On the cusp of the 20th birthday of my blog what could possibly drag me out of a semi-retirement for the past six years and (hopefully) invigorate my desire to blog once again? The Spartan Beast World Championship in Killington, Vermont.
Those few of you left who’ve been with me for the long haul know my story: In 2002 I found myself with an active blog and a sedentery lifestyle. When I finally had enough I joined a gym and got on a scale – I was 241 lbs. I set out to just start, and a year later ran my very first 5k at the urging of a friend, Clive. You can read that journey right here. I arrived at the finish line entirely gassed and ranked 47th out of 54 male runners, dead last of three in my age group. But I liked it. 18 months later I ran my second, 20 lbs lighter: 27:29, 229th out of 477 men, 90th out of 179 my age. One year later I did the Achilles again: 24:56, 167th place and 39th out of 140 men my age. Unfortunately I pulled a muscle in my foot that race and found myself out for a long time. Five years to be exact – the 2011 Longboat Toronto Island Run where I came in at 23:29, and last year’s Toronto Pearson Runway Run at 24:03. However, last year was also when I become introduced to obstacle races through Warrior Dash and Mud Hero.
All this to say that coming into 2014, as I crossed into age 40, I decided to do what a lot of old guys do: Get in the best shape of my life. The carrot hanging in front of me would be the literal beast of obstacle races – the Spartan Beast World Championship. I’ll be joining the two big shots from the office, Jay & Nick, in a road trip to Vermont where we’ll compete in a 12+ mile race in which the fastest, elite competitors will take three hours to complete. On the road to Vermont I will, so far, take part in:
- 5k Run for Southlake (5km) in Newmarket, ON
- Spartan Sprint (5+km, 15 obstacles) in Clarington, ON
- Warrior Dash (3.5 miles, 14 obstacles) in Barrie, ON
- Mud Hero (6+km, 15 obstacles) in Caledon, ON
Here, I will discuss my training and my journey. From ~180 lbs in my birthday to already ~168 lbs. I’ve already set a new personal best in a 5k (23:18) in training, and that first race is this Sunday. Hope you’ll join me on this ride, should be a good one.