is launching its first-ever hydration vest designed specifically for obstacle-course racing, with input from pro OCR racer Amelia Boone. I got a sneak preview of the OCR Vest ($110), which looks minimal yet durable, boasting just enough storage to get you through a long race without weighing you down.

At its core, the new OCR Vest is no different from regular running vests. It鈥檚 got a main compartment that fits a two-liter bladder, with external听compression straps that can hold an extra layer. And the shoulder straps have听two zippered pockets and two open, stretchy pockets, one of which fits a 600-milliliter soft flask. Among the various compartments, there鈥檚 room for snacks, thin gloves, sunglasses, and any other small accessories you like to have with you on course.听

What鈥檚 different听is听the material, plus听a few extra features. The vest is made out of 100-denier ripstop nylon, which is tougher than the material used on many of Ultimate Direction鈥檚 other running vests. (Panels of heavy-duty stretch mesh along the sides of the back panel and across some of the front pockets add comfort.)听It鈥檚 burly鈥攂ut听light enough that you won鈥檛 think twice about taking it out on hot days.听

A roll-top, water-resistant听plastic pouch on the left strap holds a smartphone, so you can continue to snap photos and video without fear of your cell taking a mud bath. (The pouch buckles into place听and is easy to remove and reattach during an event.) And several of the pockets are equipped with drain holes, so runners won鈥檛 get weighed down after going through muddy or watery obstacles.

However, most of these OCR-specific features aren鈥檛 built to handle serious听obstacle courses. The fabric, while burlier than a typical vest鈥檚, isn鈥檛 tough enough to withstand barbed wire and the like. And the water-resistant phone case will protect your electronics from splashes but it鈥檚听not fully waterproof, which means it might not protect against full submersion.

If you鈥檙e looking for a vest to use in all of your OCRs, even the most extreme ones, Ulimate Direction鈥檚 new offering may not be for you. On the other hand, if you want a vest for training and mellower races, the OCR vest might be exactly what you need. It鈥檚 pared down from vests built for ultras, which require the runner to carry more听gear than an听OCR, without compromising on features.听It comes in two sizes (small/medium and medium/large) and goes on sale in September, just in time for the fall racing season.

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This exclusive clip from the new听documentary ,听by journalist-turned-filmmaker听, explores how our modern life leaves us wanting more. As author puts it, “We're getting lots of information through our eyes, but we're kind of distanced from the world and distanced from our own sensory existence.” Watch as 辞蹿听4-Hour series fame听poses the idea that we're now obsessed with “sufferfests”听because of a deep-seeded desire to get back to the ways of our ancestors. You can read more about the explosion in popularity of sufferfests here, and watch the full film .听

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Inspired by brutal 7th century training tactics of their namesake, Spartan, the organizer of some of the world鈥檚 toughest obstacle course races, has introduced the . The race, which takes place on company founder Joe DeSena鈥檚 Vermont farm, is a brutal physical and mental test designed around team building and development that can take up to 60 hours. Grueling hikes, schelping kayaks filled with water, carrying other teammates, and 100-foot rappels are all part of the deal, which can last up to 60 hours. In order to compete in the Agoge, participants must have previous military and/or obstacle course experience; the race draws an exceptionally proven crowd. This summer, photographer set up at the starting line to learn a little more about some of the participants who have overcome massive life obstacles to compete.

Photo: Billy Costello lost his right leg to a roadside bomb in Afghanistan in September, 2011. He was able to return to his unit in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where he worked before retiring for medical reasons. After his service, Costello and Zachary Paben (next slide) put together a team鈥攃alled 鈥攎ade up of military and civilian competitors with the goal of aiding adaptive athletes through obstacle course races like the Spartan Agoge.

Zachary Paben, who lost seven of his finger tips in a childhood accident, is the co-founder of More Heart Than Scars. With his business partner, Costello, they鈥檝e brought purpose to people鈥檚 lives through training and competition in obstacle course races.

Earl Granville is a nine-year veteran under the Pennsylvania Army National Guard as an infantryman. In the summer of 2008, while on a patrol in Zormat, Afghanistan, his vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb, which resulted in the amputation of his left leg through the knee. His comrades, Specialist Derek Holland of Wind Gap, Pennsylvania, and Major Scott Hagerty of Stillwater, Oklahoma, were killed in action.

After his injury, Earl found himself competing as an adaptive athlete in many sports, such as monoski, CrossFit, sled hockey, GORUCK challenge, and Spartan races. He is a team member for the veteran-operated nonprofit and the lead ambassador of the veteran-founded clothing line . After his injury, Granville has competed in the Boston, Detroit, Chicago, New York, and Marine Corps marathons, all on a hand bicycle under the Achilles Freedom Team.

Neely Fortune was assaulted by a close friend in 2010, and shortly after found the body of her assailant after he took his own life. Fortune took that troubling life event, which resulted in PTSD, and turned into motivation to recover. She tackled the Vermont 100 ultramarathon, the TARC 100, the Mexico Death Race, and many others. Taking every opportunity to push herself, Fortune even entered to compete for Miss Vermont USA and won the crown in 2016. Most recently, Fortune has taken a leadership position as an event leader at the Spartan Agoge.

In 2014, Mark Peterson was diagnosed with a life-threatening cancer that required surgery and chemotherapy. But that didn鈥檛 stop him. In 2015, Peterson ran 22 Spartan races, all while undergoing treatment. Peterson has also achieved a Spartan Trifecta, which is earned by completing a five mile sprint course, a 10 mile super course, and a 15 mile beast course all in a calendar year.

Matthew Pietro lost his leg in motorcycle accident after returning from combat. Struggling with his health and PTSD, Pietro joined More Heart Than Scars and has competed in a variety of Spartan races, and even completed the Spartan Trifecta.

Norbie Lara joined the US Army in 1995 was deployed to Iraq. In June 2004, while on combat patrol, an RPG struck Lara鈥檚 vehicle. The RPG penetrated the firewall and severed his arm. Shrapnel from the explosion also ripped through Lara's body, lacerating his liver and causing severe lung damage as well. Lara proudly competes in Spartan races on team Operation Enduring Warrior.

Danielle Rieck is professional ballet dancer turned obstacle course master. Rieck began competing in races in 2012 after a boyfriend told her there was no way she could finish one. Since then, she has accomplished about as much as you can in obstacle course racing: in 2014, she completed seven trifectas, ten in 2015, and she has a goal of 11 this year. Rieck is also the first person ever to achieve the Perfect Delta, which means she has completed every type of event Spartan offers. Rieck is active member of Team Red, White, and Blue () in addition to raising money for the Massachusetts Fallen Heroes Fund through her racing.

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A lawsuit over the 2013 death of a Tough Mudder participant has been settled before reaching a jury, the听. The was filed against the company a year after 28-year-old Avishek Sengupta drowned at the Tough Mudder Mid-Atlantic event on March 20, 2013 in West Virginia and five months after out-of-court mediation failed to produce a settlement.听

The wrongful-death complaint charged Tough Mudder 补苍诲听Airsquid听Ventures, whose subsidiary was responsible for aquatic safety at the event, among others,听with gross negligence for their conduct at the “Walk the Plank” water obstacle. The complaint alleges that overcrowding made it impossible for rescue and safety personnel to monitor the pool and that Tough Mudder听removed safety features to speed up crowd flow:

Prior to the Tough Mudder Mid-Atlantic event on April 20, Tough Mudder had been the subject of complaints on social media concerning long waiting times at many of its obstacles… In response to complaints of long wait times at Walk-the-Plank, Tough Mudder took steps to decrease wait times and increase the flow of participants through the Obstacle… Its desire to speed participants through Walk-the-Plank caused Tough Mudder to abandon (or fail to adopt in the first place) critical safety measures.

国产吃瓜黑料鈥檚 2013 investigation听sheds some insight into what happened that day. About a half-hour into the event, Avishek and his five teammates approached the obstacle:

The teammates ran into their second traffic jam of the day: a human bottleneck at a water听obstacle called Walk the Plank. The group chatted as they shuffled along with about a hundred other participants toward a near vertical wall of two-by-sixes that rose to a platform 15 feet above a man-made pool of muddy water that was roughly 40 feet wide and 15 feet deep. When they reached the top, they would have to leap in and swim to the other side.

Avishek didn't resurface after his plunge:听

He was underwater and sinking to the bottom, passing out at some point, for reasons that are still unknown. When he was next seen on the surface, at least eight and a half minutes after he'd jumped, he would be unconscious and in the arms of a rescue diver.

A video from the event shows the chaos that ensued after Avishek's teammates realized he hadn鈥檛 resurfaced, and the race鈥檚 rescue diver scrambling to find him.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Gs0gYU7uBcE

After spending an estimated听42 minutes without a pulse, Avishek's heart was restarted. By this time, he had听suffered brain death due to oxygen deprivation. He died at a local hospital the next day.听

This suit had major implications for the obstacle course racing industry, which was eager to know, in particular, if liability waivers鈥攚hat Tough Mudder calls its听“Death Waiver”鈥攚ould hold up in court. Senguptas鈥� lawyers contend that such waivers are unenforceable because they are “one-sided and overly harsh,” among other claims. Most OCR events, outfitters, and races require participants to sign similar听liability forms.

The Herald-Mail reports that the听specifics听of the settlement,听including the amount听of money the听Senguptas听would听receive听from the听defendants, were sealed by the court.听Tough Mudder declined to speak about the settlement with听国产吃瓜黑料.听When we first contacted the company about Avishek's death in 2013, chief operating officer听Don Baxter said听“We did everything we could,” adding that “it's impossible to remove risk entirely from these events.”

Avishek was the first death at a Tough Mudder since the event began in 2010, though he was not the first to die at an obstacle race. The that two men died after a 2011 Warrior Dash event in the Kansas City area听and at a 2012 Original Mud Run in Texas.

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Swedish obstacle series Tough Viking is doing away with electrified obstacles in 2016, . The move puts it among a handful of events axing electricity as the industry chucks its original selling points of shock value and mental games in a sad but necessary drive for longevity.听

Savage Race did away with its electric obstacle in 2014. Tough Mudder, whose brand was arguably built on 补苍诲听 about Electroshock Therapy, a giant trellis of dangling wires juiced with 鈥�10,000 volts of electricity,鈥� (runners have to run through or under this to pass)听announced in November 2015 that its new event, the Tough Mudder Half, won鈥檛 have any electric obstacles. In the meantime, the original Tough Mudder has also phased out Electric Eel, a stomach crawl under live wires.听

Part of the issue with electricity is legal, to be sure. A 2013 study highlighted one Tough Mudder participant who received 13 shocks running through Electroshock Therapy.听Also, 鈥淓lectroshock Therapy鈥檚 had a lot of bad press,鈥� says Margaret Schlachter, editor in chief of OCR news site听. Not just for Tough Mudder, but for the industry in general, whose diverse events often get lumped together as crazy obstacle races who electrocute people.听

Indeed, when Savage Race decided to pull the plug on Tazed N Blazed, it the obstacle鈥檚 replacement would be something 鈥渢hat provides a legitimate physical challenge.鈥� Along that same line of thought, in 2014 Spartan Race got rid of its Gladiators, men with pugil sticks who would whack competitors before they crossed the finish line.

In the beginning, however, OCR was all about so-called gimmick obstacles. Spartan Race, a series founded on embracing the unknown, wouldn鈥檛 post its course maps anywhere before its events, and even made competitors solve a side of a Rubik鈥檚 Cube before crossing the finish line in its early days. Tough Mudder still has Electroshock Therapy, but it鈥檚 hardly the event鈥檚 calling card. If anything, the company now downplays its existence.听

But perhaps getting rid of the elements of surprise, luck, unfairness, and yeah, electricity, are what the industry needs to grow鈥攖o give the sport some kind of unifying identity. To be seen not as fragmented series or arenas for mass electrocution, but as one big welcoming whole, the way every 13.1-mile run is called a half-marathon, no matter who produced it or what special elements鈥攎usic, nighttime鈥攚ere thrown in along the way. If that's what it takes to make OCR a sport enjoyed for years to come, then perhaps it鈥檚 worth it. But it鈥檚 also a little sad.

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This January, at the center of a Las Vegas arena, Anderson Silva secured his legacy as one of the best mixed-martial artists in history. The 40-year-old Brazilian fighter battered his opponent in five rounds of hooks, jabs, and kicks in a fight put on by the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

But four days later, the Nevada Athletic Commission announced that the fighter had tested positive for the steroid drostanolone in the run-up to the fight. It was a body blow to a sport long troubled by rumors of doping. Not only that, but Silva鈥檚 opponent in that fight, Nick Diaz, also allegedly tested positive for marijuana in a post-fight test.

As drug scandals buffet marquee sports like pro cycling, track, and Major League Baseball, relatively low-profile, low-budget niche sports are trying to navigate the same treacherous waters.听While cage fighting shares few things in common with ultramarathon running, obstacle course racing, CrossFit or mountaineering, there is one important common denominator: each sport is wrestling with the potential for doping鈥攁nd the public-relations damage that comes with it. It鈥檚 also becoming more apparent that it doesn鈥檛 take the lure of Olympic gold or a seven-figure contract to make athletes cross the line.

Not only that, but as doping has grown increasingly sophisticated, anti-doping efforts have been forced to become more comprehensive. Confessional memoirs and legal documents surrounding the Lance Armstrong affair revealed a bag of tricks. Athletes hid from drug testers, took tiny doses of steroids that flushed from their bodies in hours, and used hard-to-detect blood transfusions or custom-made drugs not on the testing list. Two pro cyclists this year were busted for allegedly that hasn鈥檛 reached the market yet. New allegations of , leveled by an independent commission for the World Anti-Doping Agency, underscores the challenges facing doping police.

That puts smaller sports, many without deep pockets, in a tough spot. Do you go all in to address a problem that might not be there? Do you test just at competitions, speak out against doping and hope this inoculates you from a scandal? Or do you carry on with business as usual.

The responses to possible drug abuse are as varied as the sports. A few of these niche sports have robust, year-around drug-testing. Others test only at competitions, an approach so vulnerable to abuse that it鈥檚 hardly better than not testing at all. Often, the difference comes down to how much the organizations behind the sport are willing or able to spend.听鈥淪ome of these fringe sports might not have enough money to spend thousands of dollars testing at every event,鈥� says Daniel Eichner, the former science director at the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, who now runs one of two U.S. drug testing labs certified by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

鈥淭he question with these new sports is what are they trying to accomplish?鈥� says Dr. Michael Joyner, an expert in human performance at the Mayo Clinic, who helped with a recent about gaps in drug testing by the investigative website ProPublica. 鈥淎re they trying to let this not be a pharmaceutical arms race, or are they involved in some sort of brand protection?鈥�

Eichner points to UFC as a surprising bright spot. Soon after the doping allegations against Silva surfaced, the Las Vegas-based company announced plans for an ambitious new drug-testing program. In April they hired one of the country鈥檚 best-known anti-doping cops to build and run it. Jeff Novitzky was a federal agent who made headlines for the investigation that ensnared Olympic sprinter Marion Jones in what became known as the BALCO scandal. He was also a central player in doping investigations of Lance Armstrong and several top Major League Baseball players.听Today, Novitzky sounds like a missionary: 鈥淚 truly, based in my experience, believe we have the most comprehensive, robust anti-doping program in all sports in all the world.鈥�

He ticks off a list of features to back up such a bold claim: The drug testing and decisions about penalties will be handled by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, shielding it from potential meddling by UFC promoters. Athletes will be subject to year-around 鈥渟urprise鈥� testing, to guard against people doping during training, but not right before fights. Testers will use a 鈥渂iological passport,鈥� much like pro cycling, that looks for telltale fluctuations in body chemistry to highlight hard-to-detect doping. Sentences will be more severe, starting with two-year bans. The effort will cost millions, and could reveal some unpleasant news, Novitzky says.

In the arena of fitness competitions, CrossFit is the big brand. The CrossFit Games feature a prize purse topping $2 million. And with that have come warnings that the sport is ripe for problems. Asked about doping in a , top CrossFit athlete Dan Bailey says, 鈥淥ur testing procedure could and should be improved. I think as the sport gets more popular, the purses get bigger, sponsorships get bigger. Because the incentive is just there, and nobody's perfect. People are going to dive into that, I'm sure, at some point.”

CrossFit has responded with a testing program featuring some of the same strategies as the UFC. Some CrossFit Games participants are tested at competitions, and in recent years the company started out-of-competition testing. It鈥檚 not clear how much advance warning athletes get for these tests. The CrossFit guidebook notes people might be notified ahead of time by text or e-mail. Bailey, in , says he was given 24-hours notice. Drug testing experts say immediate, unannounced tests are most effective, because it鈥檚 harder for athletes to dodge a tester or let drugs flush from their bodies.

The testing has tripped up several CrossFit athletes. Most recently, in July the company announced sanctions against four athletes. Two tested positive for steroids during competitions, one was sanctioned for skipping an out of competition test, and another had a positive steroid test blamed on a tainted supplement.听

It鈥檚 also not clear what drugs CrossFit is testing for. The company鈥檚 guidelines to athletes say only that it 鈥渕ay鈥� test for a long list. CrossFit doesn鈥檛 mention a biological passport. A CrossFit spokesman declined to discuss the program.

Eichner says he isn鈥檛 familiar with CrossFit鈥檚 operation. But when he sees the athletes in fitness competitions or extreme obstacle-course races on television, alarm bells sometimes go off. 鈥淚鈥檝e been in this business for a while and I can look at these people and know if they鈥檝e got a problem.鈥� he says.

Far from the realm of muscle-bound gladiators, ultra-distance running faces a similar quandary. As traditional track and field is wracked by , and claims that the governing authority is , and cover-ups in Russia, some wonder whether the small world of ultrarunners should step up its efforts. The sport has already shown it鈥檚 not immune. Several top runners in South Africa鈥檚 56-mile听 Comrades Marathon have tested positive, .听Today, the approach to drug testing is 鈥渁ll over the map,鈥� says听Ian Torrence, an ultra-distance running coach and race organizer in Flagstaff, Arizona, who for the ultrarunning website iRunFar.com.

The International Association of Ultrarunners, which oversees world championships and sanctions some other ultra-distance races, has drug testing at events, and out-of-competition tests for top performers. But at many of the independent races, it鈥檚 up to the individual organizer. It can be an expensive headache for races that often barely break even, Torrence says.听“If more people want to see testing and want a clean sport, then it will force the hands of the race directors,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut I don鈥檛 know if people care.鈥�

Ultrarunning isn鈥檛 alone. The OCR World Championships, a fledgling obstacle course race in the genre that includes popular series such as Tough Mudder, was the first of its kind to drug test at its 2014 race in Cleveland, Ohio.听鈥淲hen you start to introduce large prize purses, you are unfortunately are going to get some athletes who may view it as tempting enough to do something that is unethical,鈥� says Adrian Bijanada, the race organizer.听He acknowledged testing at the event wouldn鈥檛 catch people cheating other times of the year. But he hopes it鈥檚 a first step toward more frequent testing of top athletes at other competitive obstacle course events.

Meanwhile, elite mountaineering has taken a very different approach. As climbers chase ever-faster speed records, and the publicity and sponsorship dollars that come with them, doping could offer an edge. Faced with a strong libertarian streak and the logistics of drug-testing on remote mountains, the International Mountaineering and Climbing Federation is telling alpine climbers to let their conscience be their guide.听鈥淔or most people any 鈥榬ules鈥� would be unenforceable and have to be a personal decision. The underlying principle must be honesty with oneself and honesty with one鈥檚 peers,鈥� the federation鈥檚 medical commission wrote in a .

It鈥檚 a striking departure from the increasingly invasive measures in some sports.听Mountaineering has a long history of using supplements to boost performance. Bottled oxygen is the most obvious example. Talk of everything from EPO to steroids has circulated in the climbing world. (See 鈥淐limbing鈥檚 Little Helper鈥�)听The laissez-faire strategy makes sense given mountaineering鈥檚 free-spirited, individualist culture, say Chris Weidner, a climbing guide and journalist who has written about drug testing for climbers. When it comes to concerns about cheating, doping ranks well below proving that someone actually summited.

The conclusion to all this is that even niche sports are going to have to contend with increasing concerns about doping. But without large regulatory bodies setting standards and controlling the process, people wanting to know what鈥檚 being done to keep their favorite sport clean will need to read the fine print.听

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Under Armour is out as Tough Mudder鈥檚 official apparel sponsor, replaced by Merrell as both gear and presenting sponsor. That鈥檚 the first of two announcements the obstacle racing company recently听made. The second: starting in 2016, Tough Mudder will produce nine Tough Mudder Half events, each five miles long, or half the distance of an original Tough Mudder.听

The announcements come at a time when obstacle event companies, Tough Mudder and Spartan Race in particular, are making an effort to transition from novelty adventure to sustainable sport. Tough Mudder CEO Will Dean believes the key to long term success is becoming a lifestyle brand like Ironman鈥攁 brand that people engage with on a daily basis rather than just on race day. The recent announcements highlight three things Dean believes are necessary to keep Mudders running for years to come: new event products, an expanded client base, and strategic partnerships.听

鈥淧artnerships create new ways to engage with our customer base away from the main event,鈥� Dean says. 鈥淐reating Tough Mudder Merrell shoes is part of that.鈥�

Merrell, an outdoor brand best known for its hiking and trail running shoes, will become Tough Mudder鈥檚 presenting sponsor at all Tough Mudder events in 2016, produce Tough Mudder-specific footwear and apparel, and become a Tough Mudder partner for 鈥渕ultiple years,鈥� say Dean and Merrell President Jim Gabel. They declined to elaborate on the financials or the exact length of the partnership, but suffice it to say, it involved a substantial sum of money. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the largest investment Merrell has ever made in its 35-year history,鈥� Gabel says.

This isn鈥檛 Merrell鈥檚 first foray into obstacle racing. The company sponsored the 听of 5K and 10K events from 2010 through 2014. But, as Gable mentioned above, the Tough Mudder partnership is on a different level of magnitude for Merrell than the one the company had with Down & Dirty. Likewise, it appears to be a bigger deal for Tough Mudder than the one with Under Armour, a sponsorship that injected legitimacy into this nascent sport four years ago, but that was limited to apparel. Of course, Merrell is creating new OCR gear, too.

鈥淣ot only are we designing products specifically for the participants,鈥� Gabel says, but Merrell is also dedicating part of its headquarters property in Michigan to a Mini Mudder course 鈥渇or our design people to understand exactly the needs of participants.鈥澨�

Already in the works for February 2016: the All Out Crush, a trail shoe that sheds mud, drains water quickly, and has a traction pattern ideal for tackling Tough Mudders鈥攏ot unlike Reebok鈥檚 , created after Reebok in 2013. Or the admittedly wonky ankle-high 听Under Armour made.听

Other partnerships OCR companies have forged to make 24/7 brands include this year鈥檚 linkup between Tough Mudder and Virgin Active gyms in the UK. Together, they鈥檝e created , which help Virgin Active members prepare for Tough Mudder events. And in August, Spartan 听to create a reality competition show based on the series.听

As for the two other categories Dean is focusing on鈥攏ew event products, an expanded client base鈥攖hat鈥檚 where the Tough Mudder Half comes in. The Half will not include any fire, ice, or electric obstacles in an effort to attract potential Mudders put-off by the chance of getting burned, frozen, or electrocuted. Participants will earn a white headband, and will tackle some Half-specific obstacles to be revealed in early 2016.

鈥淭ough Mudder is still Tough Mudder,鈥� Dean says of the new event, 鈥渏ust like Ironman launched 70.3 and still has the full Ironman.鈥澨�

Ideally, athletes should expect more continuity in their race experiences, and expanded OCR-friendly gear options as a result of obstacle companies鈥� efforts to become part of their everyday lives. Earlier this year, for instance, Tough Mudder experienced what we鈥檒l call 听when the company stopped giving out finisher t-shirts, much to the dismay of Mudders everywhere. (The finisher tee was quickly reinstated following .) Now that Merrell has stepped in with a presumably long-term commitment, no Mudder journey should end without a sweet tech-tee.

鈥淲e want [Mudders] proudly wear it and it should be a badge of honor for hopefully years to come,鈥� Gabel says. And judging by how excited Gabel is for Merrell to enter this new space, athletes should expect some fun new gear options in the near future. 鈥淭he Tough Mudder partnership gives us the ability to play in a new space,鈥� Gabel says. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got footwear developers and an apparel designer assigned to this partnership.鈥� I鈥檓 hoping for a breathable top that diverts electric currents away from the body by turning them into tiny fireworks. Bring it on, Electroshock Therapy!

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That mental list you keep of all the fun things you want to experience before it's too late? We wrote it down. Then we came up with a chronological plan for making it all happen鈥攊n the next 365 days.

This is a packed list, and yes, we know you probably have a day job. But check even a couple of these off and you'll find the year very well spent. The goal: Get out of your comfort zone, see another corner of the world, and do at least one crazy thing like swimming naked in an Idaho hot spring or chasing the world's biggest fish. With 国产吃瓜黑料's know-how on your side, you'll find it's not so hard.

Play John Muir

Blue River, Oregon; June鈥揝eptember; $400

Muir famously spent hours atop a tree during a winter windstorm in the Sierra Nevada, calling it one of his most exhilarating experiences in the wild. You can have an adventure that鈥檚 just as powerful, but much more enjoyable, by spending a night in one. Guides from the Blue River鈥揵ased will instruct you on how to ascend a rope into the upper branches of an old-growth Douglas fir in the Western Cascades. Your bed is a canvas hammock strung between branches, where you鈥檒l drift off to the hooting of owls.

Drive as Fast as You Can

Just once, stomp on the gas pedal and hold it there. The World of Speed event, held every September on the , a 46-square-mile expanse of featureless salt crust on the western edge of Utah鈥檚 Great Salt Lake Basin, invites regular people in regular vehicles to let 鈥檈m rip alongside tricked-out racing cars. You get one mile to go as fast as you possibly can. 鈥淭here鈥檚 no reference point, and above 100 miles per hour, speedometers aren鈥檛 very accurate,鈥� says Dennis Sullivan, president of Utah Salt Flats Racing Association. 鈥淏ut you can feel how fast you鈥檙e going.鈥� Chicken out on your first go? No worries鈥攜ou get five more tries.

Float Your Boat

The number-one reason to put the energy into a DIY river trip instead of opting for an outfitter? 鈥淵ou get to control who you go with,鈥� says Mark Singleton, executive director of American Whitewater. A great river to start with is the Allagash, in northern Maine. The section between Chamberlain Lake and Allagash Village winds 60 miles, with Class II rapids, tree-crammed banks, and an abundance of moose. will rent you a canoe and supply meals for five days for $625. Two more challenging DIY options we like: the Grand Ronde, a Class II鈥揑II river in Washington and Oregon that slides through basalt cliffs and evergreen forest (raft rentals, $125 per day), and the Class III Desolation Gray section of Utah鈥檚 Green River, for classic high-desert canyons (raft rentals plus shuttle service, ).

Land a Lunker

Central Oregon; August鈥揘ovember; $550 per day

Steelhead are like trout on amphetamines. These famously clever, hard-fighting fish are extraordinarily difficult鈥攁nd a hell of a lot of fun鈥攖o catch. The Columbia River watershed is a mecca for steelhead fishermen when the fish make their way up rivers to spawn in the winter months. The best way to boost your odds is to hire a local guide. 鈥淲e have fish that are so aggressive, they鈥檒l chase a fly for 60 or 80 feet,鈥� says Jeff Perin, owner of , an outfitter that runs float trips on the Lower Deschutes River. Once you hook a fish, it鈥檒l take everything you鈥檝e got to land it. An eight-pound steelhead could easily feel like a 15-pounder as it twists out of the water.

Throw an Off-the-Grid Rager

, in Fort Collins, Colo颅rado, knows a thing or two about producing outrageous outdoor parties. We asked Jesse Claeys, one of the company鈥檚 event planners, to share his party-planning tips:

1. Location is Everything: The ideal spot is bike friendly with a gorgeous view.
2. Get Ahead of the Weather: We look at average rainfall as well as sunset and sunrise times for certain dates, then plug those into a spreadsheet to find ideal party times.
3. Accessorize: Habitat for Humanity鈥檚 is amazing for cheap furniture and decorations.
4. Don鈥檛 Overdo the Playlist: You just want classic songs that create good background ambience鈥擝udos Band, Sam Cooke, Jimmy Cliff.
5. Add a Surprise: We do something called 鈥減ortaoke鈥濃�攁 karaoke booth among the Porta-Johns. Those kind of strange, unexpected, and interactive moments are what people talk about when it鈥檚 all over.

Sled Like an Olympian

Lake Placid, New York; November鈥揂pril; $85 per run

Lolo Jones, the Olympic hurdler turned bobsledder, has described careening down the icy track as similar to being kicked off Mount Everest in a trash can. That鈥檚 only a slightly hyperbolic way to describe what it鈥檚 like to rocket through 12 banked turns going 55 miles per hour at up to four G鈥檚. in Lake Placid, where American sled teams captured two gold medals, a silver, and a bronze in 1932, is our favorite venue to get a taste of the action, with veteran athletes up front steering while you hold on really, really tight. 鈥淎 lot of people scream,鈥� says Joey Allen, one of the track鈥檚 regular drivers.

Trip Out on the Northern Lights

Iceland;听November鈥揗arch; $719

A cycle of more intense solar activity has caused the aurora borealis to be at its peak for the past few years, and this winter offers another ideal chance to catch it. Still, you鈥檒l need a lot of darkness in a far-north locale鈥攑lus a little bit of luck鈥攖o witness the spectacle. One of the best spots is Iceland, where Icelandair is offering that include nonstop flights from nine North American cities, four nights鈥� lodging, a visit to the mineral-rich Laugarvatn Fontana geothermal baths, and a nighttime boat tour, so you can check out the lights from the North Atlantic.

Go It Alone

鈥淎 solo camping trip is wonderfully peaceful, and it鈥檚 one of those opportunities we so rarely have to confront our thoughts and anxieties. If it鈥檚 your first time, pick somewhere that isn鈥檛 super far off the beaten track. You want trails that are easy to follow, and better signed, so it鈥檚 harder to get into trouble. Before you set off, seek out people who have some experience, ask them questions, talk through your plans, and make sure you鈥檙e leaving a detailed itinerary with somebody, so they know if you鈥檙e overdue. There鈥檚 a big temptation to do high miles, to bring guidebooks, to identify wild-flowers and get into other fun and distracting projects, but personal reflection comes when you鈥檙e just sitting with nothing to do.鈥濃�擩ack Haskel, information specialist for the

Face Your Greatest Fear

Heights

It doesn鈥檛 get scarier than a slackline over a 400-foot-deep chasm. During Thanksgiving week, a group of Utah highliners and BASE jumpers host an event known as Gobble Gobble Bitches Yeah, in Mineral Bottom Canyon, near Moab. Warm up on a line close to the ground, then don a harness and inch your way across the canyon.

Flying

The trick is putting yourself at the controls. , a school in Nags Head, North Carolina, offers demo flights in hang gliders over the dunes of Jockey鈥檚 Ridge State Park, where newbies soar 15 feet off the ground. $99

Confined Spaces

South Dakota鈥檚 , the third-longest cave in the world, is a trove of geological formations. On a ranger-led spelunking tour, crawl through passages scarcely wider than a basketball.

Hungry Beasts

The great white sharks that gather in the Farallon Islands, off San Francisco, are up to 20 feet long, thanks to a diet of 5,000-pound elephant seals. See them in their element on a day-long . $775

Enter the Ultimate Race

The most talked-about events in their respective sports

Ski Mountaineering

Grand Traverse; Crested Butte to Aspen, Colorado; March 25鈥�26; $400 per team

Teams of two set off at midnight on a that climbs over 7,800 vertical feet and ends with a 3,200-vertical- foot groomer.

Road Biking

Death Ride; Sierra Nevada, California; July 9; $135

Roughly two-thirds of the 3,500 riders who set out to do the every July finish the 129-mile route, which climbs 15,000 feet over five passes. $135

Open-Water Swimming

Trans Tahoe Relay; Lake Tahoe, Nevada and California; July 16; $600 per team

Some 1,400 racers compete in teams of six in this of 60-degree-plus Lake Tahoe (no wetsuits allowed), which has become one of the world鈥檚 largest open-water swims. $600 per team

Triathlon

New York City Triathlon; NYC; July 24; $310

Swim in the Hudson, bike up and down the West Side Highway, and run through Central Park in the in the country. $310

Trail Running

Cranmore Hill Climb; North Conway, New Hampshire; July 10; $25

Compete with elites at a that often serves as the U.S. Mountain Running Championships but is open to athletes of all abilities. The course changes every year, but you can expect more than 2,000 vertical feet over about eight miles. $25

Mountain Biking

Leadville 100; Leadville, Colorado; August 13; $345

This follows 100 miles of mixed trails and tops out at 12,400 feet. Too much? Consider the new three-day stage race, which follows the same course at a saner pace. $345

Obstacle Racing

World鈥檚 Toughest Mudder; Las Vegas; November; $554

In the rolling desert outside Sin City, have 24 hours to make their way through as many laps of the five-mile course as possible, stumbling up wall climbs, off cliff jumps, and through fire lines in pursuit of $160,000 in prizes.

Ski with the Birds

Silverton, Colorado; December鈥揂pril; $179 per flight

The epicenter of heli-skiing is British Columbia, where a weeklong trip easily costs $7,000. But you can get a single glory run at , in the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado, for less than the price of a couple of lift tickets at Vail. A chopper offers rides to the top of the area鈥檚 3,000-foot lines, where a guide leads four skiers down. When you鈥檙e done, lap Silverton Mountain鈥檚 double chair ($139 guided), which accesses secluded hike-to chutes, bowls, and glades that hold powder for weeks after a storm.

Own the Grand Canyon

Arizona; April鈥揗ay, September鈥揙ctober; $74 for a four-night permit

In the spring and fall, when the hiking highways on the South Rim are mobbed with tourists, the trails on the relatively undeveloped North Rim are blissfully empty. Temperatures in the shoulder seasons hover in the mid seventies, making your lonely descent to the Colorado River even more pleasant. Apply for a backcountry camping permit up to four months in advance for the 11-mile (each way) . It traverses a ledge along a thousand-foot cliff, down steep rock bands, into a canyon, and finally to an ancient granary in an amphitheater on the riverbank.

Live on the Edge

Telluride, Colorado; June鈥揝eptember;

Via ferratas鈥攃limbing routes with metal rungs and cables, first developed by Allied forces in World War I鈥攅nable nonclimbers to safely access steep, exposed peaks. Arguably the best one in the U.S. is the via ferrata in Telluride. Hire a guide from Mountain Trip to show you the way. Or bring your own harness and quickdraws, drive up the Black Bear Pass road from town one switchback past Bridalveil Falls, and locate the well-worn path on the west side of Ajax Peak. The mile-and-a-quarter route leads across airy expanses of rock that in some spots plunge over 400-foot cliffs. Below, a verdant valley dotted with tiny Victorians unfolds, flanked by waterfalls and some of the most rugged peaks you鈥檒l find anywhere in the lower 48.

Take Over an Island

Three gems you can have all to yourself.

• Spruce Island, Maine: The ultimate New England escape: an 80-acre island, 20 minutes by motorboat from the bustling lobster harbor of Stonington, featuring two stone homes that sleep 18 people and include kayaks, horseshoe pits, beach campfires, and, of course, lobster pots.
• Eagle Island, Georgia:听Tucked into a marshy coastline, this ten-acre homestead feels remote, but you鈥檒l hardly be roughing it. The three-bedroom main lodge has a king-size loft, an outdoor shower and fireplace, and a hot tub. Fill your days touring the marsh by kayak and catching blue crabs off the dock.
• Deepwater Island, Ontario:听A three-bedroom luxury home with a huge deck, a gas grill, a kayak, and two canoes, located on a three-quarter-acre speck of granite in the ultra-clear Georgian Bay, surrounded by the Massassauga Provincial Park. In a word: perfection.

Catch a Buzz in the Back of Beyond

It tastes better when you earn it.

Phantom Ranch Canteen: Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

Take a 7.8-mile, knee-busting hike down 2,546 vertical feet on the South Kaibab Trail to Phantom Ranch, a collection of 1920s stone and wood cabins. The sells snacks, first-aid supplies, and, most important, ice-cold Tecate. Warning: last call is at 3:30 P.M.

Ebenezer's Pub and Restaurant: Lovell, Maine

Lovell isn鈥檛 on the way to anything except a few White Mountain trailheads, but beer connoisseurs make the pilgrimage to this , about 90 minutes by car from Portland, to sample the selection of 35 drafts and 90 bottles, including rare Belgian brews.

Golden Saloon: McCarthy, Alaska

After a week in the bear-thick wilds of Wrangell鈥揝t. Elias National Park and Preserve, this in end-of-the-road McCarthy serving hard-living locals and hard-charging backpackers can seem downright civilized.

Roll Through the Backcountry

Colorado and Utah; June鈥揙ctober; From $670

Supported hut-to-hut mountain biking gets you into serious wilderness on sensational trails鈥攚ithout the burden of packing all your supplies. The is the 215 miles between Durango, Colorado, and Moab, Utah. By day, travel light with only your clothes, snacks, water, and repair kit, choosing between intermediate fire roads and expert singletrack. There are plenty of challenges, from stream crossings to 12,000-foot passes to steep slickrock. Evening brings you to a hut stocked with water, beer, food, sleeping gear, and unobstructed views of snow-covered peaks. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of long-distance riding in the U.S., but this is the only time I felt this level of remoteness,鈥� says Sandra Musgrave, a former pro racer from Austin, Texas. The final leg features one of the most celebrated stretches of trail riding in the country鈥攖he Whole Enchilada, a forearm-pumping, 7,000-foot technical descent from the top of the La Sal Mountains, down over requisite slickrock, to the Colorado River.

Shut the Hell Up

Barre, Massachusetts; Year-Round; From $210

Meditation has become so hip recently that the incessant hype has drowned out the simple fact that learning to sit in calm silence is a transformative skill. Skip the apps and get trained with a crew that鈥檚 been at it for 40 years. The runs one of the oldest and best centers in the country on a wooded property in central Massachusetts. Retreats range from two nights to three months,with fees on a sliding scale.

Get Intimate with a Grizzly

Admiralty Island, Alaska; July鈥揂ugust; $475 for flight, $35 for cabin

Any number of Alaskan outfitters offer day trips to sandbars to watch bears fishing. But you鈥檒l have a more memorable experience if you get two friends to go in on a floatplane charter with Ward Air from Juneau to Admiralty Island, which harbors one of the state鈥檚 greatest concentrations of brown bears. The six-bunk Admiralty Cove Cabin, one of many simple shelters in the region operated by the U.S. Forest Service, is near a creek overlooking a huge tidal meadow. Bears pack the estuary to gorge on salmon, so they鈥檙e easy to spot鈥攁nd decidedly carefree about your presence. ,

Take an Unplanned Road Trip

鈥淵ou need to give it enough time鈥攁t least a week. Use your phone only as a camera and music source. I always have a print atlas and the Gazetteers for whichever states I鈥檒l be in. And when you pack your clothes, cut the pile in half鈥攅xtra stuff complicates things. Ignore websites and just get on the road and talk to people. You鈥檙e going to meet a guy in a convenience store who tells you to go to the coolest place, and that鈥檒l change your trip. Say yes to absolutely everything. This is about wandering. It鈥檚 about sitting in the front seat and talking with your best friend鈥攐r just staring out the window and doing some thinking. It鈥檚 about getting a sense of the scale of the country and creating the mental space that you don鈥檛 have at any other time in your life.鈥濃�揃rendan Leonard, author of

Go All In

Sometimes blowing your savings or vacation days is worth it.

Lock Eyes with a Mountain Gorilla

Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda is easy to access and home to more groups of habituated mountain gorillas than anywhere else on earth. leads four-day trips out of Kigali. $1,880

Circle New Zealand's South Island

A sparse population, alpine peaks, world-class whitewater, paddle-perfect fjords, stunning cycling, and a 鈥渇reedom camping鈥� ethos that allows you to park your luxury almost anywhere makes the South Island the premier road-trip destination on the planet. $1,500 for a two-week camper-van rental

Cross the Ocean

The right way to do it: as part of a sailing crew. Online hubs list openings for sailors on boats making crossings. Many captains don鈥檛 require extensive experience, and they鈥檙e happy to offer passage if you鈥檙e willing to work hard for it. Free; and

Ski Chamonix

This French mountain town has long been the proving ground for the world鈥檚 best skiers and mountaineers. Get the most out of it by hiring a guide from the exclusive . From $394 for up to six people

Get Lost in the Amazon

It takes a flight from Cusco, Peru, over the Andes to Puerto Maldonado, followed by eight to ten hours in a motorized canoe, to get to the , a spartan 18-bedroom lodge that houses both travelers and scientists. The payoff: outside your door is a vast, uninhabited stretch of forest teeming with macaws, capybaras, caimans, and monkeys. From $788 for four days

Chase Shackleton

Brave the turbulent Southern Ocean on a ship bound for the planet鈥檚 most remote continent to see spectacular mountain ranges, bizarre ice formations, thousands of seals and penguins, and a landscape legendary for its mesmerizing white enormity. From $7,050 for a

Soak in Solitude

Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness, Idaho; July鈥揝eptember; Free

A general rule about hot springs: the harder it is to get to them, the fewer sketchy naked dudes you鈥檒l encounter in the water once you get there. Idaho has an abundance of both geothermal activity and remote wilderness, resulting in like Shower Bath Hot Springs in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness. To find them, you鈥檒l first need to negotiate the four-wheel-drive-only Sleeping Deer Road, northwest of Challis, then hike 4.5 miles on the steep, occasionally washed-out Mahoney Trail, past the 1910 ranger station, and up a canyon that narrows to the width of a hallway. Stumble through the fast-moving, thigh-high waters of Warm Springs Creek until you arrive at the hallowed place where it rockets out of the hillside and over the canyon lip, creating hot, deep, clear pools of varying temperatures. Chances are, the only sketchy naked dude around will be you.

Swim with a Monster

Baja, Mexico; August鈥揙ctober; $200 boat charter

There鈥檚 a reason that swimming with whale sharks is on every scuba nerd鈥檚 bucket list: it鈥檚 the easiest, safest way to get up close and personal with a creature the size of a school bus. Divers seek out the docile leviathans in tropical waters worldwide, but one of the best spots to see them is Bahia de Los Angeles, just 300 miles south of San Diego down the Baja peninsula. (Schedule two days for the drive鈥攖his is Mexico.) Stay at one of the handful of basic inns or managed campgrounds in town. In the morning, when the water is glassy, to bring you and up to seven friends out in a skiff, spot the sharks, and tell you when to jump in.

Climb a Random Mountain

鈥淭his is not a trophy summit that you can brag about at a cocktail party. You鈥檙e not getting a feather in your cap. This is the essence of climbing鈥攜ou鈥檙e doing it because you love the process. It starts with a search for a beautiful mountain that鈥檚 going to call out to you. You don鈥檛 always find these things on the Internet. Sometimes it鈥檚 a little mention in a climbing publication that catches your interest. You go, Oh wow, look at this place that no one goes to. Once I pick a mountain, I do initial research on Google Earth, then figure out how much time I鈥檒l need and make a detailed trip plan. Don鈥檛 let anyone tell you the golden age of exploration is over. There鈥檚 still a huge supply of peaks that are rarely climbed or have never been climbed.鈥濃�擬ark Synnott, professional climber and owner of

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Nick Symmonds, 800-meter World Championships silver medalist and former American record-holder in the beer mile, that he has been invited to compete on season seven of American Ninja Warrior.

Symmonds is, without a doubt, an amazing runner. But how will he fare when it comes to the full-body demands of ANW鈥檚 legendary obstacle courses? We can only speculate until he auditions on March 13. So that鈥檚 exactly what we鈥檙e gonna do. We talked to his track and field peers who have gone on to compete on the show. Their verdict on his chances? Not good.

Rose Wetzel, 32, is a former Georgetown runner and a 2:07 800-meter runner. She鈥檚 also ranked second in the world in the , which is largely why she was invited to try out for ANW this year.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a certain degree of excellence and ambition that an athlete like [Symmonds] has in him,鈥� Wetzel says, 鈥渁nd wherever he points that, he鈥檒l do well simply because of his capabilities and his drive. I鈥檓 certainly rooting for him.鈥�

But when pressed as to Symmonds鈥� chances of advancing through the first round?

鈥淚s it likely? Probably not.鈥�

Wetzel says that it comes down to grip strength especially, which is something most distance runners aren’t particularly good at. Wetzel herself is a personal trainer, and her grip has developed far beyond the typical middle distance athlete and it’s been further strengthened by obstacle racing. And even though Symmonds听may lift weights, she predicts he鈥檒l struggle in some of the more strength-based sections.

Now, Wetzel is still guessing at the exact demands of the event. But one man who knows them intimately is Levi Keller, an elite-level pole vaulter, firefighter, and ANW finalist in 2013. His thoughts on Symmonds鈥� chances?

鈥淣ot good,鈥� he says.

Keller, 29, is quick to add that it鈥檚 not just Symmonds. It鈥檚 anybody. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a really challenging course, especially if you haven鈥檛 been doing a lot of jumping and climbing,鈥� he says.

It鈥檚 the combination of strength and coordination that gets a person through. Keller remembers watching an Olympic sprinter get knocked out of the first obstacle for this very reason: all that strength, but none of the smarts to bring it together. What helped Keller excel, besides the pole-vaulting background, was the parkour and amateur gymnastics he鈥檇 been doing since he was a kid.

But maybe the best person to ask is Symmonds himself. In a phone call with 国产吃瓜黑料听Wednesday, Symmonds talked about the start of the idea, when he was injured last year and started working out intensely with his longtime strength coach , who is also the strength and conditioning coach for the University of Oregon. As they lifted, Symmonds was watching the end of season six, and joked that they should film their own audition tape. They did it in July. On Monday, Symmonds got the call.

Symmonds talks about being an 鈥渁ll-around athlete, not just a runner,鈥� and if he has any qualms about participating in the show, it鈥檚 not being able to devote more time to it. 鈥淢aybe in future years I can prepare as it should be,鈥� he says.

Granted, he鈥檚 still drawn plenty of criticism from the track faithful, though when compared to and , the backlash is milder. Still, there鈥檚 annoyance in his voice when he talks about the comments that he should be focused on training for the track season. 鈥淚 am training. I鈥檓 training to be a world champion in the 800,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 see the two as mutually exclusive.鈥�

And he鈥檚 not afraid of a potentially season鈥攐r career鈥攅nding injury in this diversion. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a chicken-shit way to live your life,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he rewards far outweigh the risks.鈥�

The publicity alone is worth diving into the obstacle course. ANW , up 10 percent over the previous year. Symmonds is right when he says he鈥檇 be hard-pressed to get that same reach at a track meet. This competition is about the Symmonds brand. It鈥檚 about the exposure to his sponsors, all of which, he says, are excited. His coach? That鈥檚 a different story.

鈥淗e asked if we were still on point with training, and if it would be a distraction,鈥� Symmonds says of his Brooks Beasts coach Danny Mackey.

To prepare, Symmonds will be doing…nothing. At least nothing unusual. His focus, he says, is still on the summer鈥檚 in Beijing, China. On his chances, he seems to have a realistic outlook. 鈥淚 think I鈥檝e got a really good shot at making it through the first stage, barring some fluke,鈥� he says. The second, which separates the climbers from everyone else, is where he anticipates the true challenge. He’s hoping his raw athletic ability and a shot of adrenaline will get him through the event.

鈥淚f I was a betting man, I鈥檇 bet on first and go out on second,鈥� he says. Still, he鈥檚 surprised himself in the past. 鈥淚鈥檒l train hard, and the rest? It is what it is.鈥�

The post What Are Nick Symmonds’ Chances at American Ninja Warrior? appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.

Has the charity race craze鈥攁ll those walks, runs, rides, and mud runs done to raise money for good causes鈥攂egun to fizzle? The numbers for 2014 aren鈥檛 in yet, but a survey of the top 30 programs showed a total drop of $44.5 million in 2013.

Make no mistake. Despite the declines, charity races and endurance events are still big business. In 2013, the top ten powerhouses affiliating with, or holding, such events raised more than $1 billion, led by the American Cancer Society鈥檚 at $380 million, followed by the Susan G. Komen for the Cure鈥檚 at almost $107 million, according to Peer-to-Peer Professional Forum. But six of those top ten events saw income declines, continuing a trend despite the improving economy.

Industry pros say the overall participation rates are flat or down only very slightly. So what accounts for the decline in total revenues? It may be that newer, jazzier events are cannibalizing participants from the older, established pioneers. Three day walks are out, mud runs are in.

鈥淧eople don鈥檛 want to do a 5K,鈥� says Tim Brockman, CEO and founder of , an event production company that works with charities, including Komen and the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. 鈥淭hey want to go to a neon disco blacklight 5K at night, and the vampire run, and an undie 500.鈥� Events like the Komen three-day walk helped pioneer the business, Brockman says, but many younger people鈥攖he ones with extra income and the drive to do something active for charity鈥攄on鈥檛 want to spend that much time out on the course. 鈥淭hey want to do it on a Saturday morning. It鈥檚 more about instant gratification.鈥�

Brockman鈥檚 company has seen growth in a new 5K mud run event it has operated with the Multiple Sclerosis Society called . The MuckFests ran in ten cities and drew just over 30,000 participants in 2014. The company has added an eleventh city for 2015.

Events like MuckFest are contributing to the 鈥檚 declining participation numbers, says Amy Boulas, the JDRF鈥檚 National Walk Director. 鈥淲e did not have that competition before,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd the younger generation says 鈥楢 walk鈥檚 great. I鈥檒l do it once. But it鈥檚 kinda boring and lame.鈥欌��

The silver lining for walks, however, is that walkers may be more dedicated to the actual cause, and be somewhat older and therefore have more money, and possibly time, to donate, Boulas says. Her retention rate, or the numbers of people who do a walk and then make the charity part of their life, is pretty good, though exact numbers were not given. 鈥淎nybody can do it,鈥� she explained of the walks. 鈥淭here are not a lot of barriers to entry. What I need to do as a fundraiser is ensure my organization has another way to engage you after you have done the walk for two or three years.鈥�

Toward that end, Boulas is exploring so-called 鈥渃ustomized鈥� endurance adventures in which smaller groups of people can do many kinds of events, from kayaking to canal skating. 鈥淵ou鈥檝e got to stay relevant the audience,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd yeah, it鈥檚 the younger generation. What do they want and expect? They say 鈥榃hat appeals to us?鈥欌��

, a charity that funds cleft palate surgeries around the world, has taken a slightly different approach to fundraising innovation. Instead of focusing on a short, sweet event like a morning mud run, or an array of different adventures like JDRF, they鈥檙e making charity racing a VIP lifestyle.

Smile Train has , paying a fee to the race to be the exclusive charity beneficiary (except for the Ironman Foundation itself). According to Sarah Coulam, senior manager of athletics for Smile Train, in the three years since initiating the partnership, the gross dollar amount raised has grown. In 2013, Smile Train grossed $425,000. This past year, it grossed over $800,000 thanks to the charity鈥檚 unique customer service practice: treating donors like Vegas high rollers. 鈥淵our job as the charity is to give them that extra VIP experience,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why some [charities] are successful and some struggle.鈥�

Smile Train engages its Ironman racers for nearly a year before the event by hosting both race training seminars and fund raising plans on the website 鈥渟o that every day they are thinking about your organization. They literally bike, swim, run, eat your organization.鈥�

As the race approaches, Smile Train triathletes don鈥檛 just get shorts and a T-shirt. The charity hosts webinars with the race director, VIP tours of the course with Ironman staff鈥攊ncluding racers鈥� family and friends, who are shown where the best spectator spots are located鈥攁n on-course training camp, and a post-race party. 鈥淲e have to be ahead of the curve to figure out what motivates people and how to get people to sign up and believe in the program,鈥� Coulam says. If that means being catered to like Kimye at a Vegas hotspot, so be it.

is a writer and author based in California and a frequent contributor to 国产吃瓜黑料 magazine. His most recent book is , written with neuroscientist Larry Young.听Follow him on Twitter at .

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