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Writer's pictureDarren Martin

Being Competitive

Being competitive can mean so many things and it doesn't have to centre around winning or losing, it can just be a mentality you have to help you push yourself that little bit further. I didn't start OCR to be competitive, I started for the challenge and to see how far I could push myself. I kept increasing the challenge from 5k, 20miles then a 25mile mountain race back in 2016. It was all an amazing experience that allowed me to test myself physically and mentally. I found out more about myself at every race or event. I learned I could endure more than I ever knew and do things that I never thought I would do. Especially jumping in ice cold water in the middle of winter, come on who does that!



You find out more about yourself after every race or challenge, we learn from experience good and bad. I started to learn that I was suited to OCR as I loved the harsh challenges you faced and could endure the cold and sometimes miserable carries, water crossings or hills. Not to go all philosophical but we face challenges in life all the time and OCR showed me how brave and determined I could be and that I can do anything I put my mind to. This is when I started to look at how I could put myself in more challenging and rewarding situations.


Every single person can be competitive in OCR it just depends on what your goal is. When I first started I would struggle with the obstacles so my first goal was to get round a course without any trouble. I then would walk at certain times and get tired, especially going uphill, so my next goal was to run the whole course. On the first course I ran the whole way round I actually ended up qualifying for the Obstacle Course European Championships 2017 in Amsterdam.


My goals shifted slightly but I never moved away from the rewarding nature or self realisation aspects of OCR. Going through mud, ice cold lakes and enduring 20miles of hills either walking or running can really put things in perspective and off the course I would become more positive, forward thinking and determined towards my goals.



I soon learnt that smaller OCR races had early waves or the first wave of the day where people would race against another and compete for prizes or even prize money. I then started to find out that there were even a UK championship, European and World Championship.


Also OCR brands such as Tough Mudder, Spartan Race, Strong Viking, Toughest and even Nuclear Race would have their own finals and championship races. The qualifications would be different but you still had to perform well in smaller races to be able to attend.


Age group and Elite are two of the main ways to race competitively to win in OCR; it is how the sport splits its competitors similar to how Triathlon does this. Age group racers are then further split into age groups where you can choose to race against people of similar age and compete to be the best of your age in the sport. The Elite wave is for the best of the best and you can expect to race beside some well known athletes in the sport.


I have also started to see the introduction of a new wave called Invitational Elite. I understand why this exists, qualifying for the championship races can happen all over the world at small venues and if you're the only person willing to compete that day you can find yourself qualifying for the Elite wave. I have nothing against this as we’re only as good as the competition on the day. But the competition on the day of the championships races can be drastically different to an Elite mud run wave.


The invitational Elite is something the race will hand pick, it will be for the best of the sport for athletes that have a proven track record and have the greatest chance of producing the best time of the day. Spartan Race have introduced something similar for the elite wave for all their races where you must have a code before you can sign up for this wave, this is a great way to ensure the best in the sport our in the same wave and compete head-to-head.


I currently compete at age group level and have done since my first European championship in 2017, however as the sport progresses and my success as an athlete improves I will be looking to move to the elite waves of the sport. Elite v age group can sometimes be defined by a very grey line. What might be elite in the UK might be age group at world level. The sport is still young and has yet to fully establish itself and have a field of athletes as dense as other sports like Athletics and this will hopefully come over time.




I'm happy to be an OCR athlete at the inception of what I think will be a worldwide spectator sport in years to come. I have no doubt that some form of the sport will be at the Olympics one day and although I started late into the sport I still have dreams to push myself to be the best I can be at the sport and help it grow and be part of its journey, that's the main reason I wrote this blog to share my knowledge and hopefully inspire others to give OCR a go.


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