MIC is also seeing a “significant increase” in policies for Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and personal-fitness areas, Pulgine says. Many new operations are opening in these segments, and so far, the insurance carriers have been receptive to the risks, he adds.

Others, like Philadelphia Insurance Cos. of Bala Cynwyd, Pa., won't touch MMA programs. The high-contact sport combines the elements of traditional martial arts with other fighting techniques. It has not been tested enough to be able to underwrite it properly, says James Decker, assistant vice president for the company's commercial-lines division.

“We'll do martial-arts studios, and cross-fit studios, and the health and fitness realm,” Decker says. But in MMA, “there's a lot of [injuries] you can't pretend don't exist.”

Typical MMA injuries include broken bones, cervical injuries, whiplash and concussions, as well as subdural hematoma (a common injury in boxing that can cause tearing to the bridging veins that connect the brain and the sinuses that carry blood away from the brain).

Tough Mudder is a sporting event that's a subset of triathlons but also includes the perils and pitfalls akin to an armed-forces basic-training camp: players must climb, swing, long-jump and dodge dangerous traps to traverse the course. Although there's not much physical contact among players, the sport is so new that Tough Mudder needs to establish itself more so insurers can really understand the risks involved.

Decker knows this all too well: his non-insurance passions include Iron Man competitions, triathlons and, yes, Tough Mudder races.

“It's a very untested sport,” he says. “They do a lot of stuff that's a little scary for an insurance carrier: There a lot of heights, a lot of climbing, fire pits, live electrical wires, barbed wire and ice pits.” The ice pits seem to be among the greater risks to the athletes, he adds: “You're jumping into subzero temperatures. There's a shock to the heart that happens.”

Another obstacle-racing challenge that many insurers are not quite ready to underwrite is Spartan Races, he says. Created in 2005 by “seven insane ultra-athletes and a Royal Marine,” according to www.spartanrace.com, Spartan Racing is said to be tougher than Tough Mudder racing, involving such feats as the Spartan Sprint: more than three miles of running, with 15 or so obstacles to overcome.

Sounds like an underwriter's dream.