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Aloha!! This past weekend I checked something off my bucket list!! Yep, running my 1st Spartan Race!! WOOoooOOooo! I mean, Aroo! Aroo! Aroo!
I have been looking forward to this (and not doing nearly enough training), for months! We signed up way back in April! (Cheaper tickets)
Anyways the day finally came! We had our own little group with myself, Brad, my sister Mary (who only knew she was coming to Hawaii a couple days before), and Ashlee Kerhel (she's stationed here in the Army with her wife). And man, we were pumped! We rented a car and drove to the location: Kualoa Ranch. An awesome ranch place next to the mountains and ocean; they actually filmed some Jurassic Park scenes there! They offer ATV tours, horseback riding, and other fun stuff for tourists too
We walked about a mile to get to the location, get checked in, get our stuff, etc. Boring part.
THEN, THE RACE!! There's a lot of people that start at once. They give you a little thingy you clip on you shoelaces that tracks your time as you stop and finish. It's all crowded at first because everyone is starting. But once you get past obstacles and get further into the race, it gets more spread out.
We first get into the river! We were up to our armpits in dirty river water...but hey it felt so good! I don't know if anyone has told you...but Hawaii is hot!
Then we get to our real first obstacle...the mini walls. Walls about 4 ft high I would say. You get a running start and lift yourself over them. Then you go through another wall with giant windows in it. These were easy!
After that you start running up a hill at a pretty steep incline. This is where I wished I had eaten something for breakfast. I immediately started to feel my energy going down; I had nothing in my stomach. I had eaten 1 pop tart and a couple gatorade chewies. Not a good idea. Woops.
But once we got to the top we did a fun rope ladder then made our way down, so I felt a lot better. The view was just breathtaking. Such a cool terrain to run on, and in our first spartan! Brad wore the GoPro on his chest to get everything on film, which you can see in our video!
Then came the MUD PIT! The funnest part of the race probably. 2 giant mud pits that you either jump or fall into; SO MUCH FUN!
Then we got to the REAL WALL! I couldn't tell you how many feet up it was, but it was high enough to need someone to help hoist you up. Some guys were nice enough to help boost people up. Brad did it on his own like a boss but Mary and I needed a push.
We run through Jurassic Park (yes, where they filmed it!), and get to the tire pull which was not as much fun as it looks. It's ehh...you pull a tire from one point to another, then roll it back for the next person. I don't have a ton of upper body strength so I was a little slower than Mary and Brad. As for where Ashlee was at this point, I have no idea. She passed us up at the beginning and never looked back haha.
We got to the horizontal wall which was fun. Just like rock climbing sideways. Easy peesy.
Then we had to carry 40# bags up and down a large hill...THAT was kind of difficult! Mary laughed and said she has to carry one 30# kid on each hip so that was EASY for her! Professional Mommy right there.
Next was the rope climb! I took one try and knew I wouldn't get all the way up. Brad said that the Montana Spartan race he did had a rope with knots in it so I wasn't too worried...but this one didn't have knots! I was like wahhhhh no. Mary, Ashlee and I couldn't do it. But Brad got up there and rang the bell! He did it like a boss!! I am so proud of him!
Let's see...after that we got to the Javelin/Spear throw. I got really close! But none of us could do it. 30 burpees for each of us!
Then we did the monkey bars which was really fun!! There was a point I almost fell but I hung on and told myself I would look like an idiot if I fell...and I made it across! Hahaha
After the monkey bars you come to an upside down V shaped wall to climb over. I tripped coming down it was kind of hilarious. I jump up all like, "I'M OKAY!"
Then Brad wow'd everyone by doing a front flip over the last obstacle...the fire pit! He got that on the video if you go see it! Mary did a front flip as well just before the finish line too. AND WE WERE DONE, just like that!
They gave us coconut water and a banana at the end as well as our MEDALS AND T SHIRTS! THE BEST PART! But really, this was so much fun and we are definitely addicted!! We would totally do another one in the future!! It tests you physically and mentally, and keeps you healthy!! I would recommend anyone do this to test themselves. No one cares about your time (except you), they just care about you finishing! So get out there and be a SPARTAN!
Aroo! Aroo! Aroo!
Watch the video here of our Spartan Race Adventure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=haHG71URsxM
And see our pictures!
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