Fayetteville was the reliable option, and despite the occasional thunderstorms in May, the weather remained consistent. The Fall race, however, was as unpredictable as the autumn weather in the Carolinas. It began at the Carolina Adventure World in Winnsboro, made a stop at the University of South Carolina campus in Spartanburg, and even took over the Tryon International Equestrian Center , still famous for the legendary cold and wet debacle in 2019.

After COVID reset the scene, Spartan appears to have permanently settled in Newberry, South Carolina, starting in 2021. Newberry offers all the right elements—challenging yet fair terrain, woods that provide wind protection, dependable parking and festival arrangements, and a course design that allows first-time Ultra runners to start without immediately facing a Tryon-like ordeal. Today, Newberry feels like the successor to Winnsboro: tough but fair, diverse yet not punishing, and consistent enough to build a race weekend around. It has also earned a reputation as an excellent Ultra for beginners, with this year's race drawing over 400 Ultra participants.

At first glance, Newberry might seem like an unremarkable, almost dull area, but it is anything but. From its history to its geological significance and the dark skies free from big city light pollution, it's really a unique area. If you are running the Ultra or any of the shorter races, you spend a lot of time in these woods. And these woods and the surrounding area and the sky above have a real story to tell.

The Ground Below

Map depicting North America, Greenland, Europe, and Africa. Notable features: Appalachian and Caledonian Mountains, North Atlantic Ocean. — The Ouachita-Appalachian, Mauritanide, Caledonide, and Variscan Belts spanning North America, Africa, and Europe. (Courtesy of USGS, 2025)

The Newberry, South Carolina region offers a unique lens into deep Earth history—its hills, soils, The terrain around Newberry sits on the quiet surface expression of a violent tectonic

past. Hundreds of millions of years ago, this part of the Carolinas was caught in the collisions that stitched together the supercontinent Pangea, as volcanic arcs slammed into the growing Appalachian margin and unleashed immense heat, pressure, and mountain-building across the region. Those collisions raised Himalayan-scale peaks and left behind the hard crystalline rocks now buried beneath Johnson Family Farm. As Pangea later tore apart and the Atlantic opened, the mountains eroded, rivers reorganized, and the Piedmont settled into the rolling uplands we race on today. Every slope, ridgeline, and red clay bank in Newberry is a quiet remnant of that tectonic violence — a deep-time landscape shaped by shifting plates, vanished volcanoes, and the long, slow work of erosion. (Click here for more info.)

The Sky Above

M31, the Andromeda Galaxy, our closest galactic nieghbor, 2.5 million light years from Earth. Courtesy of SGO, 2025

During the same weekend as the race, the Shank Gym Observatory (SGO) captured the Andromeda Galaxy — a stream of photons that departed from M31 approximately 2.5 million years ago and arrived over Newberry as racers were setting up their gear. I set up my Seestar S50 in the field next to the race site, and over the next 90 minutes, I was able to capture a series of raw images that were stacked using post-processing software.

These raw Seestar S50 images reveal the bright galactic core and the sweeping dust lanes of our nearest spiral neighbor, offering a surreal sense of time: while Andromeda’s light was on its way to Earth, the Carolinas were already home to ancient forests, changing climates, and early human ancestors who had not yet carved paths across the Piedmont. The photo serves as a reminder that the race weekend is just one brief moment against a cosmic backdrop. (Full SGO entry linked.)

The Path Behind

Courtesy of University of Tennessee Press.

Long before farms, roads, or race tape, the Newberry region was part of a lived-in Indigenous world shaped by the Saluda, Broad, and Enoree rivers. Peoples later known as the Saluda, Congaree, Wateree, Catawba, and their Siouan-speaking neighbors moved through this landscape following the terrain’s natural logic — planting crops in river terraces, hunting along ridgelines, using controlled burns to manage forests, and traveling rivers that acted as the first highways. This was not wilderness but a coherent, practical world connected to larger trade networks that stretched across the Southeast. The race course sits on ground shaped not only by geology but by generations of human movement long before European settlement. See full history entry

The Way Through

Well Attended Event ... Really

Finally yielding to the relentless pressure from the OCR Kings lobbying division, Spartan now possesses reliable racer statistics.

They can now parse the difference between individual people and total race entries. This is the first time I have received real statistics from this weekend that are realistic: there were 3,900 racers over the three days. With multiple people running two or three races, this amounts to about 7,500 race entries, making this a really well-attended event.

But that is not the real statistic that stands out. There were over 400 ultra runners. I don't recall seeing that number before, so congratulations to everyone who participated. This is what makes this venue stand out. A fall ultra that lets first-timers step up to the longer distance and what makes this venue a steady presence on the schedule.

Travel and Lodging

Over the years, I have run a lot of races in South Carolina with the Upstate Road and Trail Series, a solid choice for ultra running based out of Columbia, SC.

I live in the Carolinas, and when this race was initially announced in Newberry, SC a few years ago, my first reaction was... Where? Newberry is a small town about 30 minutes northwest of Columbia, SC, and 90 minutes southeast of Charlotte. This somewhat out-of-the-way location actually makes travel a little easier since you can avoid the major interstate highways like 77 and 85 (if traffic is bad). The closest airport in Charlotte makes air travel convenient (wait, did I just use convenient and air travel in the same sentence?), but there is a bit of a downside... lodging.

There are only a handful of hotels and motels in Newberry. They tend to fill up fast and are overpriced during the race weekend. But I get it, if you have a 6 am start for the ultra, you want to be as close as possible. I have run the ultra here 3 times, and a five-minute drive to the venue from Newberry is a plus, but you have to offset that with the quiet you need to get to bed early. So after staying in Newberry the first year, I decided the last few years to stay near Columbia, a 30-minute ride that at Zero Dark Hundred is a lot faster. For me, the trade-off between quality sleep and getting up a little early is worth it.

Parking at this venue is simple. Based on how they lay out the course and registration, the walk from the field where we park to registration is not more than 0.25 mile or so. But if you plan on doing the ultra, Friday packet pickup and transition bucket drop-off can save you some time and a walk carrying gear. Over the years, I have not seen any problems with cars getting stuck in both field parking (overflow is across the street).

Food

Let's be honest—if you've been involved with Spartan races for some time, you're aware that all Southeast race venues feature the unmatched Island Noodles. Cardboard containers of Soba Noodles with some sauce and chicken and chicken. They were packed on both days and for good reason. They were cheap and convenient after a long run.

However, if you're not big on standing around slurping noodles, here are some local restaurants I've noticed near the venue over the past few years.

Legends Steakhouse

1831 Wilson Rd

Tiny Paris Carolina

1109 Caldwell St

Figaro The Dining Room

1117 Boyce St

The Grille On Main

1212 Main St

Steelhorse Smokehouse

1506 Main St

Bill & Fran's Restaurant

·11724 SC-34

The Course

Overall Course Set-up

Each of the three setups made use of the venue's three unique areas.

the open field located in front of the Johnson Family Farm
a wooded area featuring minimal technical running and slight elevation
a larger wooded area that gores through as Lynch Woods Park., a 276 old-growth forest established in 1934 by the Civilian Conservation Corps.

Sprint

The routing for all races was the opposite of last year. Runners were sent across the field, turned around the farmhouse, and then headed into the initial wooded section before getting to the turnaround. Over the weekend, this turnaround sent Super, Beast, and Ultra runners into the park, while Sprint racers turned around to head back to the field. The Sprint spent most of its time on a service road. The course only had a climb of about 344 feet and a descent of 351, with an average slope of 4%.

Super

The Super took a similar approach but proceeded to the park. This route included some technical running with a few minor creek crossings. It also featured a long hill climb in an open area, which accounted for most of the elevation gain. Overall, the Super had 847 feet of elevation gain and 854 feet of descent. The average grade remained manageable at 4–5%, which is why the elite runners achieved impressive times on this course.

Beast

The Beast followed the Super route and headed deeper into the park with more technical running and additional climbing. For anyone doing their first Beast, this is a solid choice. Not a lot of mud, runnable and varied terrain. Not a lot of elevation, but for anyone looking to step up to this distance or looking to set a Beast PR, this is a solid choice. The Beast had 1,813 feet of climbing with a 4-5% average grade.

Ultra

The Beast loop followed the Beast course with the exception of the additional loop, which was set up on the return trip to the first wooded section, right before coming out into the field. Racers did this additional section for each of the two loops. The 50K doubled the Beast elevation and included a single additional loop at the end near where the course entered the open field. Overall, the 50K course is a great choice for first-timers. No dramatic climbs, varied terrain, and just under 3,000 feet of elevation gain at a 4-5% average grade.

Obstacle Placement

All Photos Courtesy of ShankGym 2025

The Sprint began with Over/Unders, wall climbs, and the Barbed Wire Crawl early on. The Barb Crawl was relatively long, but the wire wasn't very low, so it wasn't a problem. A surprise for me was a short Chain Carry, covering the same distance as the Atlas Ball... this wasn't challenging at all and seemed designed to slow down the faster runners. After the Multi-Rig coming out of the woods, the Sprint concluded with the Spear Throw, Sandbag Carry, Monkey Bars, Olympus, and the Rope Climb before reaching the A-Frame.

Indeed, the course was heavily loaded at the beginning and end. The Beast included some Walls and Overhead obstacles at the midpoint, while the Ultra featured an additional Barbed Wire Crawl and an 8-foot wall on the extended section. There was no Dunk Wall again, and from conversations I had, it appears Spartan had to purchase the water since there wasn't a nearby pond to draw from. I actually miss the Dunk Wall; it's always been a signature obstacle, and I hope it isn't retired. However, with the lawsuit against Spartan in California, it might be.

Overall, this setup was pretty similar to previous years. The only real difference was the placement in the large field near the Start/Finish line. This is not a complaint; it just means that if you did the Beast this year and are thinking of stepping up to the Ultra, you have a pretty good idea of what to expect.

Return of Rocco

The incomparable Rocco Castellano was manning his Playmaker Recovery Services tent with cold plunges, massage guns, and portable saunas. For the 400 ultra racers, this post-race recovery service was important, especially for those heading out the next day for an UltraFecta or Sprint recovery run. He will be at the Florida Trifecta weekend in a few weeks, and if you are racing, getting recovery between races is a big bonus. Rocco really knows his stuff when it comes to recovery. He works with collegiate teams and has worked with pro athletes as well.

There was no Spartan Plus tent at this event.

Festival Area and Honor Series

It was good to see the return of the Honor Series at this event. The medal was great, and the intention is appreciated. But I don't get it. Fayetteville (in May), with its local military presence and at least eight military vendor booths, is NOT an Honor Series. But Newberry, with no (or little) military presence at the event, IS? I am not sure what the logic is, but Spartan definitely needs to reboot this series and target venues that have some military connection or market the reasons why specific locations are being selected in advance.

There were a scattering of booths. This was the first race in a while where I have not seen the Border Patrol booth. Additionally, Reign Energy has not renewed for next year, and I seriously hope they figure out another sports drink partner. I can live with getting a banana at the finish line and no protein bars, but that energy drink is a great bonus before a long ride home or between Sunday races. If not, it just means packing and food acquisition at the local food mart is going to require more planning.

Multi-Trifedta Medal Update

During the week, Spartan has rolled out some pictures that clarify the new Hex design. It looks like each distance medal will be the same, but the center Hex will be race-specific. After accumulating 4 Trifectas, racers will receive a large medal where the Hexes can be inserted to form a large multi-trifecta medal with that racer's individual journey to that point. It looks like there will be larger medals for this purpose for 10 and up.

Like it or not, this was a problem that had to be fixed. Earning a multi-trifecta medal and then being told they don't have them has led to some tense situations over the years. I think this approach lets Spartan buy in bulk and always have supply on hand.

Congrats to OCR Kings Subscriber

Michael Watkins, Shank Gym's Athlete of the Month for November, completed his first Ultra this weekend. He has been a long-time OCR Kings subscriber and has trained at Shank Gym for nearly a year. He is known for his positive attitude and is an all-around great guy.

Besides his hard work and tenacity what is most impressive about Michael is that he never complains about the music in the gym. We've thrown Blood Incantation, Cattle Decapitation, Converge and Neurosis at him at max volume and the dude doesn't even flinch. Congrats Michael, now go sign up for another one!

Race Review - Newberry, SC UltraFecta Weekend 11/15/25

Johnson Family Farm, Newberry, SC | November 15–16

Overview