We got there easy enough. This was like our 3rd or 4th run in this town. This race was out in the country. Parking was in a large grassy area and then we had to walk about a mile to the event. With the crazy...CRAZY amount of rain we have had this summer, the walk alone was a challenge. It was muddy and slippery but it set the tone for the event.
Once we got there, we had to trudge through more mud and made our way to pick up our packet. It had our bib, pins, our tracking chip and our shirts. We dropped them off at bag check and walked around, checking things out.
My husband joined a group called Corn Fed Spartans awhile back. It is a running group that is in the upper Midwest area. I joined as well but I am not as much of a follower as he is. Come to find out a group of them were there so we did introductions and immediately felt welcomed.
Our wave was at 9:45. At the gun shot, we were off. The Mudathlon was a 5K course filled with lots of mud and between 30-40 obstacles including pipe crawls, wading through water and mud, monkey bars, rope climbs, hay jumps, walls and many other obstacles ending with a slide into a pit of water....did I mention MUD?
At the start, I stayed with Matt. I remember giving him a high five after the first and second obstacle (he fell right at the first obstacle - I thought it was funny, not sure he did). The third obstacle, a wall, I remember looking behind me and seeing him and then I trotted off. Once I got to the tires, I looked back and didn't see him. So I waited a bit. Still no Matt. So I opted to just continue on. I was by myself most of the first half. I was surprised at how effortlessly I could do the obstacles. I surprised myself! Right before the second mile, the group of Corn Fed Spartans caught up with me and I hung out with them the remainder of the race. I did well and finished all the obstacles except the hay bales.
I was determined to get over that hay bale. I knew I could do it...so I ran and tried to hoist myself up. I know I looked ridiculous and hit it like a bird hitting a house window. One gentleman just grabbed me and threw me over it. That was the only one that gave me problems (and there were 3 of them...the guy threw me over each one!).
Still no Matt.
After the slide, we had to walk through muck to the finish line. I felt like Atreyu in The Neverending Story. It was when my leg hit a spot and disappeared to the hip that I panicked slightly. I couldn't get it out and it felt like it was in quicksand. After struggling, it pulled free only to do it again. I am pretty sure I whimpered "I can't get my leg out". I felt like I was going to need a search and rescue!
I got it out and finished. They had small wet nap things - just enough to wipe your eyes, water and Gatorade and a finishing medal.
I waited another 15 minutes until I saw Matt struggling to the finish line. He finished but he wasn't doing well. The heat really got to him and he struggled every since mile 2, he said. I felt horrible that I had left him but I didn't do it intentionally. I really enjoyed the race but his experience wasn't as enjoyable.
We got a ticket for a free drink so we got some Gatorade and we had a ticket for a free piece of pizza. We bought tickets to get more pizza. I am not ashamed to say I ate 4 pieces and could have eaten the other 2 that Matt couldn't eat. I am always starving after a race.....and pizza is my favorite.
We walked back to the car after Matt felt better. The event had PVC pipes that were make shift showers so we showered off fairly good and by the time we got to the van, we were dry. We changed our clothes in the van so we weren't too messy on the drive home - just barefoot. We both forgot a change of shoes and we left ours there because there was no salvaging.
I was SO sore afterwards but it was SO worth it. I was hoping for some gnarly battle wounds but all I got was a scratched up knee from the cargo net and some pretty cool bruises.
All in all - my favorite race to date! I really enjoyed it and plan to do it again next year!
So the review of the event Mudathlon 5K:
Terrain - muddy, trails, water, obstacles, event, slippery, climbing up and down
Organization - It was well organized and results/pictures were posted quickly
Cost - $65 per person, received a teeshirt, free drink and free pizza
Time of Race - 9:45am (was our wave....they had waves every 15 minutes)
Overall - My favorite race so far!
Award - Not sure if there was a placement award but all participants got a medal
My Time - 1 hour and 36 minutes (could have gotten a better time but was in it for the fun, not the time)
Race # in our 15 in '15 Challenge - 10/15
#BeastModeActivated
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| At the finish line |
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| Matt afterwards, cleaned up and feeling better |
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| Me after the slide |
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| Matt and I clean up nice - hard to believe we were covered in mud moments earlier |
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| Before picture! |
