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Former Marble Falls athlete earns skull in grueling and ‘crazy’ Peak Death Race

Marble Falls High School graduate Isaiah Vidal chops wood during one of the many tasks he completed during the 70-hour Peak Death Race in Pittsfield, Vt., on June 21-24. He was only one of 41 people out of a 194 starters who completed the grueling race. It's the second year in a row Vidal finished the Death Race. Courtesy photo

DANIEL CLIFTON • PICAYUNE EDITOR

PITTSFIELD, Vt. — For fun on the weekend of June 21-24, Isaiah Vidal chopped wood, helped build a mile-long stone staircase 1,000 feet up a mountainside, hiked 30 miles weighed down with rocks, swam three miles and crawled through a barbed-wire-encased ravine.“I enjoy the pain,” the former Marble Falls High School athlete said from Vermont a day after completing his second Peak Death Race. “Last year, I prepared for the race, but this year, I didn’t particularly train for it. It was all mental for me.”

The Peak Death Race sends competitors clamoring over the Vermont countryside. Along the way, they must complete numerous tasks. But organizers don’t tell the competitors what the tasks are until the racers arrive at that particular spot on the course.

“One of the things we had to do was build this rock trail,” Vidal said. “It was just crazy.”

The race pushes competitors to their limits, physically and mentally, for more than 70 hours. The event started the morning of June 21, but the first participants didn’t arrive at the finish line until the morning of June 24. In between, racers endured countless hours of running, hiking, swimming and other challenges.

Before the race, 400 people registered to compete in the 2013 Peak Death Race, but only 194 arrived in Pittsfield to attempt it. Of those starters, only 41, including four women, earned “official finisher” status.

Isaiah Vidal collects his second Death Race skull after completing the 2013 race in Pittsfield, Vt. The event pushes competitors for 70 hours during which they run, hike, chop wood, build things, carry rocks and complete other tasks. Finishers earn the coveted skull to mark their accomplishment. Vidal earned his first skull after completing the 2012 Peak Death Race. Courtesy photo
Isaiah Vidal collects his second Death Race skull after completing the 2013 race in Pittsfield, Vt. The event pushes competitors for 70 hours during which they run, hike, chop wood, build things, carry rocks and complete other tasks. Finishers earn the coveted skull to mark their accomplishment. Vidal earned his first skull after completing the 2012 Peak Death Race. Courtesy photo

“Just like life, the Peak Death Race is designed to push and aggravate people to such a point that even the most stoic eventually fail,” said Jo De Sena, the event co-founder and a founder of the Spartan Race series. “Only those people possessing incredible discipline under the most insane and even delusional circumstances can call themselves finishers. These athletes are willing to compete the journey at all costs. The fact that people endured for 70 hours to see what they are made of is just remarkable and awe-inspiring. This is our longest race to date.”

Vidal, who played football and soccer at Marble Falls High School, discovered obstacle-course racing after graduation. In the rather new sport, Vidal saw a chance to stretch and challenge himself beyond what he would normally attempt.

And that’s one of the goals of the growing sport, as well as his own.

“I do these to push myself past what I normally can do,” Vidal said. “The Death Race, in particular, is designed to take the human being past their abilities. It just changes your life because you realize how much you really can accomplish if you’re willing to push yourself even when you physically or mentally don’t want to. I’ve seen it in my life.”

Vidal has more races in the future. His next Spartan Race (www.spartanrace.com) is July 13-14 at Estadio Azteca (Aztec Stadium) in Mexico City. In October, Vidal is entering the first Survival Run: Hunter Gatherer in Rocksprings, Texas. Racers chose between the 50-kilometer or the 100-kilometer obstacle course that includes tasks involving memorizing, carrying, climbing, throwing, digging and building. The people behind this particular race include Marble Falls resident Brad Quinn and Josque Stephens, who are also organizing the first Hill Country Marathon on Oct. 20 in Marble Falls.

The website, www.fuegoyagua.org/survival-hunter-gatherer, provides more information on the Survival Run.

Vidal doesn’t mind the suffering that comes along with obstacle-course racing. In fact, he admitted it’s something he seeks. But it’s not just about the pain. It’s also about creating stories and adventures he can share with his own future children.

“I’m gaining these experiences that a lot of 20-year-olds wouldn’t want to do,” he said. “And I get to say to my kids, ‘I did the craziest, craziest races.’ What are most other 20-year-olds doing? What stories and adventures will they have to share with their kids?”

daniel@thepicayune.com