KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 20 — Jumping over fire, crawling through mud under a barbed wire and scaling a wall is not your typical day but the time to be a modern-day Spartan has come.
On October 10, join thousands of others for the inaugural Reebok Spartan Race. Voted as the Best Obstacle Race by Outdoor Magazine, this is the first time the Reebok Spartan Race will be held in Southeast Asia.
The Reebok Spartan Race is the first of its kind to feature timing and global rankings. It is divided into three types: Obstacle Sprint (5+ kilometres/15+ obstacles), Obstacle Super (13+ kilometres/20+ obstacles) and Obstacle Beast (20+ kilometres/25+ obstacles). There is also a category for kids.
Created by Joe De Sena in 2010, the race is set to expand globally with more than 240 races in 25 countries.
The first-ever Reebok Spartan Race Malaysia will be an Obstacle Sprint of 6+ kilometres and 22+ obstacles set in Setia Alam. The Obstacle Super and Obstacle Beast will not be offered yet. “There is a saying that the beatings will continue until morale improves. Malaysians are not ready for that level of beating yet,” said De Sena.
“There will be different kinds of challenges unique to each country; 90 per cent will finish and work really hard. I'm sure everyone will hate me and the Spartan race when they are doing it but at the finishing line, the medal will be their best friend.”
The medal for the Reebok Spartan Race is so highly coveted that someone actually sold a medal for US$500 (RM2,000) on eBay. The reason why the medal is so coveted is because it is difficult to obtain.
One of the highest accomplishments is to get the Spartan Trifecta, which is to complete an Obstacle Sprint, Obstacle Super and Obstacle Beast in a calendar year. You can do any of the races in any part of the world that has it.
For the Reebok Spartan Race Malaysia, there are a few categories within Obstacle Sprint: Elite Heats, Open Heats, Masters Category and Biggest Spartan Team 2015. The Elite Heats are for competitive racers and there will be prizes to be won for the first, second and third place while the Open Heats are for general racers. The Masters Category is for racers above the age of 40 while the Biggest Spartan Team 2015 is for the team that registers the most number of participants.
The Spartan Junior Race is for children aged four to 13 with differing distances based on the age group.
“I think Malaysians will do well for the world ranking, being right up next to the Swedish”said De Sena.
So, what's special about the Malaysian Spartan Race?
Specially for Malaysia
“There will be a bunch of food trucks at the end of the race but no one's allowed to eat until they finish the race,” joked De Sena.
According to De Sena, there will be some familiar obstacles that are seen in the original Reebok Spartan Race in America and also some that are created specially for Malaysia. “It is doable but it will hurt. In the end, you will feel happier about doing it,” said De Sena.
The Reebok Spartan Race is known for its burpee “punishment.” Each time you can't complete an obstacle, you have to do 30 burpees until you can complete the obstacle.
“I advise that you train and pray,” said De Sena who will be conducting a pre-race workshop on August 23 from 7am to 10am at Setia Alam. Registered racers will be informed about this pre-race workshop.
What makes the Reebok Spartan Race different is that the race is designed like a sport. There are plans to make obstacles in a race part of the Olympics. “It is consistent with timed rankings and it is professional. Some of the other races are more like a party or business,” said De Sena.
What happens if you can't complete an obstacle? Do you keep doing burpees then?
“That would be a proud life you'd live, doing burpees,” joked De Sena. “Most can complete the obstacles and on average, a racer does 100 burpees,” he said. Usually, most racers finish the race by 90 minutes.
One of the prizes from the Reebok Spartan Race is personal training with Joe De Sena.
So far, 7,000 people have registered for the race with some racers coming from other countries. De Sena expects 10,000 to 11,000 racers to register for the race.
One of the tips he gave for racers is to walk a mile a day, do 30 burpees and 30 pull ups daily for a month. That would be the minimum training required to do the Reebok Spartan Race.
“We have racers from the age of four up to 75-years-old. Some even do it four times a year. Some racers accumulate up to 200 kilometres of obstacle racing. In the movie 300, the Spartans actually walked 200 kilometres so basically you are doing what a Spartan does,” said De Sena.
He himself has participated in more than 50 ultra events and 14 Ironman in one year.
The reason why De Sena chose Malaysia for the race is because he feels Malaysians are open-minded. “I also think that Malaysians are Spartans. They are earlier settlers from Greece,” he joked.
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