TOUGH MUDDER

Last Saturday Andrew and I left our kiddos in my mom's care

Thank you Mom! 

to join the Norrises in Georgia for the appropriately named Tough Mudder event.

Don't be deceived by our [almost] clean-cut appearance here...

We were there to 

We brought-out our inner Chuck Norrises with a little face paint, 

Recited the super Tough Mudder pledge as a group (yes, really):

       

Tossed some kegs around for added badness effect,

and were ready to go.

I'll admit: between previewing the crazy course map and feeling the windy, humid-cold Georgia Winter weather in my soon-to-be sopping WET clothes, I was a bit nervous.  But I still had no idea just how crazy, cold, and wet it would get.

Pretty crazy and cold. 

Oh, SO cold.

Okay, as we like to say in Utah...

Oh. My. HECK, It was freezing!

After getting into the "Arctic Enema" ice bath (Mudder obstacle #4), I pretty much kissed goodbye any hopes of warming-up for most of the day.

In addition to freezing our shanaynays off in large dumpsters of florescent blue icy death waters, we...

 

Climbed up and over mountains of hay bales.

Crawled and ran through wiring charged with 10,000 volts of electricity. 

Climbed (or fell from!) monkey bars greased with butter and mud over more icy waters.

Climbed over 12 foot walls.

Waded through chest-deep runny mud.

Walked a mile through a shallow mud-river.

Jumped from 20-foot platforms into a cold lake....

...to name a few.

Click to enlarge

I nearly lost my mind when I saw this obstacle: what they call "Hanging Tough" (are you seeing a pattern here with the ice water thing?!).

At this point in the event, I had run for two hours, over nearly 10 miles, and was miserably frozen.  

I could harldly move my hands.

Could hardly move my legs.

I had so little motivation left...

...and they wanted me to swing on RINGS over even MORE icy cold water?!

I knew my body wasn't capable anymore.  Down the medicine went anyway...

                

I think "Hanging Tough" and the obstacle that came next, called "Walk the Plank," drained me of nearly all emotional strength.

Because when I staggered to what I thought would be the finish line and instead saw THIS:

"Everest"

I broke.

I didn't know I was capable of that.  I even chuckle to think of it now, but seriously...

I cried.

I stood there, stuggling to compose myself and feeling embarassed that I, a grown woman, couldn't keep it together during the "tough" event.

Eventually my competitive mind relaxed and the thought occurred to me: "I don't have anything to prove.  It's O.K. to walk away from this."

And I did.

I walked away from "Everest" and into my last strands of electric wiring...

...to the finish line (ahhh).

I spent the next half hour huddled among a small croud of fellow "Mudders" and a blazing fiery garbage can trying to warm up. :)


Shamefully, I also spent much of my time commiserating with others or just plain whining about the extreme cold. (Remember part 3 of the "Tough Mudder Pledge" we recited? Yeah, I didn't do so well on that one.).  I truly am embarassed about my poor behavior after the race. 

It is true, I was freezing.  Perhaps even more freezing than when we lived in Rexburg, Idaho--a place that's infamous for its cold winters. The race was also cold enough to give my poor sister in-law Mindi hypothermia!  Her body just gave out mid-way through. 

It was pretty bad. 

But that said, now that I have emotionally recovered from the experience, it's much easier to reflect on how uniquely cool the Tough Mudder was:  

The obstacles were well designed and pretty clever. 

And I love to run.

And I was doing it all with family! I especially love that part.

So it's all good...

I just now know I'd prefer to do it in the summer next time. :)

Tough-as-steel Andrew on the other hand, is already asking for more.  

He and his good friend/awesome personal trainer Tyler are getting ready to sign up for Colorado's Tough Mudder that will happen in June!  Dare I ask...does anyone want to join them? :)