OCR Crew Newsletter 5 - Chatting with Sabrina on Spartan Jacksonville

Check out our Newsletter #5 – From chatting with Sabrina on Spartan Jacksonville, to Trivia of the Week, to This Week in OCR History, and to Media of the Week. We got you covered.

Well, well, well, look who decided to join the party, you bunch of hill-climbing, wall-scaling, rig-flowin’, mud-racing lunatics!

Welcome to the OCR Crew newsletter.

We’ll be covering topics like:

In The News
Training Tips
Community Spotlight / Race Spotlight
Ask A Pro / Ask A Coach
Gear Reviews, and
Workout of the Month

From keeping you up to date, Asking Pro’s the questions you’re too afraid to ask, to shining a spotlight on the unsung heroes of the community –

We’re here to make you think, laugh, and maybe even train smarter.

This weeks Newsletter is sponsored by: Obstacle Wonderland

Are you going?!?!
Their Spicy Weekend is only 38 days away!
Use Discount Code: OCRDIRECTORY for 15% off registration!

ASK A PRO

Sabrina Buhagiar

Sabrina, a former Division II swimming student-athlete, has recently made waves in the OCR racing scene, particularly Spartan races. Her latest challenge took her to the 1st Spartan US National Series race in Jacksonville, FL where she placed 4th in Elite. In the following Q&A, Sabrina shares a little about her OCR journey thus far and her experience at this past weekend’s race.

Question: So I know you’re still fairly new to the OCR scene. When was your first race? And how many OCR races have you done now?

Sabrina: My first step into Spartan OCR was at the Poconos Sprint 5K, on July 16, 2023. From there, I completed in five races last summer in 2024 (1x Sprint, 1x Stadion, 1x Super, and 2x Beast). Thus, a total of seven races following the Jacksonville event.

Question: After gaining some OCR experience last year, what did you find out about yourself when it comes to strengths and weaknesses in this sport? A sport that can be quite different than swimming.

Sabrina: A sport that may be a different path than swimming; however,

I have always been fond of training consistently hard in any capacity on my own. I am an extremely driven individual with an intrinsic type of motivation to fill in as my primary strength.

Like others, I have areas where I can grow and develop my skills further, and I plan to do so. A downfall I have includes the requirement of a life jacket on an epic swimming route. Ha!

Question: Did you focus on anything over the off season to help you for OCR this year?

Sabrina: Rather than one aspect in particular, I continue to train such a wide range of strength, cardio, and bodyweight exercises with various plyometric and isometric movements. I am working out daily with many pieces of equipment and tools to make myself better. The outdoors is a fantastic gym as well, and I definitely find how I work to support my overall results.

Question: What’s your favorite obstacle? And least favorite?

Sabrina: I appreciate an extensive barbed wire crawl as a favorite portion of any course, and the obstacle I prefer the least is the hit-or-miss Spartan Spear Throw.

Question: What was the biggest standout moment for you this past weekend?

Sabrina: For the vertical cargo net, I made the move to roll over and ascend the obstacle, rather than climbing down, and that was something I had yet to attempt.

Question: Are you planning to do the whole National Series?

Sabrina: Yes, sir!

Question: Have you raced with the other women in the Top 5 and how do you feel about the competition going into the rest of the series?

Sabrina: Yes, I had the opportunity to compete against Cassandra Gill once at the Stadion event last summer, but not the other fierce ladies.

My biggest competition is myself.
My attitude, my habits, and any other choice I make daily. I wake up, put my feet on the ground, and start each day training and giving my all.

Question: What else are you focused on this year when it comes to OCR, Running, Sport?

Sabrina: I believe a major part of growth is figuring out what you are capable of, and I do believe that abilities can always be developed from things we do consistently with respect, responsibility, and discipline. Consistency is key and is not a confidential piece to achieve what you perceive as your own success. Thus, I will keep working day-to-day and dabble into some other trail running/OCR events to supplement my fitness goals this season.

Question: Okay, last question. Are you going to Trifecta WC’s in West Virginia? And if so, how excited are you about Swimming at an OCR event?

Sabrina: Yes! I was thrilled to read the announcement for the Trifecta World Championships to be held at Summit Bechtel Reserve in my home state. I know they will feature a distinguished open-water swim, and I am more than ready for it.

Question: Any shoutouts or ending thoughts?

Sabrina: I would like to give credit to everyone out there for either trying something new or continuing to build upon the goals that they already have. Fitness is fun, and I am thankful for a lot. I am thankful for the grand support from my family & friends. I am thankful to be healthy. I am thankful for all the administration, race staff, and volunteers who coordinate these events to accommodate everyone. I am thankful for the other fierce athletes I have the opportunity to meet and compete with. I am thankful for The OCR Report and so many other media platforms that focus on highlighting our sport!

A big thanks to Sabrina for sharing some insights about her OCR career so far and how she views racing and training.

Be sure to follow Sabrina as she continues to grow in the sport of OCR on her Instagram here.
And check out The OCR Report who has coverage of Jacksonville’s race and will have more with the remaining National Series races that we expect to see Sabrina at!

OCR EXTRAS

IN THE NEWS:

The big story of the week was all about Spartan USNS Jacksonville.
I’m not gonna repeat all the details here. But you can find all the content around this weekend’s race with these links!

YouTube Coverage of the race from The OCR Report,
IG Coverage & Results from The OCR Report, and
Scott “The Fayne” Knowles podcast, with Brian Beal & Michael Roberson, where they don’t hold back and give us the down and dirty of everything about the Race.

THIS WEEK IN OCR HISTORY:

So last week we talked about the Tough Guy race, widely regarded as the world’s first modern OCR race, created by Billy Wilson. With its first event being in February 1987, out in Woverhampton, England.

Obstacle Course Racing is 38 years old!?!?

And for This Week in OCR History, we are continuing on that journey.

Explanation:

Just two years after Billy started the Tough Guy race in the UK, he made his way out to the United States.

In March of 1989, Billy came out and put on an event called the “Toughest Race in the World” being held in Santa Barbara, California.

Representing the first glimpse of modern OCR into the US.

The race marked the beginning of OCR’s explosion into North America. But it took 20 years before big time event companies actually started popping up to bring this sport to the masses. Small events continued, but it was 20 years later before we saw the rise of Warrior Dash (2009), Spartan Race (2010), Tough Mudder (2010) and Rugged Maniac (2010)

TRIVIA OF THE WEEK:

LAST WEEKS QUESTION:

How many Calories did Spartan racers burn in the United States in 2024?

ANSWER:

A jaw dropping 885 MILLION calories burned!?!?

THE MATH:

~50 Race Weekends, ~90 total events.
~5K participants at standard events – 80
~1.5K participants at special events – 10
Estimated total races completed in ’24 US = 420,000

Average completion time: Sprint 1.5hrs, Super 2.5hrs, Beast 4hrs, Ultra 12hrs.
Distribution: 50% sprint, 30% super, 15% beast, 5% ultra.

Weighted time average: 2.7hrs per participant

Average weight of participant: 160lbs
Heart Rate Average: 150bpm
Calorie Burn Rate: 13cals/min

Per Race Type:
Sprint – 1,170 calories
Super – 1,950 calories
Beast – 3,120 calories
Ultra – 9,360 calories

Weighted Average cals: 2,106 per participant

Total Calories Burned: 420K x 2,106 = 884,520,000

MEDIA OF THE WEEK

We’re always curious and want to learn about up-and-coming athletes in our sport.

But what about up and coming media?!?!

Joe Martello jumped into the OCR scene last year.
Not by sprinting off the start line and racing.
But through taking really awesome photos.

He’s gone to over a dozen races now and shares his work on his website Joe Martello Photography.

So for Media of the Week, I’m sharing 3 of my favorite photos Joe took at the USNS race in Jacksonville.

Grayson West looking confident jumping logs,
Mike Strobel & a Florida sunlight I’m jealous of, and
Cassandra Gill about 1.5miles into the race, showing she can run with the top guys.