5k Foam Fest Canada Comes to Ottawa

This weekend Ski Edelweiss hosted the Ottawa 5k Foam Fest and many Eh Team Members checked it out and there seemed to be a general consensus that this was a great event.  Check out this review by Canadian Mudd Queens co-founder Kelly Ripley (seen above with the really unflattering look on her face).

5k Foam Fest Ottawa 2014

The OCR landscape seems to be constantly changing these days.  New companies popping up, and companies who try to get too big, too fast seem to be folding left and right… and this has left racers leery to stray from the big brands.  5k Foam Fest Canada is new to Canada in 2014 but the crew behind them, 365 Sports, are no strangers to planning and hosting events of this nature and it shows!

Parking was easy and well planned which in my opinion makes it worth the $10 fee.  They had actually marked off the lines for the cars to park as we have all seen past races at this venue where “haphazard lanes” resulted in lots of blocked cars.  There was also no fee for spectators which made this truly a great family event!

Racers arrived and signed waivers and made their way through registration in decent time (lines were by last name or a team registration line).  You received a bib and safety pins and could stop by the tattoo station if you wished, then right into the awesome festival grounds.  Gear and food for sale, lots of fun inflatables for the kiddies, a jousting arena, and of course Sky Jump for the “big kids” as well. Sky Jump was the only activity with a fee $3 or 2/$5).

After registration you could make your way to the start line as you wished.  The foam was flowing, music pumping and an MC interacting with waiting racers.  They released waves every 10 -15 minutes which meant no long waits.  But to be honest the start line was a blast so it really didn’t feel like waiting at all!

Racers set out onto the approx. 5k course which consisted of some ups and downs (it is a Ski hill after all) but the climbs were very manageable for all fitness levels.  Obstacles were well spaced, well-built and FRIKKIN HILARIOUS!!!  They ranged from inflatables FILLED with foam, and slip and slides to some of the more familiar OCR obstacles – spider webs, cargo nets, and mud pits – to some new and more challenging additions like the lily pads (a run across floating pads), and death drop (the highest inflatable slide around). 

The course had lots of photogs and they were all super friendly.  Volunteers at every obstacle that required any guidance were encouraging and playful.  We played at a few obstacles for extended periods as they were so fun.

The finish line had some great swag.  Gorgeous medals and SUPER nice quality tees (available in multiple designs for each men and women so be sure to check them out at a few different races to build your collectionJ). 

Waiting just past the finish line was another photog (with a branded background), and free Electrolyte popsicles!  They also offer a free beer but I didn’t partake J

Before leaving we met with the owner who was making a point of interacting with and getting feedback from the racers (BRILLIANT!).  Jesse was great and his excitement and passion are unmistakable!  Most notable though was his clear focus on racer experience.  THIS is what will set this company apart from the others.  If you see him at one of the 3 remaining 2014 races don’t be afraid to say hi! (see the list of upcoming events at www.5kfoamfest.ca)

Long story short (maybe I should have started with this) 5k Foam Fest Canada is a fun, family appropriate event that anyone who can set their competitive nature aside for a day, should add to their race roster.  Prices are extremely reasonable (they are currently offering a $39.99 special price so don’t miss out) and the value far exceeds the price.  Most fun race I have done to date BAR NONE!

Mud Mulisha Race Review

Mud Mulisha Mud Run, Saturday August 9th, 2014

-Jessica Bleasdale

This past weekend was the inaugural Mud Mulisha Mud Run held in Shawnigan Lake on Vancouver Island. The Race Directors - Steve Hornick and Jay Wright - are elite obstacle and trail racers and avid mud enthusiasts so I was particularly looking forward to this race. There was a little something for everyone from elite athlete to a newcomer to obstacle racing, and even a kids race. The overall festival atmosphere for the racers following the race was bar none and everywhere I looked people were smiling and having a great time.

As it was their first race I was initially expecting a tempered down version of some of the big races but let me tell you this race was stellar in its own right. It was advertised as a 5K mud run but it was a 6.5km race with 23 top notch, interesting and challenging obstacles. Many times when there are numerous obstacles some are more like fillers or just little things. But this was not the case in this race as each obstacle was a challenge in its own right. There were some standard favourite obstacles such as monkey bars, 8ft walls, barbed wire crawls, tire flips, inverted walls and tire pulls. There was a ton of mud and muck and water obstacles, which was particularly welcome on such a hot 32C/90F race day. And if you were expecting to jump into one mud pit and then move on to the next obstacle then think again; for example at one obstacle called "Dale's Ditches" you would have to jump/slide/dive into one muddy water hole only to claw your way out and then do another 5 of them. There were a few different torturous obstacles like this that made it both gruelling and awesome all at the same time! They also had some fantastic elements that I had never seen in a race before such as the infamous Devil Steps, a Monster Slip Wall with a giant cargo net down to a Hillbilly jump/crawl across wrecked cars, and the highest rope climb I have ever seen at 22 feet high (which I am happy to report I made it to the top to gleefully ring that bell.) Lastly another element I really enjoyed was the use of the natural terrain with some exciting single track trail running down the backside of the race property, the use of a natural rock formation similar to a bear cave that we had to essentially bear crawl through, a giant wooden slat climbing wall that popped up out of nowhere that spanned across the trail path we had to make our way over, schlepping our way up and over giant drain rock piles, and plodding through multiple ponds.

At the end of the race we were greeted with a finishing medal, an ice cold beer, a fresh made recovery drink from a local supplement store, and a chilled protein drink. We all signed the "I Survived" wall and then made our way to the festival area where a live band entertained everyone, tents were set up for shade, and even a local caterer was barbecuing up salmon, pulled pork sandwiches, corn on the cob, fresh burgers, and salads for a reasonable price.

Even at peak pricing the couple of weeks prior to the race it was still only $65 which included race entry, a finishers medal, a cotton "I survived" race t-shirt, a free post-race beer (for those over 19), free parking, free entry to the festival, and professional race photos which are to be posted to Facebook and available to download for free. I felt it was excellent value for the money paid.

Another great component of this race (and one I highly value as a Mom) is the Kids Race. It was a 1.25km race for kids that wrapped partly around the adult course once the adult heats had all left and had some super unique obstacles just for kids. I was particularly jealous of the teeter totters made from logs that the kids had to balance walk across....I wish they had adult sized ones for our race! To watch about 125 kids dash off from the starting line and jump into mud is both a delight and inspiring. For $25 the kids got to race, received a cotton "I survived" race t-shirt, a finishers medal, and lots of mud for parents to wash off later!

The creativity of the obstacles, the post-race festival, the kids race, and the pricing were fantastic. I have few minor suggestions for future races: better placed water stations so the water can be more easily accessed by volunteers to refill and even better if numerous crates of giant water jugs were placed at water stations prior to the race starting so there is never a lack of water; on such a hot day there could have been 1 water station at each mile marker. There needed to be more porta-potties especially for prior to the races beginning when everyone has pre-race jitters and needs to go all at the same time. The registration table could have used multiple check in lines (easiest to organize with line ups for last names beginning 'A-H, I-P, Q-Z') to prevent pre-race line ups. More garbage cans placed around the festival area were needed. Two out of the 23 obstacles had a backlog (the first 8ft wall and the up-hill barbed wire crawl) which has a quick fix by making the obstacles wider so multiple people are able to get through at the same time. It might have been nice to have a his and hers change tent area for anyone who wanted to get out of their dirty, wet clothes. I also wished they had a merchandise table as I loved the race so much I wanted to buy some extra swag to cover my body and car in to celebrate my accomplishment. As far as I am concerned these were minor glitches that are part of any new event and can be easily be remedied for future races.



The Mud Mulisha Mud Run race directors have indicated they have some exciting expansion coming for the future and I for one cannot wait. I have done about 20 or so obstacle and theme races and unequivocally I can say their races have certainly made it to the top of my "I Can't Wait to Do it Again" list and am eagerly awaiting being able to register for their next event which I certainly hope is sooner rather than later!! This race sold out by race day so be sure to not miss out on their next event. Follow Mud Mulisha on Facebook athttps://www.facebook.com/themudmulisha and check out their websitehttp://mudmulisha.net

Battlefrog Tri-State Review By Brittany Pollock

Battlefrog Tri-State Review

- Brittany Pollock 

August 2nd - Old Bridge Township Raceway Park Englishtown New Jersey

Battlefrog is billed as designed by US Navy SEAL. It is available in two distances the Battlefrog - 15K with an elite heat with cash prize and helicopter ride, as well as an open heat and the Bullfrog 5K which was on the same course as the 15K but had many well marked shortcuts. Waves were released Elite 15k, 15k then alternating 5k and 15k heats every half hour starting at 8am, with a final mixed heat at 12:15 and then a volunteer heat at 2. The event was also a OCR World Championship qualifying event with top 10 in each age category qualifying in both the 5k and 15k events. The event also featured two kids distances, the bullfrog mile on the adult course and the tadpole 400m dash with scaled down obstacles.

Parking $10 and very close to the venue, less than 5 minute walk, bag check was $5 but due to proximity to the venue “car check” was a more economical option.

The venue, by day, is a car track, drag strip and motocross park, so it featured good varied terrain. The weather was not favourable, rain overnight and drizzly during the race, making the obstacles slippery but the lack of heat was very nice.

Obstacles were great, high quality builds and some were very unique, most with a military flare, meant to simulate training that Navy SEALs would go though. The 5k had 26 obstacles and the 15k had a whopping 47 The course was delightfully obstacle heavy with great spacing. The 15k saw more running stretches, but the 5k you never went more than a minute maybe two without being at an obstacle.

Some highlights were some nice muddy hills in the motocross section that those in non-trail shoes had some troubles with, a rewarding slip and slide and then a super long jerry can carry through more hills, the “delta ladder” an A-frame with widely spaced steps, the inclined monkey bars which were switched to declined monkey bars because of the weather but were still plenty challenging, 12 foot rope walls (with 2 steps for the ladies) but you still had to employ technique even with the steps, the wall was painted so it was extra slippery, the HOOYA - inclined rope wall with a tube slide that you were supposed to yell HOOYA as you went down, shooting gallery with paintball guns and of course Tsunami the infamous half pipe with ropes with a great slide down the back, along with the standards, cargo climb, mud crawls although the final was styled military style with “Normandy jacks”, rope climb and some great muddy trails. That’s just to name a few.

The 15k added some more challenging obstacles, including taller walls, a tricky looking traverse wall, tyrolean traverse a cargo traverse, and tarzan swing.

Water stations - adequate, 2 stations for the 5k, 5, with snacks at the 4th for the 15 (bananas etc). The weather was cool enough that I didn't bring my camelback (I always wear one regardless of distance) and had no problems. Had it been a killer hot day at the speed the 5K heat was moving more would have probably been required.
Showers - hoses with sprayers. There were probably just enough, although I could see getting crowded as more people finished, good water pressure and warm!

Change tents - were available but aparently busy.

Free Swag - Tshirt, beer , medal and bib. Additionally if you qualified (top 10 in your age category) you could go to the OCRWC booth and pick up a tshirt and bag. Realistically anyone could grab a shirt as they weren't checking the standings.

Tshirts - available in mens and womens, the womens being a v-neck fitted style which I quite liked, but they wouldn't bat an eyelash if you asked for a mens shirt instead. Nice grey colour, Battlefrog logo on the front, bad pun about SEAL of approval on the back

Medals - Super fun! featured a jacked up toad and american flag, the 5K being a slightly smaller medal with a different coloured lanyard.

Purchasable Swag - Great selection, shirts, buffs, armsleeves, headbands etc all sporting the frog logo and/or camo colours assorted military type toys.

Charities - Battlefrog supports Natonal Navy SEAL museum and Trident House, Navy SEAL foundation, Navy SEAL museum and the foundation for Navy SEAL vetrans.

Timing  - by J-Chip, available on site via tablets and a link was posted on twitter within a day. Emails went out Monday - very impressive.

Photos - Free, sponsored by J-chip. lots of photographers on the course, and they would interact with you to get good photos (let you know they were there), photos were posted the following Friday, and for me at least there was photos (lots of photos) at each station. Searchable by bib and there must have been a timing mat catching your number because sometimes you had to go back or forward a page.

Organization - good, the elite heat was very clearly informed of the rules and the enforecement through armbands made it very easy to prevent cheaters. A little confusion on wave times - registration times didn't directly correlate with a heat, but time chip bracelets were colour coded for distance and they weren't checking which heat you were in, announcements in the festival were very clear about what distance was going when. Lots of volunteers out on the course.


Overall impressions - High quality of obstacles, and really well thought out safety, pools were very deep under obstacles you can fall off of, like the monkey bars, the pool was up to my chest. Enough different things to keep even seasoned OCR athletes happy. The photos and descriptions of the 15k obstacles are enough to make me want to return next year when at full strength. Festival was high energy, from the trees we could hear the fitness competitions and helos flying low as well as explosions from the demo. We had a spectator with us and she had a good time despite the rain and the $20 spectator fee. Trails were well marked with flags, other than one sign in a creek crossing that had been flipped (I think?) - although maybe different for the 15k course as they had at least one incident.

This race was billed in the social media advertising as Canada vs. US challenge since so many high ranked Canadians were registered. The challenge was dominated by Canada - Hobie Call (US) in first, Marc-Andre Bedard (CAN) in second and Benjamin Morin Boucher (CAN) in third. For the ladies Claude Godbout (CAN) in first, Morgan Mckay (CAN) in second and Helene Dumais (CAN) in third. Junyong Pak (worlds toughest mudder), one of the US contenders was sitting in second for a while but took a wrong turn at some point, losing his podium spot and coming in 7th.

I highly recommend catching a race at this series if you can. I will be making an effort be back at Tri-State next year unless they bring the race to Canada! There were a lot of beginners, but the race was not ideal for beginners, some of the obstacles were a little on the challenging side and would be very difficult without technique.