Mid Atlantic Savage Race. Saturday July 20th 2013

This past  Saturday I ran the Mid Atlantic Savage Race. Our Mudder Faulker team ran with only two original members, but we added a few friends as well as some Obstacle Course race newbies. I was really excited for this race and it did not disappoint. 

The first thing that drew my attention to Savage Race was their  take on the Quarter Pipe and Monkey Bars. When comparing their 'Colossus' and 'Sawtooth' to Tough Mudder's  'Everest' and  'Funky Monkey' the edge goes to Savage Race. Tough Mudder is what got me into Obstacle Course races, but a badass obstacle design is a badass obstacle design. When comparing 'Colossus' to 'Everest' the first thing that strikes me is the sheer size of 'Colossus'. The quarter pipe is enormous and while they give you a rope to help yourself up, there are still plenty of participants that require a lot of help up. 'Everest', on the other hand, seems to have gotten shorter from when I ran Mid Atlantic Tough Mudder in 2012 versus 2013. I can't really prove it, but my whole team felt it was easier. Additionally 'Colossus' has a giant waterslide off the back of the quarter pipe unlike anything I have seen at other races. The best part about the slide? It isn't built over gravel and rocks so it doesn't destroy you while sliding down. In my opinion, 'Colossus' is the best obstacle in the business (Savage also claims it costs $50,000 to build).

I mean, just look at it.....

'Sawtooth' is basically the king of monkey bars. It took 'Funky Monkey' and added a wicked 'Sawtooth' in the middle, making you climb up, down, back up, and then down again. Aside from looking insane it adds an extra challenge by making you reach and pull yourself up mid climb. Many folks fell in the water, and many more would have if they didn't use their feet to help get themselves across. This is my second favorite obstacle in the business next to 'Colossus', which means that the moderately sized Savage Race has 2 of the best obstacles in the industry.

Mud N' Guts left everyone FILTHY

Savage Race had mud run staples like balance beams (Nut Smasher), 8 foot walls, cargo net climbs (Big Ass Cargo Net), Hay Stacks, and garbage ice baths (Shriveled Richard). 'Tazed' was a low crawl under charged wires. This was literally the worst I have ever been shocked at any event. I hate these obstacles as they hurt like hell, but ranking it on it's merits it had absolutely the most juice I have encountered. Immediately following 'Tazed' was, 'Mud N' Guts' which was the muddiest crawl I have ever done. Since it was the last obstacle, every single participant ended the race completely covered in mud. It was amazingly disgusting, which is what they were going for.



Savage Race Pros

1. The more races they put on the better their obstacles will get. The fact that they have two of the best obstacles going right now is impressive considering they have only put on 7 races to date. I can't wait to see what they put together for Mid Atlantic 2014.



This thing belongs in a theme park

2. The vibe of the entire event was great. Parking was a breeze and there was no traffic anywhere. Registration and packet pickup went smoothly and everything was in a central location. The after party was one of the best I've attended after a race and while the food was very expensive for small portions, it was really really amazing.



Team Mudder Faulkers Posing with Davy Jones

3. This is one that rarely gets discussed, but their Merch booth, shirt quality, material, and payment options were great. They had a wide selection of shirts and tank tops printed on soft high quality fabric. I bought something for my wife, my son, and myself and was able to pay with my debit card, as I had spent all of my cash on food.

4. Prior to the race, the Savage team emailed participants informing them that the 7 mile course had been reduced to 4 miles. While this seems like a negative, the forecast was calling for extreme temperatures and to protect the participants they re-routed the course through shaded areas. This decision was not popular, but based on the heat I was experiencing at the after party, I can't imagine what the later waves were dealing with. Kudos to Savage for making the hard decision and still putting on a great event.

Savage Race Cons

1. Not much to complain about here, but the heat, re-routing of the course, and local authorities made them eliminate some of their staple obstacles like 'Colon Blow 5000' and 'Blazed'. While I commend them for making the right call, it still sucked to lose some obstacles and distance.

2. Showers were really far away and from what I heard taking forever. My team and I stumbled across a hose by a barn and were able to clean off quickly without the wait. After reading their facebook comments section, Savage already has plans to remedy this next year.

Conclusion

Savage Race is quickly on it's way to becoming my favorite race. As a smaller series they put on an incredible event. Had the course been 7 miles and all of their advertised obstacles been included, I may already be calling it my favorite race. That being said, Tough Mudder has a few new Large scale obstacles that raise the bar once again (Pirates Booty comes to mind) and Savage's design team will need to continue to go bigger and badder to keep up with the big boys of the business. But if  'Colossus' and 'Sawtooth' are any indication, that might not be too much of a problem for them. If you have a chance, sign up for a Savage Race today. You will NOT regret it.

-Keith