Sparta! American Gladiators-esque race to invade Brooklyn

By Roxanna Asgarian

This race is epic.

On Aug. 15, spears will be wielded and mud will fly when the Spartan Race invades Floyd Bennett Field.

The extreme contest — think “American Gladiator” meets Navy SEAL training — draws 1,500 competitors to test their mettle in an hour-long race comprised of such obstacles as a mud pit, fire jump and barbwire crawl (ouch!).

“Leave your comfort zones at home,” said race Director Brian Duncanson. “This is an extreme sporting event [but one] about the fun — getting dirty, getting down in the mud, something exciting and new.”

The 5K run is based upon the type of fitness training Spartan warriors underwent in ancient Greece, and, in a nod to that, would-be warriors from around the tri-state area will break out their Spartan armor and red tunics as they attempt such trials as the spear throw, balance beam obstacle course and wall climb, all intended to physically — and mentally — test the runners.

“Some people find the typical 5K a little boring,” said Spartan Race spokesman Doug Drotman. “This race adds a little action and strategy to what would normally be a traditional run in the park.”

Joe Chick, a Fort Greene-based marathon runner, decided to celebrate his birthday out at Floyd Bennett Field by channeling his inner Spartan and running the race with 35 of his closest friends.

“It’s something different, it’s not just going out to dinner or a happy hour,” said Chick, who had shirts emblazoned with a baby chick leaning on a Spartan war helmet and the words “I’m doing this for a chick” (a play on his last name) made for the race.

“My friends come from varied backgrounds. Some are just looking to finish the race, while others, like me, hope to do really well.”

For those not brave enough to enter the race, there will be live entertainment, BBQ and games all day at the park. You can even get your face painted and a set of spray-on abs so you can cheer on the warriors in true ancient Greek style.

The Aug. 15 spectacle is the third in an international series, with races also held in Montreal, Houston, and Manchester, England, among other cities. The ultimate Spartan warrior with the fastest race time from each city will be awarded an “authentic” Spartan spear, as well as a spot in the intimidatingly named Death Race, a 36-hour ultra endurance test held annually in Vermont.

The words of Homer may also serve as a motivating force: “I too shall lie in the dust when I am dead, but now let me win noble renown.”

That Homer, he really could write.

Spartan Race at Floyd Bennett Field [Flatbush Avenue and Aviation Road in Marine Park, (718) 758-7556], Aug. 15 from 8 am-6 pm. Entrance fee is $70, free to watch. For info, visit www.spartanrace.com.

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How to make a soapbox derby racer

This Saturday, kids — and some adults — will race down 17th Street in South Slope’s annual Soapbox Derby. Making a racer isn’t as easy as putting a box on wheels, so Monica Wuhrer of Open Source Gallery shared some tips for building a great soapbox derby racer:

1. The most important component of a racer are the wheels, said Wuhrer. “Good wheels make the car.” The rear wheels should be larger than the front wheels, and spin straight.

2. Steering is more important than speed. “Speed isn’t everything, it’s the ones who manage to get through the course without missing anything that win.” Wuhrer recommends drilling a hole in the middle of a 2-by-4-inch wood block, then connecting the block to the axle and base with a screw, so you can then steer by pushing with your feet on either side of the 2-by-4.

3. Make sure you’re comfortable, so use cushions and packing, from computer boxes, for example, to provide cushioning. If you crash, you’re going to need it.

4. Always be fashionable. “Some cars are maybe slower, but they’re super cool because of the work and the ideas that got put into it,” she said. “When they are original, for me, that’s what makes a good car.”

5. Once the race is over, you’ll want to stop. Wuhrer recommends using a piece of wood, screwed to the side of the car, that can drag along the ground.

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Wheely great fun

You don’t need to travel to Ohio for some prime Soapbox Derby action this summer.

On Saturday, Open Source Gallery brings the do-it-yourself childhood hobby to the hills of South Slope for what is fast becoming a neighborhood tradition, bringing a taste of small-town America to the streets of Brooklyn.

“I want it to be a block party, a public event where everyone can come and have fun,” said Monica Wuhrer, who runs the 17th Street art space with her husband and has been holding a soapbox-building camp for the past three weeks there. “I want the race to be serious but fun, and not competitive like the championships in Ohio.”

Indeed, the winner of the derby can look forward to a big pot of ice cream for the prize, said Wuhrer.

Despite the name, soapboxes don’t actually play a part in their construction, but rather remain a nod to the derby’s beginnings, when, during the 1920s, creative, daring children would build cars out of soap crates and race them down hills. Not before long, that pastime turned into an organized sport, with sleeker, bobsled-like cars raced nationwide and culminating in a world championship, held every July in Akron, Ohio, for the past 70 years.

Here in Brooklyn, the 17th Street race is in its second year running. Nearly 40 kids are anticipated to participate this Saturday, with their creations judged based on engineering, speed and design. Limited to using only found materials in the construction, their soapboxes will consist of items like ironing boards, shelving units and even surf boards — the only other rule being no motors allowed, of course.

“They’ll all different colors, sizes, forms and types,” said Wuhrer. “That’s what makes it fun and interesting.”

Unlike last year’s event, which consisted of the racers ridden one at a time down 17th Street, the Aug. 7 derby will live up to its name and also feature a race for those speed demons with a bit of a competitive streak.

“The kids want to have more of race,” said Wuhrer. “They were complaining that last year it was a bit too calm.”

Adults are encouraged to get in the fun, too, with a separate race held after the kids’ take their soapboxes for a spin. And with the more ironic Paping Soapbox Derby quitting its underground races on Brooklyn Heights’ “Suicide Hill” two years ago, this is the only game in town,

Last year’s kid’s winner, Eli Rosenblum-Stephens, won’t be there to reclaim his title on Saturday, as he’s away at sleepaway camp (of course). So second place finisher Oscar Baldwin, Wuhrer’s 8-year-old son, looks to claim the top prize.

In the days leading up to the big derby, Baldwin was in the process of constructing his racer.

“I don’t really care what it looks like.” he said, “I just want the wheels to be really fast.”

Soapbox Derby outside Open Source Gallery [17th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues in South Slope, (646) 279-3969], Aug. 7, with the kids race at noon, adults at 1 pm. For info, go to www.open-source-gallery.org.

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By the way, there’s a race, too

If you can manage to put down that mint julep for 120 seconds and fix your eyes on the TV screen, you’re in for one of the greatest spectacles in all of sports.

Only a few thousand people attended the first Kentucky Derby in 1875, but now hundreds of thousands cram the infield and the rickety grandstand at Churchill Downs in Louisville for the big race, where fans sing a cleaned-up version of Stephen Fosters “My Old Kentucky Home” as the horses jog out to the starting gate.

Befitting its international renown, the Derby typically draws a field of nearly two dozen 3-year-olds — and as they leap from the starting gate, the track looks more like a Wild West stampede than one of the most important races on the circuit.

The horse that jumps to the lead by the first turn automatically becomes the bar crowd favorite, but only rarely in thoroughbred racing does a horse go wire-to-wire. How will you know if it’s likely to happen? When you’re watching on TV, little numbers periodically show up in the top corner of the screen to indicate the split time of the leader. If the number is less than :24 after the first quarter-mile, or less than :47 at the half-mile pole, the front-runner will fade.

And as the field turns for home, if the leader’s split time is less than 1:36, he’s done.

Handicapping the field is always a nightmare at the Derby — mostly because the sheer size of the field has encouraged longshots over the years. But here are a few rules:

1. Never count out the New York horse: Though no New Yorker has won the Derby since Funny Cide in 2003, this year’s Empire State favorite, Eskendereya, is coming off a big win in our own Wood Memorial, New York’s main Derby tuneup. He’ll likely be the favorite.

2. Who knows what to make of the California horses?: Horses that take the West Coast route to the Derby are no longer predictable, as their Derby tuneups are run on synthetic tracks. You never know how those colts and fillies will run on the comparative beach at Churchill Downs.

3. The Calvin factor: Jockey Calvin Borel has won two of the last three Derbies, last year on Mine That Bird, one of the longest shots to ever win the Run for the Roses. A $2 bet paid $103.20.

4. Bet on Todd Pletcher: Trainer Todd Pletcher, who worked under four-time Derby-winning trainer D. Wayne Lukas, will have at least three horses, though as many as six, at the starting gate. He’s a hot trainer right now, so don’t count him out.

But whatever you do, put down $2 on someone. At the Derby, you never know.

-Gersh Kuntzman

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