NEWBERRY – Thousands of fitness lovers gathered on Johnson Farm in Newberry for the annual Spartan Race.

The two-day endurance event, on Nov. 15 and 16 this year, features obstacles and rough terrain in multiple races ranging from 5K to 50K.

The race was founded in 2010 and features courses with more than 20 signature obstacles, according to its website. The courses are designed to “test your physical strength and forge your mental resilience” across hours of exertion.

And the participants pay as much as $300 to do it.

Some participants compete in multiple locations, following “the road” to the next race.

Joel Erway, 43, drove 12 hours from southern Michigan to compete in the Ultra 50K and finished second in the Elite division after 4 hours and 48 minutes. He ran cross country in high school and after a 20-year break fell in love with the Spartan races.

“I work with a coach to make sure that I can run at a decent speed and not get hurt,” Erway said. “The obstacles break it up and add a different challenge.”

Competitors in Newberry had to stop and throw spears, climb monkey bars, crawl under barbed wire, carry a sandbag and do several other grueling activities before leaping across a line of fire at the finish line.

“Easily in the Top 5 hardest things I’ve ever done in my life,” runner Ryan Elgin posted on Facebook. “The struggle was worth it … do hard things, get after it and keep pushing yourself.”

Veteran racer Zach Moore ran the Ultra this year and has run the Sprint, Super and Beast races before. He began participating in Spartans in 2018 while trying to find an activity to stay in shape. His first race was miserable, he said.

“It’s almost like a family,” Moore said. “You trade war stories on the trail.”

The Newberry Spartan weekend maintained its reputation for podium placers and first-time participants.

“If you want to challenge yourself, go for it,” Moore said.