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!!!!!  

 

Spartan Race Arizona Map - Valentine's Day Extravaganza 2026

Spartan Race Arizona 2026. There a NEW obstacle! It's certainly new to us. Check out the course and map review of the 2026 Arizona Spartan Race Valentine's Day couples' weekend, at Fort McDowell, AZ. Also known as the Arizona Spartan Event Weekend. Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE!! Links below: Run Spartan Race for FREE! Send us a short video of yourself running, working out, or getting ready for an event and we'll send you a code for a free race. Videos should be 1min or less, oriented 9:16 (portrait), and be sure to include Spartan catch phrase, "AROO!" If your video is 50MB or smaller, email it to us at ocrkings@Ifgmail.com. If your video is bigger than 50MB click this link https://forms.gle/PwEmt8DB198tudCx5, fill out the form and submit your video. If we select your video, we’ll post it on our channel and send you a code for a free race. All giveaway codes are one time use only and expire 12/31/2026. Taxes and add ons are not included. Spartan Race Codes are good for:

• Sprint
• Super
• Beast
• Ultra
• Trail 10K

Other Spartan race links: What to Expect at Your First Spartan Race Super:    • What to Expect at Your First Spartan Race ...   Save 30% on your next Spartan Race OCR or Trail: OCRKINGS-2026

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...  

Spartan Race: Free Race Giveaway! #spartan #giveaway #free

Spartan Race gave us free race codes for 2026 to share with you for! Here's what to do: Send us a short video of yourself running, working out, or getting ready for an event. Videos should be 1min or less, oriented 9:16 (portrait), and be sure to include Spartan catch phrase, "AROO!" If your video is 50MB or smaller, email it to us at ocrkings@Ifgmail.com. If your video is bigger than 50MB click this link https://forms.gle/PwEmt8DB198tudCx5, fill out the form and submit your video. If we select your video, we’ll post it on our channel and send you a code for a free race. All giveaway codes are one time use only and expire 12/31/2026. Taxes and add ons are not included. Spartan Race Codes are good for:

• Sprint
• Super
• Beast
• Ultra
• Trail 10K

Spartan Race SoCal 2026 - New Obstacle?

Spartan Race SoCal 2026. Is there a NEW obstacle? Find out in this course and map review of the 2026 SoCal Spartan Trifecta Weekend, at Lake Perris State Recreation Area in Perris CA. Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE!! Links below: Spartan Race SoCal (All Obstacles):    • Spartan Race Sprint 2020 (All Obstacles)   What to Expect at Your First Spartan Race Super:    • What to Expect at Your First Spartan Race ...   Check out Tom's Shank Gym Expeditions channel:    / @shankgym   Save 30% on your next Spartan Race OCR or Trail: OCRKINGS-2026 Free Spartan and Tough Mudder race codes coming, stay tuned!

OCR Race Gear - Reusable Timing Chip Strap

We have some new race gear, a reusable timing chip strap courtesy of 23active.com. This all-weather timing chip strap is the ultimate solution for Spartan Race and any athlete who demands durability, comfort, and convenience during their races. Links below, and don't forget to SUBSCRIBE!! Get your All-Weather Timing Chip Strap at - https://23active.com/products/all-wea... Save 30% on your next Spartan Race with discount code OCRKINGS-2026

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/

2025 Spartan Seattle Pan American Championship Race Review

 

                            2025 Spartan       

              Seattle Pan American 

                    Championship                            

                             Race Review

 

                   By OCR Kings Reporter At Large

                             David Best             

  

  Seattle........The Emerald City.........Home to the Space Needle,  Pike Place Market and the 2025 Spartan Pan American Championship Race Weekend. It was held on September 13 - 14 2025 at the Meadow Wood Equestrian Center in Monroe, Washington. The weekend included the Pan American Beast Championship as well as a Super and Sprint race. There was also a Teddy Bear Crawl that raises money to provide teddy bears to children in hospitals for comfort and companionship. 

                                  Venue & Logistics 

  As I was traveling from Charleston, West Virginia after participating in the Trifecta World Championship, I had to fly from Charleston to Charlotte, NC and then catch a flight from there to Seattle. My flight home was from Seattle to Orlando, Florida. I used Alaska Airlines for the trip home and, in my opinion, they are the best airline I have used to date.    

Monroe is just north of Seattle and about an hour from the  area attractions Seattle is known for. Pike Place Market, where the first Starbucks was opened, as well as the Space Needle and the Seattle – Tacoma International Airport. As in any metropolitan area, the traffic can be heavy, so leave yourself additional time to navigate to your preferred destination. Monroe  isn't a large town, so hotel and dining options are limited. I opted  to stay in Everett, Washington. Everett is about a half hour drive  and a fairly easy one to and from the venue area. Everett has more options for dining and hotels, so that seemed to be the better option for me.

 

              Course Conditions, Obstacle Layout & 

               Deciphering The “Spartan Code”

 

  If you do enough Spartan Races, you will find that Spartan speaks in code. For example, when you see them say “Flat & Fast” when advertising an event, that doesn't mean it's an easy one...... and  this venue is a prime example of that. While it is flat, what they  don't tell you is that part of the course is near a river that has many smooth oval shaped stones the size of a large grapefruit. Trying to navigate them was an adventure as the footing is  uneven and very trying on the ankles. More then a few racers had ankle and foot injuries on that part of the course. But the one positive was watching the Salmon swimming in the river and as a native Floridian, I have never seen that in person before then. The course itself is a mixed bag of  terrain including mud, stones, water crossings as well as a large meadow with both grass and hard pan earth. The Beast race itself started with 4 Foot Overwalls, Hurdles, Monkey Bars, 6 Foot Wall, Atlas Carry and on to Inverted Wall. Then come the Super/Beast obstacles of Stairway To Sparta, Irish Tables, A Log Carry, Over Unders & Beater. Then Plate Drag, 7 Foot Wall, and the dreaded Olympus. Olympus has always been an iffy obstacle for me as it is a very taxing one on the body. Today, the Spartan Gods blessed me and I was able to complete it and once I do that, I know a clean race is within my grasp. Then on to bender, 8 Foot Wall, Twister and a combined Sand Bag Carry/Barbed Wire Crawl. They used this same combination in West Virginia the week prior and I think it's growing on me. On to Tyrolean Traverse, Rolling Mud, DunkWall, Slip Wall, Sand Bag Carry#2, Barbed Wire Crawl #2, Vertical Cargo, Bucket Carry and Armer. Then Multi-Rig, Herc Hoist, Helix, Z Wall and Spear Throw. At this point, I'm running a clean race and when they place the Spear Throw near the end of a race, that usually isn't good. The Spear Throw requires just the right amount of both strength and finesse and when you're tired, both of those things in unison are hard to come by. So I approached the fencing and retrieved my spear, took a deep breath and let it fly..........I hit the target on the low right side and knew at that moment, I just ran a clean Pan American Beast Championship race!!!! A fellow Spartan at the Spear Throw congratulated me and my response was “If I have a heart attack between here and the finish line, please carry me across so I get credit!!!” LOL!!!!! The final two obstacles were Rope Climb and A-Frame Cargo. The one obstacle omitted from the race this year was Monkey In The Middle. It has been a staple at this venue for many years and when I finally get to experience this venue, they don't have it....well, maybe next year. 

                  Angering The Spartan Gods, 

       Is The Quest for 13 Trifectas In Jeopardy               

                      & My Final Thoughts        

 

   As I was floating back to the Spartan Member Tent basking in the afterglow of my clean race, I still had a Sprint race scheduled later in the day and was preparing for that. I had decided to use the Sprint as a victory lap for a well run Beast race and that was  when I must have angered the Spartan Gods. I began my Sprint with no issues, but about a third of the way in, I started to feel funny and not too long after that, I was sweating and the chills began. I walked the rest of the course, tried the Spear Throw & failed, then drove back to the hotel. I showered, got a bite to eat and went to bed, hoping for the best. Woke up the next morning coughing, with the sweating and chills even worse....and I had to fly back to Florida later today!!! I had to bail on the Super and drove back to the airport in Seattle for the long flight home. I  wasn't the only person on that plane suffering with the same thing and that plane sounded like you were in an airborne TB ward. I make it back to Orlando and finally home where my wife was waiting with a COVID test. I took it and you guessed it..  I'M POSITIVE!!!!! I had a race scheduled that next weekend in Indiana at the Badlands Off Road Park. I ended up spending the next five days in bed battling COVID and had to bail on the Badlands race. I did end up recovering, but it took me two weeks before I could even think of running another Spartan Race. In    missing both the Badlands Trifecta Weekend and the Idaho Beast, I now know I have a zero percentage of error. I have to make the rest of  my scheduled races to make my goal of 13 Trifectas in a season. Will I do it, can I do it, will the Spartan Gods allow me to do it.......stay tuned to find out sports fans!!!! Even with that happening to me, I wholeheartedly recommend this race as the Seattle area has a multitude of things to offer. The food, tourist attractions, National Parks and Vancouver, British Columbia is but a ferry ride away from the Seattle area. For me,  one of the funny things about Seattle  was driving in the car and picking up    the Vancouver radio stations and hearing how they talk about us  and the good old USA. As far as the race and venue, there isn't too much they have to do as it was a very enjoyable race weekend other then bring back Monkey In The Middle!!!! This venue also has won my coolest venue medal of the year award for the Pan American Beast medal. It will be interesting how Spartan  handles the specialty medals for next year with the changes they have implemented. So, until my next report from the lone star state and Dallas, Texas, this is your OCR Kings reporter at large, David Best, bringing you all the “BEST” Spartan offers us!!!!!!!       

 

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!!!!!