This is Alpha, the first-born, when he was 2YO.
This is Beta, the second-born, when he was about 2YO.
This is Gamma, the third-born, when he was about 18MO.
Warrior Dash 2011, Part II
Aug
9
2011
Welcome back to the Warrior Dash recap. When we last left our hero, he was running the race. Let’s see where he is now…
The Obstacles
I’ll just list each obstacle and what I thought of it. And I have listed some helpful tips and hints for how to handle these Warrior Dash obstacles. After I realized that the obstacles were prime locations for passing people, my goal was to pass people in the obstacles. Note: the term “cargo net” means ropes connected together to make a grid of one-foot square sections.
- Road Rage (car stomp) – run over tires and clamber over junk cars
This didn’t strike me as particularly warrior-ish. It was okay. We had planned on stepping on the tires rather stepping between them (football drill-style), but the tires were flimsier than I thought so they collapsed under pressure and that was bad for one’s balance.Hint: Aim for the tires that are already collapsed. Otherwise, step through the tire so you plant your foot on solid ground.
- Deadweight Drifter go over logs floating in waist-high water
This was more what I pictured for WD. This one was fine. - Barricade Breakdown go over a 3-foot-high wall and then under an 18-inch-high bar with barbed wire above it
This was one of my least favorite obstacles. It would have been fine with a couple walls and bars, but the wall-bar combo was repeated about 6 times, with probably about 6 feet between each one. It got old very quickly. - Great Warrior Wall a 12-foot-high wall with a rope for climbing up it and 2×4 rungs for climbing down
This was one of my more favorite obstacles because I passed a few people on it. It was just nice and simple. - Chaotic Crossover 30-foot-long cargo net laid flat, about 5 feet off the ground
This one was fine. Someone suggested the fastest way to cross it was to roll across, like quicksand. Some people had footing issues, which would be easy to do because muddy shoes easily slip off the rope. I started out crawling, but that wasn’t fast enough for me so I switched to walking across them.Tip: Make your steps as long as you can – that reduces the number of times you have to find footing. And crouch a little too. That helps with balance.
- Teetering Traverse about 20 feet of 6-inch-wide boards, ramping up about 4 feet high, down to 2, back up, and then down to the ground
This one wasn’t bad either. Nice and simple – go fast and keep your balance.Only tip here is keep your arms out for balance.
- Blackout a 30-foot-long black tarp about two feet off the ground
This is supposed to test people’s claustrophobia, I guess. Just crawl for 30 feet on your hands and knees. Note that the faster you crawl, the more torn-up your legs will be. You’re crawling across dirt and sticks and rocks. The obstacle itself was fine. What I didn’t like about it was what it did to my shins. - Arachnophobia bungee cords tied between trees
It was hard to tell from the photos what this one was, so I’ll describe it. They used black bungee cords to make horizontal spider webs across the path. You have to step over, duck under, or both, the bungee cords. This goes on for 30 or so feet. This was my least favorite obstacle. The others were fun or challenging – this one was just annoying. - [unofficial mud pit obstacle] two downed trees somewhat spanning a mud pit
This was not shown on the course map as an obstacle, but it sure counts as one. A natural low spot (noramlly a creek?) contained mud. At the middle, it was waist high. There was a certain spot that my co-worker stepped and went up to his chest in mud. You could also cross at one side where there some tree trunks, but there was a line for that so I just plunged into the mud.Tip for this one: the slope to leave the mud pit is steep, a natural hill. WD had placed a couple of ropes for you to pull yourself. Look for those and use them.
- Vertical Limit climbing wall up about 8-10 feet, rope climb down
This was straightforward. I thought I was just going to blow through this one like the others of this type, but the rope didn’t cooperate. I grabbed onto the rope to climb down, but I lunged onto it. Since the rope was attached above my head, it started swinging. Instead of concentrating on climbing down, I was worrying about crashing back into the structure. I lost a few seconds (which means a few places at the finish) while I tried to get the rope steady.Hint for this one: find a spot that’s piled high with straw underneath and ditch the rope. You can let go of the rope early, since WD spreads straw to cushion the landing of anyone who falls.
- Cargo Climb almost-vertical cargo nets 18 feet up and 18 feet down
This one took me longer than I thought it would. On the other cargo net obstacle, the netting didn’t move so much. On this one, the netting is bouncing everywhere as there are several people climbing at the same time.Tip: same as the other cargo net obstacle – take larger steps and reach high.
- Warrior Roast two lines of fire, about a foot or three tall
All hype. This is for show only. Don’t even think about this one. Unless you want to showboat. WD places the official camera crew at this obstacle. There will be several shots of you crossing the flames, so make the most of it if you want – smile, jump, jazz hands, etc. - Muddy Mayhem a shallow mud pit with barbed wire over it
This, other than the flames, is the signature Warrior Dash obstacle. The barbed wire forces you to crawl, and the mud forces you to get dirty. The spectators are all here, as is another camera crew. The first step was deeper than I thought, but then the mud got shallow fairly quickly.Warning: step into the mud pit. Do not jump and do not dive. You don’t know the depth of the mud and could injure yourself.
You can find small photos of each obstacle on the Warrior Dash website. Click on a state then click on the battleground button on the left at that site.
Other Thoughts
The Blackout tore up my shins, but I didn’t realize it until about a half mile later when I waded through the unofficial mud pit. Then my legs started stinging.
I passed people on almost every obstacle. Unfortunately, some of those people passed me back during the run part of the dash.
I normally have a decent kick for the finish. I tried for this race too, but the mud did not cooperate. After the mud pit there was about 100 yards to the finish, and that 100 yards was coated with mud. I tried sprinting, but my feet just slipped.
Hint: use up your finish-kick energy around the 2.5-mile mark, since you won’t be able to use it at the end.
After the Race
They hand you a medal after you cross the finish. Then you can grab a water and a banana. Here is what some random finishers look like:
They have a Warrior Wash station to rinse the mud off people. It’s a tanker truck that sprays really cold water. Bring an old towel with you, because you’ll probably want to dry off after this.
If you did wear socks and shoes, you’ll regret it at this point. If you planned ahead, you brought a change of socks and shoes (or sandals). Dry off and change into those. And make sure you have a trash bag to protect your car’s seats on the drive home.
Clothing
I knew we would be getting wet and muddy, so I knew I wanted to avoid cotton. I set out my running clothes and made sure I had no cotton. Everything was the wicking stuff. You really, really want no cotton anywhere, because you’ll be running while soaking wet. Cotton not only gets heavy when wet, it also chafes. Bad stuff.
So I was all set and running the Warrior Dash happily cotton-free. Then we did the first water obstacle and I realized I had forgotten about my socks. I was wearing cotton socks. My feet felt so heavy after that obstacle. I envied my co-worker who wore his Vibrams Five-Fingers with no socks. His footwear didn’t weigh him down during the race.
This is what white socks look like after the race:
And the mud does get everywhere. Here is what my feet looked like when I took off my socks:
Conclusion
Warrior Dash is fun and memorable and worth doing. I have already signed up for next year’s race. If you want to run with me, you can’t – Warrior Dash is already full around that time. You’ll have to run an hour or two later. Or the next day.
The End.
Then Saul said to David, “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth.”
1 Samuel 17:33
This little article thingy was written by Some Guy sometime around 6:31 am and has been carefully placed in the Sports category.
August 9th, 2011 at 8:09 am
I think I will stick to running on the sidewalk by Lake Michigan and leave the warrior stuff to you!!
August 9th, 2011 at 9:59 am
Well, I WAS going to run with you next time, but I guess I can’t now.
Darn.
August 9th, 2011 at 11:34 am
I’ve heard nothing but good things about Vibram Five Fingers shoes. You should get a pair for next year’s race.
August 9th, 2011 at 12:20 pm
Ricky, I have a couple other races that are still taking registrations …
Burrill, I am going to get something other than the standard running shoes for next year’s WD. Maybe Vibrams, maybe some knock-offs.
August 9th, 2011 at 12:38 pm
I have a feeling you’d leave me in your dust, gasping and cursing.
August 9th, 2011 at 2:48 pm
If you think you might use them for more than just the WD, you might as well spring for the real thing. The people who I’ve heard praise the Five Fingers say they’re great to run in all the time.
(I may or may not be slightly biased toward Vibram as a company, since Merrell shoes use Vibram soles, and they’re the most durable soles I’ve had. Vibram rules. I’d try Five Fingers, but my feet are a bit too…nonstandard.)
August 9th, 2011 at 3:54 pm
So this means we’ll see a reappearance of your beard in time for WD next year?
August 9th, 2011 at 7:08 pm
That looks not so fun to do during it but maybe a good story afterwards?!? Good work!!
(The best part of the marathon I ran was passing people. The worst part was when those same people passed me. Dangit!!)
August 9th, 2011 at 10:40 pm
Some obstacles were fun to do, others were not. But you’re right, they’re all a good story afterward.
The best part of the marathon I ran was when I was done.
August 10th, 2011 at 9:54 am
Congrats to you! And thank you for showing me why I won’t be doing the WD.