Nevada Super Spartan

Regardless of how ‘tough’ it is or not, this race will take a toll on your body and mind. I witnessed several people passing out, cramping up, exhausted, and some probably didn’t even finish. I am not one to compare or claim «this one is better than that one» because in all actuality, there is one sole purpose for the Spartan Races, Tough Mudder, etc… and that is to get people off their asses and into shape one way or another.
I completed all of the obstacles except for the javelin throw! I was pretty disappointed I completely missed the javelin but I was ecstatic that I improved on the obstacles I failed in Malibu. I even conquered the obstacles I was nervous about (rope climb, traverse wall). Pretty challenging course at 8.6 miles. The heat and the elevation made things a bit arduous even for me.
One thing I would have liked was better access to the parking lot. There was one way in and the line of cars made it difficult to endure especially when you are hydrating and well, you need to use the restroom. No restrooms anywhere prior to arriving (we were moving slowly for about 30 – 45 minutes).
Finishing this race was an accomplishment for me and my friends. I already signed up for next years race and a few more Spartan races. The Beast in Monterey is next up for me and that should be much more demanding.
Mental toughness is definitely a requirement.

Trifecta Tribe bound. Eh? Questions marks above your head? Trifecta tribe is a «club» for Spartan Race finishes who finish each of their 3 difficulty races within a calendar year. At the end you get a special medal. Pfft, sounds like I got sucked in consumerism you say? Probably. Vegas Super Spartan marks my 2 out of 3 races done, so you can say I’ve gone to the rodeo a few times.
My overall impressions left me a bit underwhelmed as I thought Spartan Sprint (their 3 mile version) was more difficult, but don’t get me wrong there are definitely more physically demanding obstacles in this race. Filling your own 5 gallon bucket with nearby dirt to the top and carrying it through a narrow pathway, tire flips, tire pulls, and rope climbs are some examples. What I was pleased with is that it was very organized and there was an abundance of «showers» for you to hose yourself off without waiting in a long line. There were probably only 4 water stations, and the first two appeared quickly so I would like to see another water station thrown in there.
If you’ve never done a mud run before then I would recommend doing this. Its more challenging than a Warrior Dash, but not as difficult as a Tough Mudder. You don’t have to be in the best shape to complete the race, just some mental toughness and you’re good to go!
Aroo!

Arroo! Arroo!
This was a very well organized event on what I would consider a perfect day for a race of this nature. I had already done a Spartan Sprint (4 miles) in AZ, so I thought I knew what was coming. In some ways, I did. Though, there were a few surprises that proved to be quite a challenge.
The toughest obstacles:
–Tire flip. 3 flips/​person or work with a buddy for 6 flips. Those bad boys were heavy and if you don’t have a crossfit or weight training background, this event can really «tire» you out.
–Dirt haul. Fill a bucket with dirt (half way for the ladies), and carry it around several small dirt hills. Work on your grip strength and carrying stamina.
–10 ft wall. Up and over! Have solid upper body strength or find a buddy to give you a boost. Watch your landing — I cut my hand up pretty bad on a rock.
–Spear throw. This is the one everybody fails because it’s got some luck involved. Choose the straightest spear and throw it with your hand closer to the metal. Follow through on the throw and hope for the best.
–The course, itself, is pretty difficult to navigate if you aren’t used to hiking and trail running. Prepare yourself for hills and more hills.
For the spectators:
It is fairly easy to follow racers, beating them to obstacles to watch them struggle through. They gave my spectators (friends) a map and entry into the waiting area that consisted of various athletic challenges, a beer tent and lots of muddy entertainment (the racers). Dress to hike and leave the flip flops, dresses and jeans at home. WEAR SUNSCREEN.
If you plan to do a Spartan Race, do yourself a favor and TRAIN. Sign up on their website for the Workout of the Day (WOD) that will give you race-​specific exercises. Do lots of running on hills. Learn to do burpees and be able to do at least 30 in a sitting (if you don’t pass an event, they make you do them). Upper body strength and grip strength will be a huge asset.
The feeling of accomplishing a Spartan Race is one-​of-​a-​kind. Message me if you have any questions or want more tips — I’m training for the Spartan Beast (12 miles) in Monterrey in a few months.
Good luck!

I was hesitant about signing up for this 8+ mile/​20+ obstacle race – mainly because I wasn’t sure that the obstacle race itself wouldn’t justify the price tag (anywhere from $ 95-​$ 145 for registration alone) – but with the LivingSocial/​Amazon deal of $ 40 for entry, I was definitely interested and thought it was worth the money. And I also liked the fact that they have other options, such as the Sprint (3+ miles) and Kiddie version (0.5 or 1 mile) too.
I had originally signed up to run with a group, but due to work obligations, had to change my start time after emailing the organizers and checking in with the head person on site. It was pretty easy to do so and they were quite accommodating.
I understand that they are raising funds for such charities as Homes for Our Troops and Canadian Forces Soldier On by charging for almost everything ($ ²⁰⁄₂₅ spectator fee, $ 10 parking, $ 5 bag check, etc) but I still feel like I saw a bunch of price tags and not as much swag or other free samples for participants… then again, I had to cut out early for work and didn’t even have a chance to give away my one free beer ticket to anyone desiring a beer.
Regardless, this was quite an experience, and I feel like there were a nice mix of local and non-​local competitors at this event, held at Lake Las Vegas in Henderson. There were definitely the competitive athletes that I came across at this time (elites had a start time as early as 8am, with others starting in waves every 15 minutes), as well as people competing to finish, or even those just wanting to have fun and claim their one free beer after finishing the race. I do know, though, that the afterparty was scheduled at LAX, and it seemed like quite a few participants were definitely going to take advantage of the nightlife scene after competing and recuperating for a bit.
I did like the fact that they had marking stations, rows and rows of port-​a-​potties (the ones with the handwashing station outside), areas for photo opps, sample obstacles, and a large area where we could hang out prior to our start time, too. And it seems like this organization also got a lot of local help, since many different groups had their tents set up to gather and hang out, too.
I must say, though, that I was pretty nervous, as I wasn’t training as hard as I was supposed to – given lack of time and lack of availability to train – but it was still a fun and somewhat challenging course, regardless.
From what I recall, the obstacles included the following: a bunch of running on uphill and downhill terrain, some tire flips and tire pulls, sand bucket walk, sand bag walk, hay bale jumps, a short swim (life best provided), monkey bars, burpees, weights, crawls, walls, rope climb, spear throw, a cargo net crawl, multiple scaling walls, mud pits, barbed wire crawls, weighted pulls, a fire pit that we had to scale, and some spartans at the end (a la Gladiator style). For any unfinished or unattempted obstacle, penalty of 30 burpees. Let’s just say that I did a fair share of them, as did quite a few others.
My gripes were that there were definitely enough water stations at the beginning, but the last two water stations were definitely too few and far between – as a lot of my fellow competitors were cramping up pretty badly.
I did think they were pretty efficient at getting the medics out as efficiently as possible, since I saw a girl bust her knee on one of the wall climbs, quite a few guys get medical assistance for their cramps, and others that needed to be taped up due to some injuries that resulted from some of the other obstacles.
I also think that they had quite a bit of support staff on hand to make sure that nobody was cheating/​people were doing their burpees when necessary, they made sure that the flow of participants moved fluidly, and were definitely on hand to help us figure out where to go next, give us encouragement, and definitely provide us with water and post-​race nourishment. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: THANK YOU TO THE VOLUNTEERS! I definitely couldn’t have done this without you guys.
That being said, I may opt to volunteer next year, since they do offer the incentive of volunteering one day and getting free entry to the race. Definitely worth it and helps out many in the process.