Endurance athletes competing in Spartan Races expect it to hurt. They train for it and they live for it.
On Saturday morning, more than 2,400 highly-tuned athletes from all over Western Canada converged on Heritage Ranch at Red Deer for the first and maybe not the last Spartan Race to be hosted here.
That decision is still being worked out, said Dean Stanton, licensee for Spartan Race in Western Canada.
A Team Canada triathlete and seasons Sparta Race competitor, Stanton said Red Deer provided an excellent venue for an event that pits human bodies against eight to 21 kilometres of tough trail, liberally strewn with obstacles designed to tax upper body strength and stretch competitors to the limit of their capabilities.