The Next Challenge

It's always exciting when you win something.  No matter what it is.  Hey, you've won a teddy bear from the crane machine!!  You've won a pack of mints!!!  You've won a new car!!!  Okay, that 3rd one has never happened to me.  However, I did enter into a giveaway for entry into any US Spartan Race over at A Nation of Moms.  Lo and behold, I WON!!!!  I am excited and fearful at the same time.  Anyone that knows me knows that I don't like to go away from my family.  So, I haven't done any events that I couldn't get both to and from in the same day.  (i.e. Lincoln Marathon - Lincoln (x2), Mud Factor - Bellevue, Glow Run - Omaha, Nebraska (Half) Marathon - Omaha, Spartan Race Nebraska - Lincoln, UNO Claussen-Leahy Maverick Run - Omaha, GOATz 21 mile as part of the GOATz 50k - Omaha, Tough Mudder - Kansas, etc.)

So, when I look at the Spartan Race locations I feel like I'm in a forgotten "dead zone" in the country.  The nearest Spartan Race is 8+ hours away.  And if I want to do 2017, you are talking 10+ hours away.  So, you are talking at least a 2 day commitment in order to drive safe and be rested for the event.  I spoke with my buddy about it to see what Spartan Races he is signed up for because he always has one on the horizon.  He said that he has Breckenridge and Dallas.  Breckenridge is August 26th, 2017 and Dallas is October 28th, 2017.  Both are a drive, so I know that we'd be leaving on Friday and would likely come home Sunday/Monday.  This automatically makes me think that I just need to give the code to someone that can use it, but I chat with my awesome wife and she says to figure out which one I'm going to with him and sign up.  So, with her blessing and some pushing from my buddy I am going to sign up for my next Spartan Race.  Now, which one to sign up for?

When I chatted with my buddy about it to see what distance he was doing because each of these locations has the courses for multiple distances.  They have the Sprint, the Beast, and the Ultra Beast.  I have run a Spartan Sprint before and did plenty of burpees, so I figure that I could run that for sure or even a Super.  I figured that worst case he would be running the Beast and I could work my butt off for the next 2 months or 4 months to get ready to try to run with him.  WRONG!!!  He is running the Ultra Beast in Breckenridge and the HH12HR in Dallas.  There is NO WAY I would be ready for an Ultra Beast in 2 months; maybe in 4 months I could possibly grit through it.  And I wouldn't be ready for a HH12HR in 4 months!! I don't think my code would even work for that anyway.  I guess that I should explain why I am freaking out for those that don't know what each of these entails.

A Spartan Sprint is 3-5 miles with 20-23 intense obstacles.  I've ran one of these before and got my butt handed to me in the form of fatigue and burpees!  A Spartan Super is a 8-10 mile course with 24-29 draining obstacles.  I figure I could prepare relatively well for this since I've ran a Sprint and a 10+ mile Tough Mudder course before.  The Spartan Beast is 12-14 miles with 30-35 obstacles spread in this half marathon course.  I will have to work my tail off for this, but I think that I can manage and grit through this.  The Spartan Ultra Beast is a double Beast! So, you are doing a marathon with 60-70 obstacles kicking your butt the whole way.  They estimate this one to take 7+ hours for the fastest finishers. Oh, and there is a cutoff!! I would not likely finish this by cutoff.  It would be a miracle if I did.  The HH12HR is a different "beast" all on its own!!!  It's an in-between for the Hurricane Heat (HH) and the Agoge; both of which I want to do some day.  The HH12HR is a 12 hour event in which you work as a team with the other participants to complete "challenges" and emphasizes "The Warrior's Ethos."  Given more time to prepare I could be ready for some of these challenges, but not now.

So, what choice do I make?  Sprint/Beast in Breckenridge, or Sprint/Beast in Dallas.  I fear going to do it in Breckenridge because when I went there for my amazing honeymoon I got altitude sickness and was not well the 1st 36 hours we were there.  So much that we visited an oxygen bar to help.  Yeah, that is actually a thing and has me Googling "altitude sickness prevention!!"  So, you can see how that would be a concern.  And it is the one that is only 2 months away.  On the flip side, I would LOVE to revisit Breckenridge and I think I can work hard enough the next couple of months to be somewhat ready.  And with my buddy doing the Ultra Beast there is a chance that he would be starting his 2nd lap when it is time for me to run, so I'd be able to run with him and I'd probably volunteer when he was running and I wasn't.  Dallas is 4 months away, so I'd be able to have twice as much time for training.  And I've never been outside of the DFW Airport, so I don't consider that I've ever actually "been to" Texas.  The temps should be around 70, so I don't have to worry about heat/cold for this one, but since my buddy is doing the HH12HR I wouldn't have any chance of running with him and would be "alone" for most of my time there.

Now, as the image I posted on Dreadmill Drummer HERE that you see above suggests I have already chosen that I will be running the Beast (Lord help me) in one of the locations as I have already weighed out the options that I've described above.  I'm going to the Beast in Breckenridge, Colorado!!  Time to train my tail off and work on that grip.  I even chatted with Hunter McIntyre about how to prepare and he shared how to strengthen my grip.  Now to put together a plan and go for it! I'm already working my hydration more than I have in the past.  Being a Nuunbassador I have the Nuun Hydration hookup to help me out with that!  And out of odd inspiration last Monday I started watching my foods and nutrition more closely than before.  I also did meal prep for all of my daytime meals and snacks (minus dinner).  I suppose that God already knew that this would be coming and gave me the "push" before I even knew.

Until next time, keep those beats coming!