2017 has been a massive year in terms of OCR and events across the country for theurbanchallenger.com. From smashing some goals set back in 2016, to travelling across the country for certain events. I have exceeded what I did last year and absolutely accomplished more then I could have imagined for the blog and for my fitness. Saying this, there are goals that were missed for various reasons as well. Here is a look at the year in action!
Goals Set In 2016
- My main goal for 2017 was to get my double Spartan Race TRIFECTA. This meant me travelling the country (and flying to Edinburgh) to finish 6 different Spartan Races. Goal smashed.
- After loving the first Nuclear Race. I took part in last year I really wanted to complete all 3 race types to get the big medal, The Mudallion! Unfortunately I didn’t even complete one Nuclear event. This is mostly due to other commitments which didn’t allow me to get involved in the nuclear action. Definitely a goal I want to review and complete.
- With wanting to do my first Tough Mudder, I ended up doing 2 on back to back weekends with the team at For Goodness Shakes! I finally understand why people love this event so much. Thats two headbands secured and that also means that I go into 2018 as a Legionnaire. Time to attempt the tougher obstacles and grab those other colour headbands!
- My plan to run at least 200km over the course of my 2017 events was absolutely smashed. Numbers came in circa 330km worth of ground pounding. More then 50% on top of my original goal.
- My final goal was to pay more attention to this blog and give better reviews to you guys. Through the help of Instagram and Twitter, I have definitely increased the output and the audience. The best thing about this is actually meeting you guys during the events. Running alongside some of you and meeting some people I have looked up too since I started this journey has been truly amazing!
That covers the main goals set last year. I would say that the majority were successful and I exceeded initial expectations. Being invited to so many events, I got the opportunity to work with some great people and take part in some epic (and not so epic) events. Here are some of my 2017 highlights:
Most Challenging Event
This was definitely the Spartan Beast in Edinburgh! The first time I flew to a different country (still the UK, but hey, I got on a plane) for an event and it was a challenge. I always wondered why Nine Mile Burn had such a reputation among the Spartan community, and after tackling the hills, teamed up with horrendous weather, I understood why! It was also the first time I went solo for a race which was mentally challenging to team up with the intense physical toll the race took on me. And to think that there were people out there doing double what I was for the Ultra Beast. Probably the one medal in my collection where I think ‘I went to battle for you…and I just about made it out alive!’.
Most Surprising
I was sceptical about the idea of getting seven different race events, throwing them in a bowl and mixing them into one 10km race. That scepticism was thrown out when I actually took part in Mudnificent 7. The combination of the races actually turned out to be really fun and a obstacle racers heaven seeing as there were so many obstacles during the race. Loads of walls, a lot of rigs and a water section! To top it off, a secret 8th section was added. What more could you ask for? Plus its an amazing way to see what race you should sign up too next.
Favourite Event of 2017
Out of all of the events I took part in, my first Tough Mudder was amazing! I loved every single second of it. Teaming up with the For Goodness Shakes team was great fun and I’m happy that they opened my eyes to the Headband squad! From the big obstacles, being drenched in Blockness Monster, being covered in mud from head to toe (or the other way round) in Mud Mile, to being part of a human pyramid, Tough Mudder doesn’t disappoint. I have some big plans for Tough Mudder in 2018 so watch this space.
2017 has been a great year and I plan for 2018 to be even bigger and better. Bigger events, more training and bigger expectations set! Keep an eye out for my 2018 goals post and let me know what you think.
How was your year? What were your favourite events? What were your most challenging? Did you manage to achieve the goals you set for 2017? Let me know in the comments below and thanks for reading.
[…] year and I plan for 2018 to be bigger, tougher and even better for The Urban Challenger! My last post highlighted the goals smashed and the ones missed last year; here are the main goals I have set for […]