Spartan Ultra Liberec
Distance: 51,5km
Elevation: 3046m
Obstacles: 77
Failed obstacles: 18 = 540 burpees
Time: 21:51:08
A little throwback:
September 3, 2016, Vechec – for the first time in my life I saw a huge medal at Ultra Beast finishers and I said to myself: “It’s beautiful. Too bad I’ll never have it. ” During the Sprint, I got “slapped” because I underestimated the terrain, but it was the most valuable lesson in my life. Very disappointed, I started doing everything to improve.
year 2017 – I conquered the first Super and later also the Beast so I had completed the first trifecta. At the same time, I was thinking of Ultra, but it was still only a fantasy.
year 2018 – 2x multitrifecta, it would be great to participate in Ultra on homeland (Valčianska dolina), I made the first effort to compete, but I was probably not ready yet.
year 2019 – 3x multitrifecta, I had been preparing all summer to conquer my first trifecta weekend (Valčianska dolina) and I did it relatively easily. Two weeks later, in Lipno, I received unofficial approval to participate in Ultra 2020 in Czech Republic.
year 2020 – I conquered the Ultra and I’ve got the purple beauty!
You can’t be prepared enough for the Ultra race. At least that was how I felt. I thought I didn’t train hard enough, I didn’t feel I’m ready, I doubted myself and I was afraid that I will suffer some more serious injuries due to great fatigue. However, I could not allow any of these irrational thoughts to stop me.
I started the official preparation in the autumn of 2019, when there were first discussions about the Ultra and it was announced that it will be in the Czech Republic. Since that day I thought about the Ultra every single day and all the other races were not important at once, I only took them as a training. Since I had been thinking about the race years before, I already knew what I would need to finish it, I thought about it very well. At the beginning of 2020, I contacted Zita Szimon if she would support me on the track. Zita always reminded me of a trained soldier, that’s why she was my choice no. 1 and I am glad that after a few days of thinking, she agreed to this offer. I personally received valuable advices from the experienced racer Pavel Tůma, which later turned out to be the key to success, and which I also confirmed with instructional videos of Martin Dvořák or Veronika Dvořáková. Every time I talked to someone about this topic, I was very nervous, mostly during the last two weeks before the race. I got huge cramps in my stomach, I calmed down only a few days before the start, when I realized the fact that I would not change anything anyway.
The big day came, or night. The alarm clock rang at 23:45 the day before, and I could start preparing for the performance of my life. I didn’t feel ready at all, and panic and anxiety overwhelmed me like never before. I wanted to cry. Fortunately, Veronika was with me, who managed to calm me down. One and a half hour later I was picked-up and at 1:30 I was already in the festival arena. Zita also came and we prepared last things, the equipment and we headed to start. We were accompanied by staff members, a few volunteers who slept in the area and friends. I felt like I was going to be executed.
But I was not nervous anymore and just after 2:00 me and Zita started our long adventure. Our official time limit was midnight, we had to be back by then. The first part (20km) had easier terrain, I knew I could be faster there, but it was harder for obstacles. At the same time, I had to watch out for slippery wet grass, and all obstacles were also wet from the night rain. Annoying, flying insects flied around our heads (I ate about 5 flies) and a deer glanced at us like we were fools who had nothing to do at night and went to hide in the bushes. I overcame the heavier combo in the beginning – Monkey Bar, Ape Hanger, Tyrolean Traverse – but I did first burpees at the tenth obstacle – Twister. I missed the target at the spear throw, but I surprised myself when I could flip the log. I was very disappointed when I didn’t overcome my favourite Multi Rig, and when I slipped off of the next Z-wall, I was really worried about wasting too much time. Only Bucket Carry itself took me for 35 minutes to pass, but I counted on it in advance and for how long it was, it was still an acceptable loss. I had to make the lost time up on the running sections, but my left shoulder had slightly dislocated painfully two or three times and I also almost twisted my ankle twice. I got frightened and had to pay more attention to where I was stepping. Great experience was the night swimming in the lake. The forest was still covered in dark, and I, as the only swimmer at the time, swirled the calm water. I was accompanied by a lifeguard in a boat and Zita ran with my crutches to the other side of the lake. The same thing was repeated on the way back. The water was refreshing, it woke me up. The nature around was also awakening, it was dawning. I think shortly afterwards we met the first volunteers at the water station, who started their shift, which meant that it was 6 o’clock in the morning and we were on the track for 4 hours. I quickly memorized the memory test (P57RE7) and kept running. I was also encouraged by overcoming the Beater, which was extremely challenging and slippery. Zita fed me regularly during the running about every 30 minutes, she gave me a piece of dried meat, nuts, or I asked for dates with salt. She was worried about overcoming Olympus, but I didn’t hesitate and slowly approached the festival arena, where all the heats started to mix, so it happened that the first elite runners outran me. I was the leading racer for an estimated 6 hours! Who can say the same? Despite the fact that we had already walked through this section once before, it was different to go through it in the dark and in the light – I felt more like I was there for the first time. Before entering the comfort zone, I had to overcome the obstacle like in the beginning. The Monkey Bar was still fine, but I already felt that my arms were getting sore, which was reflected on the Ape Hanger and also on the Tyrolean Traverse. I only reached halfway on both of them and the muscles in my forearm started to strike, they were completely stiff and sore. I knew I had a problem because I would struggle with all the obstacles where the power of my hands was being used. My strong point suddenly became a weakness.
I wanted to get to the comfort zone within seven hours. I got there at 6:36, so I fulfilled the plan. Refreshments followed – a meal in the form of rice with tuna. I was careful to chew the meal properly, eat tiny bites, and meanwhile I changed my clothes. I changed the upper set, lubricated the armpits and the foot with vaseline, changed the sock and the shoe. Planned 15 min. pit stop was missed by about 5 minutes, but we were ready to go to the next, hilly part. According to my calculations, the second part should have taken me about twice as long as the first part to meet my midnight limit. I was not allowed to stay anywhere for long, so I hugged and kissed only two of my women who outran me. Twister has recently become an obstacle that I don’t like very much, and at the same time it confirmed to me that my hands had had enough. I didn’t feel pain while walking, but as soon as I hung on to something, I couldn’t last. In the hills, I wanted to follow a tactic: slowly but smoothly uphill and on my butt downhill. I managed to follow it, but there were a lot of climbs in a row. I understood that it was a test for the psyche, but my stubborn head stayed calm, I relied on it the most. It was quite funny when I once told Zita that in my opinion we would just go up this hill, go down and there will be another checkpoint (31.5km). I was wrong by only two hills, that’s exactly how much more we had to step up and then go down. According to other competitors, we were approaching the 30th km and we were on a long slope when we took a short break. My shoulders stiffened and ached. Zita instructed me to stretch and I tried to do what she told me to move my limbs a little and not be so stiff. Somewhere among these Liberec hills, another Spear Throw was waiting for me, unfortunately, it meant 30 burpees for me. I was glad to meet Pavel Tůma there, it was an encouragement to me. I complained about my shoulder pain and he gave me an analgetic that relieved me from the pain for a few hours. I wanted to run as much as I could and return to the festival arena in those few hours. I had to go little bit faster, but I had a few more difficult long climbs ahead of me, including the Sandbag and a climb to the ski jumping hill. The Sandbag was a real struggle, which Tomáš Meravý helped me with, because Zita was too small to be able to hold a bag on my shoulders. On the way down, I used the “buttslide” technique again and had the bag in my lap. It was the safest and fastest way to get down from every hill. Torn pants were a small tax for how much energy it saved me, and what I liked the best was that my knee didn’t hurt. After a few more ascents and descents and successful obstacle overcoming, including a correctly repeated memory test, we hurried back to the festival arena, the sun was slowly setting. I was pleased with the local people, who applauded me from the terraces of the pubs along the track. Zita and I once talked so much that we didn’t notice that we had lost the track markings – we took a wrong turn. We lost maybe less than 10 minutes before we got back on track, but rather it was a wound to the psyche. I was starting to have it enough, I already felt that it all took a very long time, my shoulders and palms hurt a lot again, but I had a great pace despite the pain, faster than the first kilometers. I knew I had another critical point ahead of me – Bucket Carry. I reached it in complete dark. I had no idea if it took me longer or shorter than early in the morning, but when I finished it, I could focus on the last series of obstacles. I naively hoped that my forearms would rest after a hard day’s work, but I knew the reality might be different. It was good that the Monkey Bar was the first harder obstacle, because it’s still the easiest one for me, and I said to myself that if I didn’t make it, it didn’t make sense to me to try other harder obstacles. As soon as I hung up on the Monkey Bar, I felt an old familiar pain in my forearms, just a little bigger, and I couldn’t even catch the next bar. Never mind, the burpees are a reward, so I can move on. I just gently touched Ape Hanger and Tyrolean Traverse, thanked them for being there, and ran to the burpee zone not to waste time and energy on unnecessary attempts. I came to the comfort zone again in 20:27, so I still had about an hour and a half to midnight for the last 2 km. I didn’t stop, I had to concentrate on the last passage. To be honest, I didn’t even want to focus on my beloved ones, who were already impatiently waiting for me, I was afraid that it might put me emotionally down. Fortunately, this did not happen and after flying through the comfort zone, burpee tactics followed again at all obstacles where I needed arm strength: Hercules Hoist, Twister, Spear Throw, Log Flip, Multirig, Z-Wall, and in the end I couldn’t even climb the rope. So a good dose of burpees at the end. To make matters worse, in one of these burpee zones, some sharp straw or something like that stabbed in my palm, and I couldn’t make the burpees on my palms, I had to do them on clenched fists by the end of the race. Absolutely great were all the people who came to escort me to the finish line and made burpees with me at the last obstacles. There were staff members, nice volunteers (I feel like they were the same ones who escorted me to the start) and friends. Zita did a great job once again, counting our burpees aloud and giving us regular breaks to rest. She was doing very well not to let me rest for long. I was still not at the finish line and midnight was coming, but somehow I already knew that I would probably make it. At the last wall, I said to myself not to fall down (at Beast in Romania, I kicked my toe to the last wall). I managed to climb over the wall and seven minutes before midnight and with the applause of the people who stayed with me until the end, I came to the finish line. The dream medal, which I did not think I would ever get, and which I have longed for for so long, was hanged around my neck by my Veronika, to whom I owe a huge “thank you” for everything she had done and still does for me, and without which I wouldn’t be able to achieve this success.
The peculiar thing for me is that when I arrived to the finish line, I did not feel such a rush of emotions, like now when I’m writing these lines. They told me it was normal, but I felt weird, almost like a robot, but know that the strongest emotion that has been with me since then is immense gratitude to every single one of you.
Namely, I would like to thank once again the people who were the central characters in this story:
Zita Szimon for accepting my offer to be my support on the track, for feeding me regularly, for being a mental support and a good companion all the time, and for killing me if I would want to give it up.
Pavel Tůma for the most valuable advices regarding preparation for the race, food during the race, tips on what to do in the comfort zone and for the help on the track.
Michal Kúkola for enabling this crazy idea of mine, for organizing and completing all the formalities.
MyWonderWoman for having her, for endless support and help in preparation for the race.
For the support on the track or even from the distance, I thank the volunteers (although some still do faux pas) led by Volunteer Mama Lada Havelková, other staff members, friends and family.
Thanks also to the sponsors:
Human Health Institute for support and personal growth.
Black CrossGym for the opportunity to constantly prepare for the next race and stay in shape.
Edgar Power Drink for supplying energy before and during the race, thanks to this drink I’m not sick.
Icebug RunningCZ for the shoes that I relied on in the hills, I didn’t slipped even when I was already expecting that I will end up with my face on the ground.
P.S .: Some of you may noticed that throughout the weekend a crew of cameramen were around me during the race, almost the whole time. And some of you already know that it is because a project is being prepared about me – a feature-length documentary. Marosh The Ultra Spartan will show my Ultra trip. Many of you have asked me when this film will be finished and that you can’t wait for it. Yes, I’m curious about it too, but the exact date of the premiere is not known, we definitely have to wait patiently for a few months. But as they say, well worth to wait, it’s going to be huge!
P.S.2: I will add one more fun fact. I think it could have been something after half past one at night, when we came to the hotel room after the race and Veronika handed me my phone. I had 89 new messages and notifications. Therefore, please do not be angry if I did not answer or write to someone. I try to read all the news, comments, congratulations, etc. and for all of that I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
And no, I didn’t have a big muscle soreness, I’m just very tired and even a week after the race I want to sleep almost non-stop. Take care and see you at the next race. Aroo! J
Thanks to my crutches I am faster and more attractive
“Can I borrow your crutches?” was a question often asked by my friends who wanted to test what it is like to walk on crutches. They usually returned my crutches within 15 seconds because their armpits hurt and they asked me how I walk, and whether it hurts me as much as them. It does not hurt, because I have already got used to it, but mainly I have, of course, better technique. A man walking on crutches should not put his entire weight on his armpits, but should transfer most of his weight to his forearms and palms. After a long race, my palms tend to hurt, which sometimes hurt me so much that I would rather rest on my arms. In my case, my hands are always in permanent stress, and maybe that’s why I prefer to be massaged on my arms, because then I feel the biggest relief of the accumulated tension.
Let’s do some easy math now. One standard wooden, underarm crutch weighs around 1kg. With every step I have to lift this one kilogram with my arms. It’s not a hard work if the step is one, ten, or even a hundred. But what about a long race? We can speak about thousands of steps, surely Beast is more than 20,000 steps. Lifting, although light weight, repeatedly so many times, is an enormous burden on the whole arm, probably there is no place on the arm that would not be burdened. That is why I decided to look at various options a few years ago. I started looking for different crutches that would be lighter than the wooden ones and I must confess, my ego longed to something stylish. See, also Dr. House had a stick with flames on it, so why not me? In my imagination, I even went so far that I wanted to have something unique that maybe only a few people in the world, or maybe nobody has. So the idea was born that why the crutches couldn’t be made of carbon.
I found a Slovak engineer, a pilot, who was then working in a company that manufactures carbon car and aircraft components and he agreed to help to model and manufacture these “helpers” for me. He grouped six modelling enthusiasts, his friends from all over Slovakia and started to work on the first prototype.
A unique team of guys, supported by AGGER s.r.o., has been established and is dedicated to sports projects all over Slovakia, for which I am very grateful.
To this day, I meet people who are making me laugh with question that whether it is just stickers or what it is. My crutches, I use while racing, are a prototype made according to the pattern of wooden ones, in this form I dare say that the only one in the world.
Places, where I prepare for the race
Black Crossgym Komárno is a place where my muscles grow, so do my fitness, and where I spit out my soul and go to relax.
I first came here on January 4, 2016 and since then I come here regularly, usually three times a week. A great team of trainers and other instructors ensures that I am fully prepared for all the challenges ahead. I do extra exercises every time because I believe that if I want to be better I have to do something extra. That is why I come to the gym one hour before the training and do my own warm-up, which is necessary for me and often takes 45 minutes. This is followed by the actual training with the majority of female staff. I feel very well in women’s society, not only that I have close friends there, but women, of course, do not exercise with that heavy weights as men, so the workload suits me and I can compare myself with them. If the exercises do not suit me, I will bring in my own training suitable for my preparation for the race. Sometimes, at the end of the training I do some little extra exercises again.
I like the feeling when my whole body is burning, when I have sore muscles, that I can’t sit down on the toilet, then I really feel like I did something for myself.
The second,
very important, place in my preparation is at home. I spend most of my time at
home and when I’m not training in the gym, I work out at home as well, because it
is important to move every day.
It is not such an intense exercise as in gym, I focus mainly
on strengthening the core, abdominal muscles. One of the most essential phases
of my preparation also takes place at my home, which is regeneration, or sleep.
Many athletes neglect regeneration, a key moment of success.
And last but not least, I would mention all the places other than the gym and my home. Recently I started to put more emphasis on walking. A walk, in my understanding, means fast walking. I go to the city centre or other places on days when I don’t have the workout in the gym and I wander in the city streets until I reach the daily step limit of 7500 steps. This is a very good preparation, because although it may seem that I move with ease, it is quite tough. Just try what it’s like to walk with crutches.
So this means that wherever I am, wherever I move, wherever I go, I always prepare for my next race.
First summer Spartan Race in Mallorce
Spartan Race Mallorca Super & Sprint
Super: distance: 10,6km; elevation: 541m; time: 5:15:23
Sprint: distance: 5,72km; elevation: 236m; time: 2:49:30
I attended my first summer Spartan Race this year on beautiful, sunny Mallorca. I decided to go to Mallorca two years ago, but due to some reasons I was not able to get there. I have chosen this destination because the race date overlapped with my birthday and I wanted to celebrate it at some special place. Therefore, I’m glad it happened this year.
Me and my team had a Saturday Super and Sunday Sprint on schedule. When we arrived at the festival zone we were really concerned about infinitely long line of people waiting to register. This line went through the entire festival arena and I didn’t even know where it ended. The organizers failed at this point and therefore the start of all heats was delayed by half an hour. Positive thing was bag check area which consisted of several military trucks where soldiers helped (as the race was held near the military base). Yet before start we met our Slovak and Czech “colleagues” and we wish each other good luck and then we were prepared to go on an adventure.
The weather was nice, the sky was clear, sunny, pleasantly warm.
I came to Mallorca to enjoy the races and not to give all I’ve got to have the best time. Another goal was to show people there what is possible and to motivate them to more responsible behaviour, so I wanted to be a good representative of CEU. Two years ago I took part in the Wiener Neustadt Spartan Race and I was disappointed with the behaviour of some competitors. Outside the CEU, Open heats are not taken seriously, volunteers are not strict and runners help each other on obstacles like balance or monkey bar, and they often don’t even make more than 5 burpees. Here I expected something similar, I was prepared for it and, unfortunately, it was the same. I have to say that I like CEU rules and strict conditions more, I’m used to them.
The track itself was very nice with a lot of beautiful views. Perhaps the biggest minus was that it was very dusty and I also didn’t like the gravel surface. I was surprised that there were also some small hills, I was expecting a more flat profile, but for me those ascents were comfortable, I worked with my breath very effectively. I was looking forward to chain carry obstacle, a massive chain that could have about 30kg (correct me, idk how much does it weight). We had to figure out how to position the chain so it would sit comfortably on my shoulders and climb the hill up, where I slipped and chain felt down. Fortunately, Spartans from other countries are also solidary and they immediately helped me to pick the chain up. At the atlas carry, I me Ryan, an American who was not a soldier and he did not need to be saved, but he was a rugby player and he saved me when he helped me lift a heavy concrete ball. Mentioned soldiers were also at water stations and I was extremely honoured when that applauded me, supported me and complimented me. Amazing feeling. Z-wall is much easier abroad than in CEU, so even though I spent quite a lot of time on it, I did it. I made only 30 burpees for the spear throw. I think, the volunteer considered me crazy when he saw me doing all 30 burpees. As usual, the bucket carry took me the most time to do it, at its beginning I had to manage I quite steep concrete ascent, but my support invented possibly the best tactics to do it (see photos in the albums). Also new obstacle for me was Beater, a monkey bar-ish obstacle with both fixed and rotating segments. This kind of obstacles basically don’t cause me any troubles. At that moment it was just a few steps to finish, so we could enjoy a well-deserved banana.
Sunday Sprint was very similar, but there was a difference that we could not see that long line of people in front of registrations. Well done, organizers. Nice weather, dusty track, less obstacles. I was surprised that there was no sandbag carry on Super, but we already had it on Sprint. Standardized bags don’t sit so well on shoulders/neck, therefore we struggled with it a little bit. Otherwise, everything went smoothly, even so much that I can proudly say, that Sprint in Mallorca is the first race on which I did not do any penalty burpees. Yes, I did spear throw too.
In the finish we unfortunately did not receive medals and t-shirts, due to spreading virus they did not arrive on time. But one nice thing happened to me afterwards – the local speaker of the event invited me on the stage and did a short interview with me. People applauded me, I guess even more than winners, for which I am grateful to them from the heart.
I would like to thank all those who supported me on the track, spectators who applauded me like they were paid for it, new friends I have met and my team accompanying me on this trip, my manager and MyWonderWoman.
I hope to see you soon!
Photos, first day, here: ,,Marosh the Spartan & MALLORCA SUPER 2020″
Photos, second day, here: ,,Marosh the Spartan & MALLORCA SPRINT 2020″
Winter Spartan Race Banská Bystrica 2020
Race no. 26
Length: 5,96km
Time: 2:08:27
When I attended my first winter Spartan in Dolní Morava in 2017, I thought I will never go to the winter race again. It was cold, the wind was blowing, my hands were freezing, I was struggling in the snow, and all the way I was disturbed by my runny nose. I do not like cold and winter, I like summer heat and stay near the water. So why did I decide to take part in another winter Spartan?
It was perhaps the same reason as three years ago – getting out of my comfort zone. But the race was completely different. While in Dolní Morava I fell into a meter deep snow and had my hands frozen, in Banská Bystrica I was dirty from the mud and I sweat my coat. Three years ago, I reached the finish line almost five hours later, and I wanted to beat this time by few hours.
This year the organizers chose a route through the city center and ascent to nearby hill, Urpín. The course map was published in advance, which somehow didn’t bother me personally, because I knew what shoes to choose – I preferred thick winter shoes over running shoes, because I knew we should not run through the stream. The city passage was quick, even the pavement in the center was not frozen, but on the hill the molten mud slipped and packed on shoes. I was surprised that some obstacles were way too easy. Plate drag, which is not one of my favorites, was uncommonly easy, and I didn’t struggle during sandbag carry or later at Hercules hoist. I was afraid of Atlas, because last year in Valča and Lipno caused me significant problems and in the Czech Republic I had to do 30 burpees.
But I managed it well, muddy terrain was more troublesome than the weight of the ball itself. When we got back to the city, I did my traditional burpees for the Z-wall and also for the spear throw, which was such a pity, because I threw it very well but I probably ate a lot of spinach (or Edgar.powerdink) and I threw the spear over the target.
The most beautiful or interesting part of the race for me was at the Museum of Slovak National Uprising. We ran through the memorial, a place from which a strange energy radiated pointing to the gloomy period of time.
That is why I was also glad to see the expositions in the museum the next day.
The resulting time of just over two hours was much better than I expected, but it was due to lighter conditions.
Next stop: 7.-8. March, Mallorca Sprint and Super
I have one leg. Which shoe fits me the most?
When I meet ordinary mortals in Slovakia, but also in the Czech Republic,
in my lectures and so on, many wonder whether I have to buy both shoes when
buying new ones. Yes, of course. I haven’t found shops where they would sell only
one shoe, but if you know about something, I’ll be glad if you let me know. If
I would complained about the shoes I bought, I would also have to return them
both, otherwise they will not accept the claim, I think this is the main reason
why they cannot be bought individually.
However, there are
various other solutions in this topic. One is to find another one-legged friend
who is missing the opposite leg. Of course I know a few, but there is another
problem that we don’t have the same size. I wear size 44-45. Of course, it is
advisable that you also agree with the other person’s matter of taste. What I like,
he may not and vice versa.
Fortunately, I have a few acquaintances who can provide me with a left shoe of a discarded or damaged pair that would otherwise not be used and thrown away. I am also grateful to the sponsors who provided me with shoes (yes, both) for the race. At the moment I am running in Icebug shoes, which seems to me as a good choice. I use older Reeboks with a wider heel for training. Shoes with wider heels suit me a little more, because they provide me better balance and I protect my ankle better. The main thing about the race shoes I care about is that the sole should be thick enough to not feel every little stone, and at the same time, the interior should be soft enough to bear it on the track for 10 or more hours.
At such extreme distances, it is very difficult to choose the right shoes to keep the foot unharmed, but it is very important to maintain healthy joints and to perform as best as possible.
The last Spartan trip this year.
Distance: 20.7 km
Elevation: 1034 m
Time: 8:18:29
I made my last Spartan trip this season in Czech Republic, at the Lipno dam. And the fact that I really thought of it as a holiday stay is that I didn’t even take a camel bag with me, even though I went to Beast. I planned not to rush at all, to keep my body fit, especially my knee and to enjoy the beautiful green nature. The moss-covered trunks, rocks, but also the entire path, it was awesome. One wanted to take off the shoes and walk barefoot like on a soft cloud.
In the morning I almost missed the start, after picking up the starting package I had only 9 minutes to finally wake up and stand ready at the start line. So I did not manage a proper warm-up, but I did not mind. I wanted to meet familiar faces on the track so I was not in hurry. The weather was good, it was sunny, a little cold in the morning, so I preferred to wear long sleeves and leggings. I withstand the heat much better than cold, moreover, since my pace was incredibly slow, so I needed to keep warm. I enjoyed nice views of the surrounding countryside and forest paths.
My performance at obstacles was, let’s say, not very good. Besides my traditionally burpee-making obstacles – spear throw and Z-wall, I did not make even Hercules hoist and for the first time I had to do burpees at atlas carry. The concrete ball was making me trouble in Valča and now it was even worse. Again, I felt as if the ball gained weight, but probably it was caused only by my weakened back. I think I improved stamina during the summer but the physical strength went slightly down. Never mind, at least I know what to improve.
However, my performance is not important and was not even interesting, I was happy with myself, I knew exactly where I had the reserves, where I could go faster, I could probably reduce the finish time even by an hour if I wanted to. But I would like to highlight another positive side of the Spartan Race, the human side.
These races are not just about rivalry, but also about mutual belonging, empathy, coherence or helping others. At every single race, X contestants need help from others. I also ask them sometimes, mostly when I need to hold my crutches, but I am also happy when I can help others. I like when people help each other, even if they don’t know each other, they don’t leave each other in troubles. This is something we should bring into our daily lives. Most of all, I appreciated the presence of some people, that I could meet them. I will not name them because there were more of them and each of them made my life more pleasant just with their presence. I was glad when they helped me, I was glad when I could help. I enjoyed the little things, trivia and I was also happy when I had a few second meeting, but I was looking forward to it for months.
I mean, little things like a hug, a smile or someone’s presence can be of great value to others, and when I’m on a Spartan Race, I see a lot of happy people there. I only we could infect people with such a positive mood at home, at work, at school, and everyone everywhere …
I will finish my story here, letting my hardly intellectually-philosophical idea resonate in the minds of every one of you who has come to this point. Just to add, my slow, energy-saving tactic was not worth it so much. I evaluated that it would be better to go faster. But this race has fulfilled its purpose, I only have to use my newly acquired knowledge in the next race.
We see on Spartan Race next year, soon. I look forward to all of you.
Next stop: Winter SR Banská Bystrica 18.1.2020
Compensation and efficient use of energy during training and races
We need energy, as we learned in physics lessons, to be able to do the work. We get it from food. I will not pretend that I am a nutritional mage, we all know which are healthy foods and which are not. Since I became a Spartan, my diet has not dramatically changed, because I’ve always been eating relatively healthy food. Of course, I have also improved in this way and I still have something to work on.
Perhaps the most important thing of all is being hydrated, whether during training or during a race. In case of insufficient water, dizziness or collapse may occur. After my first attempt of 100 burpees, I heard ringing in my ears for at least half an hour until I started to feel ok. It was caused, of course, by my bad fitness, but I think if I would better take care of the drinking regime and the supply of some quick sugars, I would do it easier. Likewise, or worse, I ended up on my second Spartan Race Sprint in Vechec. The day before I neglected the supply of fluids and I had extreme problems on the track, I was very sick.
Today, such situations do not happen to me. First, my fitness is on higher level, and if I happen to feel a low sugar level, I know I should slow down and it will stabilize soon. I have learned to diagnose these situations quite early, so I think I manage my energy on the track quite effectively. If the race is very long, then later, of course, the energy runs out and I am so exhausted. At that time, often, my only emotion is hunger – I am very excited to end the race and to go get something good. Then I look for “forbidden” meals, such as hamburger, kebab and similar fast food meals.
Personally, I don’t go to training or race without putting anything in my stomach, but at least two hours before the performance. On the other hand, I’m not stuffed up so that I don’t burden my stomach too much. I also learned the lessons during the race, I try to drink a lot, and I also choose the foods that fit me. This is individual for everybody, I usually have some meat in the evening before the race, most often with rice or potatoes and vegetables. In the morning, before the race, mostly bread. I know, pastry is not very nutritional, but my belly is a little sensitive to some foods, so I have to give it what it I may, so my stomach would not protest.
I don’t use to take a camel bag with me during the race, but it was a necessity from the beginning. After an unpleasant experience in Vechec, I thought to myself, not a single step without a camel bag. I carried 2 litres of isotonic drink, grape sugar, dried meat, salt pills and sometimes magnesium shots. However, the Spartan organizers added at least one refreshment station to the track, more than it used to be, and they even provided salt and some dried fruit, so this all inclusive service is enough for me to reach the finish line with dignity. Moreover, as I mentioned, my fitness and energy management have improved significantly, so I usually rely only on an abundant breakfast.
That is why I am also very glad that I have discovered in the recent past also an energy drink that does not burden my stomach, after which I have no problems on the track. Of course I am talking about Edgar Power Drink, which not only does not burden my stomach, but I really feel the energy supply. I think they managed to mix this energy cocktail really well…. and not to mention those Edgar girls, they’re super hot.
So, to sum up, you have to drink a lot, eat healthy and balanced meals, and the energy supply will be excellent then. And if any energy is missing before the race, Edgar will solve it.
I’m immortal! Trifecta Weekend from Maroš
I’m immortal!
Before the race, I told myself that if I could do a Trifecta Weekend in Valča and I don’t die, I’m immortal. It seems I have succeeded
Trifecta weekend is a very difficult race, as there is no time for a proper rest, moreover, they say the hills in Valčianska dolina are legendary. I finished my first Super in 2017 in Valča and I haven’t shown up there since then, but I remember I enjoyed the race and that I ran it in a good time (6:26:58). This time I had to prepare better, and I trained honestly hard through the whole summer, intensifying my workouts to endure more stress. I felt I was the fittest than ever before. I was ready to face my biggest challenge so far, I was looking forward to Valča, but I also was quite nervous, I knew that I would have to be focused all the time, because any mistake, inattention could cause major injuries.
Saturday:
The weather was good, it wasn’t cold, but what was more important for me, that it was not raining, but I knew that in this area it could change every minute. Fortunately, on Saturday the weather was trouble-free all day. I started at 8:30 am, which is a very early hour for me, but I felt quite relaxed and ready to go. Less than half an hour before the start, I stopped for a drink from Edgar, on which I relied to wake me up and here we have a little advertising break.
I would recommend Edgar Power Drink to anyone who hasn’t tried it yet. I personally like it because it does not burden my stomach and mine is really sensitive, I couldn’t consume e. g. energy gel products. I haven’t had any problems with Edgar yet, and I’ve always felt a flow of new energy.
A shoulder and arm massage made my blood flow, which helped me a lot in the first few meters / kilometers. I set a limit of 9 hours for this race, but I was hoping it could be considerably less. I did not know what tactics to choose whether I should go on full effort and try to quit as soon as possible so that I would have more time to relax to the next day, or go slower assuming I would be less tired but would have less time to relax. I chose something in between. I tried not hurry too much at the beginning and at the same time to go as smoothly as possible to catch my breath. Everything went smoothly, from the beginning I remembered the track two years ago and I even had time to enjoy the views of the surroundings, hills, valleys, beautiful landscape. The racers again encouraged me, expressed words of respect, for which I am extremely grateful to them and one even asked me if I’m doing some motivational lectures. Here I will use the space for a second advertising break.
Yes, we do motivational lectures, so if someone is interested, you can feel free to contact me via messenger or order me via hhi@hhi.institute email address. Lectures are suitable for schools, companies, organizations, etc. I will be pleased to come to motivate anyone, anywhere.
Somewhere in the middle of the woods, all the racers were held back by a steep hill, the top of which could not be seen. They all crawled on all fours, swearing. Fortunately, here I had helpers who carried me crutches or belayed me to keep me from slipping. I can’t even guess how much it took me to climb this damned hill, but when I was up I noticed that I couldn’t even see where we started climbing. I continued, honestly refilling liquids and salt to avoid cramps. Later I came to the first obstacle, which could reward me with 30 burpees – spear throw. Always when I approach this obstacle, I keep repeating the theory and concentrating on following all the procedures. I also think about the mistakes I made in previous races and I try to change something, focus more on direction and strength. I stretched out, threw and hit the target. I run on with a great feeling that perhaps someday I will learn how to throw a spear. Followed by obstacles they refreshed, first dunk wall and shortly afterwards swimming. The water was cold, but nothing horrible that couldn’t be handled for two minutes. I was most delayed by a bucket full of gravel that was filled and sealed for the first time. It was too heavy for me to carry it in my hands, as I had been used to, so I had to change to another tactics, dragging it on the ground. It took me a long time, certainly over half an hour, and it was very exhausting. I left a lot of energy on the plate drag or rope climb too, and so I didn’t have enough energy to pull the bag on the Hercules hoist, although I tried it three times. For the third time I pulled the bag completely to the top, but I could not slowly lower it, the rope in my hand began to slide, and it burned my finger on my right hand just like on previous race in Eplény, Hungary. The bag felt to the ground and I went to do my first 30 burpees. I walked tiredly to the atlas carry, and even at this obstacle it seemed to me like the concrete ball gained weight. Compared to previous races, I had significant problems with it. After a few minutes and successfully overcoming the obstacle, I crawled under the barbed wire in the stream and reached the festival arena, where I still had a Z-wall to overcome, but it was wet and muddy. I haven’t grown up to this obstacle yet, so I went to do a second set of 30 burpees. I only had a multirig consisting of circles and ropes ahead of me, but even though all the handles were a little wet, I had no trouble to ring the bell. I was satisfied with the final time of 8:16:50, I went quite fast and I also had time to relax.
Sunday:
After Saturday’s Beast I felt most comfortable among all the Beasts so far, maybe because I did not have time to feel tired and I knew I had to do at least the same performance again. It was a little harder to get up and I didn’t have much time to prepare before the start. I managed to drink Edgar power drink but I didn’t warm up, and I will tell you, kids, never forget your warm-up. I started hardly, and soon my shoulders hurt. Yes, when I run / walk, my shoulders tend to hurt. And since it was raining overnight, the track was soaked, muddy and slippery. The mud was the biggest problem, I couldn’t move as fast as I wanted, and it deprived me of a lot of energy. On one decent elevation in the woods, which I went through without problems the day before, I literally stuck and I couldn’t move the crutches or my legs, because I felt I had no fixed point below me. How to overcome this passage? Only on my butt and proceed slowly but surely. It was a little frustrating to move so slowly, but I couldn’t do anything about it. I checked the time, it was good, I needed to finish Super before my next discipline – Sprint. Maybe around 10th kilometer my shoulder pain soothed and I moved better. But the closer I got to the end, the more time was against me. I did not do the spear throw, I stayed too long at the bucket carry, and I managed to climb the rope on the second attempt. I came to Hercules hoist a little disgusted after the previous day, the burned wound on my finger was pinching, so I just touched the rope, slightly lifted the bag, dropped it and went to do the 30 to avoid unnecessary delay. When I was doing the last 30 at the Z-wall, I heard that the heat that I was supposed to be in had just started. I quickly made the burpees, went through the multirig and reached the finish in 7:01:11. The plan was under 6 hours, but due to muddy conditions I couldn’t. Never mind, excuses aside. I ate one protein bar, made a quick pit stop like in F1, and my personal helpers swapped my headband, timer, and hurried to catch up the last heat. Before the weekend, I thought Sprint, as the last part, might be the hardest one, because after one Beast and Super I thought I wouldn’t have the energy left. But I was surprised how fast I started and caught up the last racers doing burpees next to the balance obstacle. In a short time I had most of the track behind me and I managed to throw the spear to the target, so for the first time I had a positive statistics from this obstacle. The bucket carry hold me back the most again. I rolled the bucket on the ground, but I still guess it took me 40 minutes. I know that this technique is not allowed, but as one of the volunteers told me, I did everything I could to overcome this obstacle, I look for ways, not excuses. If only I could carry it in my hands, on my shoulder or even on my head. The rope climb was easily overcome despite the wet ropes, and I was approaching the Herc hoist, which I wanted to skip again as I did it on Super to save my sore palms, but the volunteer convinced me to try it anyway. I walked to the rope and started pulling. I don’t know why, but the bags seemed to be lighter. Maybe they were, or I had more strength, I don’t know, but I overcame this obstacle as well. Volunteers and spectators accompanied me for the rest of my journey, encouraging me, pushing me forward. I repeated my only 30 burpees on Sprint at Z-wall. Multirig is a routine and after climbing the last wall and skipping the fire I could breathe out (time 3:26:25). I did it!
Also my second visit in Valčianska dolina was excellent, those hills fit me well, I like them. In two days, during three races, I went about 45km, climbed over 2500m and burned more than 6200 calories. I have never experienced such stress before, but my body managed with it brilliantly. I continue to regenerate, exercise, because the next race is around the corner. See you soon in the beautiful landscape of Lipno, where this time I will run “only” the Beast.
Thank you all for your support!
Maros the 1000 burpees challenge
Shortly after the new year, on January 4, is the day when Maroško is celebrating his little event.
This is the day when one of his good friends took him to the Black CrossGym in 2016, and from that moment his life changed. He became addicted to exercise, good fitness and a healthy lifestyle. From that moment on, he maintains a good physical condition and trains for the next Spartan Race. Because he appreciates this opportunity for life change thanks to coach Erik, he makes up some special training every year and celebrates this way.
This year it was 1000 burpees.
Burpee is an exercise invented by the American physiologist Royal Huddleston Burpee at Columbia University in New York in the late 1930s and is therefore named after him. Mr Burpee wanted to invent a complex exercise that would show a person’s physical readiness. Thus, a four-step exercise was born: 1. squat down and put both hands on the ground in front of you; 2. Pop your feet backward into a plank position with straight arms; 3. Bring your feet back forward; 4. Stand back up. Burpee thus invented a fitness test for athletes and was popularized when the US armed services adopted it as a way of assessing the physical readiness of recruits when the United States entered World War II. (source: mensjournal). However, the burpees have evolved over time, and today there are many variations with different leaps or push-ups. The Spartan Race has also adopted burpees as a penalty exercise for failed obstacle overcome, where one has to touch the ground with chest and then jump up with hands above head.
And exactly such burpees Maroško did on Saturday, but he did not make neither 30 of them, as he is used on the race, nor 100, but 1000. This is a number from which many of you would be dizzy. This challenge was connected with the competition on the Facebook page of Spartan Race Czech republic, where people could compete for registration for the winter Sprint in Brno and they had to guess how long will it take to do 1000 burpees. Tips varied from about 1 and a half hours to over 4 hours.
Maroško strengthened himself before the performance with Edgar Power and tried hard to get under two hours, which he eventually failed, but he was not disappointed. He improved his personal record on 200 BP by four seconds (19:26) and broke 500 BP for the first time under an hour (00:57:16). He slowed slightly in the second half, of course, but as he said, his body sometimes disobeyed, so he had to force it to continue. His assistant’s, personal manager & manager from Marosh the Spartan reading of encouraging comments from people from different places gave him a lot of energy. Support was unreal. A few friends came to support him personally and together counted the last burpees. The resulting time stopped at 02:13:51. Some may know that these 1000 burpees were not his first challenge. He had the same number two years ago with a time of 2:21:25.
Some may know that these 1000 burpees were not his first challenge. He had the same number two years ago with a time of 2:21:25.
In comparison to 1000, 30 burpees seem like a really ridiculous number. Still, there are individuals who try to circumvent the rules and barely do 20 burpees at the Spartan Race in the burpee zone. It is not the organizers’ fault, but we cannot want one or two volunteers to watch out for 30 competitors at a time. The error occurred somewhere in these individuals, somewhere in their internal settings. For some reason, disobeying rules are close to them and very likely they have no remorse. Such behavior, however, hurt other competitors who do more for the same result and feel inequality, unfairness. Maroško’s 1000 burpees should have also show that 30 really are not many, and that everyone can handle it. If it could motivate even one sinner to rehabilitate, then it made sense to do burpees for over two hours.
At the end of the live stream, Maroško warmly thanked all who watched and wrote to him, that touched him very much. He appreciates every support he receives in any form and is already looking forward to every new challenge the new year will bring.
We look forward to it and wish him to keep doing good job as usual.