Suggestions on the First Four Months of Spartan Trifectas

Jan 299 min read

Updated: Feb 14

It's Time to Begin

Maybe you’ve never done a Spartan Race. Maybe you’re still recovering from the last trifecta weekend in Florida or trying to forget the company holiday party when you drunkenly hit on the senior vice president in Marketing. Whatever, it’s the time of year when we look ahead and map out our schedule for the coming season and either quadruple our problems or push them so far down, that we forget them. Either way, it’s time to go.

2025 is the Spartan Year of the Boar which is linked to the Fourth Labor of Hercules

TThis year's Spartan season is the Year of the Boar. In ancient Greek mythology, the goddess Hera gave Hercules a mental vacation; when he finally came to after a wild night, he realized he had committed a dreadful crime (and you thought your drunken escapades with the Marketing Director were bad). As a consequence, Apollo assigned Hercules a set of increasingly ridiculous tasks under the watchful eye of King Eurystheus for twelve years (Tufts University, 2025). During his fourth crazy mission, Hercules had to catch a giant, Erymanthian Boar alive (Erymanthian Boar, 20).25). Well, nothing is easy in this world, but our boy Hercules got the job done, and so can we in 2025. However, logistics have gotten a little bit more complicated since then, even putting aside conniving gods and goddesses. So, the suggestions below have two purposes:

First, to help you decide which Tri weekend to book
Second, to help you determine how many (if not all) of the races to attend, whether they are the standard Beast/Super/Sprint or the Ultra/Super/Sprint, or each flavor with a Spartan Trail run attached.

I will be posting this Trifecta scheduling analysis quarterly, but I will not focus on obstacles since their placement may change drastically from previous seasons. In-depth race reviews will be posted post individual races that will go into more detail in case you want to consider those races in 2026. As far as my math goes, Hercules still has 8 years of work to go, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

SoCal Trifecta Weekend, January 25, 2025, Perris, California

Spartan 2025 season kickoff in Perris Lake California in January

This year, there is an apocalyptic complication with the wildfires in Los Angeles. Perris Lake is a large man-made lake and reservoir about 60 miles east of Los Angeles, and as of the date of this posting, the race is still on, per my contacts at Spartan. They have promised that the air quality is good, and there will be a fundraiser at the event that will collect non-perishable items for victims of the wildfires. There will inevitably be some fallout and controversy that the race is being held but I will be changing my travel plans somewhat. As a result, I booked airfare into San Diego airport and intend on driving the 1 – 2 hours north to Perris with the understanding that traffic in Southern California is always a crapshoot. Monday is a workday for me, so I need to get the red-eye back, and neither Palm Springs nor John Wayne Airport offers that option.

The centerpiece of this event is a 3-mile by a 2-mile man-made reservoir within an 8,200 square mile nature preserves with a large boating recreational center in a mountain-ringed valley. The recreational center boasts a large, paved lot directly before the center entrance. The parking lot is large, with no shuttle buses, and a short walk to packet pickup. Last year the course for all three races was relatively flat and fast, with some impressive times posted by the elite racers. The beast started with an 8-mile loop north of the lake through rolling, hard-packed sandy terrain that cut through scrub brush and loose rocks. The course had no tangible technical aspects, and I saw many runners wearing road shoes with no problems. After the 8-mile loop, the Beast course cut across the lake, essentially a beach that ringed the southern portion of the lake. This was not a big problem since the sand was tightly packed and did not considerably slow down runners. The final two miles of the Beast course returned to the festival area with some stretches on access roads used by the recreational center. The Super course eliminated the 8-mile loop and offered a shorter two-mile loop before heading to the beach but included the final Beast section. The Sprint course eliminated the Super two-mile loop and cut out the back section for the Super and Beast course for the standard 5k distance. This is a great beginning-of-the-year kickoff race, with zero elevation and an opportunity to get some miles in and focus on obstacles.

See you at Perris Lake.

Houston Trifecta Weekend, Cat Spring Texas, March 8, 2025

Houston in March is the second Trifecta race of the season for Spartan

Welcome to the wild, wild west of IL7 Ranch in Cat Spring, Texas, where cows outnumber people and the nearest hotel is a 30-minute road trip away. I've snagged a spot in Brenham, just 17 miles north of the action. Brenham is a hop, skip, and a jump from Houston International Airport (1.5 hours) and a quick 30-minute jaunt from Austin Airport. The drive to the race site is smoother than a Texas two-step, especially at dawn when everyone's still snoozing. Brenham boasts some finger-lickin' take-out BBQ, a Walmart the size of Texas for those last-minute 'oops' moments, and enough grocery stores to keep you civilized. The ranch has a massive field right by packet pickup, so you won't need a GPS to find it. Parking? Easy peasy, even after Sunday's races. Pro tip: stash a few gallons of water in your car, and on the last day, enjoy a luxurious parking lot shower and a ninja-speed wardrobe change before jetting to the airport.

The course is flatter than a pancake. Last year, it was a speed demon's paradise for elites and mere mortals alike. Thanks to Texas being a prehistoric beach party during the Cretaceous Era, the race is part beach run, part hard-packed soil shuffle. No need to worry about twisting an ankle on technical terrain, but be prepared for some serious calf cramps. My tip? Beef up those calves and bring your own hydration. I always run with a water bottle belt and some Liquid IV packets, just in case. Trust me, your calves will thank you, especially if you're racing both days.

Pop quiz! Is Houston hot or cold? Trick question! Last year, it was a brisk 30 degrees with a side of wind. So, you've got two choices: pack for every weather scenario or make a fashion gamble at the giant Brenham Walmart. As a carry-on-only traveler, my wardrobe space is limited, so Walmart it is!

See you in Houston for this awesome new event!

the schedule.

Atlanta Trifecta Weekend Conyers, Georgia 3/15/2025

Atlanta, always around St. Patricks day is the third Trifecta of the season

The Atlanta Trifecta weekend takes place at the same venue, the Georgia International Horse Park, which has hosted the event for eight years now. This venue is situated near Conyers, Georgia, just east of Atlanta. If you are driving to this event, be aware that Atlanta has some of the worst traffic congestion in the country. One getting to Conyers the traffic is fine but if you are traveling the day of and night before the race put extra time on your schedule.

Spartan continues to schedule Trifecta weekends differently from previous seasons by offering a Beast and a Sprint on Saturday and a Super and Sprint on Sunday. This makes it easier for anyone with long-distance travel plans to finish by noon on Sunday while completing all three race distances. On Sunday, a 10K trail race called "Georgia Grit" is also offered. However, starting the 10k trail at 10 am created a tight window to participate in all three Sunday races. But if you can run fast, you can conceivably run 5 events in a weekend at this venue. Parking however is always a challenge; general parking is about a mile (at least) from the festival area. Racers should allow plenty of time to park and walk to the registration tents before their start time. I am a big fan of this venue, but the weather has always been bi-polar. Three years ago, this race was called Atlant-arctica because it was a rainy 40 degrees, making it one of the worst weather weekends on the calendar that season. In previous years, sunny days or ice on the course have made it hit or miss at best. Last year, the weather was a perfect 60 degrees with slightly overcast skies. So like Houston, you have to check your friendly weather app and roll the dice or have a Wal-Mart backup plan depending on the changing weather pattern.

Great course, unique and varied. The beast course starts with some rolling hills through Southern Pines. If you run in the south in the fall or spring, pine needs to be on the ground to provide soft footing that can hide roots, but it’s also an iconic Southern setting for trail running. We also run through a massive drainpipe with ankle-deep water, bringing us to the ironic granite outcroppings. Conyers is about 30 miles from Stone Mountain, the country’s most prominent granite outcropping, estimated to be 350 million years old. Almost like a lunar landscape, granite is everywhere instead of soil. It makes running treacherous when the ground is slick or if it starts raining (Granite Outcroppings, 2025)

Last year Spartan got permission to use more of the area on the other side of a country road, and they made the most of it. The South in the spring and fall can be beautiful with old-growth forests and hilly landscapes. Last year, we looped up and down significant hills, which is how the Beast accumulated over 3,000 feet of elevation. With little of this on the front 5 miles, the back 8 miles had significant elevation swings. Though there was no single huge climb, the accumulation of the hills was a quad burner. Keeping some gas in the tank for this back section is good if you are a hard-charging runner. There were some steep inclines, one with a Cargo Net I had only seen on the Ashville course when it was at Black Mountain. These wooded sections opened into treeless sections, and the sun was a factor, especially on the second barbed wire crawl, which was a severe uphill. Atlanta has varied terrain, and it’s an excellent way to determine if training must be adjusted for the road ahead. Races up to this point were relatively flat; this course is hilly, with 3,000 feet of elevation. The Super and the Sprint are fun, shorter distances, but the Beast is a handful and a reality check. Just be aware that the weather is like that crazy fiend who forgot to take their medication. It can be hot, rainy, or icey from one year to the next, so be ready for anything and be ready to adjust from Saturday to Sunday.

See you in ATL

Tri-State Ultra-Fecta Weekend, Vernon, New Jersey

The New Jersey Ultra-fecta at Mountain Creek hosts the second Ultra of the 2025 season.

First tough race weekend on the calendar from an elevation perspective New Jersey ranks consistently in the top five year in and year out. For those not familiar with the region Vernon New Jersey, is the home of Mountain Creek Ski Resort and sits close to the New York State border. Vernon is in the Appalachian Highlands regional area that is characterized by long parallel ridges and valleys formed by the folding of sedimentary rock during the formation of the Appalachian Mountains hundreds of million years ago and one of the oldest mountain chains in the world. New Jersey is in the Kittatinny Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains. The ski resort base camp is in a valley Vernon Valley, a valley in the Kittatinny Mountains that's bordered by Pochuck Mountain and Wawayanda Mountain (yeah that’s why the gas station is called WaWa). More importantly, the Ski Resort, which was once home to the infamous Action Park, is known to locals as Class Action Park (Action Park, 2024).

I have flown into Newark Airport as well as Lehigh Valley Airport a small regional airport in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Newark has recently been renovated and it’s a major improvement but driving out of Newark to Vernon may be difficult for some not used to heavy travel even though it’s only about 45 minutes. Lehigh is a great local airport that I use for the Palmerton race each year but is about one hour and forty-five minutes, but a much easier drive.

This is one of my personal favorites on the race schedule since it has been virtually unchanged since Spartan first hosted races here. There are two only two hotels in town, one sells out immediately, and one is in my top five worst hotels. Last year I stayed there and listened to a guy arguing about a drug deal till about midnight. My recommendation is to stay in Goshen NY) or Middletown NY, about 45 minutes away. Several great diners, hotels, and stores in case you must pick up last-minute supplies. With almost no parking on site, there are shuttle buses that take racers to four different local parking lots unless you opt for the premium parking. One of the parking lots should be a historical landmark because it is the parking lot for the long-closed Playboy Casino (Playboy Casino, 2024).

Overall, this is a great race for Spartans who are thinking about the Killington Ultra since the elevation at this race is similar. The NJ Ultra (Vernon Race Program, 2024) has 11,000 feet of total elevation gain to Killington’s 16,000 feet (Killington Race Program, 2024). This can provide an early season test of endurance that can inform training for Killington in September. Weather can be variable but there is still usually some snow on the course holding out from the ski season. Last year temperatures were in the 60’s, but over the ten years I have been running this race it has been rainy, cold; rainy and cold; hot, and everything in between.

Bottom line? Tough course, variable weather, difficult logistics, inconvenient parking, and all the fun you can stand. See You in Vernon.