Are you ready for the "craziest frickin' day of your life?" If you answered no, it's probably best to just walk away from this article and take up knitting. But if you answered yes, then please, continue reading.
For those who decided to stick around, congratulations: you have just passed the first test of your training to become a warrior. The second test? Complete the Warrior Dash, a five kilometre run complete with fire jumping, wall scaling and crawling in a mud pit covered in barbed wire amongst other obstacles.
Once that's done, party like a warrior.
Set to make its Western Canada debut here in Whistler on Saturday (Aug. 6), the Warrior Dash has proven to be a huge success in the cities it has toured so far. And with 4,509 people registered out of a total of 5,000 available spots for the Whistler event, it looks as though the local dash will be no different.
Not bad for an event that started out just two years ago with just one run and a cap of 2,000 participants.
"The first event was in the Chicago area and we sold out with 2,000 participants. It was a huge success," said Alex Yount, race director for Red Frog Events, the company putting on the dash. "We had a blast doing it and in 2010 we decided we wanted to go nationwide. So we ended up having around 10 races and roughly 130,000 participants throughout the 2010 season."
For the 2011 season Warrior Dash expanded even further, this time going international by holding events in Australia and Canada.
"We now have 35 races with a projected 650,000 participants," said Yount.
While the Whistler event can still be considered smaller than other dashes (the recent Michigan event had around 25,000 participants), that doesn't mean that it's going to be any easier. According to Yount, organizers chose Whistler as the Western Canada location due to its tough terrain.
"It's a perfect place for a Warrior Dash — it has interesting terrain, plenty of hills, lots of trees and different areas where we can build some pretty intense obstacles to throw off the runners," he said.
And that's something Pemberton resident Kevin Murray is counting on, as he's been training to land one of the top spots for the event.
"I saw it advertised and it's a short enough race," he said. "I'm not a great runner, I'm not one of those people who are going to do a half-marathon or a full marathon, but the five km is a realistic race for me. I don't have to dedicate a lot of time to train for it, but I can still compete."
That's not to say Murray isn't at all athletic. In fact, he spends several evenings a week teaching boxing at the Pemberton Boxing Club where he trains hands-on with students from all over the area.
"With the boxing it's kind of a great way to cross-train," he said, "Since I'm not competing (in boxing) anymore, getting myself out to run is not so easy, but now with this competition, this kind of event it kind of gives you the motivation to get out there and run."
And it's running that Murray counts as his biggest weakness going into the event — something he hopes to remedy by training in the weeks leading up to the dash.
"I'm doing the three runs a week, five to 10 km with varying drills on them, slow, fast, hill drills," he said. "I've checked out the course and see there's a big uphill portion to start. Along with the training I do for boxing — that will help with a lot of the drills in the obstacles — I try and do 500 sit ups, 500 push ups and 100 chin ups spread out throughout the day."
Should Murray succeed in reaching the top spot, he'll take home an engraved metal warrior helmet, which is awarded to the top male and female participants at the after party ceremony once the race is finished.
The party component of the Warrior Dash is not to be underestimated. Part of the appeal of the event is the after party where participants celebrate with beer, turkey legs and live music.
"The festival — there's nothing like it," said Yount. "Everyone comes in after the race covered in mud, wearing their costumes drinking beer and chomping down on turkey legs and enjoying the live entertainment. It's always a good time to relax."
Prizes are also awarded for best costume and best "warrior beard."
The Warrior Dash takes place on Saturday (Aug. 6) with the first heat of participants starting at 11 a.m. and subsequent heats following at half hour intervals. The dash begins and ends at the Tube Park in the Base 2 area on Blackcomb Mountain. Spectators are welcome.
