WSVN — From jumping over walls in costume, to crawling through the mud, people can't seem to get enough of obstacle course racing. Eddie Kotlyarov: "I originally started doing marathons and then a couple of years ago I did my first obstacle race. I was hooked. Since I started doing them, probably 40 plus."Gone are the days of just running. Now almost every weekend there is a different sort of obstacle race in South Florida.Jaclyn Guitterez-Jones: "I've done the Pretty Muddy Run, the Spartan Race. Now the Tough Mudder coming up."So what is it about braving possible danger that's hooking people?Eddie Kotlyarov: "Cool obstacles. Kinda having to climb this, hang from this. Something very different but still competitive."Florida boy Sean "Ace" O'Connor is the brains behind the popular Superhero Scramble. Sean "Ace" O'Connor-CEO, Superhero Scramble: "This course here is close to six miles with around 25 obstacles. Everything we do, we do it big."He's not kidding. This course is full of tough traps to tackle, but the idea is just try it and have fun. And if you can't do something, skip the obstacle and get punished with some hard exercises. Sean "Ace" O'Connor-CEO, Superhero Scramble: "We really wanted to set up something where everyone could be a part of it. We trick people into coming out because of the crazy costumes. It's a day to come out and let your guard down and act like a little kid again."Best part: These crazy races are inspiring people to get back in shape. Will Jones-Owner, Crossfit Bone Island: "At my worst I was 300 pounds. At my race I did last year, I was 250. You run up to the obstacles and you're like, I'm not gonna get over that, but you do your best, and you get over it."Just beware all races are not created equal. Jackie Jones and her team are getting geared up for the Tough Mudder in March.Jackie Jones: "Tough Mudder is a bit more intense. It's about 10 to 12 miles. Much more endurance running. The obstacles take it up a notch. You have to run through fire, electrodes hanging from trees."Her best advice for those types of races, train hard. Jackie Jones: "We're doing a lot of endurance running. We stick with Crossfit routines mostly. We find it sets you up for most of the challenges on these courses." So don't be a stick in the mud. Get out there and climb over something. Average cost of these types of races is $50 to $75 and there are all sorts of races coming up in the next couple of months. Just this weekend there is a Foam Fest race and Color Me Rad here in Miami.FOR MORE INFORMATION: www.superheroscramble.comwww.toughmudder.comwww.colormerad.com/races/miami.html
Obstacle Racing
