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Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you can’t have failed to notice the growing popularity of themed runs, mud runs and obstacle runs. Some people just aren’t content with a straightforward journey from A to B and we’ve seen some weird and wonderful challenges appearing on Eventbrite.
One of the most demanding has to be Total Warrior, so we had a chat with Adam Dickinson, who set up the company along with his University mate, Andrew Murray back in 2010.
Adam and Andrew were the sort of people that would give anything a go and tried various challenges of their own. In fact Adam ran his first marathon when he was just ten years old but quickly got bored of just running, so liked to do things with obstacles. After travelling the world chasing adventure post-studies, they both did other things for a while but then decided that they wanted to give it a go setting up their own event.
They like to describe the Total Warrior experience as ‘accessible adventure’ – most people can’t spend their days wandering the globe enjoying nature, so this sort of challenge makes them feel like they’re a kid again.
As one of the first events of its kind Total Warrior also has a great following on social media, with over 75,000 fans on Facebook and as you might expect, they are very passionate about the brand and the experience overall. Over the four years it’s been running, Total Warrior has grown from 2,000 to nearly 15,000 taking part each year. That’s 25,000 people that have put themselves through the warrior challenge already! They have also just announced that Total Warrior will be running in North Berwick, just outside Edinburgh for the first time next year, taking 30 obstacles over 12km to Scots ready for the challenge.
So, what is it that makes Total Warrior different? For Adam, it’s all about finding the right venue so that they can put on the quality of event that people have come to expect, with the right feel for the brand and at a reasonable cost. They’re also really keen to build long term relationships at each location because a lot of the obstacles are really making the most of the terrain and natural challenges that are already there. That’s something that really stands out and the team try to minimise how much equipment they have to take on site so that the course is much more natural.
Of course, there are also the logistics to take care of and when you attract warriors from 38 different countries access to the site from stations, airports and for the main routes in the UK is really important. As are the 150 volunteers they have on site each day to make sure everything runs smoothly. They have many volunteers that come back year after year just to be part of the experience and this is in large part down to how they’re treated.
There’s also a real feeling of camaraderie around the event. The celebrations don’t stop at the finish line, participants are encouraged to stay and enjoy the music and entertainment and camp overnight in the beautiful countryside to make the most of the whole experience.
There are also four designated charities for the event, so people can choose to raise money for Wooden Spoon, Help for Heroes, Great North Air Ambulance, Prostate Cancer UK, or for a charity that they choose. One of the most inspiring parts of the job Adam tells us is seeing the amazing achievements from people who have come back from illness or adversity to push themselves to the limit for a cause that’s close to their heart.
If you think you’ve got what it takes, tickets for next year’s Total Warrior challenges in Leeds, the Lake District and Edinburgh are now on sale on Eventbrite.
Whet your appetite by having a look at some of the fantastic pictures from the 2014 events: http://www.totalwarrior.co.uk/
