Well, I just returned from the craziest frickin weekend of my life...
This will be a long post. Where do I even begin to sum up such an epic weekend?
I guess I should start here - A 12+ mile trail run with 25 obstacles seems intimidating to most people, right? Now add on top of that a 8+ mile trail run with 20 obstacles on the very next day. Yep. That's what I just did.
Ok. So the Spartan Beast was set for 10/25, and a few months back they decided to add a Super on 10/26. This meant I could get both races (and my trifecta) on the same weekend and not have to travel to Virginia for the Super. But... this also meant I had to do them back to back, and for someone who had never done either race before, the thought of it was pretty intimidating.
I ran with Team RWB - Lil' Sarge's Soldiers. Saturday I got up to Carolina Adventure World in Winnsboro, SC. Our mission - Complete the Beast and/or Super while carrying the flag through every obstacle. Our strategy was to take it slow and not run for time. The goal was survival. We were set to run at 12:15 which is later than we wanted but that couldn't be helped. Of course we stopped for a group pic...
The Beast - 12 Spartan miles (14 actual miles) and 25 obstacles
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| Eagles at the Beast! I'm in the middle wearing all black |
I didn't wear my RWB shirt - it's too short on me. Went tactical for this race.
So at 12:15 our journey begins. We set off through a wide and very dusty trail, ran for quite awhile before reaching some over/under walls and our first 6 foot wall. After this wall we ran into the woods and encountered hill after hill after hill. These trails are gnarly - steep, rocky, roots, hard packed dirt and clay, and just unrelenting hills. We were reduced to walking up most of these. Flat sections of the course were so rare but much appreciated.
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| Just one of the many hills |
Within mile 1 or 2 we hit the low lying woodsy area of the park. Here they had our barb wire crawl, which wasn't too rocky and the wires were not very low so you could be on your knees for alot of it. However we had alot of thick, nasty, stinky grey mud. The guy in front of me was super slow so I ended up laying in the mud for a long time. My ponytail got soaked and became a hard chunk of muddy hair for the remainder of the day.
Once out of the muddy barb wire crawl we went straight up a hill which was covered in the slippery mud that everyone else's shoes left behind. We climbed up and down more hills for quite awhile before reaching a balance beam that went over a small pit. I am no great balancer but took this slow and made it across. Back into the low lying swampy woods - down a giant hill where you had to slide on your butt and grab any tree limbs you could. A teammate almost stepped on a snake that was hidden among the leaves but someone alerted him to it's presence at the last second. We were back in the thick mud again. Our teammate Delaney took a step and was suddenly in waist deep mud! By some miracle my shoes stayed on and after what felt like an eternity of mud we started to make our way uphill and back out to another clearing. Tractor pull. Take a concrete block tied to a chain and take it up and down a huge hill. This was brutal. Downhill was difficult, uphill was a nightmare. I was doing ok until halfway up hill, I began to slow down as the block got stuck on every single bit of uneven ground. But I made it up and hit the well placed water station for some water and food. I took my Camelback with Skratch powder in my water, and ate Honey Stingers every few miles.
Back into the hills - walking at this point because we were wiped out from that tractor pull. It wasn't long before we hit another upper body killer - the Atlas Carry. Pick up a giant stone ball, carry it to the flag, do 5 burpees, pick it up and come back. I believe the women's version weighed 72 lbs.
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| Some lady eagles doing the Atlas Carry |
This was much easier for me than the first time I did this. Guess my training in the gym has paid off.
Next was a tire drag. I guess they're getting better about the placement of these, because at the Georgia Sprint this was nearly impossible for me due to my tire being stuck in mud. This time our tires were all on dry ground so this wasn't too bad.
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| Tire drag, I'm in the black just getting up after finishing it |
Not too long after this we hit the log hop obstacle. I suck at this thing so I had a helping hand to get me across. James stumbled during his, so as he was about to fall he nimbly saved himself by hopping onto the log in the next lane, then hopped back over to his own lane for an epic finish.
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| James at the log hop |
After the logs we were maybe at about mile 5 and this was where the course started to circle back towards the festival area. This meant tons of obstacles bunched up together so the spectators could see. We rounded back towards the start line where some mud hills and water awaited us, followed by over-under-through walls. At the following water station the volunteers told us to dry our hands in the dirt because monkey bars were up next. Sure enough there they were, black paint coated bars of varying heights. I have some unholy gift for the monkey bars. I have never failed them and Saturday's Beast was no exception - made it! Unfortunately the traverse wall was right after it and I failed that. I don't have the hip flexibility and strength to cross it just yet. I also learned that I am not cut out for any type of medic job. At the Traverse Wall as I was waiting to cross it, all of a sudden I heard the most horrible blood curling scream. A guy dislocated his shoulder and was just screaming bloody murder. A medic was near and tended to him quickly but it kind of turned my stomach to watch him screaming in pain like that. Poor guy.
Monkey Bars and Traverse Wall, James gets creative with the flag
Next up in the onslaught of obstacles - the inverted wall. A wall that is at an angle pointing towards you, so getting over the top is the challenge. This thing was covered in mud and I started to slip off but some Eagles had my back and gave me a boost so I didn't fall. THEN we had the spear throw. So apparently now they have started attaching the spears to a rope and setting up a fence so you can't pass a certain point. This backfired on me horribly as the rope got caught under my foot when I threw the spear. Fail, burpees. But our gauntlet of back to back obstacles was over as we went back into the woods at mile 6.
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| Inverted wall |
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| Spears! |
It wasn't long before we reached the sandbag carry down and up yet another massive hill. Alot of people cramped up at the top of this. In fact, past this point I saw dozens of people sidelined along the trail with calf cramps. I was fortunate this weekend and experienced zero cramps. This portion of the course was mostly trails, the hills weren't quite as steep as they were in the first half of the course but they were DUSTY. I was coughing and sniffling alot because of all the dust I was inhaling. We hit an A frame cargo wall, pretty easy but it shook around alot which made me wonder if the thing would suddenly collapse on us
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| Mile 9 or 10! |
Jasmine took a bathroom break and almost stepped into a fire ant hill. Really gotta be careful on these trails. We set off for more trail running/walking for at least 2 more miles before we encountered the next obstacle - 7 and 8 foot walls. After the walls we were back out in the hot sun and dusty trails. Up next came an obstacle I had never done until now. The Bucket Carry. Fill your bucket with rocks and then carry it straight up a huge rocky hill then all the way back down and empty the bucket. In the hot sun. This. Freaking. Sucked. I have no pictures of it right now but just know that it was painful. I had to stop a few times for a break. Eventually I got it done and we plunged straight into some 50 degree water for a short swim. Screams were heard all around as racers entered the water. I just swam quickly and breathed deeply to avoid getting my body into a panicked state. It worked well and I actually felt nice and refreshed once my body got over the shock of the cold water. It was straight up a huge steep hill which was muddy from the water we just crossed. My energy was almost spent. My left leg and right ankle were hurting, and don't even ask me about how my feet were feeling. But this was mile 11 so the end was not far away. After crossing the final stretch of trail we approached the Hercules Hoist. A bag attached to a pully system and rope. Pull the rope until the bag reaches the top, then lower the bag back down slowly and you're done. They made this obstacle way easier! The bags used to be like 70+ lbs for women and now they are 45. Made an obstalce I'm already great at even easier.
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| Nasty Ass Molasses Mud Pit |
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| Barb wire crawl |
One of the final obstacles - a thick, soupy, nasty mud pit. This thing was like molasses. But it was hilariously fun to cross. After exiting this we were back in the festival and facing the rope climb. Ah, the rope climb. I have practiced this faithfully in the gym and can climb it pretty easily. At a Spartan Race? Not so much. This thing was so wet and muddy I could barely climb it. I made it up the first knot and that was it. But at least I have made progress because I couldn't climb it at all before now. This point of the race took awhile because we waited for everyone to cross these final obstacles so we could finish together. Next was the ladder climb, followed by a short barb wire crawl that was slightly uphill and filled with razor sharp rocks. Then it was just a matter of crossing the underwater wall, the slippery wall, and a very wide fire jump and we were across the finish line!
For a moment I could have cried. I just finished the Spartan Beast. Shawn wore a GPS and said this course came in at over 14 miles and 9,000 feet of uphill AND 9,000 feet of downhill.
That night I met my husband in Blythewood where we were staying - he was supposed to come meet me at the finish line but his GPS messed up and he got lost. So instead we ate at some Carolina Wing place and then headed to the hotel to rest up and prepare for tomorrow. I was so glad he was there with me for emotional support.
The Super - 9 Spartan Miles (10.5 actual miles), 20 obstacles
I'm not going to go into a exact play by play of the Super because it's the same course, only some mileage and 3 obstacles were cut out. I woke up feeling sore but not as bad as I had anticipated. However it was clear by the first wall that this was gonna be way harder than the previous day. Here's basically what happened. Our teammate Giselle had a knee injury that was bothering her even at mile 1 of the Super. Most of the group went on ahead but me, Jasmine, and Mike stuck with Giselle. She said it hurt most going downhill, so at a point where 2 points of the course intersected she decided to skip ahead and wait for us. We said ok but then as we went forward we realized we were heading away from where we left her, and that the course wasn't going to double back that way and that she must have gone backwards instead of forward. So at the first water station we told the volunteers to go look for her. Jasmine and Mike told me to go on ahead so they could wait for her and then catch up to me. After awhile I realized I was going to be alone for this whole race. But then at mile 3 Giselle was sitting there, apparently she found a way to skip ahead and said now she was going to wait for the other 2 because they had to come back that way. So after being sure she wanted me to leave her behind to wait I moved onward.
I tackled the same obstacles and knew exactly what was in store for me this time around. The fatigue really set in after the Tractor Pull which was just brutal on my already tired and sore body. After that point I pretty much walked the whole race. I figured since I had the 3 teammates behind me there was no rush for me to finish. I felt much weaker on the second day. This time I needed 2 people to help me cross the log hop! I also experienced a first time failure yesterday. The Monkey Bars. An obstacle I have been so proudly able to complete finally claimed me yesterday, and my failure came at a price because it left me with 2 open blisters on my right hand. I got halfway across when I went to reach for a high bar and just barely missed it. However this time I had no trouble with the inverted wall. Missed Traverse Wall and Spear Throw again. I became very chatty with strangers on the course to try and keep my mind from going to a dark place. My right hip and bicep were hurting badly. I was alone and starting to question why the hell I was doing this, so I found that socializing was my way of keeping myself going. At least I had help when I needed it, although one guy who seemed really eager to help me grabbed my butt when he helped boost me over the 8 foot wall. It wasn't a grope but it was still a little weird. The Bucket Carry reared its ugly head again at mile 8. This damn thing sucked the life out of me but I got it done. I got in the 60 degree water, trudged painfully up the hill following it, and as I approached the home stretch I distantly heard the song my husband and I danced to at the Army Ball playing back at the festival. I sang along to keep me going. The big nasty mud pit was hilarous once again as everyone slopped their way through. It actually hurt my muscles to try and move through this ridiculously thick mud. Once out of it I passed through the final obstacles, sprinted over the fire jump and crossed that finish line to earn my final Blue medal...
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| Trifecta Complete |
It was brutally awesome. There were many times when I laughed and a few when I almost cried. I gave it my best and won!
I was surprised to find my entire team waiting for me at the finish line. Apparently the 3 that were behind me cut the course and finished earlier than anticipated. Which was for the best really because Giselle was hurting with that injured knee. But it was all good - we all made it, some of us earned Trifectas, and we celebrated at Red Robin before I made the trek home.
This weekend was amazing. This experience has taught me that anything is possible if you have the willpower. I learned that as long as you're putting one foot in front of the other, as long as you KEEP GOING, even when you think you can't, just keep going and you WILL finish. These races teach us much about our own strength and about life in general. That we can accomplish great things if we realize that most of it is a mental game and that we just have to ignore the voice in our head that tells us to quit.
I finished 2 tough courses with the ever so awesome Team RWB of SC/GA. Would I do a Beast and Super back to back again? If you asked me yesterday the answer would have been NO. But today I am saying "Probably!"
