Driving North with my sunglasses on to check out the fourth Pain Barrier event, I began to doubt that November had really arrived. Warm and sunny are often not the best conditions for a muddy good run, but the Parkwood 4X4 track and the Pain Barrier team did not disappoint.
I wasn’t sure 10km without obstacles would be a challenge and could hold my interest vs the obstacle intensive courses I’d be doing recently, but there was no need to worry – this is one tough cookie
The venue was well signposted and I was quickly slotted into the standard grassy field carpark (free of charge). Before heading down to the event village I tried to scope out the landscape, but the trees were so dense you couldn’t see much even from the car parks high vantage point. However, I did spy a mini lake and had high hopes of wading through it later as it really was quite warm!
Getting to the event village it was clear this wasn’t their first rodeo and there seemed to be a small but decent setup: plenty of toilets, a hot food van, a tent for charity partner The Stroke Association and a decent size marquee. Friendly marshals guided me straight to the registration desk to quickly collect my pack with race number and timing chip- I was in and out in under a minute!
After attaching my number and chip, engaging in some chitchat, completing “pre-race rituals” and dropping my bag off at bag drop (free again), it was time to check out the competition. There were the usual mix of fun runners, crazy dressed teams, middle aged men under going some kind of mid-life crisis (that’s me) and seasoned pros (both from OCR and road/trail running).
The Pain Game
As we were called to the start pen for a race brief I was concerned that there were only two waves and a quick look at the start list online suggested there would be over 300+ people in the first one. I’m not quick and I knew there wouldn’t be obstacles to queue for, but there are always hold ups and I hate getting caught in a sea of heels at the start. Although this turned out not to be an issue, it would be the only thing I’d change.
Having had the obligatory pre-race safety brief I squeezed myself up the front to give me a chance to watch the Elites disappear into the distance and then: bang! We were off.
Deep rutted tracks with liquid, soupy mud up to my waist and sticky stretches of clingy shoe stealing mud sapped my energy as I worked my way round the middle of the course
Even superheroes get stuck in the mud at Pain Barrier, he made it though with a little help from the other runners!
No Pain No Gain
A quick loop of the mini-lake I’d spied earlier and then we headed off into a field for a gradual climb above the event village. Just over 1km in and we were nicely warmed up ready for a steep decent down into the woods. This initial 1km stretch and descent had nicely spaced out the field and we weren’t bunched at all.
Once we got into the woods the course really started to show its true nature, a twisting turning and challenging course with plenty of elevation to contend with. I soon got the cold water cool down I was looking for before we headed off into the “Hills of Despair”.
It was quite a tight course with twisting loops, dense woodland and low visibility making it feel like we were in the middle of an abandoned wood, with only the excellent course markings keeping us on track
Soon the people that were faster than me but hadn’t squeezed up front at the start began to trickle past me. It was nice to see other Muddy Race tops, even if they were disappearing off into the distance!
Once we entered the 4X4 centre that was when the muddy good fun really started. I’ve no idea how cars got round this, it was hard enough on foot. Some of the sections were so narrow I can only assume the 4X4’s didn’t have wing mirrors! However, I enjoyed every second of it. It made for a really interesting and challenging run.
It’s always nice to get a clap as you pull yourself out of some mud
One of the things that impressed me as we wound our way round the track was the distribution of spectators throughout the course. They were a noisy and supportive bunch cheering on everyone going past. It’s always nice to get a clap as you pull yourself out of some mud, especially as you navigate through the “Pool of Punishment”; a deep muddy swamp followed by a steep sticky mud hill complete with a legion of spectators braving the mud and loudly cheering you to the top.
With no obstacles there wasn’t much for my upper body to do (aside from one section with a couple of steep hills that most needed to climb with the aid of a rope), although as I was running up a stream I found I was starting to reach the end of my reserves. This course had been tougher than I expected! Once I’d navigated my way up the stream, there was a final uphill stretch and then back out into the open. With a little over 1km to go we had another uphill slog across a field before a quick trip around an abandoned building/quarry site and a rusting JCB. Then finally the lake was once again in sight with the finish line just behind it.
Breaking Through the Pain Barrier
A long stream of clapping spectators urged me onto a sprint finish, and I was over the line! Once again, the Pain Barrier team showed what a great setup they had, with timing chip cutters waiting and the all-important bling appeared! The medal was decent, not exceptional, but pretty heavy and well designed with a red ribbon that matched the T-shirt I received, followed swiftly by a goodie bag with a Clif Bar (Yum!), some Haribo and two drinks (one flavoured water and one fruity energy drink). Oh, and some Yorkshire Tea Bags of course!
I’m fitter and faster than I was in April when I did the Wolf Run, yet I finished in exactly the same time, which I think shows how challenging this “no obstacle” course was
Overall I really enjoyed my day, the setup was slick and the course was fun and challenging. The price was sensible and I am confident that this OCR fan will be back again in the future.
In a final finishing touch, I’d barely washed the mud off before they had results and photos online that night! Great work, Pain Barrier.