OCR Product Reviews

There is a scene in Forrest Gump where Forrest meets Lieutenant Dan for the first time in Vietnam, and Lieutenant Dan tells Forrest that the one item of G.I. gear that is the difference between life or death is socks. While the stakes aren’t quite as high in obstacle course racing, having the best socks for Spartan Race can really make or break your experience.

To be successful in OCR races like Tough Mudder, it starts from the ground up. To power yourself over obstacles, you need a strong base, and to have a strong base, you want to make sure you have the best shoes for obstacle races. Tough Mudder has some of the most epic conditions because there are some many obstacles that involve water. The last thing you want is to have your shoes holding you back. For that reason, we came up with our list of the five best tough mudder shoes, complete with links and our review of what makes them the best mud run shoes on the market. Because everyone’s preference is different (some like more traction, other like more comfort), we listed our top five brands and link to a few of their best shoes for you to choose from.

If you want to perform like a Spartan and scale Spartan Race obstacles like Ryan Atkins or Hunter McIntyre, you’ll want to look the part. Having the right Spartan Race apparel will give you the confidence to get out there and compete, and the right technical fabrics in your clothes will keep you light and dry. While there are plenty of choices you need to make from shoes and socks, to gloves and sleeves, one of the most overlooked pieces of clothing are shorts. Below, we review some of our top picks for best shorts for Spartan Race. We’ve field tested each of these and have given them all the OCR Insight stamp of approval to get you ready for your upcoming obstacle course r

Whether you’re preparing to compete in any number of OCR races this year, be it Spartan, Tough Mudder, Warrior Dash or Battlefrog, one of the things you will use to complete any number of obstacles is your hands. One of the best things I learned early on in these races was that the right pair of gloves can make a world of difference when you are climbing ropes, traversing rigs, or even keeping your fingers warm on a cold day.