BODYPUMP for OCR Training

Les Mills recently asked me about my BODYPUMP training for obstacle course racing (OCR), and they've posted the first article (in what I hope becomes a series of articles):

"After four plus hours, 16 plus miles, 8000 plus feet of elevation gain and 25 plus obstacles, Chris Schapman jumped the fire and crossed the finish line of the 2014 Spartan Race World Championship race in Killington, Vermont on September 21, 2014. At any given point in the race, he was either running, crawling, rolling, slipping, swimming, climbing, hiking, jumping or falling or doing one of 95 burpees. 

In the end..."

Read the full article here: http://fitterplanet.co/2014/10/03/bodypump-for-ocr-training/

Chicago Spartan Super...I like burpees obviously

What happens when you fail the spear throw...the traverse wall...and a new balance obstacle? You end up doing 90 burpees and trying to chase people down. Ugly race on my part. ("U G L Y you ain't got no alibi, you're just ug, ugly ugly")

Tip: Spartan has started tethering the spears, so racers can pull a thrown spear back. Don't step on the rope/tether when you throw the spear. It won't go as far. Lesson learned. (I actually thought the rope was short, so I threw it again...nope, plenty long. I'm an idiot.)

I ended up 5th, but I had climbed back to 3rd after missing the spear. I was with Brakken, his brother (who didn't finish for some reason), and one other dude at the spear throw. Brakken was in the lane next to me. Like bowling, I should have let him roll (err: throw) and then taken my shot.

And of course the traverse wall was the first obstacle my family got to watch me complete after running the first five miles. And I fail about half way. I'm not sure what happened, but I had to make a reach that I shouldn't have tried. I'm going to cross that wall again tomorrow. Things will be different.

The balance obstacle (see picture) can be done. The dude in front of me did it. I didn't. Things will be different tomorrow here also (but that's because the Sprint doesn't have this obstacle...ha!).

Beautiful day. Sara, my kids, and my parents were there. My kids killed the Jr. Spartan course. And one of them lost a shoe in the rolling mud and still finished the race! (The volunteer later helped find the shoe and my son gave her a big, muddy hug.)

Mud, Guts, and Glory ROUND FOUR!

Mud, Guts, and Glory #4 is this Saturday. And it looks like this will be the biggest event to date. I'm excited for them and glad to see the event has continued to grow each round.

Even though this is a "fixed" location, the race is never the same. And it looks like MGG is busy putting some final touches on the course (thanks to my buddy, Mark Doney, for the pics)...

Cleaning up the UOUOU and tubes. Likely relining the pit (they had to bring in five tankers of water during the first race)...

Cleaning up the pit below the monkey bars...

What the...? I'm not sure what this is, but I'll find out on Saturday. Maybe this is part of the "cinder" obstacle that OCR Championships mentioned.

Bottom line: This will be a great day of racing and all-around fun. My brothers are racing in the elite heat with me. And my wife is in the challenger wave (I need to catch up with her after I finish my race).

DC Spartan Sprint Race Summary

Wow, what a race the Washington DC Sprint was on Saturday, July 26. I spent most of the race running scared, because I was in third place after the OUOUO (Over, Under, Over, Under, Over...there might have been a "Through" in there also) obstacle near the start.

Third place in a Spartan Race?!? A goal for this year is to make a podium, but I set that at the beginning of the year when I was naive and didn't realize the amazing athletes and competitors that run these Spartan Races.

That said, I came in fourth.

My grandma told me to start on the front row, so I did (see below...I'm on the left). I usually start two or three rows back, so I don't go out too hard. But I noticed I would be well behind the leaders just a short distance into the race. Starting in the front row did make me go out harder. And there's no way I could have held that pace for a Super or Beast.

The race was going fine (relatively speaking). The only major delay was the barbed wire, because I went to climb over the A frame cargo thing instead of running under it and through more barbed wire. After the second set of barbed wire, you circle back and then go over the A frame. And my legs weren't working on the rope climb for some reason.

Moving along, I had a decent lead on Kevin Donoghue when I reached the Traverse Wall--which I slipped off of. Ugh...how did this happen?!? I think I mentally failed the obstacle before I started, because I noticed one of the foot holds was chipped (lesson learned: pick a different wall). A couple steps in and my foot slipped. So I went over to do my burpees and found McCauley Kraker doing burpees also. He finished and took off. Kevin made it across the wall and then made the spear throw, which--thankfully--I made also. McCauley finished about 30 seconds in front of Kevin, and I was 30 seconds behind Kevin.

David Magida won, which I thought was great since it was his "home" course and he had his Elevate clients there running their first race. Congrats to David and his Elevate clients.

Kevin ran a great race, and he was great to talk with after the race. He even got to bring his dog onto the podium. No complaints here about a fourth place finish.

My placing fourth is the beauty of obstacle racing. Had this been just a trail run, I likely would have finished third and McCauley would have been a good minute ahead. Had I not fallen off the wall, I would have passed McCauley and been in second. These races truly are not over until you reach the finish. Maybe that's another reason Spartan Race has the trademark "You'll know at the finish."

Pennsylvania Spartan Sprint Summary

Thankfully, I ran a clean race. Yep, no burpees. The spear throw stuck right in the middle. The rope climb was quick. And the bucket carry felt "light" compared to the bucket I used for training (different rocks, I guess). Finished 6th in Saturday's Elite Heat filmed by NBC.

As usual, I start a few rows back. One, I don't feel like I belong on the front line. And, two, I can go out at a slightly easier pace and work my way up. However, after the first mile, most people up front were spread out, and I found myself alone most of the time. At that point, I was comfortably in 8th.

To my surprise, I caught up with David Magida on one of the climbs/hikes and was able to keep a very short lead. He sprinted by me on the sandbag carry going downhill, and I took the lead again on the way back up. Brutal sandbag carry area. David just ran the Death Race a couple of weeks ago, so I'm sure he'll put me in my place at the next race.

I held 7th place until the bucket carry, which is where I caught up with Glenn Racz and was relatively close to Junyong Pak. Both had to do burpees on the log hop, which was the only reason I caught up to them. And I almost lost it on the log hop.

Pak easily stayed in front of me thanks to his speed and endurance and finished almost two minutes ahead of me. Glenn was a close 7th and only about 10 seconds behind me.

Injury? Something popped/tore in my right shoulder when I started the monkey net / cargo bars obstacle just before the finish. Will have to baby it for awhile.

Shoes blowout? Yes. They're shot. But Reebok is going to refund me for them, since this was only the third race, and they're designed to hold up to these races.

Next up? DC on July 26.

Ready to race...PA Sprint this Saturday

Saturday is my first race since May's Mud, Guts, and Glory race. I'll be at the Pennsylvania Spartan Sprint at Blue Mountain Ski Area in Palmerton, PA.

The Athlete Guide says the course will be 4.9 miles with 2000 ft of elevation gain. It is a ski area after all. Mud, Guts, and Glory was 5.3ish miles with 1200 ft of elevation gain.

Since I've not been racing, I've had a chance to get some quality workouts in...hope they pay off:

• 20.2 mile long run on trails
• 18.2 mile long run on trails
• 9.75 mile long run with 20 lb vest
• 12 x 400 workout
• 3 x mile of a hill
• 5 x 1000 workout
• 43 mile ride
• 56 mile ride

And a number of "Hunter" workouts (8x100, 6x200, 4x400). I think my speed is improving, which is cool for someone that's always been not speedy.

And--maybe more importantly--I've added obstacle training to my workouts, which includes:

• Spear throwing
• Bucket carrying
• 60 lb sandbag carrying
• Rope climbing

I feel more confident about the spear throwing, but you still only get one chance. 

The rope climb should be cake this time and allow me to not lose any spots.

Support LOVE146 and train at Mud, Guts, and Glory on June 28

Come support LOVE146 and get some OCR training in Saturday, June 28 at Mud, Guts, and Glory.

LOVE146 is working to end child trafficking and exploitation. Obstacle racer and personal trainer, Patrick Harner of NRG Fitness, is organizing the training session and asking that participants donate to LOVE146. Patrick will hand out the donation links for his team's fundraising page during the training, so no need to feel like you need to donate now.

Training starts at 9:00 a.m. Patrick will discuss how we can help LOVE146 overcome child trafficking. And I've been recruited to demonstrate how we can overcome MGG obstacles.

Get registered here for training: http://mudgutsandglory.com/#theTraining

The training session fee is $10 if registered for Mud, Guts, and Glory's race on August 16 or $30 if not registered.

- Chris

P.S. Why 146?