We wanted to find out, independent of any Spartan Race data, what people think of many aspects of Spartan Race events in 2023. We are in no way associated with Spartan Race other than participating in their events. The data provided is just as we received it. As you can see from the title, Spartan received a rating of 6/10 from 180 surveyed athletes...not a great number.
Spartan's overall score: 6/10 (14 questions, 1400% total, 807% Agree & Strongly Agree, 807/1400 = 57.64% (Rounded to 60% or 6/10 for whole number convenience). Since all questions were posed in the positive, a response of "Agree" or "Strongly Agree" is what we consider a good rating for each question. A "Neutral" rating isn't good in the eyes of a business trying to bring in more customers, revenue, and provide an experience.
*Note: For next year's survey, we plan on adding questions about ticket price/cost, photo quality/quantity from races, and venue locations.* Leave us a comment if you can think of more, pertinent questions.
Question 1: I find Spartan Race obstacles fun and creative.
It appears as though most people are okay with the obstacles. Only 37 actually don't agree with the statement, so that's a decent score...not amazing, but decent.
Question 2: Spartan Race medals are awesome.
If you look at them by themselves, Spartan Race usually does a solid job with the look/feel of their medals. Sometime years they haven't been amazing, but mostly they are cool! Most of those surveyed thought the same.
We've trained athletes from beginner, all the way up to Elite, for Spartan Race. Our athletes have complete the Killington Ultra, Placed in the top 3 at the Age Group National Series, and reached 100% obstacle completion. Sign up now for your Custom Training Program.
Question 3: I generally like the festival area at Spartan's races.
Personally, I think the festival area is very important at a Spartan Race. This is where spectators spend most of their time and where athletes rest and recover and wait to see their friends come in and finish an event. Having a festival area that people love is very important for an event like this. There were a lot of Neutral and Disagree responses. I don't think that's very good.
Question 4: I often participate in activities in the festival area. (Examples: DJ-hosted fitness challenges, interacting with sponsors, buying food and beverages)(Please don't count porter-potty usage or registration for this question - we have to say it)
Most people surveyed aren't very active in the festival area. I personally don't typically interact with sponsors, and I only buy food at Beast+ distance events, otherwise I pack my own food for after the race. Every point of contact and interaction is important for events, so if Spartan can find a way to get more people involved in activities in the festival area, it can only be beneficial.
Question 5: The Spartan Race STAFF at events is professional and helpful in general. (NOT VOLUNTEERS) (If you have had no interaction with race STAFF, please select "NA".)
Of those surveyed who did interact with Spartan Race staff, the majority think they are solid. Personally, I don't recall ever having issues with any staff in my 8ish years of doing their events, so that seems about right. Having good, professional staff members is crucial for events that host thousands of people in-person.
Question 6: I think Spartan Race should keep Barbed Wire as a part of the Barbwire Crawl and not change it to rope/string/cordage.
After Palmerton this year, questions arose on social media and podcasts about whether or not the Barbwire should stay, so we wanted to ask the general Spartan Race population. As you can see, most want to keep it as it currently stands.
Question 7: I like the material that Spartan Race Finisher shirts are made from.
I will go on record and say that I hate the Spartan Race shirt material. If it's sunny out, the black shirts get super hot in a way normal black shirts don't. I also think it's pretty cheap feeling and several of my Spartan Shirts have been itchy to wear. I'd put them in the top 3 worst shirt material of any race shirt I've worn. However, many of you are Neutral or better in your opinion of it, but 47 still don't love it.
Question 8: Spartan Race does a great job marking their courses.
In my experience, and the experience of most surveyed, Spartan does a good job with course marking. Have I been confused before and veered off for a bit? Yes. However, of the many races I've been to, the vast majority have been quite well marked.
Question 9: I think there is adequate on-course water (hydration stations) and fuel (gels, bars, etc.)
Pretty good here. Most people think they are doing enough with food and water on course. Sounds about right. As long as they have enough water for someone to stay reasonably hydrated and replace some calories, it's good. Anything more than that should be up to the individual.
Question 10: If I had to choose between Spartan Race and any other OCR on the same date, I would choose Spartan Race.
This is not good for Spartan. The good news is that they have so many races that they just cover every weekend. HOWEVER, it seems to be a toss-up as to whether or not people will go to a Spartan if they have other options. We don't know from this survey why that is...just that it is.
Question 11: I like the standardization of Spartan Race obstacles.
As long as those participating are good with it, Spartan should keep doing it...as much as that pains me to say. The majority has spoken. Standardization is acceptable.
Question 12: The parking at most Spartan Race venues is good.
Fair enough. Parking matters. If you've ever been to a venue that got a lot of rain and the parking fields got super muddy...you know. It can be a disaster with everyone trying to get out. Sometimes there is nothing Spartan can do about that...people think they are doing okay though!
Question 13: I like the new Elite 3K race format. (If you know nothing about it, please select "NA")
Yeah, this is a small sample size overall, but this is awful. A lot of people disagree with the statement, and worse, 97 thought they knew too little about the Elite 3K races to even haven an opinion. If Spartan Race wants their 3K competitions to be big, serious, and have large viewership, they need to fix this. Currently no one cares to know.
Question 14: Training for a Spartan Race helps keep me motivated to workout and get/be in shape.
This is what Joe De Sena always said about Spartan Race. He wanted it to be something people put on their calendars and started training for. It looks like it works for that according those who answered the survey.
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