I threw out my lose goals Friday HERE and wrote an event preview article HERE.
Red Frog events, who organize the Warrior Dash, was nice enough to grant me a media pass to try out the event and see how it compares to other obstacle course events I have ran.
It was definitely a different experience.
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I met my goals / learned my lessons...
- I didn't get hurt.
- I ran hard.
- I avoided high socks which made running through the mud and water much easier. They didn't have any army crawls, so rope burn was not an issue.
- I utilized gear check for keys and other gear. It worked perfect.
- I wore shorts that had a drawstring and cinched it up tight. No saggy drawers. I did have an almost emergency situation trying to hit the port-a-potty afterwards...
Having fun is all good, but how did I perform?
Not sure.
As I have checked the site a couple of times, my results are MIA. I didn't wear a watch or garmin, so I have no idea how I finished. I'm not sure what happened... I wore my chip and all, but not on the results list. I kept up with the 6 guys in front of me with no one passing me, so I think I had a good time, but not sure. Hopefully they can find it and get it on the results and I can report back. Top finishers ran the 3.11 miles and 12 obstacles in 21ish minutes. I would venture a guess around the 27 or 28 minute mark....?
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How was the course?
With 3.11 miles and 12 obstacles, there was a lot more running than past obstacle course races I've participated in. The first mile was almost all cross country style running across a field where the path was mowed and that's where you ran. That was fine by me as I was able to separate from the hundreds of people in my wave to avoid waiting at obstacles.
It was well marked, so there was no missing your turn. They also included some humorous signed about crying during "Titanic" and other nonsense to take your mind off the pain. Something for everyone. The obstacles were on par from what I have experienced in the past. Doable, but a challenge.
Mother nature was a obstacle as well with dead fish littering the river/pond crossing from all of the runners and snakes wondering the tire run obstacle. They had all the bases covered.
To say I was running in the red for heart rate and breathing would be an understatement. I wasn't out to set the record, but I wasn't going to putz around. With fewer obstacles and a shorter course, bottle-necking was not an issue, so there was no resting while waiting. Bonus.
Being close to one of the last waves, the course had seen a lot of traffic and it held up well with no rain until after the last wave went off. There was some mud, dirt and water, but nothing to throw a flag on.
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Technical issues...
I'm not sure if anyone else experienced some issues I had, but there were a few problems.
It was a hike to get around the site. From the check-in/info/gear check area to finish/start party area to the finish and start was probably a mile to 3/4 of a mile of walking. It wasn't the walking, but the time it took to get around. You were always moving, but it was a long walk. Hopefully you allowed enough time, which I did not.
When you drop gear off at gear check, I kept nothing to tell time. Running into a friend at the info area, it was 9:20. Plenty of time for my 10am wave. By the time I found my way to the port-a-potty and then hiked to the start, my 10am wave had taken off. I wasn't lolly gagging either... so not sure where I went wrong but there were no announcements of heats leaving and what time it was. You had to be at the start and near someone with a watch to know when you needed to head out. That's on me for missing the right heat, but it wasn't exactly easy to find out when you needed to get in the chute to go.
Lost my finish time... not a huge deal, but it would be nice to compare.
They moved up the start times due to incoming weather. I'm not sure where it was broadcasted, but I didn't see it on the site and I wasn't on the email list. So... I showed up for what was suppose to be the first wave at 10am and now it was the third to last wave. Glad I didn't sign up for a later time and showed up and didn't run. Do'h.
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They were organized, I'll give them that...
To move something like 20,000 people through a 3.11 mile course without clogging and pissing people off is a tall order. WD pulled it off well. For some of the tech issues I had, you have to admit there was a definite organization to the event. Food, entertainment, the course, pictures and wash down all had a space and being cramped for space was not an issue. It was a well oiled machine of human anarchy.
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Pictures coming soon on my Examiner page of what the KC event looked like. Stay tuned!
1 comment:
Sounds like a pretty good time!
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