At this point I think we've established that<b> I'm run-crazy </b>and I've fallen in love with Obstacle Course Races. I've only run one so far - the <a href="http://www.sothisisfitness.com/2013/11/aroo-spartan-sprint-fenway-recap.html" target="_blank">Spartan Sprint at Fenway Park</a>...but that was all it took! One of my goals for this year is to run at least 5 OCR's, and I'm well on my way so far!<br /><br />Most people are familiar with Obstacle Course Races like Tough Mudder and Spartan Race...but once you start looking, there's actually a lot of them out there. Some are big, some are small, some are long, some are short. Some are founded and put on by one or a few people, some are put on by military types. No matter the differences, they're all a lot of fun, and they all have their own unique challenges. Most of them involve mud, fire, water and a lot of sometimes intimidating physical exertion. I am now officially running a very different sort of OCR...it's called <a href="http://www.smithfestruns.com/" target="_blank">Blizzard Blast</a>...and instead of mud and fire, I'll be facing (hopefully) snow and cold!<br /><a name='more'></a><br /><div style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mUZplu8Ssf8/Us9yWaEOJsI/AAAAAAAAGL0/AtlkwuYMijM/s1600/26639_320972704676948_1386258176_n.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mUZplu8Ssf8/Us9yWaEOJsI/AAAAAAAAGL0/AtlkwuYMijM/s1600/26639_320972704676948_1386258176_n.png" height="236" width="400" />&nbsp;</a></div><div style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I have to say, I've been tirelessly scouring social media and, really, the internet in general looking for races to run to further my mission of the <a href="http://www.sothisisfitness.com/2013/12/lose-your-limits-challenge-2014.html" target="_blank">Lose Your Limits Challenge</a>...and this race was different from all the others I found. There are many unique Obstacle Course Races out there, and this is one of them!&nbsp; As I said, most OCR's feature lots of mud, some fire, water obstacles, and some serious physical challenges. Some races even feature electrical obstacles, some freaky mind-game challenges, and the like. For a start...this race does not seem to feature mud, water or fire...it's too cold! Instead, there's SNOW. Yes, an obstacle race involving, featuring, and with obstacles designed around SNOW. Good luck finding a race like this in California or Texas...welcome to New England, kids. </div><br />Like many other OCR's, when you browse <a href="http://www.smithfestruns.com/" target="_blank">their website</a> they don't give away much in terms of what <br /><div style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0-kuDm4gnMs/Us9zmjdVN_I/AAAAAAAAGME/mfywwPsBcSM/s1600/73359_353905568050328_1619214790_n.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0-kuDm4gnMs/Us9zmjdVN_I/AAAAAAAAGME/mfywwPsBcSM/s1600/73359_353905568050328_1619214790_n.jpg" height="400" width="265" /></a></div>the obstacles are. I've got the gist of it - 5K obstacle race in the (hopefully) snowy cold. From pictures, there's going to be at least some wall climbs, obviously there will be some running involved from obstacle to obstacle, there will probably be some sort of climbing obstacle and maybe some over-unders...but honestly, I really don't know what to expect in terms of obstacles. I also don't know what the weather will do to an event like this. I'm hearing this coming weekend (one week before the race) will be warm and rainy...the snow-killer. I DO know that, worst case scenario, these guys will BRING IN snow in order to make some of the specifically snow-based obstacles work. Just like a ski mountain, they make it happen regardless of nature. Obviously it's best for this race if nature cooperates and dumps a fresh pile of the fluffy white stuff before race-day, but no snow does NOT mean no event.THAT'S a "the show must go on" level of dedication...I LIKE IT!<br /><br />This race also seems to be pretty family-friendly. I'm not sure why I get that vibe, but I do. Remember how I mentioned some OCR's use electrical obstacles and other similarly intimidating, mind-gamey stuff? This event does not seem to have that. Looking at pictures on their site, it doesn't look like it's a "hardcore", "AROO", "this is the toughest event on the planet" kind of thing...and there is NOTHING wrong with that. It's nice to have an event that makes itself accessible to a wider audience. Some of the most well-known OCR's out there market themselves as incredibly difficult and life-threatening...but if Blizzard Blast shows us anything, it's that the FUN FACTOR, and not necessarily the life-threatening challenge to survive, can be a good reason to participate in an<b> </b>event. <br /><br />In a sea of sameness, it's refreshing to see a creative event like this. I have to say, this was more or less a last-minute entry for me, but I'm REALLY excited! Before I registered for this, my next race was going to be 2/16/14, so it's nice to get a race 3 weeks early! I know the race is really soon, but I'd LOVE to see some of you join me! You can register at www.smithfestevents.com - click the "join a team" registration button and join Team "So THIS Is Fitness..." - then during checkout, use coupon code STIF10 to save $10! Yeah, they made a coupon code just for the "So THIS Is Fitness..." family! How ya like that?! The price jumps tonight at midnight (1/10/14 at 11:59 PM Eastern), so I urge you to make a speedy decision (and go for it!). It'd be nice to have some company during this unique event!<br /><br />Again, that information:<br />site: www.SmithFestRuns.com<br />Team: "So THIS Is Fitness..."<br />Date: 1/25/14<br />Place: Four Oaks Coun­try Club<br />1 Club­house Lane<br />Dra­cut, <span>MA</span>&nbsp;01826<br />Wave Time: 11:00 am<br />What do you get? A long sleeve event t-shirt, finisher's medal, free beer ticket (for 21+), free soup/chowder/chili ticket, post-race party and more! Plus, obviously, tons of fun and the satisfaction of completing a great, challenging, unique event! <br /><br />I urge you to check this out and give it a go! If I can do it, you can do it! Let's run together! <b>Why Not? :)</b>