Tag Archives: Sufferfests

You run an entry level obstacle course race. You sign up for another one. You join a few Facebook groups, update your profile pic (fire jump picture of course), and add a bunch of new friends on social media that you met over the weekend. More training, more races, more mud and obstacles, and more friends. Those involved in obstacle course racing know, it is a unique breed of people that seek out this lifestyle. Why do we pay (often a lot of money) to “suffer”? Is it truly for our own challenge? Is it for the sense of accomplishment we feel at the finish line? In today’s sedentary society, in a world of automation, are we seeking an experience that's closer to our long lost ancestors? Are we trying to replicate their struggle to survive in the environment? Is life just too comfortable and boring now? Or… could it be purely narcissism? With the boom of social media, are we looking to shock our Facebook friends with our new muddy profile pictures? Is it to boost our own ego? Scott Keneally attempts to answer these questions in the documentary, Rise of the Sufferfests. A must watch for any OCR athlete.

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