Gender in OCR

Obstacle course races are a sausage-fest. There's no use denying it. Men typically outnumber women 2- or 3-to-1 at any given race, and sometimes the ratio is even more skewed. Because the origins of obstacle course racing are steeped in military training, it's easy to see why it attracts a lot of men who want to prove themselves physically capable without making, you know, a military commitment.

So there's lots of dudes out there. The obstacles are mostly biased towards male strengths, let's be honest. Good technique will get you up a rope, but so will brute upper body strength. The average fit man can do maybe 10 pullups, and the average fit woman can do...zero. So why should women do OCR?

What I love about obstacle racing is, even though it is male-dominated, it is extremely respectful of women. The men who participate in these events have a clear admiration of women who participate, and it shows in the way they behave toward women on the course. Men are oddly protective of us ladies out there. And not in a condescending, "oh, the little girl can't get up the wall, let a big strong man help you" kind of way. It's genuine. There's care there. There is a mutual respect as an athlete. These guys are stopping or stalling their own race to help us out on the obstacles where there is a clear male bias and the men are physically able to help (tip: men won't get you up a rope). The camaraderie is real. Women become part of the brotherhood.

On the obstacles, a woman by herself can basically *expect* male assistance, and here's the best part...the guy will expect absolutely nothing in return. It can be such a breath of fresh air, sadly, for a woman to receive aid, be able to say "thank you," and have that be the end of the obligation. Again, it comes down to that mutual respect, that unspoken acknowledgment that "yeah, I'm a man, I know this is freakin' hard for women, I'm here to help level the playing field by sacrificing my fast time."

Let's look at the basic types of obstacles to see what I mean.

1) Grip strength: obviously, men have the advantage, despite weighing more.
2) Climbing: again, heavier weight, but natural upper body strength 2-3x greater than women.
3) Heavy carries: women generally are required to carry about 2/3rd the weight men are, which helps equalize. For tire flips, a power move, the women's tires are half the weight of men's.
4) Crawls: actually, women might be slightly better at these, because of our smaller stature (usually, haha) and low center of gravity.
5) Calisthenics/burpees: men usually are better at these. VO2 Max, and all that.

So women, if you are considering OCR but are intimidated by some of these obstacles, remember that racers take care of each other out there. If there are somehow no dudes around when you get to an 8-foot wall, you can always form a posse of ladies and haul each other up. Every skill I listed above can be improved upon. Even if you aren't as strong as a man physically, you can still crush a course.

And men: keep helping us if we ask. It's chivalrous.

O.C.R. Puff'n Stuff

Saturday: The Abominable Snow Race! See my last post for my recap. Wow, what a day! I feel like a warrior goddessa!

Sunday: Oof. I have been hit by some sort of bus. Municipal, perhaps school. My ass is bruised everso. I have gained 2 pounds.

Monday: OOF. I maybe was hit by a train. A coal train, by the looks of these bruises all over my arms and legs. Holy god, things are cramping. I need to use the elliptical for 30 minutes and stretch, but I can barely get my arms over my head. I have gained another 2 pounds, for a total of 4 pounds. At least I am no longer on prednisone.

Tuesday: Dear lord. Will the soreness never cease? At least my cough has eased up a bit today. I discovered a new bruise on my left tricep that will be pointed out to me by concerned onlookers in the week to come. I went on the elliptical for 75 minutes while watching Fuller House on Netflix, then stretched. Made a lot of noise, trying to get my arms over my head. I have gained another 2 pounds, for a total of 6 pounds.

Wednesday: DEAR LORD. I have gained another 2 pounds, for a total of 8 pounds. I honestly didn't think it was physically possible for a female, even a jacked one like myself, to gain this much water weight unless on an IV drip at the hospital. Feeling puffy AF, as the kids say. My bruises continue to darken. Fortunately I start peeing a lot in the afternoon and evening. Perhaps I have reached the weight-gain apex. My soreness is slightly downgraded to a mere "ouch."

Thursday: I have lost 5 of the 8 pounds that I gained overnight, praise heaven. Unfortunately my sinuses are now trying to kill me. Perhaps I will lose another pound of mucus. Thank goodness I didn't feel this lousy on race day.

Friday: I have now lost 7 of the 8 pounds that I gained. I still cannot raise my arms over my head without making loud squeaking sounds like a strangled hamster.

Saturday: I have lost all of the excess weight and now wince instead of squeak. I have so much mucus in my stomach that I feel exceedingly nauseous.

Sunday: I am 2 pounds lighter than I was on race day. Mucus is still out of control, but my arms function at last. But the bruises may last forever. Then again, so will the glory. Training resumes next week!