  The Spitzer Adaptation of the Red-sequence Cluster Survey (SpARCS) is a deep
z'-band imaging survey covering the Spitzer SWIRE Legacy fields designed to
create the first large homogeneously-selected sample of massive clusters at z >
1 using an infrared adaptation of the cluster red-sequence method. We present
an overview of the northern component of the survey which has been observed
with CFHT/MegaCam and covers 28.3 deg^2. The southern component of the survey
was observed with CTIO/MOSAICII, covers 13.6 deg^2, and is summarized in a
companion paper by Wilson et al. (2008). We also present spectroscopic
confirmation of two rich cluster candidates at z ~ 1.2. Based on
Nod-and-Shuffle spectroscopy from GMOS-N on Gemini there are 17 and 28
confirmed cluster members in SpARCS J163435+402151 and SpARCS J163852+403843
which have spectroscopic redshifts of 1.1798 and 1.1963, respectively. The
clusters have velocity dispersions of 490 +/- 140 km/s and 650 +/- 160 km/s,
respectively which imply masses (M200) of (1.0 +/- 0.9) x 10^{14} M_{solar} and
(2.4 +/- 1.8) x 10^{14} M_{solar}. Confirmation of these candidates as bona
fide massive clusters demonstrates that two-filter imaging is an effective, yet
observationally efficient, method for selecting clusters at z > 1.
