Activities in Raleigh

The Ninja Challenge pushes past mere human obstacles with a race that tests athleticism, stamina, and the ninja spirit. Competitors will need to complete a 5K race with more than 15 obstacles—leaping over rooftops, running across a swamp bridge, throwing ninja stars, and defeating an enemy ambush. Awards will be handed out for first-place finishers, best costume, and best ninja costume, and runners who beat the Super Ninja will earn a spot in the hall of fame. Participants also receive a Ninja Challenge T-shirt and headband, a race bib, and a free-beer-ticket wristband.

Laser-tag guns are often identical, but not the ones at Hard Knocks. The arena's arsenal houses 10 lifelike gun styles, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. All of them shoot the same ammo, however—eye-safe beams of infrared light, which can neutralize opponents during a choice of more than 85 missions. As they dart through the 30,000-square-foot indoor center, teams can simulate rescuing hostages or defusing a bomb.

At Raleigh Personal Training, clients work out with personal trainers by their side from start to finish. These coaches help them through warm-up stretches, weight-machine work, free weight exercise, box jumps, trips on the elliptical, and the cool down. They also dispense nutritional counseling to help individuals achieve the correct intake of protein, calcium, and sugar cubes.

Carolina Youth Lacrosse Club brings together coaches, players, and parents to help young lacrosse players reach their potential in a safe and friendly environment. Players as young as 1st graders can join leagues, camps, or clinics to improve their lacrosse fundamentals while learning the value of sportsmanship.

Dead Broke Farm's name derives not only from the cost of owning horses, but also from the terminology for teaching a horse to wear a saddle—known in the industry as “breaking a horse to ride.” Trainers stable “dead broke,” or thoroughly saddle-trained, horses, alongside more spirited animals on the 110-acre farm. They also house steeds saved through their horse-rescue program, with more than 70 of their mounts avoiding fates in slaughterhouses and other undesirable ends since 2004.

Horses show off their trotting chops during farm trail rides, carrying riders on explorations of the rolling hills and whispering creeks scattered across more than 10 miles of bridle trails cut through woods populated by deer, cranes, and other wildlife. Private rides allow for more personalized routes and can incorporate stops at scenic ponds for proposals or more challenging terrain for advanced riders. Instructors also schedule horseback-riding lessons, teaching balance through rides over undulating terrain rather than through exercises such as riding a horse that is riding a seesaw.

Sculpted through undulating, woodland terrain, Eagle Ridge Golf Club's par 71 course is a 6,904-yard testament to the inventive design of 1992 U.S. Open Champion Tom Kite, who made roughly two dozen trips to the site while crafting the layout. Multiple high-risk, high-reward shots manifest themselves throughout the round, creating a pin-hunting experience that—unlike trying to guess where the valet hid your car keys—challenges players without sacrificing fun. With many shots into elevated or downhill greens, the course places sound wedge and short-iron shots at a premium.

Before or after rounds, clubbers can warm up at the practice green or swing to their heart's content at the driving range, where practice balls paint racing stripes on themselves in anticipation of their trip into the clouds. To further promote score-shaving form, the club's pro shop peddles the latest in technologically enhanced golf gear, a PGA staffer offers lessons and clinics, and the dining facility fuels muscles for the next tape-measure drive.