lee-stuart evans at the World Obstacle Course Racing 15km long course in canada 2017 with a vollebak baselayer

The World OCR championships in Canada 2017 was the high point of my running year.  Here was a story of Statistically Unlikely T- Shirts , Keeping My Band , being Tossed Over a Wall , Topless Americans and coming back with the bragging rights to knowing my WORLD ranking in OCR …all in one weekend. 

To say I was proud to find myself in Canada in October 2017 representing my country at a sport I only started doing that same year was an understatement. I even had a little emotional cry at the start line thanks to an amazingly rousing speech.  It was the perfect end to a year where I broadened my horizons with my running experience by trying obstacle course racing and going from newbie to international in one year .  

the world obstacle course racing championships in Canada 2017

Obstacle Course Racing or ‘OCR’ has seen a monumental explosion in the last decade. From the start of the awful Tough Guy event 30 years ago to the global success of Tough Mudder and other brands like Rat Race , Nuclear and The Nuts Challenge we’ve seen an epic rise followed by the inevitable decline from too many races and not enough repeat regular competitors.

 Although there is an amazingly dedicated hardcore community in the UK for OCR …mainly fuelled by the superb Mudstacle community there are a significant number of people attending OCR races  as a  ‘one off’  bumbling through  a 5km course …getting the obligatory Facebook pic covered in mud …and never coming back’. There is therefore only a finite number of customers and a glut of OCR races.

lee-stuart evans the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017

We’ve seen a few well known OCR races go under in 2017 , and some of the biggest and best brands like Rat Race have branched out into more Ultras and Adventure racing and steering away from exclusively OCR. This in my opinion is a sensible move given the obvious ‘mainstream ‘ saturation from companies like Tough Mudder.

A previous blog covered the story of how I accidentally qualified for the World OCR Championships here

http://airlandandsea.blogspot.co.uk/2017/03/tough-queue-4-laps-of-winter-nuts.html

Pre Canada Preparation and the difference between a subject and a citizen. 

I made the decision to go to Canada rather late.  It was going to cost me about £1000 for flights , accomodation etc. It felt like a lot for a 15km run on a long weekend. In fact for £s per metre this race was going to be more expensive than running the Marathon des Sables .

As I got closer to the event a number of friends that were going nagged me …. and I couldn’t  resist signing up.  I had about 2 months to prepare for an incredibly hard course that had 42 obstacles , 15kms of running and 4000ft of ascent.

My plan to succeed ( not die ) in Canada was simple.  As a long distance runner my fitness levels for running were fine. So I focused for 10 weeks on speed by running faster shorter runs and also on losing weight. I went on a strict diet to lose a stone  so that obstacles such as wall climbs , monkey bars and rope work were easier .

michael midgeley at 6tsix fitness training at the nuts challenge course

I got back in touch with Michael Midgeley at 6tsix training.  Michael can be contacted here

http://www.6tsix.co.uk/

Michael was pivotal in my completing 4 laps of Winter Nuts and got me involved in weekly sessions down at the Nuts challenge to prepare me for what was in store in Canada.  He also lent me gear to build my own upper body skills rig at home so I could get familiar with what to expect in Canada .

Lee-stuart evans home rig for obstacle course race training for the world obstacle course racing championships.

After some ‘issues’ at the airport with my Visa ( where I learnt the valuable lesson of the distinction between a British Citizen and  a British Subject )  I found myself in Canada in October 2017 .

Mountains Lakes and Monkey Bars 

Canada is just as stunning as you expect it to be . To go there in Autumn when the leaves were every hue of red to yellow and  falling was even more beautiful. There are road signs warning you to concentrate on the road and not the view.

I was booked with the fantastically well organised trip from Mudstacle. They arranged superb accomodation at the Ski Resort that hosted the event , transfers , event entry etc.

www.mudstacle.com

The Blue Mountains Ski Resort was an incredible backdrop for the event. Scenic Mountains jostling with of the American Continent Great Lakes.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017 event village and finish line

I started my long weekend meeting up with a very special runner and going for a run on the Bruce Trail with her. I will blog about this brilliant afternoon in a separate blog soon.

Day one on the Friday was the ‘short course’  This was a 3km dash with almost no running and pure obstacles. I sat this one out as there is a tendency for everyone to go mad on it and find themselves on the start of the 15km race the next day injured and tired.

The course is set up in such a way that it regularly snakes back through the event village at the Ski Resort. This means from a spectator point of view you get multiple opportunities to watch the event within touching distance of the rigs.  I have never been so close to a sporting event and it is thrilling watching athletes like Jon Albon at the peak of their game fly effortlessly over and through complicated obstacles.  By spending time watching the 3km course I got plenty of time to assess the rigs and watch the best ways for the competitors to get through them with the minimum of fuss. This would help me the next day when I did the 15km course.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017 15km long course

The next day was the 15km long course. Basically THE MAIN EVENT.  The race set off in waves , with the elite first and various age groups. I was in the 40 to 45 age group which set off about 2 hours after the start.

There was rain that day. A lot of rain . Whilst I cannot say enough good things about how brilliant the entire event was staged… they were very poorly prepared for bad weather. As a result the rain and the runners quickly churned up the very steep ski slope hills and by the time I got started the course was destroyed. This made uphill progress nearly impossible on the steep slopes …and frankly dangerous in places and people mid pack were finding the course was taking twice as long as the year before.  I was expected to take 2.5 hours on the course , and instead took 5 hours due to the conditions underfoot.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017

 It was interesting to see predominantly OCR racers come unstuck being on their feet for so long whereas those of us with Ultra experience spent the last 90 mins overtaking people who were exhausted. This was a common theme i saw amongst OCR runners. They spend too much time practrcing rigs and not enough time on running endurance.

Many runners didn’t take any food with them, Americans like to run topless and  looking epic ( comical) and as a result have no snacks or gels with them. I spent much of the second half of the course handing out many of my Pulsin Bar snacks to other people who needed food.  The water stops on the course were too infrequent and they need to consider putting more snacks etc out for tired and hungry runners.  I even had a mini runners first aid kit on me and helped patch up someones bleeding hand on a low rig near one of the many summits.

The course conditions were  so bad that the last wave of ‘Journeymen’ set off late in the afternoon with absolutely no hope of completing the course before sunset  ( and cutoff) .  This was perhaps the biggest blot on an otherwise superb weekend event.

The course itself was tough. A combination of horrendous ascents up ski slopes , walls , more walls , walls with ropes , monkey bars ,  rope climbs and various other tricky obstacles and ‘rigs’ which are usually scaffolding set ups with a  ‘ the floor is lava’ ethos where you have to use a combination of ropes , hoops and bars to traverse without touching the ground.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017 pic by lee-stuart evans

With the backdrop of the mountains and the Great Lake the entire thing was jawdropping. I ran much of it with a HUGE grin on my face knowing this was one of those ‘life moments’.

Keeping my Band  ( or not in my case) 

My kit choice for the event was spot on . I chose the super grippy Altra King MTs as trainers which served me well, a pair of raidlight shorts with multiple mesh pockets for the various Pulsin snacks and tape I took with me on the course and the indestructible Vollebak Baselayer top which is ceramic coated and perfect for tough OCR. I wrote a review recently here about it here

. http://airlandandsea.blogspot.co.uk/2018/01/vollebak-baselayer-top-review-why-i.html

There were pretty large crowds cheering at various points which was a new thing for me.  At the start of the race you are issued with a wristband. OCR racers talk about ‘keeping your band’ which means you have completed all of the obstacles on the race. If you fail an obstacle even after multiple attempts and cannot do it your band is taken off you. Whilst you can still finish the race and get a medal your ranking will always now fall behind anyone who kept their band.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017 – Stairway to heaven

Keeping my band was always going to be a big ask given my lack of experience.  My aim was to try. I had a suspicion I would lose my band about 2/3rds of the way in on a shocker of an obstacle called ‘Stairway to Heaven’ . I tried it twice and gave up for fear of actually breaking my ankle from the fall off of it. I was proud to get 10km round and keep my band until then.  At the start of the race I was appalled  to see a number of runners in my wave hand their wristband over at the first big wall before even trying it.  This was unfathomable behaviour to me. 

Less than half of the men keep their bands and sadly only  about 1 in 10 women. This is not a criticism of the females on the course , in fact almost all the women on the course were incredibly fit , but more a criticism of a course that thinks its fair to have a 5ft 2,  55kg woman run up a ski slope with a 25kg bag on her shoulders  and let a 6ft 90 kg bloke carry the same weight.

After a final struggle over an immense wall near the finish I was done . The finish was great and I was very tired and proud to have run it.

Statistically Unlikely Demo T Shirt and A Local Delicacy

Legendbourne were the official T shirt provider for the event .  https://www.legendborne.com/

You could pre order some incredible personal Team GB World OCR  race T shirts with your Surname across the back. Epic Stuff.

Sadly with my late decision to compete I never had enough time for them to make me one, so on a high from completing the 15km course I ambled over to their stand with a view to ordering one and having it posted to me in the UK at a later date.

At the stand the guys were super friendly and started taking my order details. …size medium…. team UNITED KINGDOM ….. surname….EVANS . At which point they looked up at me with surprise.

You are kidding right ?

I explained I wasn’t and watched as they walked along the stand at the UNITED KINGDOM  demo T shirts they had brought with them to showcase their work and come back with a size medium United Kingdom  demo race T shirt with the name EVANS on the back.   I laughed as much as they did. Fate indeed.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017 finish line lee-stuart evans legendborne

One Statistically Unlikely T Shirt later and I was back at the finish to grab a pic of me in it with my race medal.  A friend of mine who knew I hadn’t ordered one could not understand how I had managed to blag one that day.  I had little time to explain as I shovelled a local ‘delicacy’ called Poutine into my mouth . A heady mix of sports food made up of cheese , gravy and chips. I love Canada .

Dwarf Tossing on the Shoulders of Giants. 

On the Sunday is the ‘Team Relay’ A 3 person event separated into 3 specialist areas , speed , OCR technical skill , and brute force.  I was lucky enough to gain a last minute place in the ‘Team Mudstacle Moomins’ with two goliaths of OCR racing  , JJ Hebson and Adam Taylor. 

Frankly I was a bit embarrassed for them that I was even in their team. Both JJ and Adam are fearsome OCR racers and incredibly tall.  I am neither of those things.  Whilst Adam and JJ would tackle the speed and technical aspects of the relay course with ease  I was given the ‘brute force ‘ or strength slot. This meant I had to do the two hill climbs with sandbags. 

The event is the most fun of the weekend.  JJ and Adam did incredibly well and I opted to simply ‘ not be overtaken’ when I was in charge of the baton….something I achieved. Those ski slope hill climbs are horrendous when carrying sandbags. My garmin had my heart rate above 190 for most of them .

The relay finishes with a giant wall that the team need to work together to get over.  JJ and Adam simply sort of ‘chucked me to the top’ of the wall and then worked together to get up and use me as the final grab .  Many teams had some serious issues getting over the wall , and it was a very exciting end to a great team event.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017 team relay final wall lee-stuart evans

I also hooked up with the Bad Boy Running Group ‘official’ team for a finish line photo in our matching BBR T Shirts.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017 lee-stuart evans pictured with the Bad Boy Running Team

And then it was all over. After a manic weekend in Canada I was flying back to the UK with a huge smile on my face, some medals , a Team GB Evans T shirt and lots of new friends.

I had been part of an event that dominated the field in medals in all categories for the UK. Jon Albon being involved in wins in all of the events there were  that weekend ( being declared  relay team winner a few weeks later  after a drugs disqualification for the USA) . To see the UK do so well in a sporting event was very inspiring.

the world obstacle course race championships in canada 2017 Lee-stuart evans 15km long course medal and legendborne t shirt

It was shortly after I got back that I heard that the UK has been awarded the honour of hosting the World OCR championships in 2018.  Its a tricky task , we have few options for venues that would combine epic backdrop scenery , the ability to host 5000 people and OCR experience. Although I have huge doubts about how well this will follow the last few years I can say that the guys at Nuclear Racing are probably the only people that could pull this epic task off.  I wish them luck. 

The Brits may have a lot of advantage in 2018 on their own  home turf and I  suspect the topless USA OCR runners are in for a big shock when they drop into a wet obstacle in a cold October in Essex.  

 I hope they bring neoprene.