Hell and Back - 17th June 2017

sheroman01

I didn't see any threads for a Hell and Back for this year, so thought it would be nice to start one.

http://www.hellandback.ie/

It's my first year going, should be good craic!

I have an average level of fitness purely from soccer and GAA, but nothing for long distance running or running on rough terrain.

Are there are good places to train in Dublin in preparation for this?

rondog

I think this is more for the craic than setting a personal record.If you have a decent level of fitness you should be fine with it.

ironclaw

Its definitely for the craic, they stopped timing it a few years ago. It can also get very crowded in the later waves although they seem to have addressed that a little by limiting numbers. If you want to set a decent time, go in the earlier waves. It eventually becomes a torrent of mud and while fun, you'll loose all your pace waiting for people to clear obstacles.

Alf Veedersane

Is it Hell and Back where they have w@nkers shooting paintballs at participants?

What a load of me hole.

ironclaw

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

Is it Hell and Back where they have w@nkers shooting paintballs at participants?

What a load of me hole.

Its airsoft pellets, not paintball.

They've also been asked back by organisers and participants alike every time. One of the most popular and talked about sections of the course actually.

Alf Veedersane

I suppose.

Everyone does love being shot with airsoft pellets.

And Raymond.

Gamebred

Doing it for first time myself, just upping some incline running and hitting legs a bit more dont expect it to be too hard physically.

ironclaw

Gamebred wrote: »

Doing it for first time myself, just upping some incline running and hitting legs a bit more dont expect it to be too hard physically.

Its pretty tricky to be honest. They usually get you nice and wet to start with, so you're zapped of energy in the first km or so. Usually they have a fairly steady incline section after this, over and under some pits with a small degree of upper body needed to drag yourself over. If you are looking to be competitive, its a challenging course, if you are in for the laugh and willing to take a breather, its not too bad.

danmanw8

ironclaw wrote: »

Its pretty tricky to be honest. They usually get you nice and wet to start with, so you're zapped of energy in the first km or so. Usually they have a fairly steady incline section after this, over and under some pits with a small degree of upper body needed to drag yourself over. If you are looking to be competitive, its a challenging course, if you are in for the laugh and willing to take a breather, its not too bad.

Think I'll just run the kids one

rondog

I hear the 12 KM race is sold out?Anyone confirm that?

Kash

I'm doing this, and I'm excited or terrified - it is hard to tell.

I'm doing it with my husband, a giant who doesn't exercise but is annoyingly fit anyway, and two of our mates, one who has got really into running long distance, and the other who says he has let his fitness slide recently, but is clearly as fit as a fiddle, he climbs mountains for fun.

I am not fit. I am not strong. I am working on both, hence the insanity of signing up for this. It was my suggestion ffs. I'm doing the Couch to 5k thing and have stayed on week 7 for three weeks as I still can't nail that 25 minute non stop session on my (admittedly hilly) route without feeling like I might die. There was progress there though, at the beginning, a minute of jogging felt like a death sentence. But getting past that 25 minute window is breaking me. It's probably more mental than physical (and the fact that twenty minutes puts me smack back in the middle of a long hill) but I keep trying. I'll get there.

I'm actually looking forward to the obstacles as i'm hoping they provide breathing space for the next jog/run part, which is the part I find scariest. I did Runamuck a few months ago and had a great time, and though i struggled a bit clambering over some of the obstacles (note to self: find haybales to jump up on) by hubby was great for giving me a shove when I needed one, and I had a real laugh doing it. That said, i'm not doing much training for the obstacles, as to be honest, i'm not sure what to do! I can't really equate clambering over/under something with a push up or a sit up if you get me.

So yeah, that's me. If anyone has any advice for an unfit noob that I could apply over the next three weeks, i'm all ears.

Shlippery

Kash wrote: »

I'm doing this, and I'm excited or terrified - it is hard to tell.

I'm doing it with my husband, a giant who doesn't exercise but is annoyingly fit anyway, and two of our mates, one who has got really into running long distance, and the other who says he has let his fitness slide recently, but is clearly as fit as a fiddle, he climbs mountains for fun.

I am not fit. I am not strong. I am working on both, hence the insanity of signing up for this. It was my suggestion ffs. I'm doing the Couch to 5k thing and have stayed on week 7 for three weeks as I still can't nail that 25 minute non stop session on my (admittedly hilly) route without feeling like I might die. There was progress there though, at the beginning, a minute of jogging felt like a death sentence. But getting past that 25 minute window is breaking me. It's probably more mental than physical (and the fact that twenty minutes puts me smack back in the middle of a long hill) but I keep trying. I'll get there.

I'm actually looking forward to the obstacles as i'm hoping they provide breathing space for the next jog/run part, which is the part I find scariest. I did Runamuck a few months ago and had a great time, and though i struggled a bit clambering over some of the obstacles (note to self: find haybales to jump up on) by hubby was great for giving me a shove when I needed one, and I had a real laugh doing it. That said, i'm not doing much training for the obstacles, as to be honest, i'm not sure what to do! I can't really equate clambering over/under something with a push up or a sit up if you get me.

So yeah, that's me. If anyone has any advice for an unfit noob that I could apply over the next three weeks, i'm all ears.

I'm doing this as well, with runamuck as the only previous "mudrun" experience! I'd say it'll be a notch or two harder than the haybales somehow :P ... looking forward to it all the same, going with a gang from work.

Haven't done any training, just doing it for a laugh, always been on my list of things to do!

Anyone know what parking is like usually? Car will probably get destroyed!

ironclaw

Shlippery wrote: »

Anyone know what parking is like usually? Car will probably get destroyed!

Parking is very well managed and is usually in the fields of the estate. Weather dependent but unless it absolutely lashes rain, you'll be fine.

Gamebred

What is the best thing to wear? long sleeve compression top and shorts I was thinking, someone recommended running thights.

Boom_Bap

Parking is grand and well organised. Not running it this time around, but my kids are in the junior one

If it's your first time - gloves, gloves gloves!
Running tights and long sleeve running tops to reduce the scrapes.
No cotton! You'll be getting wet and it just weighs you down.

And don't forget to help anyone you see struggling!

Shlippery

Got fingerless cycling gloves in aldi for 3/4 euro! Feel like they'll have been a good investment!!

Boom_Bap

Shlippery wrote: »

Got fingerless cycling gloves in aldi for 3/4 euro! Feel like they'll have been a good investment!!

They sell fingerless gloves at H&B for a tenner I think. Great investment as they have some plasticy type protection on them.

Your cycling gloves will come in handy as well though so stop rope burns and grazes on your hands.

sheroman01

Looks like we're in for good weather

No training done but hoping for a good day out anyway

I bought Adidas Trail runners, only 40 quid. They're very light, decent grip but have lots of mesh/breathable holes, so not waterproof. Will they be okay?

Not sure what to wear - I'm thinking; A regular non-cotton running t-shirt, compression under shorts + light shorts, regular running socks, fingerless gloves and trail runners. This should be okay? No need for an extra compression tshirt?

Gamebred

sheroman01 wrote: »

Looks like we're in for good weather

No training done but hoping for a good day out anyway

I bought Adidas Trail runners, only 40 quid. They're very light, decent grip but have lots of mesh/breathable holes, so not waterproof. Will they be okay?

Not sure what to wear - I'm thinking; A regular non-cotton running t-shirt, compression under shorts + light shorts, regular running socks, fingerless gloves and trail runners. This should be okay? No need for an extra compression tshirt?

Chose long sleeve compression t shirt to stop getting my arms and elbows scrapped and cut open.

Boom_Bap

sheroman01 wrote: »

Looks like we're in for good weather

No training done but hoping for a good day out anyway

I bought Adidas Trail runners, only 40 quid. They're very light, decent grip but have lots of mesh/breathable holes, so not waterproof. Will they be okay?

Not sure what to wear - I'm thinking; A regular non-cotton running t-shirt, compression under shorts + light shorts, regular running socks, fingerless gloves and trail runners. This should be okay? No need for an extra compression tshirt?

It doesn't matter what you have on your feet, you are going into an ice bath first thing probably, so everything gets wet straight away. Make sure you have grip. There are some people you see doing it in converse and are spending more time on their ar$es.

No to short socks! They will at some point end up slipping down into your shoe and you will not be able to take off your shoe to fix it.

For your laces, do the runners heel lock thing - look that up if you dont know it. It will keep your runner on your foot when you're going through mud.

Don't wear anything cotton or loose, they just get wet and hold you back.

EDIT: I've done 4 or 5 at this stage and learned many lessons along the way! It's deadly once you are prepared.......probably even if you are not prepared. But the people finishing with no shoes always look unhappy.

sheroman01

Boom_Bap wrote: »

It doesn't matter what you have on your feet, you are going into an ice bath first thing probably, so everything gets wet straight away. Make sure you have grip. There are some people you see doing it in converse and are spending more time on their ar$es.

No to short socks! They will at some point end up slipping down into your shoe and you will not be able to take off your shoe to fix it.

For your laces, do the runners heel lock thing - look that up if you dont know it. It will keep your runner on your foot when you're going through mud.

Don't wear anything cotton or loose, they just get wet and hold you back.

EDIT: I've done 4 or 5 at this stage and learned many lessons along the way! It's deadly once you are prepared.......probably even if you are not prepared. But the people finishing with no shoes always look unhappy.

Grand, cheers! Yes, will do the shoe lock thing, good thinking! I have regular size socks, half way between my knee and ankle, will these suffice? Or are longer ones better?

Shlippery

Suppose I'll ask another stupid q, recommend anywhere to get a cheapish long sleeve compression top ? Don't wanna pay anything too mad if it's gonna get destroyed!

Gamebred

Shlippery wrote: »

Suppose I'll ask another stupid q, recommend anywhere to get a cheapish long sleeve compression top ? Don't wanna pay anything too mad if it's gonna get destroyed!

Nike shop in Blanch 12e.

Boom_Bap

sheroman01 wrote: »

Grand, cheers! Yes, will do the shoe lock thing, good thinking! I have regular size socks, half way between my knee and ankle, will these suffice? Or are longer ones better?

regular socks, not the ankle ones. Longer ones will just slp down and get soggy and annoying.

Shlippery wrote: »

Suppose I'll ask another stupid q, recommend anywhere to get a cheapish long sleeve compression top ? Don't wanna pay anything too mad if it's gonna get destroyed!

Sports Direct or the Sports shops in Heatons that look like Sports Direct have them. Just be warned that there are different types, some are cooling and wicking, some are heat ones. Don't go for the heat ones, go for the cooling wicking ones.

In the nike shop they have a few different types, go for the running ones and check the labels for cool/heat.

AhHaor

1400 starter, that was a joke. Queues everywhere. No water. Even if it wasn't a hot day 250 ml of water for 7km is too little. We waited about 45 minutes to go under the tunnel at the end. Waits everywhere. Really disappointed. They seem to have totally oversubscribed it

ironclaw

AhHaor wrote: »

1400 starter, that was a joke. Queues everywhere. No water. Even if it wasn't a hot day 250 ml of water for 7km is too little. We waited about 45 minutes to go under the tunnel at the end. Waits everywhere. Really disappointed. They seem to have totally oversubscribed it

Hate to tell you, but this is common with Hell & Back. Its completely oversold and they dig deep into corporates to get the maximum amount of bookings e.g. Bring the team, get a charity gig going etc. Its profit over enjoyment, and they make a serious turnover on each event (Do the math and you come up with 6 figures pretty easily) To their credit, the last one or two seemed to have been a little more controlled with strict numbers. Like I said in an earlier post, if you want to be competitive, you need to get out in the early waves as the later waves have very mixed ability and by later in the day, you'd challenged to get a decent pace going without waiting.

They should revert back to previous years with a half day for people who really want to push in smaller groups. And in the winter, I'd sign up for a night run there, it would be awesome.

Shlippery

Went in without any training and had a good laugh!! The heat was nuts though, was psyched for the first water station only for it to be roasting on a pallet in the sun :P , can't blame them for that though!

Aside from the few bottlenecks with the tunnels (the worst one being the one before all the walls, where spectators could just look down at tonnes of us standing in the water) it was a great day, parkin was well organised and a great buzz at the end!

Wasn't a fan of the boggy hollow!! funny to watch but seriously tricky to get out of!
Few pellet marks on the arse from the snipers, electric shock was rotten but only one or two jolts, nothing major and some serious life choices being questioned while running up that stupid mountain then carrying a log just after!!

The "decoy" electric shock tent was hilarious.

Boom_Bap

That tunnel at the end through the stream is the absolute worst part of H&B, you know you are near the end, but you are just standing ankle deep in cold ratty water.
I should have mentioned before to always grab an extra bottle of water, you normally find a bin further up the trail to dump it in.
I was down there yesterday as my kids were doing the junior event. Absolute scorcher so I'd imagine it was ridiculously tough.

If you are booking, go earlier as they don't allow groups for the early starters. The groups are a nightmare and there are more and more groups signing up. I've found the last few times I've done it that I was just stuck behind a group in yellow tshirts, when I get past them it's a group of blue tshirts etc.

sheroman01

I hate to start on a negative note but it's too important and frustrating to not mention:

ONLY 250ml of water was allowed per person who ran 7km, and 500ml for the 12km. Running for 7kms and only being allowed 250mls of water. In the 25 degree heat. 250ml of water. The event is sponsored by Tipperary Water and Londis. 250ml of water. Kids sized bottles. At the finish line, what were we presented with? Crisps and chocolate. NO WATER.

I cannot get over this. When we asked for more we were refused and said they said this is the limit. Despite plenty of cases of water behind them. How this was allowed I do not know. An absolute disgrace. I let them know and I hope they sort this out going forward.

Anyway, my less angry review is below!

...

So, myself and the girlfriend completed our first Hell and Back! We did the 12km. Meant to start at 13:00 but we were late!! The staff in fairness were very nice and let us start at 13:20 on our own and we had to try catch the group...which was actually nice because we had no one in our way

Overall, great craic!! The sunny weather really helped! I actually found it more fun than difficult, however I didn't run for most of it - I probably did 1/4 running, 3/4 walking + doing the obstacles.

The obstacles themselves were great - I liked the beginning - Ice Bath, Hell on Earth, then running through the forest. Then for the 12km'ers, you get to run through the mountains. Beautiful scenery, if a bit tough on the legs!

The slide and jumping into the lake were also nice highlights, allowing for some much needed water!

Things to improve:

- I would have liked more upper body obstacles - maybe another wall to climb half way through or another monkey bar obstacle.
- MORE WATER. More water allowed and more water stations.
- Possibly have a water station at the slide, as there was a long queue here.
- At the end of the event, there were only L and XL t-shirts available. They were strict enough on the water allocation, so they should have been strict enough for the t-shirt allocation as request per email for our sizes.

For future reference to any people going - having the "correct" gear isn't essential. A light training top, light shorts, light running socks that dry quickly and comfortable, light trail runners will do the job.

Overall a great event despite the extreme lack of water, which really really needs to be sorted for next year!

Shlippery

sheroman01 wrote: »

I hate to start on a negative note but it's too important and frustrating to not mention:

ONLY 250ml of water was allowed per person who ran 7km, and 500ml for the 12km. Running for 7kms and only being allowed 250mls of water. In the 25 degree heat. 250ml of water. The event is sponsored by Tipperary Water and Londis. 250ml of water. Kids sized bottles. At the finish line, what were we presented with? Crisps and chocolate. NO WATER.

I cannot get over this. When we asked for more we were refused and said they said this is the limit. Despite plenty of cases of water behind them. How this was allowed I do not know. An absolute disgrace. I let them know and I hope they sort this out going forward.

Anyway, my less angry review is below!

...

So, myself and the girlfriend completed our first Hell and Back! We did the 12km. Meant to start at 13:00 but we were late!! The staff in fairness were very nice and let us start at 13:20 on our own and we had to try catch the group...which was actually nice because we had no one in our way

Overall, great craic!! The sunny weather really helped! I actually found it more fun than difficult, however I didn't run for most of it - I probably did 1/4 running, 3/4 walking + doing the obstacles.

The obstacles themselves were great - I liked the beginning - Ice Bath, Hell on Earth, then running through the forest. Then for the 12km'ers, you get to run through the mountains. Beautiful scenery, if a bit tough on the legs!

The slide and jumping into the lake were also nice highlights, allowing for some much needed water!

Things to improve:

- I would have liked more upper body obstacles - maybe another wall to climb half way through or another monkey bar obstacle.
- MORE WATER. More water allowed and more water stations.
- Possibly have a water station at the slide, as there was a long queue here.
- At the end of the event, there were only L and XL t-shirts available. They were strict enough on the water allocation, so they should have been strict enough for the t-shirt allocation as request per email for our sizes.

For future reference to any people going - having the "correct" gear isn't essential. A light training top, light shorts, light running socks that dry quickly and comfortable, light trail runners will do the job.

Overall a great event despite the extreme lack of water, which really really needs to be sorted for next year!

I think they realised they were in trouble with the water at later stages in the day, I was in 10:40 wave starting and they were a lot more generous with the water, got 2 bottles at each station (although the first bottles were roasting!) and there was 2 more bottles at the end! Still would have welcomed a lot more especially with the heat!!

Boom_Bap

At the kids one on Sunday, there was a 500ml bottle at the finish line for everyone. I didn't see any shortage either.
It's a shame that happened on Sat.