Obstacle Course Racing
Everything you need to know about training for a sandy obstacle course race
Red Bull Quicksand is around the corner and Obstacle Course Racer Thomas van Tonder can wait to dip his toes in the sand. Read on to get some tips on how you can prepare:
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For someone who has never done any kind of obstacle course racing but is keen to get into it how would you recommend, they start training?
Taking on your 1st OCR event can be intimidating, but it does not have to be. In reality it’s loads of fun, especially doing it with friends. For someone that has never done any OCR events before, I would suggest the following. You are able to rock up and run it for fun without any big training build up, but you will enjoy it way more if you are at least a little fit.
- Cardio - Do some cardio training, like light jogging or running and later on throw in some short intervals or hill repetitions. Intervals are a great way to pick up your fitness without going for a 2 hour run. Just to have some cardio conditioning. After all you do still run a fair amount in most OCR events.
- Agility - OCR is not always about picking up heavy stuff. Yeah sure sometimes there are sandbags and other objects, but for the most part you need to be able to handle your own bodyweight.
- For beginners - Functional fitness is a great way of training this, e.g. push ups and pull ups and those kinds of exercises where you have to be able to handle your own bodyweight will be way more helpful for OCR, compared to a weight lifting session.
- Grip Strength - Being able to hang on a bar or swing from one object to another is not something that would be in Red Bull Quicksand, but in OCR in general you need to have a decent amount of grip strength or at least be able to handle your own bodyweight. You can train this by starting to hang in small increments and increase the time slightly as you get stronger.
How do you tackle something that is out of your comfort zone (or normal training/racing routine)?
I think that is different for a lot of people. For me, getting 'out of my comfort zone'has always been good. Not easy… but good. So when ever I take on something new or different I do it with a all in attitude, and try to think back on the past times that I needed to get out of my comfort zone and how it was always worth it in the end.
Racing a OCR course in the sand will for sure be out of my comfort zone, but I am excited to once again race on the sand -- it's all about your mindset towards the challenge.
Learn more about Thomas van Tonder
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What are you expecting from Red Bull Quicksand?
Challenging for sure, but loads of fun… (more info here). For starters, it's on the beach, how epic! The course is 1.6km long or 1 mile. It does not sound like much, but racing that in the sand will feel like 4km I'm sure.
I have never done an event like this, so I don’t have to many expectations in terms of results would love to just go out and give it my all, have fun doing it.
From the OCR community in KZN I am expecting a huge turnout, we have a really fun and strong community there. Looking forward to having them try Red Bull quicksand
Thomas van Tonder
© Wayne Reiche / Red Bull Content Pool
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Do you have any specific sand-running tips and tricks (or how would you (not being at the beach) simulate this type of training
- Sand can be tricky but also simple in a way. It’s a lot like swimming, the more you force it, the harder it feels.
- Try to find a relaxed rhythm in your running to make it as smooth as possible.
- On hills or climbs, shorten your stride and improve your cadence, so short fast steps. (Again try not to force it too much.)
- Look +/- 3m ahead of yourself and not down at your feet. This will help with your running form but also help you choose a better line to run on.
- Try to run in someone else’s line, (think of it driving riding a 4x4 in the sand) - it's sometimes much easier to follow an already-beaten track.
- If you find any hard packed sand. That’s your bonus.
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Then, let’s talk race-day nutrition, how do you fuel up pre-race-heat?
Nutrition can be so different from one person to another.Some good guidelines to stick to are:
- Don’t try anything new on race day, Stick to what your body is used to. What your have been using in training. I love taking a RB the morning of the race about an hour from the start. If it’s a longer race I will mix it with water as well.
- Now new or funny foods the night before the race, stick to something you know.
- Buy some water, don’t take the chance of drinking the tap water, and possibly have a stomach bug on race morning. No amount of training can beat that one, its game over then
- Take some fuel or a small snack for post race, its so important to put back the energy that your body has burned doing the race. A cold Red Bull is also always welcome here.
Amped to try your legs and lungs at it, enter Red Bull Quicksand.
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