This was a Spartan Super, somewhere between 6 and 9 miles. My best estimate was about 7 miles. I don't think they kept the same course after the 2015 race, … MORE
This was a Spartan Super, somewhere between 6 and 9 miles. My best estimate was about 7 miles. I don’t think they kept the same course after the 2015 race, but this was the most brutal course I’d done in any Spartan race. I’d run maybe five or six up to this point and volunteered on several other courses. The word “hard” does not begin to describe this course. Another course I volunteered on later, I ran into one of the race organizers for the AVL race and she admitted that they may have overdone it on the course, but noted that it was a televised race so it had to be hard. For context, I placed 762 out of 5,735. Clearly I’m not an elite racer, but that is within the top 15% or so of all racers. I honestly wasn’t sure if I was going to make it to the finish. And when I did, I’m not ashamed to admit that I cried, just from the emotional toll of trying to stay in the race. And this is not someone who doesn’t finish races, or who cries after races. In about 50 races, none of that from me… except for this Spartan.
If they changed the course I would do this race again. Parking was typical for a Spartan, festival also typical. As always, the fire jump at the end could be a bit better (build something bigger than just a pile of coals for those who finish after the elites), but also, as always, these races are expensive as hell. Volunteer and you can race for free, and these races are volunteer intensive, so they do need you.
Asheville is nearby and this is a great reason to add this race to your calendar. This is my hometown, so I’m a little biased, but if you are there for a few days the area has lots to do. Go exploring. But be prepared for a hard race at the quarry.
The scenery was hard to beat though. But it wasn’t super enjoyable
Please login to reply to this review.
This course will make you cry
This was a Spartan Super, somewhere between 6 and 9 miles. My best estimate was about 7 miles. I don't think they kept the same course after the 2015 race, … MORE
This was a Spartan Super, somewhere between 6 and 9 miles. My best estimate was about 7 miles. I don’t think they kept the same course after the 2015 race, but this was the most brutal course I’d done in any Spartan race. I’d run maybe five or six up to this point and volunteered on several other courses. The word “hard” does not begin to describe this course. Another course I volunteered on later, I ran into one of the race organizers for the AVL race and she admitted that they may have overdone it on the course, but noted that it was a televised race so it had to be hard. For context, I placed 762 out of 5,735. Clearly I’m not an elite racer, but that is within the top 15% or so of all racers. I honestly wasn’t sure if I was going to make it to the finish. And when I did, I’m not ashamed to admit that I cried, just from the emotional toll of trying to stay in the race. And this is not someone who doesn’t finish races, or who cries after races. In about 50 races, none of that from me… except for this Spartan.
If they changed the course I would do this race again. Parking was typical for a Spartan, festival also typical. As always, the fire jump at the end could be a bit better (build something bigger than just a pile of coals for those who finish after the elites), but also, as always, these races are expensive as hell. Volunteer and you can race for free, and these races are volunteer intensive, so they do need you.
Asheville is nearby and this is a great reason to add this race to your calendar. This is my hometown, so I’m a little biased, but if you are there for a few days the area has lots to do. Go exploring. But be prepared for a hard race at the quarry.
The scenery was hard to beat though. But it wasn’t super enjoyable