by Michael Mills

On March 9th, I became the first ever paralyzed person to complete a Spartan race. On that day, history was made by Team Pushharder. Without my team, this would have been extremely difficult. I received a lot of feedback from people both positive and negative on the accomplishment. The positive was reassurance that something amazing happened on that day and that it proved that anyone could do anything as long as you put your mind to it. The negative was that people felt that my team carried me the entire way and that I did not put forth real effort. It troubled me to think that people felt I did not do the work to earn the title of being the first paralyzed Spartan athlete. So, I thought to myself, “what more do I need to do to prove myself in OCR?’ Then it hit me.. I would do something most able-bodied people wouldn’t even think of doing in their wildest dreams. I needed to prove myself once again and this time I want to go all out. So, that leads me to today.

I am pleased to announce that I am now officially going to be part of the 2013 Summer Spartan Death Race. I am the first ever paralyzed athlete to enter this event and I am going in it to be the first ever paralyzed person to complete a Death Race. This will be the hardest test of my life, but I will say this, I will leave every inch of my heart and soul out there to prove yet again, I am worthy of this title. Expect nothing less of me!

About Michael Mills:
Michael Mills Adventure/Endurance Athlete.

At the age of 16, I was hit by a drunk driver which left me paralyzed from the waist down. I was 16 and did not know what to expect out of my life. Not long after my injury I realized that this was a gift. It was a gift to be different and make Life worth Living. I am now 36 years old, married with three lovely children, work a fulltime job and an athlete in two sports. I have raced in over 150 road and track races in my career. I have traveled all over the world and have had the opportunity to represent my country in three events.

Competitive Bio Highlights:
Nationally and World Ranked in the 200/400/800 and 1500 meter events
2005 Selected as Most improved Athlete Lakeshore Foundation, Birmingham, AL
2005 Selected to Represent Team USA World Wheelchair Games, Rio Brazil
2007 Selected to Represent Team USA World Wheelchair Games, Taipei, Taiwan
2005 to current Team Captain, Shepherd Rehabilitation Center Wheelchair Racing Team, Atlanta, GA
2010 Selected to Represent Team USA Oita ½ Marathon, Oita Japan
2013 First Paralyzed Athlete to climb Stone Mountain, Stone Mountain, GA
2013 First Paralyzed person in History to compete/ complete a Spartan Sprint Race

Upcoming Events:
2013 First ever Paralyzed person to sign up and compete in a GoRuck Challenge (12 hour navy seal type event on 05/25/2013
2013 first Paralyzed Person to attempt to climb Curahee Hill, Tocca, GA on 06/01/2013
2013 First official ever Paralyzed Person to sign up for a Spartan Death Race to be held on 06/21/2013
2013 First Paralyzed Person to compete in the R3OPS Obstacle Course race on 07/20/2013
2013 First Paralyzed person to compete in the 2013 Mid Atlantic Spartan Beast on 08/24/2013
2013 First paralyzed person to compete in the 2013 Gulf Coast Spartan Beast on 10/19/2013
2013 Marine Corp Marathon while carrying 100lbs for 26.2 miles
2013 First Paralyzed person to compete in the 2013 Spartan Carolina on 11/19/13

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12,000 Spartans at Citi Field 

by David Magida

David Magida is a member of the Spartan Race Pro Team. In 2012 he finished 9th in the Spartan Race Points Series and has already recorded five Top 5 finishes in 2013 alone.

I began competing in obstacle racing in 2011 and I immediately knew the sport would grow. But never did I imagine 12,000 people at one race. Yet, April 13, 2012 marked an historic milestone for the sport as 12,000 eager athletes toed the line at the Reebok Spartan Race Citi Field event.  The stands began to fill up. The concourses were overflowing with people. And the crowds began to work their way toward the start line.

This was my first stadium event and my first in a time trial format as well. Generally I’m happy on the trails, tearing through mountains, crossing streams and gliding along on courses designed to suit the runners. This course, on the other hand, was short and highly intense, with a great deal of strength required. The terrain was perfect. The hard concrete allowed me to run fast while conserving energy for the obstacles. The running felt comfortable and it was exciting to fly up and down the concourses, ramps and stairwells.

I’m not sure how many flights of stairs we climbed, but it was enough to leave my legs sore for the next 48 hours. Unique obstacles such as heavy ball slams, heavy jump rope, water jug carries, rowing machines and a peg wall added a unique challenge and helped level the playing field for non-runners. As did the Hobie Hop up four flights of stairs.

Around every corner were new challenges. Monkey bars with smaller grips. Four consecutive 6-foot walls with room enough only to land and jump again. As is their usual fashion, Reebok Spartan Race thought up a number of sick and twisted ways to inflict delicious pain upon the competitors, yet left them proud of themselves and eager to race again once they finished.

Because when you come out of that tunnel and begin your final sprint around the warning track, all you can think of is how incredible it is that you just ran such a grueling race in a professional sports stadium. And you wish it wasn’t over.

I left New York City with a souvenir: Some dirt from Citi Field ground into my shoes and a little blood on my shin. That’s what Spartan Race is all about. Job well done to the Spartan staff and volunteers on an incredible race. I’m looking forward to the next one at Citizen’s Park.

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Flood Bound – Hurricane Irene Documentary Features Spartan HQ’s Hometown

Spartans are no strangers to obstacles. The Spartan Hurricane Heat was created when Hurricane Irene blew through the North East during the first two day Spartan Event in Boston.  What you might not know is that  Pittsfield, Vermont, Spartan HQ, was struck a wicked blow in that same storm and was cut-off from all supply routes and forced to come together and save our town.  But Pittsfield, home of the Death Race and lots of rugged Vermonters, rose to the challenge.  Pittsfield resident Marion Abrams (the film maker behind Spartan’s Chris Davis series) produced a 1-hour documentary film about the inspiring reaction of the Pittsfield community.

No one got down.  No one waited for help to come.  The whole town of Pittsfield got to work.  Residents rebuilt roads, set up a makeshift medical center in the library, a school on the green and they shared food and encouragement.  It’s a true Spartan story of grit and determination.

The film features interviews with 38 town residents, including Spartan Race founder Joe Desena, and tells the powerful story of neighbors facing their fears and coming together. Find out more and see clips at www.FloodBound.com

 


Here is a preview from www.FloodBound.com

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by Carrie Adams

bleacherreport.com

Florida Gets Faster

Some fast women are heading to Florida this weekend.  And we are talking about the exceptional talent that will toe the start line in Miami for the upcoming Reebok Spartan Super in Miami, and we’ll preview them later this week.  But there is another woman in Florida this weekend that will also be racing a short 300 miles North in Daytona attempting to break yet another record, though she’ll be driving a tricked out stock car.  NASCAR’S Sprint Cup series is being kicked off in a big and historic way in 2013, and Danica Patrick is the woman leading the charge in true Spartan Chicked fashion… by beating all the boys.

Breaking Records

Patrick who is no stranger to breaking records, came out swinging this year by winning the pole Sunday for the Daytona 500, the first woman to do so, and her most distinguished accomplishment since she joined the premier circuit of stock-car racing in 2010.  Being only her second trip to Daytona, she’s fast by any standard and that’s being recognized.

Team owner and fellow driver Tony Stewart was quoted saying, “It’s never been done. There’s only one person that can be the first to do anything.  Doesn’t matter how many do it after you do, accomplish that same goal. The first one that does always has that little bit more significance to it because you were the first.”

This is Patrick’s first year racing exclusively in stock car.  And she’s been under pressure and delivered big in the past.  She was the first woman to lead laps in the Indianapolis 500.  She was the first and only woman to win an Indy race, an accomplishment that she enjoyed in 2008.  Known for her racy Go Daddy commercials and photo shoots, this driver is more than a pretty face.  Dedicated, smart, and competitive she’s one of the more popular driver’s in the circuit but she’s focused on her performance.

In Fast Company

Much like the Spartan Chicked crew, that’s been around since August of 2011, girls are making waves in sports like never before.  A 10% female showing in our first Spartan Race in 2010 we’ve grown to nearly 40% in 2013 and 200,000 of our half a million finishers this year will be female. With our own elite athlete females who are chasing down the men on the course and proving that gender is not a factor, we recognize fast when we see it.

JONATHAN FERREY/GETTY IMAGES

“I was brought up to be the fastest driver, not the fastest girl,” she said. “That was instilled in me from very young, from the beginning. Then I feel like thriving in those moments, where the pressure’s on, has also been a help for me.” When asked about what is on the horizon she says simply, ”We have a lot more history to break.”

Go get ‘em girl.  Good luck in Daytona.

Still want to get in on the Spartan action in Miami?  There’s time.  Click HERE to sign up.

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IOC makes room for Obstacle Racing in the 2020 Olympics

by Jason Jaksetic

There have been many recent developments in Olympic history, and if you couldn’t keep up, here is a breakdown.

The good news first.

1. Everyone got to learn about modern pentathlon.  One does not often discover an Olympic level sport that somehow integrates shooting, swordplay, horse jumping, running, and swimming. My mental imagery goes somewhere between superheroes and samurais. This is great, and I’m not going to suggest the IOC put the pentathlon back on the chopping block, which was the original plan by some accounts.

2. The I.O.C must have caught wind of our bid to bring obstacle racing to the 2020 Olympics. We understand there has to be the limit to the sports in the olympics.  Otherwise there would be backyard sports in the Olympics  like horseshoes and trampoline…

Wait, incase you haven’t heard, trampoline is an Olympic sport and will remain an olympic sport while…

3. Wrestling is out of the Olympics. At Spartan HQ, we are still grappling with this, as Spartan Race has a close connection with wrestling.

In our first eBook (download it for free), there is an entire chapter written about a future Olympics, with a cast of characters that includes wrestlers and obstacle racers training, and possible competing against each other.

The imagery is no figment of our imaginations.  In 2009, Spartan HQ, located in Pittsfield Vt., was host for one of the United States Wrestling Team’s training camps. Here is an article that details the week of wrestler’s chopping wood and carrying logs in the Vermont Mountains (video here).

Jeff Funicello was put on the round table of Spartan Coaches because of his extreme understanding of fitness through his success in international level wrestling, grappling, Judo, and other competition forms that have lead him to so many world championships.  (Here is a list of all his world championships).

Recently, in 2013 there was wrestling at a winter Death Race.

Wrestlers make an amazing obstacle racers.  They make great people.  We’ve seen many lists lately of presidents, generals, and all around hero types who thrived as wrestlers.

Dismayed at the decision of the IOC, we are hoping you will join Spartan Race in support of bringing wrestling back to the Olympics.

Please help support the effort:

http://themat.com/keep-olympic-wrestling.php

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by Chris Rutz, Elite Spartan Racer

Hobie Call

This weekend, Reebok Spartan Race arrives in the Arizona desert. The 2013 Arizona Spartan Sprint moves to a new venue that captures the beauty of the Sonoran Desert and ramps up the difficulty level of the course. McDowell Mountain Regional Park is located northeast of Phoenix and provides a rolling terrain with miles of tight single track for the elite racers to challenge one another.

This is the first Spartan Sprint distance race since the Reebok/Spartan Race partnership was announced in late January in New York City.  Two weeks ago the SoCal Super went off at Vail Creek Lodge in Temecula, CA.

Many of the top athletes from the 2012 Season will be racing in Arizona this weekend for their share of the $7,500 cash purse generously provided by our partners at Navy Federal Credit Union for the Saturday Elite wave. We asked a few of them how they feel the Navy Federal Credit Union prize money impacts the sport of Obstacle Course Racing?

Hobie Call, resident Spartan elite racer  said, “…I want NFCU to know that I truly appreciate their sponsorship. Every little bit helps, and this year is looking even better than last.” and “As cool as the helmets and swords are, elite athletes follow the money. End of story.” 

Female elite racer Corinne Kohlen noted how it’s drawing new talent to the field, “I think the money is great. It is luring in exceptional athletes and runners such as TyAnn Clark (and many others) who may not have been as interested in this kind of sport before.”  

That sentiment was also noted by elite female Andi Hardy when she was quoted as saying, “Money brings more elite competition.” 

Jenny Tobin

Last year’s female point’s winner Jenny Tobin also had something to say about the infusion of cash prizes, “I’m all about making money for my exercise habit, I’d still do it but it is nice to make a little money and see different parts of the country.” 

The field is ripe with talent.  Male elites Hobie Call and Hunter McIntyre, first and third respectfully in the SoCal Super are scheduled to be at the race. In addition, look for the 2013 debut of Christopher Rutz, Elliott Megquier and Nick Maynard. Christopher and Nick, along with Arizona native Chase Stewart have the home trail advantage and will be ready to tear up their desert. Beyond the Arizonans, watch out for 2012 Top 10 Spartan Racers Dallas Bessette and Shawn Feoick.

On the women’s side, SoCal winner TyAnn Clark, multiple 2012 Spartan race winner Rose-Marie Jarry and winner of the 2012 Texas Sprint Ella Kociuba are schedule to race. Those three alone will make the race for the podium very interesting. By no means do they have a lock on the top three places. Expect to see some of the top names in the sport including Juliana Sproles, Ang Reynolds, Andi Hardy, Corinne Kohlen, Sue Luck and Shaun Provost literally give them a run for their money. As usual, the women’s race will be exciting to watch.

Get out to the Arizona Spartan Sprint this weekend and watch these athletes smoke through the course. After the finish, they would welcome the opportunity to share their passion for obstacle course racing (OCR) with you in the festival area. 

2013 has Spartan stepping up the game considerable.  With prize money, Reebok, and an incredible crop of top racers, it is shaping up to be another exciting weekend of obstacle course racing.   See you at the races! 

Not registered yet?  What are you waiting for?  Join the expected 500,000 Spartans that will cross one of our finish lines this year.  Find an event near you HERE. 

 

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by Tom McCormack

In 2012, we issued a challenge to the Spartan Community.  We asked for teams to come out, in force, and that the biggest team of the year would be handsomely rewarded.  We had quite a showing, but none more so than a team from the West Coast, going by the team name, “Weeple Army.”   The Weeples were not just the biggest team on the year, they were the biggest team at THREE events in 2012.  They were the biggest team at the SoCal Super, the Sacramento Beast, and the Malibu Sprint earning a Biggest Team Tri-Fecta in CA!

Captain:  Dave Huckle

Final 2012 Biggest Team Results

Top 5 teams for 2012 based on the amount of finishers at every event.

Malibu Sprint Weeple Army

150
Mid-West Super Spartan Chicago Spartan

146
Sacramento Spartan Beast Weeple Army

144
Pennsylvania Spartan Sprint Team Limitless

139
Indiana Sprint Spartan Race 2012 Midwest Collegiate Street Team

134

 

Malibu 2011 was the first of the three Weeple Army appearances.   They arrived with 20 team members and participated in the Hurricane Heat.  Just 60 days later, they arrived at the 2012 SoCal Spartan with 73 members, many of them again participating in the Hurricane Heat at 6am.  They were hooked!

The Weeples are focused primarily on mud and obstacle races, 5ks, marathons, but while having fun and enjoying the event, regardless of their finish times.

David Huckle, Weeple Army team captain did 39 events throughout the course of the year finishing all types of throughout the year and in some cases two events per weekend.  The Weeple Army Running Group now almost 800 members.  From racers that are running their first 5k mud run, all the way up to the Ultra Beast and Death Racers.  They are a varied and dedicated crew.  In fact, two of the Weeple faithful are now Spartan Race employees!  Matt Trinca and Steffen “Cookie” Cook.

Ricky Ignacio, another Weeple,  started his journey with the Malibu Hurricane Heat by showing up late and taking a beating from Joe D. and the Spartan staffers but he finished Ultra Beast less than a year later.  Spartan elite racer Ang Reynolds is also a proud Weeple. We featured one of her blogs recently for Spartan Chicked Tuesday.

Six Weeples arrived at the Spartan Death Race, and four of them finished!  Not too shabby! Congratulations Weeple Army, and keep a lookout for team captain Dave, who will be traveling to a number of 2013 events around the world, paid for by Spartan Race.

Think you’re ready to put a team together?  Get signed up today.

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by Carrie Adams

Not that you need 500,000 reasons to love Spartan Races  but they sure help!  In 2012, one of our most popular blog posts outlined our cash and prizes on the year.  Far and away, Spartan was the leader in the Obstacle Racing pack with our payouts for Champions and competitors.

Spartan Race was living large in 2012.  So large, we finally quantified it! Spartan Race HQ was proud to have given away $500,000 in cash and prizes!   Born out of the Death Race and growing rapidly since 2010 Spartan has continually worked hard to make our mark in the growing sport of Obstacle Racing.  With 34 global events in the season of 2012, and recognized as Outside Magazine’s “Best Obstacle Race” for the same year, Spartan Race, is building the sport of obstacle racing as the competition for the complete athlete – fast, strong, agile, with endless endurance, and strong of mind, body and character.  There is no doubt that Spartan is cutting edge with the world’s first and only global ranking system, an escalating race series from 5K to the first ever marathon(plus) distance race with the introduction of the Ultra Beast we worked hard to reward our Spartan community – handsomely!

When the season ended, the leader board had Cody Moat, who also won the  Trail National Marathon in Moab, UT on November 3rd, 2012, solidifying his position as an all-around athlete.  It came down to a fraction of points with the final tally for the men, Moat beating resident Spartan Champion Hobie Call by an extremely narrow margin.  On the women’s side, positioned at the top spot on the was former professional X-Terra athlete Jenny Tobin, with a first place point’s finish.  With 2013 already in full swing, check out the current points standings HERE.  To read the full details on the cash and prizes given away in 2012, click on the link HERE. 

We’ll be giving you even more reasons in 2013!  Our good friends at Navy Federal Credit Union have graciously agreed to sponsor the prize money at six Spartan Events in 2013.  The breakdown will be:

$2,000 1st Place

$1,000 2nd Place

$750 3rd Place

These prizes will be awarded in Arizona on February 9th, Las Vegas on April 6th, Burnet, Texas May 18, Washington, August 3rd, and the Mid-Atlantic August 24th.

More cash and prize updates coming soon!  You could win BIG with Spartan Race.  Don’t wait.  Register today.

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by Tom McCormack

2012 has been an amazing year for the staff of SpartanRace.  Spanning 11 months and 23 events, and traveling from California to Vermont to Mississippi to Texas and everywhere in between, I know I speak for all of us when I say, “that was one hell of a season!  I need a nap!”

But as most of you already know, Spartan staffers don’t sleep.  Joe D won’t let us!

With that in mind, we’re all back in the office and focused taking the 2013 SR season up a notch, or more realistically, 3 or 4 notches.

We’ve got a lot of exciting projects in the pipeline and we wanted to take the time to touch base on one of them here.  “Project Shoehorn”, as it has been affectionately dubbed by our new President Lee Goss, was developed out of necessity in order to accommodate the overwhelming demand from some of the larger teams that are building for 2013.  With HUGE teams like the Weeple Army and Azn Armour rolling into our events with over 150-200 team members, we’ve been forced to re-think the way we handle the team registration process.

 *Sidenote:  Shout-out to Dave Huckle and the Weeple Army for accomplishing the Biggest Team Trifecta by showing up in SoCal, Sacramento, and Malibu with the biggest team at all three events!  More news on the Biggest Team Contest to come shortly, stay tuned!

Recently, you may have noticed that our first 6-10 events in 2013 are either Sold Out or very close to being Sold Out on Saturday.  Once those events began reaching capacity, we started to receive hundreds of emails from team captains demanding that we find a way to ensure that all team members can run together.  Trust me when I say, “we heard you loud and clear.”  You can stop emailing us.  No seriously, please stop, we’re begging you.  We need sleep!

Obviously, this is a pretty good problem to have, so after a number of lengthy conference calls, Project Shoehorn was born.  Starting this week, we’re going to put Project Shoehorn into motion, and you’ll immediately start to see some changes in our registration system.

What the heck is Project Shoehorn, you ask?

It’s simple.  We’re getting as creative as possible in an effort to “shoehorn” more racers, specifically, more of your procrastinating teammates, into our already SOLD OUT events.  Got that?  Google “shoehorn” if you need to.

So here’s how we’re going to do it:

1.  Adding more Capacity to our Events – For 2013, we’ll be focused on building bigger and better courses that can handle more racers at the same time.  That’s not to say we’re just going to put more racers on course by increasing the size of heats.  Quite the contrary. We’re going add more race capacity by building bigger, wider obstacles that will allow racers to flow through the course as quickly as possible, and minimize the chances for bottlenecks.  We’ll also be developing fast and slow lanes, which will allow faster racers to pass on the left, while still allowing plenty of room for others to move at their own pace on the right.  Fast Lane, Slow Lane.  Sound familiar?  This new flexibility will ensure that we can get your teammates out on course with you.

2.  Staggered Heats – We’ll be staggering our heats for Sold Out events, so we can send smaller waves off at more frequent intervals.  For those of you that were at our Fenway event, you know this works like a charm when you need to get a lot people onto a tight course.  Smaller groups tend to move faster than bigger groups, so this common sense solution will still allow us to get the bigger teams out on course, while minimizing the chances of being stuck waiting at an obstacle.  We want you to see you hustling, not standing around twiddling your thumbs.

3.  “Day Parts” Registration Format – In order to streamline our team registration process and cut down on some of the confusion that comes with trying to organize your friends and team members so they can all run together, we’re rolling out our new “Day Parts” Registration format.

Effective immediately, you’ll have 5 options when registering for a Spartan Race event.

1.  You can choose “Elite”, which will cost you an extra $30, but will provide you with an opportunity to run against the best of the best and compete for prize money.

2.  You can register for a “Confirmed Start Time” heat, which will cost you an extra $25, but will ensure that you can run at a specified time.  If you absolutely must run first thing in the morning because the kids are waiting at home, this one is for you.

3. Morning Start Times – These heats will range from 9am-12pm.  Once you choose a morning heat, tell your team members to get signed up, and make sure they’ve selected your team.

4.  Afternoon Start Times – These will typically be from 12-2:30pm.  If you can’t get out of bed, this start time is for you.

5.  Late Afternoon Start Times – Got a long drive?  No problem.  Sign up for a late afternoon heat.  Nothing compares to finishing a Spartan Race event while the sun is setting behind the hills.  In 2013, we’ll be ramping up our post-race parties, so you’ll be finishing just in time for the festivities.

So what does this mean to you?

If you’re already registered for a preferred start time like 10am, you’ll still be able to race at or near the start time you selected.  Now you’ll be able to get more of your friends signed up to run with you.  Have no fear, we might adjust your start time slightly to get you out together, but you won’t be moved by much.  Make sense?

As long as your friends have selected your team during the registration process, our Registration Team will find a way to make sure all of your teammates are set to run as a team.

That means no more worrying about friends that signed up too late.  No more emailing Customer Service like some crazed lunatic.  No more showing up on Race Day only to find out that two of your friends signed up for the 4pm heat instead of the 10am.  Trust us, we got your back.  Your team will be able to run together.

What should you do now?

Keep an eye on our registration pages!  We’ll be adding more spots to our sold out events very soon.  Tell your friends to get their act together and be ready.  If they want to be able to race with you in 2013, they better pay attention and get signed up as soon as possible.

With this new registration format, we will no longer be able to squeeze more friends into your heat at the last minute.  Once our event is SOLD OUT, that’s it.  No exceptions.

So if you’re coming to SoCal, Miami, North Carolina, or any of our events in the Northeast, now is the time to get signed up.  Quit procrastinating.

We hope you understand why we’re making these changes.  It’s all in an effort to make sure Spartan Race continues to offer the best team racing experience in the obstacle racing biz!  We look forward to seeing you in 2013.

And while we’re at it, get yourself signed up for a Hurricane Heat!  You won’t regret it!

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by Jason Rita

“Phenomenally Phenomenal Women”
SPARTAN RETURNS TO GLEN ROSE WHERE THE BIGGEST NAMES IN OBSTACLE RACING WILL BATTLE FOR THEIR SHARE OF SPARTAN’S $40,000 POINTS COMPETITION PURSE.

FOLLOW ONE EPIC WEEKEND OF LEGENDARY SPARTAN RACING AS THE SPARTAN300 POINTS LEADERS FACE OFF IN THE SEASON’S FINAL BEAST RACE IN ORDER TO SETTLE WHO WINS THE 2012 SPARTAN POINTS SERIES COMPETTION. YESTERDAY WE PREVIEWED THE MEN’S RACE; TODAY WE FOCUS ON THE WOMEN’S RACE.

Maya Angelou wrote her anthem to a woman’s strength, “Phenomenal Women,” in 1978, but she might have been describing our Spartan women athletes:  “It’s the fire in my eyes and the flash of my teeth, the swing in my waist, and the joy in my feet.  I’m a woman.  Phenomenally.  Phenomenal woman, that’s me.”  These women have the fire and flash, the swing and the joy.  They are phenomenally phenomenal.  But only one can be Spartan Points Champion.

Rose-Marie Jarry

While the Spartan men’s race in Glen Rose, Texas, on Saturday may feature two titans of the world of obstacle racing in Hobie Call and Cody Moat, who sit atop our sport like two colossal mythological figures, the Spartan women’s field features a constellation of competitors, a magnificent and impressive array of athletes/warriors/goddesses, a panoply of serious “playas” (I think that’s how the kids say it), all of whom are striving  this weekend to write their name into Spartan legend and the win the inaugural Points Competition title as the crowning achievement on the Spartan racing year.

This weekend, the field of Spartan women is like one of those ensemble comedies where everyone is an A-lister.  It is the Emmys, Grammies, Golden Globes and Oscars all rolled into one star-studded and mud-splattered extravaganza.  It is the All-Star game and the Pro Bowl except everyone is really competing from the first AROO to the final obstacle.

Rose-Marie Jarry is leading the women’s field in the Points Series heading into Texas, having won the most recent two Spartan Races, the Malibu Sprint last week and the Spartan Beast in Sacramento three weeks ago by an incredible 21 minutes ahead of 2011 Spartan Champion Jenny Tobin.  The fast, flat and dry Texas conditions will suit the Kronobar founder even more than the cool and muddy conditions from Sacramento, and the former 800m Canada national team track and field star will be fast away from the starting line.  An experienced and accomplished front-runner, Rose will force the pace and demand that everyone try to hang on to her raw speed.  She already has 15 Spartan races under her belt this year with a sweep of the Canadian sprint, super and beast races in Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa, to which she added first place finishes south of the 49th parallel not just in Malibu and Sacramento, but also in the Mid-West Super, Tri-State NJ Super, and the New England Sprint.  Rose needs to win in Texas to make certain of the 21012 Points Series crown, and in the absence of the Vermont champion Claude Godbout, Rose enters Texas as the favorite.  Her recent wins prove she is the in-form racer but there have been many thoroughbreds who have been Triple Crown contenders after winning the Derby and the Preakness only to falter in the Belmont, and Rose will need to prove she has the character and mettle of a true champion to hold off the charging challengers. If she can, she will claim not only the $1,500 first prize being awarded by Navy Federal Credit Union to the top female finisher on the day, but she will also win the Spartan prize of $4,250 being awarded by Spartan Race to the 2012 Points Series champion.

Andi Hardy has done more Spartan races this year than Rose, a staggering 20, in her first full-year of obstacle racing, and is

Andi Hardy

in second place in the Points Series table.  Since Andi already has points from four Beast races that make up the points calculation, Andi can’t overtake Rose but can improve her tally to ensure she preserves her shot at the 2nd place $2,000 cash prize.  One of the most popular Spartan athletes with a large following at races and on her blog BarbWire4Breakfast, she is easily recognizable in her lime green racing kit and will have a lot of support to help her conclude the 2012 season on the podium as well maintain her AG lead over Juliana Sproles.

Numerous racers can overtake Rose in the points standings with strong showings on both days of racing including Melinda Branch, Ella Kociuba and Jenny Tobin.  Ella and Jenny come in to the weekend banged up from a season of obstacle racing that has pushed them to their physical limits.  If they can survive Saturday, their challenge will be to recover in order to thrive on Sunday.  Jenny will be drawing on a wealth of experience as a pro athlete in Xterra and Ironman competition for the mental tenacity to race on less than 2 legs.  While Ella is one the youngest racers in the field and lacks Jenny’s racing resume, her legendary workouts for sponsor Flag Nor Fail will give her the endurance edge to overcome her lack of recent training and finish the season with one last chance at fulfilling the promise that we glimpsed one year ago at Glen Rose, when she had the fastest time over the weekend in any wave. Melinda has quietly positioned herself with a chance at a high points series finish, and proved at the South Carolina Beast, she is a podium threat.

Podiums are not foreign to another of the most well-known and popular Spartan racers, Dirt in Your Skirt alter ego Margaret Schlachter, who despite having 17 races in her legs this year before coming to Texas, is aiming to have two of her best finishes all year in the Saturday/Sunday elite waves.  An experienced competitive skier, she knows what it is like to race hard multiple events over a two or three day competition.   If Rose falters, Margaret could find herself on the top spot of the Points Series table come Sunday afternoon.  Irrespective of finding her on the podium, you can always find Margaret supporting other Spartan racers, giving medals to racers all afternoon, doing sweep heats, setting up the “Meet the Racers” tent where beginner obstacle racers can get training and racing advice from the competitive Spartan300 athletes.

Despite the great camaraderie and friendship amongst all these Spartan women athletes, make no mistake that for two hours

Margaret Schlachter

on Saturday and Sunday morning this weekend, no quarter will be given nor asked. Too much is on the line – cash, pride, titles, glory.  Seriously, what more could a girl want?

Maya Angelou’s powerful words concluding her famous poem say it best as a celebration of spirit that our Spartan women athletes represent:

Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed.
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s in the click of my heels, 
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
‘Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me. 

AROO AROO AROO!

See – even Ms. Angelou knew from Spartan Chicked.

 

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