Vigor Utah Winter Obstacle Race

The Vigor Utah Winter 5k-10k Run or Obstacle Race was held February 2nd at Wasatch Mountain State Park in Midway. You could run the 5k or the 10k with or without obstacles. 

Obstacles included hay bales to jump over, walls to climb over, nets to climb over, nets to crawl under, and hills to sprint up and sled down. None of the obstacles presented much of a challenge compared to those of Tough Mudder or Spartan Race. The hardest part of the race was the near 1000 foot elevation rise and drop (for the 10k).

Running in the snow also presented a new element to running that I hadn't before experienced. The trail had been groomed, but your feet often broke through the hard packed upper layer and sunk into the snow. This was especially a factor on the downhill sections on the backside of the 10k loop, and certainly did not make the uphill running any easier. Running uphill with your feet breaking through at every step was a nightmare. It was a lot like running in sand. At some points it felt like you were on a treadmill, not making any progress up the trail. Don't let my description turn you away from this race. I'm merely describing what it was like from the perspective of someone who has never run a snow trail race. It's just something you should take into account during your training. I highly recommend this race.

It really wasn't that cold, probably around 30 degrees. I wore Under Armor cold gear tights and long sleeve shirt, and running earmuffs, and my old cross country flats with regular running socks. I also wore thin neoprene gloves which were nice for the obstacles where you were down in the snow. 

Here are the Men's 10k results:

I got a Sports Authority gift card and a long sleeve thermal shirt for winning.

Here's a link to the rest of the results: http://runnercard.com/runner/data/1825/4397/Result/2013_Vigor_Winter_Obstacle.htm