OCD FOR OCR

My better half and I have been keeping really busy (the last few weeks), when it comes to some of the more challenging OCR races and we’re looking forward to an OCR that was more about having a good time and helping others than pushing our limits and Rugged Maniac was just that race to go do that at and have a fun day together.               

• Registration and Festival:

Registration was very easy. with many lanes available. All you needed was your ID and your QR code. To save time, the race waiver was signed online.

The festival area was lively and happening. Always something to do, from pull-up competition and beer stein-raise challenge to a mechanical bull and games for the kids. Music was always playing around the merch, vendor, and food tents. Rugged Maniac has one of the best festival areas in the business. We didn’t get to spend a lot of time enjoying the festival area, because we ran RMX and each completed a total of five laps!

• Pre-race MC:

As always, it’s up to the emcee to pump up the runners waiting to be cut loose in the start corral and this guy didn’t disappoint. Christopher Calandro did his job well over the many waves he released onto the course.

Editor’s note: MC Christopher Calandro has always impressed both myself and all of our journalists. It’s always a joy to get to see him in action.

• The Course:

As with most obstacle course races held on a ski hill, they typically send you straight to the top right out of the start corral and Rugged Maniac was no exception. So up we went up, only to make a turn at the summit and head right back towards the festival area. With another turn at the bottom, the competitors begin the return trek back up to the top. The terrain was rough and grassy, but manageable. Upon reaching the top, runners encounter their first obstacle, Jacob’s Ladder, and A-frame constructed out of wood.

Next was a descent down the backside of the hill, where we came to Barricades (4′ wall), Commando Crawl (barbed wire crawl through mud), Fenced In (a traverse through a pit of water on your back under a fence enclosure), and Claustrophobia (deep trenches). After that, we went back up the hill, Quad Burner (as the name implies) really taxes the legs. Once back at the top of the hill, it was time for the obstacle, Jump Start (a vertical wooden ladder structure), just after came the first water station. and the end of Mile #1.

The next mile, started with another traverse to the top of the hill and challenged racers with 7 more obstacles. Sled Dog (50-pound sled drag), Pole Position (up onto a platform, then down a pole), Iron Curtain (water pit), Low Crawl, Barzan (series of hanging pipes, to monkey traverse across), The Trenches (6 deep trenches to jump over), and Slippery Slope (slip wall). There were several sections of deep, thick mud that made the going more challenging yet fun. At the end of Mile #2 there was a 2nd water station.

The final mile, was pretty much on reasonably flat terrain, however, 12 obstacles were awaiting your arrival. These involved trampolines, tilting monkey bars, a Zip-line, a hoist, and a few inflatable challenges. One of Rugged Maniac’s signature obstacles is a combined 3 into 1, that starts with a Warped Wall that gets racers half way up, then came Mount Maniac, requiring racers to traverse across a rope cargo net to get even higher and if that wasn’t enough, last, but not least was Accelerator 3.0, a giant inflatable water slide ending with a splash in a pool of water, which was so fun and soooo refreshing!

Overall, the course had some modest elevation gains, several flat sections and lots of mud, mixed in with 26 fun obstacles making for a rather enjoyable event. As mentioned above, Susan and I ran five laps, so we had the enjoyment of conquering over a one hundred and twenty-five obstacles and going up and down the ski hill well over a dozen times!

• The Bling:

Everybody loves the bling and Rugged Maniac has a nice finisher medal. It’s not too small and not too big. with a good-looking ribbon. What’s nice is that they seem to change the design of the medal each year. It’s not just a revamp of last year’s medal.

The finisher shirts are nice as well and what is a really cool touch, is the female finisher shirt has a different neck cut and a female racer on it. 

• Overall Feelings and Event Rating:

I rate this event 5 out of 5 stars. I was initially going to deduct just a little due to the course not being an overly challenging course, but I decided not to. For the more experienced/athletic racers, I suggest paying a little extra and running RMX and running multiple laps! As I mentioned above, we ran a total of five laps and had fun times the entire day. 

This may not be a course that is designed for the elites of the sport, but it is by far one of the best courses and experiences out there for beginners & weekend warriors and for those of us looking for a more challenging course, they offer RMX to go out and run the course all day. Well done, Rugged Maniac!!!

Article Written by: John Cross