Every Memorial Day, CrossFit gyms around the world participate in a workout called Murph. At first glance, Murph sounds intimidating: 1 mile run 100 pull-ups 200 push-ups 300 air squats...
This past weekend, five of us from Breathe CrossFit took on the Spartan Sprint in Barre, VT — a 3.8-mile course packed with 22 obstacles, mud, and plenty of laughs. For some, it was their very first Spartan; for others, another challenge to add to the list.
Who Went
Keleigh – joined Breathe almost three years ago with the goal of learning rope climbs & monkey bars so she could crush Spartan races. She’s now a CrossFit coach and Client Success Manager at Breathe.
Bill – joined about a year and a half ago, training in personal training sessions with Eli. His big goal? Rope climbs. Mission accomplished.
Jen – just over a year into group classes, ready to take on new challenges.
Trinity – about to hit her one-year mark with us, she faced down a fear of heights and crushed the rope climb mid-race.
Eli – first Spartan experience, pleasantly surprised by how fun (and tough) the course was.
The Obstacles
The day started with a crawl under barbed wire and a short wall jump. Soon after came the monkey bars, which were tougher than expected: thick pipes with uneven spacing. Everyone gave it a go and pushed through.
The infamous spear throw proved humbling. None of us stuck it — and technically you’re supposed to do 30 burpees as a penalty. We decided to skip the burpees and keep moving. We do enough burpees in class…
Other Favorites Included
* The cargo net climb (20 feet tall, up and over).
* The inverted wall (angled toward you at 45°).
* The sandbag rope pull (70 lbs for men, 50 lbs for women).
* The multi-rig with rings, bars, and grip-burning transitions.
* And of course, the rope climb near the finish — where everyone got a rep, including Bill (after 18 months of training) and Trinity, who pushed past her fear of heights!
We finished by leaping over fire, ringing the cowbells on our last obstacles, and proudly wearing some seriously heavy medals.
What We Learned
1. ) CrossFit prepares you – Rope climbs, grip strength, sandbag carries, and general conditioning gave us confidence on the course.
2.) Community matters – We stuck together, cheered each other on, and had more fun because of it.
3.) It’s worth it – At $195 entry, you get a medal, shirt, photos, and an experience you’ll never forget!
Looking ahead
Keleigh’s chasing the Spartan Trifecta — sprint, super, and beast distances. And after this event, the rest of us are hooked too. Next summer, we’d love to rally an even bigger crew.
Whether you’ve got your sights set on Spartan, a 5K, or just your first rope climb, training with a supportive community makes all the difference! We hope you join us!
Listen to our podcast to hear all the details.
