OCR.... more than running

It's time for a runography

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Strong Viking WaterEdition 2022, Frankfurt

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Wanderwochen Harz 2022

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Strong Viking MudEdition 2022, Wijchen

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ATG-Winterlauf, Aachen 2019

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Strong Viking Trail 20201, Balen

Unfortunately, Corona isn't over and so some events still have to be canceled. First I was very annoyed of the cancellation of the trail run in Berendonck and about the fact, that my ticket was rebooked by the organization to another event in Balen which I had already a ticket. But then I took it like it was and started, run and finished two times in Balen. Oorah!

Fun fact: The unexpected often comes. If you like something and do it more and more, your network increase from event to event. I'm in a OCR group at another, actually not athletic social Network. We are spread all over Germany and know each other only from the internet. So we planned a group meeting at the xletix event in Grömitz. But this event was canceled too. At the toilets in Balen, someone suddenly called my name. Martin, someone of this group recognized me.

God, I love the OCR family!

The trail was harder than expected because the underground was nearly only sand. But we did it! We accepted the challenge and finished like a real viking!

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Strong Viking Amsterdam 2021

What to do if you are bored by only running a 19 km track? Right! Expand the distance!

That's what we did! Today, we are running an OCR with marathon distance. At every Strong Viking event you can choose three distances: 7 km, 14 km and 19 km. But they call it 19+ km because all of them are "a bit" longer. So it was our challenge to run all of these tracks today and it's called "Iron Viking"

The last days are hard, mentally hard. If you do it right, a 19 km OCR is hard enough. But the challenge is not only to run and try the obstacles. The challenge is to do not any burpee and you have to do burpees, if you fail at an obstacle! And today we want to do it at a distance of 42,2 km.

Turn off your head and do it. Most things go wrong, if you think too much. Try it or leave it - that's the only thing that counts!

I love the atmosphere at these events. Every time it's an epic event and not only a group of people who run. The group is sworn in and for a few hours you become an army with the same goal. You become a Viking! Not only your goal counts. You help each other and are proud that the other has (also) made it!

The first 19 km were nothing special. We have done it many times! But in the second lap of 14 km I expected my personal fight. Usually I get extremely hungry around 27-30 km. And that leads to the fact that I don't feel like it anymore and start to torture myself. But not today. The desire to run and the desire to reach the goal increased from kilometer to kilometer. Of course we took every refreshment point with us and maybe that's the real reason. In the end, however, when I reached the goal, I could have continued running.

Now we're hooked, have a new not boring distance and the plans are going on. The next step after the "Iron Viking" is the "Ultra Viking" with 60 km which we planned for 2022

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Strong Viking Warstein 2021

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Funtrailrun Gysenberg, Herne

Sometimes you are running through the forest and your eyes are catched by something. Patrick's eyes and his attention were catched by a banner from the "Funtrailrun Gysenberg". A little trail run and OCR nearby us. It didn't take long and we were registered to take part.

Let's say it was a great run! Really! It was really a great and funny run! Small obstacles with water, hanging and climbing and a very good, exhausting trail. If I could give stars, they will get 5 stars from me!

Last but not least, the run was crowned by the fact that I took 2nd place in the overall ranking!

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Strong Viking Gent 2021

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Strong Viking Nijmegen, Family Edition 2021

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Strong Viking Nijmegen, 2021

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Xletix NRW 2021

My mood was really not at its peak when I made my way to Wuppertal. It poured out of buckets from the sky. But when I got off the train and walked the last few meters, it stopped. My mood got better from minute to minute with no rain. In the end, even the sun came out and laughed at me.

After fantastic 17km down to the bottom of the quarry, up again, even higher to the summit of an overburden dump and back down to the event area, after 30 obstacles my mood was at its absolute peak. Great run, great obstacles, great day.

Shortly after I was back on the train, it started raining again 😂😂 Thank you, Petrus, you did well. And keep it up, I still have a lot to do in the next 8 weeks ...

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Megamarsch Mönchengladbach, 2021

Okay, let's do it again! It's not what I'm made for, but unfortunately, OCR events are still very rare. Therefore (unfortunately) another hike

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MudMasters Amsterdam, 2021

I'm so unbelievably happy! We are back! OCR is back! We had to travel in to a neighbor country, and we had some (self-made) trouble before. But at the entrance of the event location all trouble and bad mood was gone! After a very long period of abstinence we all were so lucky. It was one of the best days (if not the best day) in the last one and a half years. You can't imagine how we were missing running and the OCR! The mud, the humans, the feeling!

Now we are hoping that this will never stop again. Against all mutants and variants. Let's hope together!

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Mittsommerlauf 2021

One year after the "I hope it's the last virtual run" - run we are yet in the pandemic and the midsummer run celebrated a sad anniversary. Let's hope once again, that this will be the last virtual run, and, that corona will end soon!

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Biermeile 2021, Bochum

Slowly, very slowly we can go back to normal Events. We all hope it will be fast and we are happy that the first OCRs has been announced for september. Last sunday my running team met in Bochum for a little, spezial and crazy challange: We had to dring a beer und after that run 1000m. This was repeated five times and the time was stopped. Crazy shit! I was about to throw up. Running and beer isn't a good combination! And one more time i recognized why I don't dring beer!

But it was really fun to see my boys!