the elites and 17-29 age group, as old guys and gals were presented with ankle deep water immediately, then tall grass and pitted terrain indented by thousand-pound cattle pressing hooves in the soft sandy soil. Within the first mile of this race, I felt the stress on my ankles the terrain presented and a few miles later, the fatigue wearing on my feet from too many flat asphalt miles I had trained on.
The course laid out with some surprising early obstacles in the spear throw and rope climb being fairly early. But as Spartan Race utilized the swamp, it became apparent why. The obstacles would be front loaded and then back loaded with a mind-twisting amount of water traversing in between.
The early morning fog may have burned off, but the heavy humidity left behind wet obstacles, including the likes of monkey bars, beater and the rig. Normally I have little trouble with the monkey bars, and beater is not so bad, but this morning, the wet pipes were a no go and my grip slipped away. Penalty loops ensued.
As the swamp crossings ignited my hip flexors, I was also dealing with swelling in my hands, likely a result of the day before spent in airports, dehydrating and eating poorly. Who wants to pay for a $36.00 cheeseburger in an airport??? This swelling would cost me at the box and olympus, and to be honest, by mile 9 I was spent. I found a couple other racers battling through the struggle-fest and we kept each other company for a mile or so before separating due to a penalty loop here or there.
As usual, I had very little issue with the strength/power obstacles liker armorer or atlas carry, sandbags or bucket carry. The Christmas tree designed path was a festive touch to the bucket carry, which was visualized from above or on your map tracker.
Feeling pretty much gassed out by the time I crossed the finish line hours later, @realjoedesena was there to throw down an ego challenge to take on the Extra Mile. Grabbing a Fit Aid, I nutted up and went for it. A barbed wire crawl, fence crossing and more swampy switchbacks, finished off with the same barbed wire crawl completed the Extra Mile and brought an end to my Beast race.
A much-needed shower, nap and it was off to dinner with my housemates and Spartan 4-0 crew at The Watering Hole, a fantastic post-race option with great food!
Sunday morning – Spartan Super 12/4/2023
Back at the Ranch for a 7:15 am start, my hips, back, feet and calves were tight and sore. I had a couple of pinch blisters forming on my pinky toes once again, which I tried to alleviate with some moleskin, but with the water crossings, they were not destined to last long.
The course was pretty much a repeat of the Beast from the day before, with just a few of the obstacles removed such as the tyrolean traverse, the 8-foot wall, and the second 0.45-mile sandbag carry, along with a chunk of the swamp crossings. I once again slipped off the monkey bars, and had my grip fail on the box and olympus. And due to my aching hip flexors, this was a combination of walking/old man shuffle through the course where I finished 20 out of 20 in my age group…not a surprise given how I felt after the Beast. But, I finished the course and more importantly, I still had gas in the tank for the Sprint yet to come.
Sunday afternoon – Spartan Sprint 12/4/2023
I recovered in the Spartan+ tent for an hour or so, then headed back into the chute for my final 5K at 12:15 pm. My right hip flexor was still angry, and my left big toe was numb from what I am guessing is the breakdown of the insoles on my Craft Spartan RD shoes. Time to replace those insoles!
My spirits were pretty high at this point, given how defeated I felt at the end of the Beast and questioning my body to complete the trifecta weekend.
By now the sun had been up and heating up to almost 90 degrees, which meant most of the obstacles should be much drier than they were during the morning heats. This was good. As I got to the monkey bars, my determination to NOT do a penalty loop was high and with the pipes dry, I was able to complete them even as the raw portions of my hands stung with each swing…I was ringing that bell damn it!
I was running a pretty clean race right up until the multi-rig when I lost it on a ring. Slipping off the z-wall was another disappointing fail during the race as the numbness of my big toe cost me a grip on the foot hold and I slipped off on the second panel.
When I crossed the finish line of the Sprint, I had logged a total of 26.6 miles over the three races, but more importantly, conquered the mental fatigue and doubts during the Beast the day before. I have to say I am proud to have gutted out this weekend. In 2017, in my first attempt at a trifecta weekend, following the Saturday Beast, I failed to get in the chute for the Super, only completing the Sprint on Sunday. That has not sat well with me and I can’t accept being mentally defeated like that again.
