Adventure Racing

Adventure Racing

It used to be that a 26.2 mile marathon race was the ultimate challenge of physical and mental extremes. Then came the Ironman Triathlon races, 1/3 swimming, 1/3 running, and 1/3 biking. The new trend is called Adventure Racing, involving a myriad list of uncommon tasks that no relatively sane person would even consider. Similar to the Ironman, Adventure Racing generally involves several different styles of physical challenges; the difference is the rough terrain, impossible tasks, and long distances. Other names are Multisport, Xterra, Coast to Coast.

One such adventure is known simply as "The Death Race ™" for it's three-word liability waiver that all participants are required to sign: "You may die." Creators of the event use psychological tactics even before the race begins by encouraging registrants to quit before they start. In 2009, pre-race instructions were emailed to the registrants in Greek. The start time is uncertain, the end is uncertain, and the tasks to perform during the race are unknown. The only certainty is that the race will demand incredible physical endurance, mental agility, and strength of will. The entrance fee is a mere $50, and the purse is equally small: $2,000. More than half of the racers quit or are eliminated before finishing.

Some of the tasks from previous Death Race events include pulling a stump from the ground and carrying it with you through the rest of the race; crawling through a muddy wash covered in barbed-wire (with all your gear, multiple times); chopping and quartering wood logs; reciting the names of the first 10 US presidents; take the front and rear wheels and the chain off a bike and haul the bike with you for the remainder of the race (even under the barbed wire); hauling and then eating several pounds of onions; hauling a 40-pound bucket of sand (along with your tree stump and bike); diving in a cold, muddy pond for your bike chain so you can put the bike back together and ride it; carry an egg while hauling wood from one stack 50 yards away into another stack; 100 racers worked in teams to haul heavy sections of a wooden bridge down a mountain and then installed them on a public hiking trail. Through all of this, there are multiple hikes up and down steep hills, through unbroken wilderness and stinging nettles, across rocky rivers, and enduring rain storms.

Why would anyone want to do this? As one fellow puts it: "Everyone's grandmother has run a marathon." These are personal challenges to test the limits of physical endurance. It's less about winning, more about completion - and surviving.

Washington Post
2008 Blog from a winner
2009 blog from a competitor