Spartan Race Super Peterborough 2016

This was my first Spartan Super and I was super excited! (no pun intended) Having completed the Sprint race back in April, I had an idea of what to expect and also knew that I shouldn’t underestimate this race like I did the Sprint; especially when it was double the distance. This was also my first race outside of the urban jungle of London. So I knew things would be dramatically different, but non the less, my training was right and I felt ready. 

The Logistics

First things first, I had come a long way since the Sprint way back in April, so the 12-13km distance wasn’t as daunting as it seemed. Up until the event I was running 10km each weekend (highly recommended) so my endurance was high enough. The second biggest notable difference was its setting. The land surrounding Elton Hall in Peterborough is bursting with verity in terms of terrain. Hills (waves bye bye to flat roads), mud (I mean feet disappear in the ground kind of mud) and rivers (very cold and long rivers). With these differences I realised that this was exactly what I had been searching for in an obstacle course race. 

The event was extremely well organised. I had a slight fear that there would be as much waiting around as there was at the sprint event, but I was very wrong. Lines for ticket collection, bag drop and obstacles were short and it didn’t feel like there was much waiting around whatsoever.

Obstacles were very well laid out along the course. I realised that I did the 30 burpee penalty way to many times in the last race, so I was determined not to fail any obstacles this time round. Familiar obstacles like the Barbwire Crawl, Atlas Ball Lift (all 50kg of it), Monkey Bars all returned from what I experienced at the sprint race. The two obstacles that had loads of people doing burpees were the dreaded Rope Climb (which I can well and truly, to the astonishment of my team mates, say I’ve concurred) and the Spear Throw (not so good at this one yet). The greatest thing about this well laid out course was that you never felt your challenges were crammed into the same section. Even the random wall climbs throughout the course were welcome. 

My favourite parts of the entire race were the sections I couldn’t possibly have encountered in my city. The winded forest sections, literally jumping through muddy ravines were fantastic. Even when I asked for a push up onto a mud hill that left me with a face full the earths finest, I got up and shook it off with a smile. At least 10-15 minutes were spent walking (and falling) in the waist deep river, which was made even more fun by the camaraderie of the other competitors around you. Thinking this was a great chance to get clean only left me crawling hand and feet up another mud hill 2 minutes after. 

The toughest section was probably the Bucket Walk. Having to carry a bucket full of rocks for a very, very long time, without putting it on your shoulder, is really tiring and pretty hard. Also having to drag a Breeze Block attached to a chain along a pretty unlevelled surface was pretty rough. Especially after I got rid of my gloves to successful get across the monkey bars. In true Spartan fashion, your final chance to pose for the camera is on the Fire Jump that marks your finish line. 

My Thoughts

To date I can categorically say this was my favourite event. The combination of short waiting times, variety of terrain, obstacles and brilliant organisation showed why the Spartan Race series is so strong. With my goal of having my first Trifecta this year, I can’t wait for the Spartan Beast on October 2nd in Windsor. 

Did you compete in the Spartan Super? How did you find it? Are you getting ready to complete your Trifecta on October 2nd at the Windsor Beast? Or have you already got all three parts of the Spartan Medal? Tell me your thoughts in the comments section below.