Spartan Jacksonville June 2020
The announcement of the first Post-COVID Spartan Race was received with mixed reactions. Some people felt it was too soon, with the pandemic going on, to be conducting an obstacle race. Other Spartans just were not interested in doing a 5k, which they felt was too short for the price. Others were just happy that Spartan was moving forward with OCR and trusting that Spartan would put the necessary precautions in place to safely conduct a public event.
Having been onsite as the only Spartan Event Sponsor, FitBar was there with our full demo rig and tent. All we can say is that Spartan could not have done a better job at putting on a first event. For starters, they combined the DEKA Mile, Trail 10K, Hurricane Heat, and the 5k in one weekend.
DEKAFIT Mile: The DEKA Mile was held on Friday starting at 2. Ten stations with a run around the track, which encircled the stations, after each station was complete. Spartan employees and volunteers wiped off equipment after each use. There were amazingly strong racers in running, including American Ninja Warrior Mack Roesch and Isaiah Vidal of Million Dollar Mile fame. Racers were halted after lighting in the area forced athletes to stop. Spartan continued the DEKAFIT Saturday morning so athletes could continue / complete their runs.
Hurricane Heat: This was the typical Hurricane Heat, which commenced on Friday night. The area around the WW Ranch Motocross Park was thoroughly soaked, so we expect this was an exceptionally brutal heat. There were some that we spoke to that were doing both the DEKAFIT and the Hurricane Heat.
Trail 10K: With all the recent rain, the trails and cow paddies that this race went through were thoroughly soaked. In some sections the water was 2 feet deep for 20 or more feet! Yours truly, who hasn’t been running races competitively in a while ran the course. I was happy to complete the 10K in 52:12.
Spartan 5k: Friday night it rained HARD, so the course was exceptionally wet. FitBar Race Team member Kevin Stephens ran the course with The Give Team and the folks from Operation Enduring Warrior (OEW). The Give Team had partnered up with them to ruck the course and raise awareness to both organizations. The Give Team helps inner city kids in Orlando - OEW helps our wounded military and law enforcement veterans overcome adversity. Both organizations rucked logs, chains, and other equipment, helping each other along the way as they always do for team solidarity. Kevin rucked with the FitBar hammer!! Everyone else who ran the course were happy with the obstacles and the level of social distancing. Spartan had people going out in small waves, with everyone spaced 6’ in the gate at the start of the race. News 4 Jax was on site and did a piece on both.
Joe DeSena, Spartan Founder and CEO, was onsite for the entire weekend. He ran the DEKAFIT and provided the opening announcement at the start of the first wave. Overall, the two days of events were pulled off without a hitch. Spartan did an excellent job with social distancing, cleaned equipment after each use, wore masks, required temperature checks for entrance, and had plenty of hand sanitizer stations available. There were approximately 1500 people onsite, a small cry from the typical 6 - 8K+ that we typically see at a Spartan event, but everyone’s enthusiasm made up for the smaller crowd.
We at FitBar were happy to be at the event. We constructed a sneeze guard for use at our table when conversing with customers. We wore our masks, and cleaned our equipment after demo. It was great to see some old friends and make new. We were excited to meet WWE wrestler / announcer, actress, stunt woman, and OCR racer Taryn Terrell. She took home a Beater Bar and loves it! We also had Fitz Koehler, a Florida fitness expert, personality, cancer survivor, and speaker check out our equipment. We are looking forward to working with both in the future.
Next major Spartan Race: West Virginia!
Chris Epler, FitBar Founder and CEO