Do your strengths lie in your muscles or in your mind? Do you think you have what it takes to try and win a mental AND physical obstacle course? This is what Grit’N’Wit is all about! West Chester University’s First Annual Grit’N’Wit challenge was held on Sunday, April 29. This challenge works to push yourself past what you thought you were capable of doing.
Grit’N’Wit is a unique opportunity and is completely free of charge. Participants were encouraged to sign up as individuals or as a team—teams were limited to a max of six people. The course gave students the chance to have fun while challenging themselves in the process! The grittiest and wittiest team in the end took home the prize!
Grit’N’Wit was founded in 2011 by James Moher, who, at the time, was a recent graduate from law school. He began participating in obstacle race courses as a fun, physical hobby. After growing tired of the long drives required to attend major obstacle courses, James wanted to bring the course locally and include the missing element not present in many programs of its kind: a mental challenge. This was when Grit’N’Wit came into being.
The course has grown much larger since its creation. Their mission is “to provide a fun event that builds four things: community, camaraderie, confidence and creativity”. One of the best features of Grit’N’Wit is that they travel directly to you and customize the course to your own community. They provide inclusive events for schools, charities, communities and corporate organizations! Everyone can benefit from the team and trust building aspects of the course.
The course set up at West Chester on April 29, and involved 16 obstacles. Half of these obstacles were mental and the other half were physical challenges. The course started at the Academic Quad with a mental puzzle and continued through the Academic Quad, past the Ruby Jones building and across Church Street. The course then weaved past the science building and Allegheny Hall to continue into the Lawrence parking lot with six more obstacles. After participants completed challenges like the “Balance Beams,” “Scrambled 2.0,” “Ninja Blocks,” “Pipe Game” and “Keep Your Wits About You,” the course wrapped back around the parking lot and continued toward the Quad, backtracking past the science building and across Church Street. The final obstacles completing the course at the Academic Quad were “Spinners,” “Traverse” and finally, the “Monkey Bars.”
Grit’N’Wit has been incredibly successful at schools across the Northeast. They have set up courses at schools such as Rider University, Trinity College, University of New England, Marywood University and for the first time this year, West Chester University. Hopefully, this is the beginning of an annual tradition for West Chester students to look forward to. For a sneak peak of some of the obstacles you could face with this program, go to gritnwit.com. Also available on the program’s website are short videos of people actually going through the course. Check it out if you want some pointers on the difficult obstacles you will face if you sign up for a Grit’N’Wit event.
What can you expect from participating in the course? Grit’N’Wit says, “You will have to overcome obstacles and challenges that at first may seem daunting. You will have to think outside the box to solve puzzles. You will have to work together to complete the course. You will have to push yourself mentally and physically.” So, are you up for the challenge?”
Maria Marabito is a first-year student majoring in English with a writing track. ✉ MM883631@wcupa.edu.