Looks like the obstacle races fad is coming to an end..
https://obstacleracingmedia.com/ocr-news/warrior-dash-cancels-all-races-going-out-of-business/
Looks like the obstacle races fad is coming to an end..
https://obstacleracingmedia.com/ocr-news/warrior-dash-cancels-all-races-going-out-of-business/
MORANS
how could you drive that business into the ground? those things were printing money with all the expensive entry fees and popularity.
They are closing down because of all the lawsuits against them.
Pick It Up wrote:
Looks like the obstacle races fad is coming to an end..
https://obstacleracingmedia.com/ocr-news/warrior-dash-cancels-all-races-going-out-of-business/
It's just getting started. This is just a weeding out of the fun run /color run aspect of it.
Hunt a Mack and Tire wrote:
Pick It Up wrote:
Looks like the obstacle races fad is coming to an end..
https://obstacleracingmedia.com/ocr-news/warrior-dash-cancels-all-races-going-out-of-business/It's just getting started. This is just a weeding out of the fun run /color run aspect of it.
The picture used to depict warrior dash is precisely why the organization failed.
Lmao talkeddnaldjjsbd wrote:
The picture used to depict warrior dash is precisely why the organization failed.
lol that was my first thought
Hardloper wrote:
Lmao talkeddnaldjjsbd wrote:
The picture used to depict warrior dash is precisely why the organization failed.
lol that was my first thought
There was always going to be a trimming down of the number of mud run/adventure race providers which will end with one or two major providers and a few minor providers that operate largely on a regional level. The future is like triathlon. Ironman is the big dog, then there are ITU races, way down to HITS, Multirace, etc., operating a few national races of being a regional provider.
The strong will survive.
The obstacle racing boom is definitely over, but Spartan will survive. I imagine Tough Mudder will be the next casualty. Too bad, as Spartan could use some competition to force it to innovate and stop being asinine in the ridiculous "spartan the F*ck up" lifestyle it promotes.
I'm still incredulous that sub-elite trail/road runners haven't crossed over into OCR - the payday, compared to trail events, is 10x the amount. The top OCR athletes are raking in the dough for prize winnings alone. All it takes is a bit of upper body strength and practice and a 2:30 marathoner could absolutely destroy the field (for example). The race is still 80-90% running speed.
Tough Mudder broke into two companies just last November, citing financial difficulties and even questioning the business itself.
doomsday wrote:
The obstacle racing boom is definitely over, but Spartan will survive. I imagine Tough Mudder will be the next casualty. Too bad, as Spartan could use some competition to force it to innovate and stop being asinine in the ridiculous "spartan the F*ck up" lifestyle it promotes.
I'm still incredulous that sub-elite trail/road runners haven't crossed over into OCR - the payday, compared to trail events, is 10x the amount. The top OCR athletes are raking in the dough for prize winnings alone. All it takes is a bit of upper body strength and practice and a 2:30 marathoner could absolutely destroy the field (for example). The race is still 80-90% running speed.
The upper body strength is the rub. Most 2:30 guys can't get it or they become a 3 hour guy in the quest.
At a recent one a 2:46 guy demolished the field and a sub 2:30 guy was near last about an hour behind.
The top guys however re already from the sub-elite running ranks. So they are not going to get demolished by more of the same. The races will just be tighter.
Keep in mind Torrence,, Fam and another elite tried and got spanked.
There are two potential answers to that question:
A) It really would be super easy for fast runners to come in an rake in the dough and exposure, winning major OCR events, by just working on their upper body for a few months, and the only reason that's not happening is that they look down on that ridiculous sport as an illegitimate weekend hobby not worthy of real athletes.
B) It's actually not that easy and the competition level is already reasonably high, but running speeds are considerably slower in those events not just because you have to go over/through obstacles, but also because lactate shuttling is a real thing and you can't go back to your regular pace after having worked your upper body hard even for a few seconds.
Or a mix of both.
I subscribe 75% to the second, 25% to the first explanation.
Do one of your regular running workouts, say a 2x15min @ 10K pace. But each 400m, do a few burpees, or a set of pull-ups, or jumping lunges, whatever. See if you can keep that 10K pace for the whole 15min both times. Ain't happening. Not only do you have to be ABLE to do the obstacles (debatable how many elite runners can), but then you'll be running slower for sure because that lactate can't be harmlessly shuttled to non-working muscles. So from the outside a runner would go "man those guys/gals are SLOW, the best runners would wipe the trail with them".
Considering a few reasonably fast runners HAVE come in to the sport and needed more than a few months of work to get good, or just didn't do well and never tried again, and considering a few of the top OCR athletes (Jonathan Albo, Ryan Atkins, Lindsay Webster, Rea Kolbl, and more) have done a few trail races with reasonable success (Albon was Skyrunning world champion twice), it seems the level of competition is already reasonably legit.
That is not to say that some fast runners don't have the natural athleticism to work on the obstacles for a little while and then do well in OCR, nor that we've already found all the athletes with the best potential and we've reached peak competition level in OCR, far from it. And I'm sure a good number of runners are put off by OCR's image (looking from the outside, one can't blame them too much, but there is a real sport in there).
I would say OCR is closer to the level of trail running, competition-wise, than trail running is to the level of street/track running. There are a few parallels to be made between the two relationships actually, but I've already wasted too much time because everyone knows you can't change people's mind on the Internet.
Are Tracksmith and Oiselle next to circle the drain?