2026 Spartan Palm Beach Race Review

2026 Spartan Palm Beach Race Review 

By OCR Kings Reporter At Large 

David Best

The Palm Beaches......also known as “The Island or “The Gold Coast. Distinctions include its upscale resorts, beautiful beaches as well as being a winter retreat for the rich and famous. It's also home to an array of celebrities, athletes, business moguls and political figures. Notable residents include Rod Stewart, Michael Jordan, Bill Gates, Sylvester Stallone, Tommy Hilfiger, The Kennedy Family, as well as Serena Williams, Tiger Woods  AKA Mario Andretti and the BIG KAHUNA himself.....President Donald Trump. The Spartan Palm Beaches Race weekend also calls this its home each March and the latest installment was the weekend of March 28 - 29 at the Sunset Cove Amphitheater in Boca Raton, Fl. This race weekend has been held here since 2019 and with participation numbers of 1655 open racers on Saturday and 600 open racers on Sunday, this venue will stay on the Spartan schedule for many years to come. They also had the elite and age group as well as adoubles category to keep even the most hardened Spartan racer satisfied.

This is a Sprint only event....but have no fear....this is the Palm Beaches!!! After your Sprint race is over, there are two lakes nearby as well as a 27 hole golf course on site for your recreational enjoyment. You also have access to the beautiful sandy beaches of South Florida for all your sun & fun needs and are a mere 30 minute drive from the venue. Hotel & restaurants abound within minutes of the venue for your convenience. And speaking of convenience, the venue is nestled between two major airports as well as two major highways. The airports are the Ft. Lauderdale International Airport and the other is the soon to be renamed  Orange Man Bad (Donald J Trump) International Airport AKA Palm Beach International Airport. The two highways are I-95 and the other is the Florida Turnpike. This is truly a very convenient venue to travel to. I drive to this venue from the Sebring, Florida area (Central Florida Trifecta Weekend Venue) and it takes me about 2 ½ hours to complete the trip.    

Weekend Race Review

This race weekend was part of the U.S. National Series South Division which is only another reason make this venue a must visit. There were a total of 19 obstacles featured that included Hurdles, 4 ft Over Walls, a venue specific Cliff Climb with ropes, Monkey Bars, Bucket Carry, Barbed Wire Crawl, 6ft Wall, Vertical Cargo, a combo Sandbag Carry to Plate Drag, place the bag in the sled, drag to completion, remove the bag & carry the bag back to the bin, Spear Throw, Z Wall, Herc Hoist, Slip Wall, Atlas Carry, Chain Carry, Rope Climb, Multi-Rig and end with A- Frame Cargo. There was no fire jump this year as well as last year due to the lack of rain in this part of Florida. A burn ban was placed in effect until the middle of April....so maybe next year. The weather on Saturday was hot and humid even for the end of March in south Florida. We did receive an occasional gift from the Spartan Gods in the form of a beautiful breeze coming from the Atlantic Ocean beaches and it did revive and revitalize you. I heard many a Spartan post race say they thought this would be easy since this venue is “fast & flat” …......but I addressed this in another race review …....Spartan Race speaking in code again!!!! There is nothing we do in Spartan Race that is easy and when you lose your concentration and take the race for granted....THE SPARTAN GODS WILL QUICKLY PUT YOU IN YOUR PLACE AND SHOW YOU NO MERCY!!!!! 

This venue is deceptive as the heat and humidity as well as the placement of and volume of certain obstacles (weighted carries) will zap even the most seasoned of Spartans. The weather on Sunday was overcast and not as brutally hot, but the Spartan Gods weren't being merciful, just wanting to torture us in a different way. They brought the rain!!!! The early morning heats were but a mere drizzle, which made the Monkey Bars & Milti-Rig quite changeling. But the later heats weren't so lucky. The weather was so bad that the race director combined all remaining heats to get them on course so they could complete their race before the real bad weather came in and it did. 

I'm so glad I ran first thing in the morning so I didn't have to face the weather as well as the inexperienced Sprint racers on course. I ran n the open race category on Saturday and it only reinforced my hatred for the open Sprint races. I know I was one of those racers that didn't know what I was doing when I started out.....but at least I did my research via OCR Kings to at least know the basics. The vast majority of new racers  have no idea what they're doing and they don't do the research. A case in point....I was at Herc Hoist and a young racer got his bag to the top and just let it go screaming back to earth before making impact. The volunteer then told him of his error and his response was “Well, There Are No Rules Posted”. The volunteer then informed him that another volunteer on the other side of Herc Hoist kept repeating the rules about dropped bags being a fail and to lower the bag back to earth in a controlled fashion. I've commented on other reviews about the two things that piss me off that other racers do, drop the bag at Herc Hoist and walk across the handholds on Olympus. I ended up running in the age group competitive on Sunday and while I didn't qualify for a podium spot , I didn't have to hear the thumping of bags at Herc Hoist or wait in line at Bucket Carry while the inexperienced Spartan racers figured out their footing down hill while carrying their bucket or dodge the dropped buckets the newbie Spartans left on the course. 

But I did find one benefit from running age group competitive... photos!!!!! On Saturday, I had a total of 22 photos taken of me on course......on Sunday.....122!!!!! I'm a sloth compared to the others running in age group competitive, So by the time I get to the obstacle, I'm the only one there and the photographers only have one racer to shoot....ME!!!! LOL!!!!! I outsmarted the Spartan Gods once again!!!! 

Final Thoughts & Recommendations

I just love this race weekend as it is within driving distance of home as well as it being a relaxing Sprint only event. Race, hit the beach, grab a grouper sandwich and just have fun!!!! So, until my next race review, this is your OCR Kings reporter at large, David Best, bringing you all the “Best” Spartan Offers us!!

 2026 Spartan Atlanta Race Review 

 By OCR Kings Reporter At Large 

 David Best

Atlanta.....also known as “The ATL”, Hot 'Lanta or simply the “Big Peach”......but we Spartans know this as the first race of the season where we will be truly tested and tested we were in this seasons installment. Itwas held the weekend of March 14-15 2026 at the Georgia International Horse Park in Conyers, Georgia. This venue has long been a Spartan staple and with attendance numbers of 1062 open Beast racers and 1467 open Sprint racers on Saturday as well as 1442 open Super racers and 912 open Sprint racers on Sunday, it should continue to do so for many  more seasons. Spartan has also added a new category with doubles racing. They offer this in all three race lengths and allow two racers to sign up for one Spartan Race together to compete in a collaborative, team based format. I think it's a great idea and it introduces more people to the Spartan lifestyle aka “The Spartan Addiction”!!!!!

The venue and Conyers itself lies about 25 miles from Atlanta and the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. It's usually about a 40 minute drive, but with all the road construction we seem to be running into around the country these day, allow about an hour travel time. There is a plethora of  hotel and dining options and Spartans can even stay at a hotel that is conveniently located across the street from the venue. I stayed more in town where I was in walking distance of more dining options. 
  

                                     Obstacle and Race Review 

After dealing with flat race venues in SoCal and Jacksonville earlier in this race season, now come the rolling hills and mud of Atlanta. They haven't had the rain this year as they've had in years past, so the course itself wasn't quite as muddy, but it wasn't by any means a clean race. One young first time Atlanta Spartan racer commented to me about how muddy the race was and I looked at him and said “You should have been here the last three years”!!! LOL!!!! There were a total of 34 obstacles for the Spartan faithful to overcome and they are as follows: 4 Ft. Over Walls, Hurdles, Inverted Wall, Monkey Bars, 6 Ft Wall, Helix, 7 Ft Wall, Bender, Twister, Stairway To Sparta, Chain Carry, Cliff Climb, Bucket Carry, Multi-Rig, Barbed Wire Crawl, Atlas Carry, Z Wall, Spear Throw, Barbed Wire Crawl #2, Herc Hoist, Tyrolean Traverse, Irish Tables, 8 Ft Wall, Beater, Armer, Bridge, Sandbag Carry, Barbed Wire Crawl #3, Plate Drag, Vertical Cargo, Rope Climb, Slip Wall, A-Frame Cargo and the Fire Jump. 

I was surprised that Olympus was not an included obstacle this year and I guess the highlighted obstacles at the event this season would be the cliff climb (A specific obstacle at this venue), barbed wire crawl #1 that included rolling mud that went into Atlas Carry then into Z Wall. Z Wall was almost undo able as your shoes were caked with mud which made footing almost impossible. We did have a combination obstacle in sandbag carry into barbed wire crawl #3 and back to the beginning to drop your bag. They did change up the course this season which did limit the mud a bit, but replaced that with more rolling hills and a little longer course length.  I did like the change of scenery and we only had to cross a busy road on the Beast course unlike having to cross that road for both the Beast and Super Courses in prior seasons. The new course layout included us traversing a trail under a bridge and into a large meadow that had Bender and Twister back to back waiting to foil the toughest of Spartans. The weather on Saturday was quite nippy in the morning, which made the Monkey Bars quite changeling with cold, wet hands. But, once the sun came up, it became a beautiful day for racing with temperatures in the mid 70's.
   

Sunday was a bit warmer in the morning, but we had to battle drizzling rain from mid-morning on and what made it really fun was the half mile walk we had from the venue to the parking area. We know this as the “Spartan Death March” and after a Trifecta Weekend battling both course and the elements, it is a Death March!!! But I used the rain for an additional wash and changed for my trip to the airport once I returned to the car. 

 

      My Trip Home and Final Thoughts  on This Atlanta Race Weekend

I live in Florida and I like the Atlanta venue as it's a quick 90 minute flight to Atlanta from Orlando. I arrived at the airport Sunday afternoon for my 6:40 flight to Orlando, only to find out it had been delayed due to weather and was told we were to leave at 10:00, then midnight and ultimately having my flight canceled. I then had to spent the night at the Atlanta airport. In the morning, I asked the airline what was the quickest way back to Orlando and they responded by flying Raleigh-Durham, NC and then a flight to Orlando. So I did that and flew to Raleigh-Durham. Once there I found that all flights to Orlando were delayed, so I spent my Monday at the airport waiting. About 10:00 that evening, all flights were canceled to Orlando and I wasn't about to spend another night in the airport. So I caught a shuttle to a nearby hotel, got a room, a hot shower and some well deserved sleep. I usually don't sleep well in hotels, but had no problem that night. Up in the morning, breakfast and back to the airport where I saw my flight was delayed once again. I was to fly out at 5:30 that afternoon, but didn't fly out until 12:50 AM on Wednesday morning. I Finally arrived back home at 4:30 AM where my wife was waiting for me at the front door with a cup of coffee and a heartfelt “Welcome Home”........... FINALLY!!!! 

This wasn't the “Best” of race weekends for me and as I was waiting for my flight to Atlanta on Friday morning, I received a call from my wife to tell me that my mother had lost her battle with cancer. And while it's a blessing she's longer in pain, the void it's created in me will never be filled. I did welcome the distraction this race weekend provided me as well as the support all my Spartan brothers and sisters showed me. This is a great venue for Spartan, but the only recommendation I could make is to move it from the “Spring Break” time frame as it seems every time I attend this race, I run into travel problems. I was able to visit the venue on Friday before the race and met another Spartan named Phil. And guess what.....he is an OCR Kings subscriber!!! So Phil, here is your shout out and hope you had a fantastic race weekend!!!! 

              An Update On The Quest For The Spartan Spear  

                     AKA The Quest That Never Was!!!! 

Last season,  I decided to try to complete 13 Trifectas in a Spartan season to achieve the prize of a Spartan spear. Upon completing my 13^th Trifecta in Central Florida in December, I contacted Spartan concerning my prize for winning my war. I received a “What are you talking about” from customer service and was told to contact Spartan Race Greece customer service and I did multiple times with no response. I finally sent an Email to Joe De Sena personally and did receive a response from him. He referred me to Yara Yara Yara. She is a Spartan Race Goddess and did complete 52 Trifectas last season worldwide. She informed me that to receive a spear, I would have had to have 13 Trifectas under my belt by the Trifecta World Championship in West Virginia. I did the math and found I would have had to participate in every U.S. held Trifecta weekend between SoCal and the World Championship held 9/5-9/8 excluding the Hawaii Trifecta Weekend. For most people, an impossible task. I then asked why have any Trifecta weekends after the championship if they don't count for this? And I never received a response. The closest I came to the Spartan Spear was at the World Championship where I was able to hold one and snap a few photos.

So use my experience as a lesson if you ever want to set forth on you own quest for the Spartan spear and immortality. So until my next report from he Palm Beach race weekend, this is your OCR Kings reported at large, David Best, bringing you all the “BEST” Spartan offers us!!!!!  

Race Review - Spartan Race SoCal 2026

Race Review – Spartan Race SoCal 2026. An after action, SITREP of the SoCal Spartan Race Trifecta Weekend in Perris, CA on January 24 and 25, 2026 as run by our friend Tom at SHANK GYM. Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE!! Links below: Check out Tom's full review on shankgym.com here: https://www.shankgym.com/post/spartan... Check out the Shank Expeditions YouTube channel:    / @shankgym   Save 30% on your next Spartan Race OCR or Trail with discount code: OCRKINGS-2026 Send us your video and get a code for a free Spartan Race! Learn more here:    • Spartan Race: Free Race Giveaway! #spartan...  

Race Review – Spartan Race Seattle Pan American Championship 2025

Race Review – Spartan Race Seattle Pan American Championship 2025. An after action, SITREP of the Spartan Race Pan American Championship 2025 in Seattle, WA reported by our friend David Best. Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE!! Links below: Read David's full SitRep here: https://ocrkings.blogspot.com/2025/12... Spartan Race Sprint 2025 (All Obstacles) -    • Spartan Race Sprint 2025 (All Obstacles)   What to Expect at Your First Spartan Race -    • What to Expect at Your First Spartan Race   Change Robe, the premier changing robe for OCR, Spartan Race, and more - https://changerobe.com/

Race Review – Spartan Race Central FL Trifecta Weekend 2025

Race Review – Spartan Race Central FL Trifecta Weekend 2025. An after action, SITREP of the Spartan Race Trifecta Weekend 2025 in Sebring, Florida as run by Damer and Mack of OCR Kings. Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE!! Links below: Gifts For Manly Men! Just in time for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Holiday Shopping -    • Gifts For Manly Men - Holidays, Black Frid...   Exploring Hidden Ghost Town in Connecticut -    • Exploring Hidden Ghost Town in Connecticut   Spartan Race Sprint 2025 (All Obstacles) -    • Spartan Race Sprint 2025 (All Obstacles)  

2025 Spartan Trifecta World Championship West Virginia Race Review

 

                            2025 Spartan       

       Trifecta World Championship

                    West Virginia                              

                             Race Review

                   By OCR Kings Reporter At Large

                            David Best            

Country roads....take me home....to the place....I belong....which was the 2025 Spartan Trifecta World Championship that was held in Glen Jean, West Virginia the weekend of  September 5 – 7, 2025. This was the first time in the history of Spartan Race that the Trifecta World Championship has been held outside of Sparta, Greece. The host venue was the Summit Bechtel Reserve or “The Summit” for short. It is a unique Scouting facility with an expansive main property spanning over 10,000 acres. This venue, in my opinion, is the best all around venue location in the United States as it has everything we Spartans require for an unforgettable race experience. The infrastructure (showers & toilets), as well as the property itself including hills, valleys, streams and other natural as well as man made obstacles (the suspension bridge) make this a fun and changeling venue to conquer. There were a total of  over 8000 Spartans that competed over the three day event that included a Sprint on Friday, a Super and an open Sprint on Saturday and the Beast on Sunday to conclude the race weekend. As I have never competed in an event of this magnitude before, I didn't know if I was going to like the one race per day  format......BUT I LOVED IT!!!!!! In a perfect world, I wish all the Spartan race weekends could be done in the same manner, but the time and financial constraints won't allow us to do so. Being able to complete one race a day and then be able to concentrate on your recovery for the next day's race can't be underestimated. As we had Spartans from all over the world here competing, I also learned that the European Spartans rule the roost. After the Sprint event was held on Friday, multiple European Spartans complained about the rules and starting times. In turn, the starting times for the remaining races for the weekend were reconfigured to suit them.

 I will go over the rules they didn't like in the obstacle section of the review. I also decided to run in the age group competitive division as I thought, lightning could strike and who knows, maybe I podium at the World Championship.....Spoiler Alert, lightning didn't strike, but I didn't come in last in my age group either (LOL).  

 

                            Venue Logistics,

                          Travel Information

                       & Opening Ceremonies

 

 West Virginia isn't the most traveled to state in our country, so direct flights to Charleston are limited. I was lucky to find a direct flight from Orlando, Florida to Charleston, West Virginia on Breeze Airlines that departed on Thursday morning. That was  perfect for me as I could fly in and partake in the opening ceremonies that were held in Charleston along the  Kanawha River at Haddad River Front Park. The park is located about 10 minutes from the Charleston airport which made attending very convenient. The opening ceremony included an athlete briefing, an introduction of the elite athletes, a parade of nations as well as a virtual map of the Sprint course we were to tackle on Friday.

 Virtual maps were also released the night before both the Super and Beast races so we Spartans could plot our race strategy for the coming races. A total of 28 nations were represented with 5% of the racers being elite, 47% being in the age group category and 48% competing in the open category. 75% of the participants were men and 25% were women.

After the opening ceremony was over, I was off to Beckley, West Virginia and the hotel to prepare for  the coming race weekend. The trip from Charleston to Beckley takes about 90 minutes and is an easy ride on the interstate. Just to warn you, West Virginia loves to collect tolls along the route and there are two toll booths on the route. Beckley itself has many hotel and dining options which make it convenient and Beckley is only a 20 minute ride to “The Summit”.

 

                             The Race Weekend

 

 The Sprint race times began at noon on Friday, so I made sure to be there well before to hit the merchandise tent to pick up my  championship race swag....and I'm glad I did. Entry into the venue area began at 11:00 AM and I was the very first person in that  line. They let us in and it was like a large group of  vultures  attacking a carcass. Within an hour, all the championship venue swag was GONE!!!!! It was insane and there were quite a few people showing their displeasure in that merchandise tent as they left empty handed and disappointed. As I  have been dealing with  an MCL injury incurred in Idaho a month  earlier, I was unsure on how I was going to perform....but have no fear, Rocco with Spartan Athlete Services saved my race weekend  as well as the rest of my race season. I contacted him prior to the  event and told him my situation and his response was “I've got  this” and he wasn't lying. Between the taping, soaking and red light treatments, he had me running like a well oiled machine once again. After receiving my pre race treatment, I proceeded to the start line. I'm now going to review all the obstacles for the race weekend and we started with a Four Foot Wall to a Foot Bridge that was corded for us to crawl across the bridge and into the corral. After the start, we meet a Four Foot Wall, Over Unders, a horseshoe shaped Barbed Wire Crawl, Hurdles, Sand Bag Carry, Rolling Mud and Slip wall. We then come to a water crossing that takes us to a peninsula that held Spear Throw. We were required to wear the flotation device provided from the time we entered the water and on to the peninsula, perform the Spear Throw and swim back to the starting point of the swim. We even had to keep the flotation device on if we missed the spear throw and had to perform burpees.

There were a total of four Spear Throws for the weekend and I made three of four (missed on the Sprint). There were two Spear Throw obstacles on the Beast course. Then on to A-Frame Cargo, a Barbed Wire Crawl, another A-Frame Cargo to a new obstacle called Tilting Ladders. It's similar to monkey bars, except there are three ladders on a swivel and they move as you tryto make your away across, similar to Monkey Bars. On to Atlas Carry, Inverted Wall and up a decent hill to Bucket Carry. Now the Super/Beast obstacles begin with Twister, Bender, Olympus, Stairway To Sparta, then down hill to the Tyrolean Traverse. Now comes the serious down hill part to a small creek and a major uphill the West Virginia venue is famous for, we then hit the Suspension Bridge that does move a bit and once off that, we tackle Eight Foot Wall, Plate Drag, Spear Throw #2, a Sandbag Carry combined with a Barbed Wire Crawl (yes, both at the same time), then Armer and to the Laser Pistols.

Now the last time I handled a Laser Pistol was at Spartan Race Jacksonville two years ago. Here, we had to stand behind a table and put three shots in the black part of the target in 30 seconds before moving on. So I step up and my first two shots hit the black part of the target. Do you think I could hit it a third time???? You guessed it, NO WAY! I then moved onto Monkey Bars. Monkey Bars is usually a Sprint obstacle, but it was on the Super/Beast course only and the  spacing of the bars can only by labeled as quite aggressive. If you didn't have your boarding house reach going, you were out of luck. Seven Foot Wall was next, then Ape Hanger (failed both days....I think I have a mental block on it!!!!!), Z-Wall, Six Foot Wall, then a crawl under the foot bridge we had to cross to enter the corral, another Barbed Wire crawl to Rope Climb.

Rope Climb was the obstacle the European racers were complaining about. The rules for this race stated the racer climbs to the top, rings the bell and in a controlled fashion, lowers back to the ground...no dropping from height onto the mats. They were incensed they couldn't just drop like they do in the European races. Then on to a Chain Carry. There were three different configurations for this obstacle. The Sprint was just a chain, the Super was a chain with a cord in the middle you had to duck under and the Beast was a Chain & Sandbag carry. Multi-Rig was next and it had two different configurations. The Sprint had rings to the pipe back to rings and the Super/Beast had rings to the pipe to ropes (made both the Sprint and Super, but slipped on the Beast...tired, I guess.....LOL!!!). The final two obstacles were Herc Hoist ( I was happy as I heard no bags dropped at this event) and Fire Jump to end the race. The alley leading to the Fire Jump was lined with all the flags of the participating nations, which was really cool!!!!

 

                                Final Thought And 

                          Recommendations      

 

 It was a very enjoyable experience to participate in this World Championship. But I will tell you, that wasn't a West Virginia race. I've raced West Virginia three times and this race was a pedestrian race compared to the other two I've completed. I saw online that a Spartan racer took the map from the race in Greece last year and compared the elevation to the race in West  Virginia and the elevations were very similar. It would have been a sight to see what the foreign racers would have done if they ran the West Virginia course from last year that was set up by our friend and Spartan tormentor, Darth Vader AKA Tyler Andrew Spencer!!!! I can only assume they cut down the elevation as there were more obstacles then on a normal Spartan race course. 

After the Beast race was completed on Sunday,  Spartan held their award and closing ceremonies and they were very well done. The only recommendations I could make for the future Championship events is to order MORE Championship Swag!!!! It would have easily sold. The other is to not listen to a few European racers whine that it's not how it's done in Europe.....you're not there!!!!  you're in the good old USA and if you don't like how we do it then don't attend....sit home on your sofa drinking wine and eating goat cheese!!! I did mention earlier in the review about me competing in the age group division. I'm glad I did it once, but never again!!! As I entered the corral for the Sprint, I was looking at the other racers and they had a very serious look on their faces. In the movie, “The Dark Knight” with Heath Ledger as the Joker, he takes a citizen and says “Why So Serious”?!! I so wanted to do the same to the other Spartans in the Corral that weekend!!!!LOL!!!! 

I am now off to Seattle and Spartan Pan American World Championship race weekend, so until my next report, this is your OCR Kings Reporter At Large, David Best, bringing you all the “BEST” Spartan offers us!!!!!

Race Review - Asheville Spartan Event Weekend 2025

Race Review - Asheville Spartan Event Weekend 2025. A SITREP of the Asheville Spartan Race Event Weekend at Tryon International Equestrian Center, Mill Spring, NC, on August 2 and 3, 2025 reported by our friend David Best. Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE!! Links below: Read David's full Race Review here: https://ocrkings.blogspot.com/2025/09... Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head by B.J. Thomas:    • Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head  

2025 Spartan Asheville Race Review

2025 Spartan

Asheville

Race Review

 

By OCR Kings Reporter At Large

               David Best             

 

Raindrops are falling on my head 

And just like the guy whose feet are too big for his bed   

Nothing seems to fit

 Those raindrops are falling on my head, they keep falling.... 

 

 If B.J. Thomas hadn't written this song in 1969, you'd think he 

 wrote this song describing the 2025 Spartan race season and the 

 race held on August 2-3, 2025 in Mill Spring, North Carolina was   

 a non stop drizzle fest that made this Super – Sprint weekend  

 extra challenging. The weekend festivities were held at the Tryon 

 Equestrian Center which has hosted this race for the last three 

 years. This race weekend was part of the Spartan Honor Series 

 which spotlight our military and first responders dedication and 

 sacrifice in service of our country. The Super, Sprint & Kids race 

 was held on Saturday and a Sprint only race was held on Sunday. 

 

Venue And Logistics

 

 The Tryon Equestrian Center is located in Mill Spring which is 

 about a half hour drive from Asheville and it seemed the majority 

 of Spartans stayed in Asheville as there are more hotel and dining 

 options available there and the drive from Asheville to the venue 

 site is a leisurely one. I flew to the event weekend and used the 

 Asheville Regional Airport and it is my preferred option as it is a 

 smaller and more navigable then flying into Charlotte as well as 

 cutting off an additional hour driving to Asheville. The parking 

 area used for the Saturday event is a bit of a hike, but just treat it 

 as a part of your warm-up or if you're wanting to save your energy 

 for the course, the venue does provide transportation from the 

 parking area to the festival area with a farm tractor and trailer. 

 Check in, bag check and merchandise tent were under a large 

 covered pavilion as well as dining and drink options. One of the 

 many reasons I love doing the Carolina area races is that Island 

 Noodles is one of the food options. I love them and that is my go 

 to post race meal along with my free post race Heineken Silver. 

 We Spartans earn it on the course and should pamper ourselves 

 whenever possible. 

 

Race Review and Course Layout 

 

 The course had a slightly different layout from last year as they 

 were building some putting/practice greens where the course was 

 last year. We started out with a short barbed wire crawl into the 

 paddock and the first obstacle was the four foot wall, then 6 foot 

 wall, then a climb uphill to hurdles, monkey bars, over unders,

  and to Z wall. I had a new experience on Z wall as I was trying 

 to round the outside corner or the coffin corner and reached my 

 foot to that block and the block pulled out of the wall and tumbled 

 right down the hill.......but being the true Spartan I am, I hung on 

 and was able to complete the obstacle without any further 

 mishaps. On to the sandbag carry that was a bit of a challenge 

 due to the wet and uneven ground. Atlas carry is next and on to 

 the inverted wall, bender, 7 foot wall, Olympus, Stairway to 

 Sparta, Beater, Twister, a creek crossing to Bucket Carry, then a 

 barbed wire crawl to Slip Wall, Rolling Mud, Dunk Wall, Rope 

 Climb, Herc Hoist (people dropping bags again and we all 

  know how I feel about that!!!!!LOL!!!), Spear Throw to the 

 Multi Rig. I had another first as I was wearing gloves due to the 

 wet weather and slick obstacles. I employ the hand to hand 

 technique and my hand grabbed the other pinkie finger part of the 

 glove and I couldn't advance on the Multi Rig until I readjusted 

 my hand to free the other to complete the obstacle. Then to A- 

 Frame Cargo and finally to Fire Jump and completion. The Sprint 

 course obstacles were the same other then Vertical Cargo on the 

 Sprint only part of the course. You may see in the photos that I 

 chose to wear gloves for this race. I don't like doing so, but the 

 wet, muddy ropes and slick obstacles made it a must. I was never 

 able to find gloves I liked until a race buddy of mine, Tom 

 Maming, a Spartan Race veteran with over 500 races to his credit, 

 showed me the way. A simple pair of rubberized gloves you can 

 buy at any farm supply store or Home Depot. I got a three pack 

 for $10.00 and I'm here to tell you.....THEY ARE A GAME 

 CHANGER.....they were for me and I've been using them since I 

 saw Tom use them in Jacksonville. Give them a try and I 

 guarantee you, you will love them!!!!! I also experienced another 

 first after the Sunday Sprint......a hot post race on site shower!!! I 

 entered the changing tent before I was to hit the cold water wash 

 when another Spartan came in and told me they had a hot shower 

 set up behind the changing tent....well, I wasn't going to miss out 

 on that, so I went to check it out. Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap had a 

 shower area set up on a trailer where they sprayed you down with 

 hot water, their Magic Soap and then a nice warm water rinse.  

 They also were handing out free samples of their soap to take 

 home. I love the idea of warm showers using the shower trailer 

 and think Spartan could do something similar to send us home all 

 spic and span. 

 

Recommendations & Final Thoughts

 

  I love this venue and only wish they could bring back the Beast 

 to make this a Trifecta Weekend, but they sold a section of the 

 property and now it's only big enough for a Super – Sprint 

 weekend. I took the summer off to rest and recharge before 

 hitting the course for that second half push and Spartan 

 immortality by completing 13 Trifecta Weekends in a year and 

 earning the most coveted Spartan prize.....A Spartan Spear. We'll 

 find out in December if I'm successful. Another reason I wanted 

 to do the race was to see how the area was recovering from the 

 aftermath of Hurricane Helene. I was here last year just before 

 the storm hit here and I was surprised on what I saw.....recovery 

 and rebuilding well under way in the cities, but the rural areas

 and anywhere near the rivers and creeks along with Lake Lure, 

 devastation and scaring of the land which will take some time to 

 heal, but will never be the same. We all need to keep these fine 

 people in out thoughts and prayers and hope for the quickest 

 recovery possible. So until my next report, this is your OCR 

 Kings reporter at large, David Best, bringing you all the BEST 

 Spartan offers us!!!!!!!

Race Review – Spartan Race Poconos Event Weekend

Race Review – Spartan Race Poconos Event Weekend. An after action, SITREP of the Spartan Race Poconos Weekend at Blue Mountain Ski Area, Palmerton, PA on July 12 and 13, 2025 as run by Mack and Damer of OCR Kings. Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE!! Links below:

Send us your video, get a FREE Spartan Race! Check out the details here:    • Free Spartan Race and Tough Mudder Giveaway   or Save 20% off your next Spartan Race with discount code OCR-KINGS