Tough Mudder Race Review

[starryfish]

I completed my first Tough Mudder last Saturday.

We (the guy I am seeing, we will call him "D") woke up Saturday morning to "cold" (for us here in TX) weather of around 60 degrees, overcast and windy. We decided to go to Target to get cheap throwaway long sleeve shirts bc we knew the Artic Enema (ice bath) was the second obstacle and we would be wet most of the race.

After our quick detour to target, we drove to the Race which was outside the city in the middle of nowhere. Luckily the direction we came from wasnt backed up. We parked about .5 miles or more away from the start of the course. Registration lines werent bad, but we had a HARD time trying to find/communicate with my sister since there were thousands of people there and probably only 1 cell phone tower. No calls or texts were going through. The weather ended up warming up to around 75 degrees so we didnt wear our long sleeve shirts.

We got ourselves all ready and started at 1215. We were both really excited and nervous. D had only run a 10K leading up to this and I had only run a 10K recently (but have run a full and multiple 1/2 marathons before, and crossfit on a regular basis).

The beginning of the race we both realized we hadnt drinken hardly ANY water at all that morning and we were both dehydrated. Luckily we were okay.

The second obstacle of the course is the Artic Enema which is a ice bath with water at 34 degrees and they make you go under the water. It was cold while you were in it but once you got out, it was okay. I couldnt imagine doing this race when the temps were <60 degrees.

Overall there was 22 obstacles covering 13 miles. There were 3 obstacles with electricity. One of them i didnt get shocked at all. The other two were only minor shocks for me. The last obstacle with the electricity shocked D so bad that it knocked him to the ground. Overall, the obstacles were really well laid out (ex. you get really muddy at one obstacle and the next obstacles is a water obstacle to rinse you off). The teamwork at the Tough Mudder is AMAZING. Everyone is SOOO friendly and everyone helps each other out! Its seriously so uplifting to be a part of an awesome event like this!

We crossed the finish line around 3 hours and 55 minutes. Our goal was for <4 hours, so we were happy. My entire legs are bruised up and same with my arms but it was SO worth it. I was a little worried about the race bc I havent been running super long lately, but I think crossfit was good enough for me to finish this. Bottom line: amazing race with great teamwork, one i would do again!

I am a TOUGH MUDDER!

p.s. I did end up wearing capris and they were a good choice

[Bernadine]

Wow, that sounds intense! Awesome job!

[heavenly]

Wow! You go girl!

[howardandbear]

Great job! I'm running a warrior dash 5k on Saturday by myself. I really hope to see the same teamwork bc I am slightly afraid that ill get stuck on an obstacle with no one to encourage or help me along.

[starburst604]

Congrats, great job! Wear your orange headband with pride! I can't wait to do it again next summer. I agree about not doing it in the cold, they held it in VT this year in May and August. No way would I chance New England weather in May. In August the Arctic Enema felt almost refreshing! But what a freaking shock to the system that is, I can't imagine how it must feel on man parts. I saw so many people get knocked down from the Shock Therapy, I was so glad I made it through without that happening.

[achase123]

Wow that sounds INTENSE! Thanks for the review. I guess I don't understand the point of the part where you could/did get shocked. That seems kind of extreme!

[starryfish]

Oct 9, 2012 11:19:18 GMT -5 achase123 said:

Wow that sounds INTENSE! Thanks for the review. I guess I don't understand the point of the part where you could/did get shocked. That seems kind of extreme!

The first two Shock obstacles you crawl or army crawl through them. The first one i was able to make it halfway through my crawling around the dangling wires. The second one....they only turn on the electricity every so often, so if you go fast and are low to the ground, you can make it out without much shocks.

The last shock obstacle there is ZERO way you are NOT getting shocked....bc they wires are dangling from overhead and you run through them, and there are SO many, so you cant run around the wires. It just depends how the wires hit your body to see how bad it hurts.

[dakotadangerdog]

My friend Dave said a girl he was running with got hit with like four wires at the same time or something and got electrocuted really bad, she got knocked down and volunteers had to pull her off the course. TERRRIFFYYYING

[starryfish]

Oct 9, 2012 11:25:31 GMT -5 dakotadangerdog said:

My friend Dave said a girl he was running with got hit with like four wires at the same time or something and got electrocuted really bad, she got knocked down and volunteers had to pull her off the course. TERRRIFFYYYING

Yea its just whether you are lucky or unlucky with how the wires hit you

[BlueBayou]

Sounds badass!!! Great job!!!!!

[redredwine]

This is an awesome review!

Question-would you recommend doing a 1/2 marathon the weekend following a Tough Mudder? Seems like grounds for injury, soreness, etc.

I've run plenty of halfs before, but I also know when to not overdue it come tape-time.

[starryfish]

Oct 9, 2012 12:48:30 GMT -5 redredwine said:

This is an awesome review!

Question-would you recommend doing a 1/2 marathon the weekend following a Tough Mudder? Seems like grounds for injury, soreness, etc.

I've run plenty of halfs before, but I also know when to not overdue it come tape-time.

To be honest I am really not that sore. I started exercising (crossfit) yesterday and today and that has helped. But I also didnt run it as FAST as I could have, since it doesnt have the "true" race mentality and is not timed. So as long as you dont "race" it I think you would be fine.

[blackkitty]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm a little leary of this now, like the whole getting wet thing in the cold was what put me into hypothermic shock last weekend. And do you get wet and then get electrocuted? I'm not so sure I'm into getting electrocuted. Geez I'd probably die.
Sorry don't mean to get all negative! Yesterday I read that 78% of participants quit. Congrats to you, you are a badass!!!

[dakotadangerdog]

Oct 9, 2012 14:02:38 GMT -5 @blackkitty said:

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm a little leary of this now, like the whole getting wet thing in the cold was what put me into hypothermic shock last weekend. And do you get wet and then get electrocuted? I'm not so sure I'm into getting electrocuted. Geez I'd probably die.
Sorry don't mean to get all negative! Yesterday I read that 78% of participants quit. Congrats to you, you are a badass!!!

LoL I triiiiied to tell you...

[starryfish]

Oct 9, 2012 14:02:38 GMT -5 @blackkitty said:

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm a little leary of this now, like the whole getting wet thing in the cold was what put me into hypothermic shock last weekend. And do you get wet and then get electrocuted? I'm not so sure I'm into getting electrocuted. Geez I'd probably die.
Sorry don't mean to get all negative! Yesterday I read that 78% of participants quit. Congrats to you, you are a badass!!!

Lucky for us it was warm enough so we didnt freeze.

One of the "shock" obstacles you are in a little bit of water as well....like the mud is "wet" that you are crawling on..its called "the electric eel"

[redredwine]

Oct 9, 2012 12:57:26 GMT -5 starryfish said:

Oct 9, 2012 12:48:30 GMT -5 redredwine said:

This is an awesome review!

Question-would you recommend doing a 1/2 marathon the weekend following a Tough Mudder? Seems like grounds for injury, soreness, etc.

I've run plenty of halfs before, but I also know when to not overdue it come tape-time.

To be honest I am really not that sore. I started exercising (crossfit) yesterday and today and that has helped. But I also didnt run it as FAST as I could have, since it doesnt have the "true" race mentality and is not timed. So as long as you dont "race" it I think you would be fine.

Good to know! My experience with "mud runs" is the lat one I did (only a 10k) I totally puked afterwards, so to me they are a "push yourself" kinda run!

[achase123]

Oct 9, 2012 14:32:06 GMT -5 dakotadangerdog said:

Oct 9, 2012 14:02:38 GMT -5 @blackkitty said:

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm a little leary of this now, like the whole getting wet thing in the cold was what put me into hypothermic shock last weekend. And do you get wet and then get electrocuted? I'm not so sure I'm into getting electrocuted. Geez I'd probably die.
Sorry don't mean to get all negative! Yesterday I read that 78% of participants quit. Congrats to you, you are a badass!!!

LoL I triiiiied to tell you...

See, it seems to me like the mud runs are a whole different animal than the "One Tough Mudder" races. I thought they were really similar but it seems like one is much more intense than the other.

[starburst604]

Oct 9, 2012 14:02:38 GMT -5 @blackkitty said:

Thanks for sharing your experience. I'm a little leary of this now, like the whole getting wet thing in the cold was what put me into hypothermic shock last weekend. And do you get wet and then get electrocuted? I'm not so sure I'm into getting electrocuted. Geez I'd probably die.
Sorry don't mean to get all negative! Yesterday I read that 78% of participants quit. Congrats to you, you are a badass!!!

It took me a while to be convinced to do the TM because of the shocks. I didn't fall but I did take a shock to the back of my shoulder so strong I saw stars. But when you cross that, it's the finish line. After so many hours of a challenge its amazing what you're willing to do to finish! It definitely isn't your average mud race. More on par with the Spartan events.

[cutter21]

Congrats! Your experience sounds SO much nicer than mine lol 34 degrees, 25mph winds with rain in Indiana last November. I'd consider doing another in a different climate/time of year but NEVER again in the conditions I ran it!

[achase123]

Oct 9, 2012 16:20:04 GMT -5 @cutter21 said:

Congrats! Your experience sounds SO much nicer than mine lol 34 degrees, 25mph winds with rain in Indiana last November. I'd consider doing another in a different climate/time of year but NEVER again in the conditions I ran it!

Do people ever get seriously hurt doing these?

[dirtybella]

A friend of mine did that same race this past weekend. I was pretty excited for him!