Extreme Benidorm?

Most people are familiar with the Benidorm that is seen on the popular TV sit-com of the same name.

It is true that a small part of what Benidorm is and has to offer is represented in the sit-com Benidorm, but it is not the full story.

Benidorm has many not so well known delights to offer to those who choose it for their vacation destination.

In this article, I am going to introduce you to an extreme event that you most likely will not associate with Benidorm.

The event is 'Xtrem Running' it's OK, I have not got the spelling wrong, that's the name of the event. This event took place Saturday the 11th of July in Benidorm.

It is a 6 kilometre course that has 15 obstacles that the competitors have to navigate. If you are the sort of person that does not like to get dirty then this event is definitely not for you.

July in Benidorm is of course hot, but in spite of the heat there was a good turnout of competitors. I saw vest numbers up in the 800 range. The Xtrem run officials said that the turnout was over 700, so it was a very good turnout.

Xtrem Running is a popular event that anyone who is physically able can take part in. I think part of its popularity lies in the fact that the fee to take part is only 10€. This works out at around $11 USA or £7 GBP which I think you will agree is more than reasonable.

In fact I think that this price is extraordinary when you include the goodie bag that each competitor receives.

The goodie bag contained Commemorative Tee Shirt and medal. Also in the goodie bag were sponsor's gizits discount Sportzone shop, pkt of soup, discount for Terra Natura, and a muesli bar.

There was a large drink station sponsored by Powerade. At the drink station were free drinks available to the competitors and pieces of cut fruit.

A lot of organising goes into this event in the first place they have to build the course. They have all the admin cost, they have to print the vest numbers and it all costs money. Fortunately most of the behind the scenes people are volunteers, which must help keep the costs down.

The competitors ranged from serious runners who were out to win to those who were just out to have fun with friends.

There is also an elite band who are running in this event as part of a series of events that make up the Spartan Running events that take place all over Spain.

You can see one of these serious runners in the photograph below. The Spartan runner is wearing the red vest and he got off to an explosive start. He was off the mark so quickly that he was two paces in front of the other competitors right away.

Many were running with friends just taking part in the run for the sheer fun of it all.

It was easy to see from the look on the competitor's faces that fun was being had by the majority of those on the run. This group of friends were off to a much more leisurely start than our Spartan in the previous photograph.

They are clearly taking time to laugh and chat as they go.

Looking at the two competitors in the photo below it looks like a young man and his grandmother. But all is not as it seems. Both of them are youngsters and about the same height.

It was only when the photographer pointed his lens at them that the young woman bent to take the pose of an old woman.

Look closely at the photograph and you will see the lines on her face are only drawn on.

She had me fooled.

It was hot but quite a few competitors ran in fancy dress which I think would make those runners task even more difficult. I also think that they would feel the effects of the heat more than the other runners.

There were also those who were out to raise money for charities close to their hearts.

Sponsoring people competing in all kinds of sporting events seems to me a very positive way to raise money for charity.

Part of the appeal of this kind of event is that, it provides the runner with a chance to challenge themselves.

If you run for a charity you are not only raising money but you also benefit. Raising money as you run, is a great motivator, which spurs you on.

Knowing that your run will raise money inspires you to put in the training and to finish the event.

Some of the groups that were running together were work colleagues. The group in the photo below is from the HCB Hospital Clinica Benidorm. They look to be having a lot of fun.

If you are familiar with Benidorm you will know that many people who are about to get married pick Benidorm to hold their Stag or Hen Party.

When you think of a Hen Parties, Xtrem Running is not the picture that it conjures up in your mind.

But Xtrem Running Benidorm, is where one young bride to be, chose to have her Hen Party.

From the look on their faces, I am sure that they had a more memorable and enjoyable Hen Party than most do.

The young bride to be is the one that is dressed differently. The tee-shirts that the four young women in the hen party were wearing have the words 'Runaway Bride' in Spanish on them.

Because there were so many runners taking part, there was often a bottleneck at the obstacles.

So, what can do with your time when forced to wait at a bottleneck?

This young couple's solution was to pose to have their photograph taken. Time well spent in my opinion.

Most of the competitors taking part seemed to be as happy as they approached the finishing line as they did when they were on the start line.

I think that you can see from the smiles on the faces of the competitors in photos below, that they had all enjoyed being part of this fun event.

I think when the competitors are having such a lot of fun it makes it enjoyable for the spectators of the event too.

If you are wondering why the competitors are looking so clean, it's because the last obstacle to be navigated was three or four huge containers of water.

Below is SPARTAN RAGE's YouTube Video of some of the action from Xtrem Running 2015 Benidorm

SPARTAN RAGE