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 […]
I had never run a Tough Mudder event prior to taking on the crown jewel of the Mudder offering on Nov 4-5 down in Granbury, Texas. To be honest, I probably wouldn’t have taken up this endurance race if the Thursday prior hadn’t been the first Unbreakable Pass Holders event hosted by Joe DeSena, founder […]
Beast 21k – Saturday Sep. 16, 2023 My first trip to the Snohomish-area for a Spartan was surprisingly NOT a mountain goat event as one might expect that close to the mountains. The event did, however, make use of the inclines and during the Beast, specifically challenged runners along the river’s edge and the ankle-turning […]
My “triumphant” return to Spartan racing, the first since December 2017, took place in Colorado Springs, Colorado throughout “The Bowl” at Fort Carson military base. I had been there before in 2017 completing the Super and Sprint races (10k and 5k respectively) back then, and knew this was going to be a dusty, dry and […]
In honor of SSG David H Gutierrez – KIA 12/25/2009 and his family left behind (Patty and the Boys – always in our hearts) Challenge yourself to the Murph – weighted vest (20#) 1 mile 100 Pull ups 200 Push ups 300 Air Squats 1 mile Modify as needed, perform at your own pace. It’s […]
My first back-back race days in years started with Gladiator Assault Challenge in Boone, Iowa on Saturday, and finished with my first Mud Factor 5K on Sunday at Berry and Pumpkin Ranch on the border between Bellevue and Papillion, Nebraska. Prior to taking part, I had been told this would be a fairly mild OCR […]
“Iowa has some hills!” Iowa and Nebraska are notoriously thought of as flat states by those from outside the borders. But, when the Gladiator Assault Challenge (GAC) crew found a location with a “hill”, in this case, the Seven Oaks Recreation Area ski hill about five minutes’ drive outside of Boone, Iowa, they utilized pretty […]
April 15, 2023 I’m back in a crossfit gym. This is rare, because I’ve never been a member of a crossfit gym for a couple of reasons that I won’t get into here, but for my first ever Deka Mile attempt, I find myself in Colorado. Spartan Race came out with the Deka Series a […]
March 18, 2023; Starting Line Temperature: 10 degrees Fahrenheit Yes, that reads correctly. The starting line temperature in O’Neill, Nebraska was 10 degrees at 10:00 am! Easily the coldest start of ANY run I’ve taken part in going back to high school track practice. Factor in a north wind and during the 2.5 mile fun […]
I should be cracking an adult beverage with a couple of former college housemates after trying to improve on my last DEKA Strong performance last month, unfortunately I am not. The five-hour one-way trip did not take place. However, not happening may actually have worked out for the better. Following my workout this past Tuesday […]