Seashell started off the year with a bang, literally!

Our first event of 2023 for us was attending the MacTuff OCR which was held on Sunday 8th of January at Knockhill Race Course in Dunfermline, Scotland.

Although the race started at 11am, there were people arriving before 9am.

It was clear that people were very keen for this race. There was such a buzz in the air with a mix of nerves and being cold in the crisp January Scottish air. 

Just before the race started, the mass pipe band made their way through the race crowd to the start line. Following the race briefing, the pipes started again and then the runners were off. Many with smoke bombs of many colours lighting up the crowd. As the runners made their way to one of their first obstacles (get past the American Football team) the fireworks started, literally! 

Although it was a mass start, there were two different races. A 7km and a 15km. There were many doing it as individuals and many as groups. What was particularly great about this race was that there were opportunities for those who were racing to be competitive to have space to get by and not wait behind those who were doing it slower in groups. It meant that you could go at the pace you wanted. 

There were an array of different obstacles. From climbing over metal structures, moving monkey bars to crawling through tunnels filled with mud and barbed wire. It is safe to say that those started with white or light coloured tops didn’t finish with the same colour!

This was a particularly chilly day. I am surprised that it wasn’t snowing. I am sure that those doing it really felt it when they got to any of the water obstacles.

I know that I would have enjoyed being cooled down by the water but for many they had to keep moving just to stay warm. A tough but fun challenge for sure! Many were wearing neoprene gloves, headbands and shorts etc to keep in as much warmth as possible.

Walking around the route watching people push themselves over, through and under these obstacles gave me such a buzz. You could see how much fun they were all having even though it was mega muddy and cold. 

There were loads of people there spectating and cheering the competitors on all around the course which was lovely to see and hear.

Events like MacTuff give the opportunity for people to get outside into nature and have fun with it in a way they probably wouldn’t do on their own. Especially in the groups. Many were staying together to make sure every team member got through and it was very heart-warming.

Towards the end of the day the sun even came out to warm those getting to the finish line to collect their much deserved medals. 

To add to this, there was hot chocolate on tap for those who had finished for some warmth and some sugar.There were lots of smiles, laughter and dancing at the end with the DJ.

We were set up with all of our Seashell kit in the pitlane alongside the hot chocolate stand. It was fantastic to see, meet and chat with so many amazing people throughout the day.

People had been really looking forward to this race and kick start the year of racing and what a race to start that off.

Overall a fantastic OCR to start of 2023.

Thank you to the organisers for having us and we are looking forward to coming back for more! 

We are also considering having a Seashell team do the race together so if you are reading this and are interested in joining in then let us know.

Thank you very much for reading our blog. We hope we have inspired you to get out and try an Obstacle Course race this year. We hope to see you soon.

The Seashell Team.

Our aim is to share other people's stories. Whether you have a story about mental health, community or why you started wild swimming for example. 

If you would like to be featured in our Seashell stories then email us on: support@seashellcsc.com