Well, I have to say... participating in the Mud Run was a blast! Our team (the Dirty Bits) kicked some major butt, finishing the 6.1 miles + about 25 obstacles in 2 hrs & 8 minutes. Considering we had some waiting time at many of the obstacles before we could get past them, I think that's pretty dang great! I posted 3 short video clips on Sunday. If you missed it, you can see them here.
This event was a total test of endurance, strength, teamwork & in some cases... mind over matter. I was lucky to have 4 amazing & strong women on my team with me... my sister & 3 friends. We all had so much fun together & laughed a lot. In addition to being part of this awesome team, I swear we had the BEST cheering section on the course. So many family & friends were there, cheering us on, taking photos & video and then cutting across the field to get to another obstacle before we arrived. We had many, many family & friends at home waiting to hear how we did & sending us notes of encouragement. It was the best day all around. And Bob took 95 photos that day. Love him. ;-)
The predicted weather all week for this day was scattered thunderstorms, but the day turned out to be perfectly BEAUTIFUL. We got so lucky! Our team's start time was 10am & we took off in the 2nd heat of that start time. We ran close to 2 miles before we got to our first obstacle... a mud pit. It appeared to be more of a big puddle & I went in first. I should say I dove in because when I stepped in it was deeper than I thought. I was up to my neck in mud & it splashed all over my face & head. The rest of the team looked at me & decided not to go in that way! LOL Talk about getting weighted down right off the bat! Everyone else was wet from the waist down & I was drenched!
This wall of boards scared the living s&#@ out of me. Not so fond of heights. Not at all. Climbing up was bad enough, but then you had to swing your leg over & go back down the other side. If you fall, I guarantee you're leaving on a stretcher. I should've included a photo of the wall from a distance in my collage, but I'm adding a shot so you have a better view of how high it was. I got to the board 2nd from the top & froze. I really wanted someone to come & carry me off of there. I swear I'd do this whole event next week if I could just skip that one obstacle...
We had to crawl through a couple sewage tunnels to get to the other side of the road. That was gross. We were able to do everything though. If you failed at something, it just meant you were getting muddier... or maybe in some cases you were leaving on a stretcher. LOL Thankfully that didn't happen though.
We had another high obstacle to get over, but this time with the netting I wasn't quite as freaked out. It still sucked though... oh yes it did. So did the Gorilla Ropes. LOL
Ok, well the "Leap of Faith" kinda sucked too. In fact, I woke up that night thinking about it and couldn't go back to sleep because I kept replaying that obstacle over & over again in my mind. Did I mention I don't like heights? Try standing on a platform as high as a high diving board & jumping into water where you can't see the bottom. I hesitated for a bit before I finally pulled my hat off & jumped to get it over with.
Our last obstacle was a big slide into... yes... another mud pit! We just weren't muddy enough yet. Did you know that mud is a natural exfoliant? Smooth skin baby!
Unless we were in mud, we ran the whole way which helped with our time. Although at one point I said, "Does this course never end?!" We found the finish line finally though! Thank goodness the fire department was there at the end to hose everyone off. Thank goodness I had a change of clothes in the car. In fact, I just changed in the parking lot while Bob held a towel in front of me. Modesty had left the building by that point. I was freezing after the fire department shower & needed dry clothes pronto.
The whole thing was fun. Really, really FUN. If it ever comes to your city, you must do it. It's for a great cause & it's a blast! I'm really not the outdoorsy type & really don't enjoy getting dirty at all, but this was the best time. It pushed us all to our limits... mentally & physically... but it was awesome.
Yay Dirty Bits!
Oh, I'm so jealous! That sounds like the best time ever! Well, except maybe not the sewage tunnels--truly gross. congrats on finishing and doing so well. What an accomplishment :)
Posted by: MelanieJ | May 11, 2011 at 12:45 AM
Soooooooooo cool!! I am really proud of you and I'm with you on the heights thing.... I would have freaked out!! :):):):):):):):):):):):):):):):)
Posted by: Julie Tucker-Wolek | May 11, 2011 at 06:50 AM
Again huge congrats on a major accomplishment, the photos are wonderful to back up the awesome videos!! even with those funny images at the end. lol.
Posted by: Jing-Jing Nickel | May 11, 2011 at 07:52 AM
I love the photos, Deana and I really think what you girls did was awesome! I'm happy you had a great time, Yay dirty bits!
Posted by: Georgia Visacri | May 11, 2011 at 09:06 AM
I don't like getting dirty but this seems so fun. Glad you had a good time.
Posted by: Lilith | May 11, 2011 at 02:06 PM
What a crazy course! Congrats on your team doing so well :)
Posted by: Antonia Krajicek | May 12, 2011 at 09:56 PM
C.R.A.Z.Y-F.U.N!!!!
{{hugs}} Michelle
Posted by: Michelle | May 15, 2011 at 03:40 PM