Tough Mudder Wisconsin

[brwrsfan]

Anyone else dumb enough to go through this over the weekend? I did it yesterday with a group of 9 other guys....it was painful and I'm super sore but we made it across the finish line, and that was awesome.

[JumpinMacFlash]

I debated doing it, and now that it's over I really wish I had. It looked like a lot of fun. I'm sure it was painful at times, but I think that'd be incredibly rewarding to finish.

[pitchleague]

I read about that in a magazine about a month ago. It looks like loads of fun, despite the "obstacles."

[brwrsfan]

Well here's how it went down for me.

 

Back in high school/college I was a decent athlete, played sports and so forth. Since then, that had started to slip as my drinking/eating sort of went up. I'm 29 years old now, with an eleven month old daugter. I was looking at pictures of myself with her and I was sort of embarassed. I wasn't really what I wanted my daughter to see when she got older. My friends (most of which do triathalons and/or half marathons together) had signed up for this thing back in March. In Mid-May, I approached them about possibly doing it with them. Most of them laughed at me but a couple took me seriously, especially after I signed up and paid the registration fee. I think most of my friends thought I wasn't going to show up or that I wouldn't take it seriously.

 

Which was fine, they can think whatever they want. But I knew that if this couldn't get me motivated to lose some weight and stop being lazy, I didn't know what else would. I didn't want to embarass myself and I certainly didn't want to fail, I don't handle failure very well. Plus it was for a good cause, so why not. From Mid-May up until yesterday, I worked harder than I ever have in my entire life. I purchased the Insanity DVD workout, did that every day, as well as ran 2-3 miles afterwards. Also cut way back on any junk food, ate healthy lunches, etc. Also stopped drinking soda/booze for the last month. All with 2 goals in mind:

 

1 - get healthier to set an example for my daughter

 

2 - cross the finish line

 

I honestly had no idea if I could do it or not, and I was somewhat nervous about it but I had myself 100% convinced in my mind that no matter what, come hell or high water, that I was making it to that finish line. So I stepped up to the starting line yesterday (25 lbs lighter than when I started training 3 months earlier). I had forgotten the rush of adrenaline you get from the national anthem when you're actually in the event. The gun went off and away we went. for those of you that did it, we were wearing shirts about the "donkey show", several comments were made about the shirts so maybe you saw us out there.

 

I won't bore everyone with the blow by blow breakdown of the event itself. As I said, my friends were pretty much all in better shape than me and I had told them prior to the start that I couldn't keep up with them and that if they wanted to go on without me they should, because it wasn't about the time for me, it was about finishing. I didn't know what they were going to do but it became clear after the first mile or two (up and over multiple ski hills) that they weren't going to let me down. We all helped each other, we were all there for each other. Not just my group, but every person on the course. There was no hard feelings, there was no ill words or thoughts to people going slower, it was one, giant group effort to finish. Some guys sat at the top of some obstacles way longer than they needed to, just to help other people get through it. A couple of times when I got really tired, I could hear the Rocky theme playing in my head (this was my personal theme song) and I could also hear Shawn T (if you do insanity, you know who he is) yelling at me "you can do it" "push through it" "go go go" over and over and over again.

 

There was one obstalce (of the 25) that was relatively easy but hard for me. I have a bit of a problem with heights and one of them was to climb up and jump off a plank into water (probably 15-18 feet up). Not overly high but I was pretty terrified. I got to the top and froze. I stood there for a good 30 seconds, I start to go and stopped 3 times. Finally, I just threw myself off of it. Swam under the barriors, made it to the shore. Later on, my friends would tell me that it was at that moment they could see something change in my eyes. Sheer determination was there and I think they finally believed what I did....that nothing was stopping me from crossing that finish line. And that while I thought it the whole time, I finally believed it was going to happen.

 

We got to the very last obstacle, the electric shock therapy. And we went through that as a team as well, absorbing three seperate shocks of 10,000 volts. Went another 50 yards and crossed the finish line and it was one of the greatest feelings I've ever had. I can't accurately describe it but it was awesome. I rank yesterday as the third most satisifying, happiest days of my life (right behind getting married and the birth of my daughter). It was definitely fun and hard and exciting all at the same time.

 

I probably wasn't strong enough or in good enough shape but I knew I could do it and I did - despite what everyone else though. I told my wife last night that while I probably didn't physically measure up to the task, that you can't measure a person's heart or willpower or just pure determination to succeed.

 

I apologize that this got more sappy and preachy than I wanted. Just wanted to share my story I guess. That I used this as motivation to get back in shape but also to show to my daughter later in life. That just because people tell you that you can't do something, doesn't mean it's true and that with hard work and determination, you can really accomplish a lot of things. For everyone that finished it yesterday, congratulations. Enjoy your headband, it was certainly well earned.

 

For anyone considering doing it or thinks it looks cool, it's coming back here in October, 2012. I very well might do that one too. If I can figure out how when I get home, I'll post some pictures my wife took of us out there on the course.

[pitchleague]

I forgot about the water activities. That would be my only hangup as I can not swim. I sink like a stone.

[TracyThom]

Thanks for posting that brwrsfan.

[brwrsfan]

I have pictures but I can't figure out how to upload them. I have them in my profile for yuku and I see them when I click on insert photos but it doesn't seem to load. Just a big red x comes up. Can anyone help me with this?

[brwrsfan]

This is the course if anyone is curious what we're talking about:

 

http://toughmudder.com/ev...ils-hea-course-map-2011/

[cooprules]

Congrats for finishing that. It looks absolutely nuts.

[jjkoestler]

Brwrsfan - Thanks for sharing your story. I've been checking out the website and youtube clips on TM. From the clips I've seen it appears that you have time to catch your breath at each obstacle since there is usually a bit of a logjam so you are only running 1/4 mile or so before an obstacle. Is this the case?

[brwrsfan]

It was the case in some instances, you did tend to get a bit bunched up at a few of the obstacles (though certainly not all). I think on 3-4 of them we probably stood around in line for maybe 3-5 minutes. The rest of them were really only a minute or two. There were lines but they moved pretty fast and there really wasn't a ton of waiting around. Though I did it on Sunday and there were less people on the course than Saturday, plus we were in an early wave so I'm not sure if it got worse later in they day or not. So to answer your question, yes, there was some time to catch your breathe but not a ton. Though you could walk or stop on your own at any point in time.

 

As far as the obstacles being spread out. There were some that were relatively close to each other, like say 1/4 to a 1/2 mile or even closer in a few instances. There was also some that were probably a mile to a mile and a half apart and at least 1 stretch that was close to 2 miles. Those stretches were pretty rough. The toughest part was the first half, which was all up and through several different ski hills. There were a few obstalces in here but it was just hill climb after hill climb, and that got rough pretty fast.

[Samurai Bucky]

I looked at the course and I was not interested in having 10,000 volts going through my body. How did that feel?

[brwrsfan]

Well it certainly didn't feel good. It wasn't quite as bad as I expected but it still pretty much sucked. 10,000 volts is about 1/5 of a taser, so it's enough to sting and can potentially knock you down but not enough to really have any lasting effects more than a second or two.

 

I got shocked 3 seperate times on the way through. The worst parts for me was that you really have no way of preparing yourself for that and you have no idea when the shock is coming (only some wires had voltage on them) so that certainly made it interesting and crappy all at the same time.

 

I guess the way I looked at it was.....this was literally 50 yards or less from the finish line. You could see the end through the wires. I'm standing there thinking "I've just gone through 10 miles and 24 obstacles and this is the only thing preventing me from finishing". So you just put your head down and went. It hurt and wasn't overly fun but it just adds to the story at this point I guess.

[brwrsfan]

I think I finally got the photos figured out. I'm the one with the mohawk. Did that just for the weekend, though I do think it looked kinda cool.

 

First thing you see upon getting near the course:

 

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/deathwaiversign.jpg

 

Before:

 

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/before.jpg

Crawling under wire about 8-10 inches off the ground:

 

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/eatingdirt.jpg

One of the four 12 foot walls we had to go over:

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/jeffwall.jpg

 

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/jefflogjumping.jpg

 

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/jeffswimmingincrap1.jpg

Run up the halfpipe:

 

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/jeffhalfpipe.jpg

Balance beam (I fell about 5 feet from the end, royally upset me)

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/jeffbalancebeam.jpg

 

After some obstacle we conquered:

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/aftermudslide.jpg

Just finished:

 

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/finished.jpg

 

After:

 

 

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/brwrsfan/Tough%20Mudder/after.jpg

 

 

[pitchleague]

just 'cause I'm curious . . . I'm not sure if it happens (probably not, but you never know) but what happens if somebody comes up to an obstacle, and basically says, "Screw this" and just runs around it? I would assume that they have course personnel that would "tag" you on a sheet of paper and call in to HQ or something and disqualify you?

[stoutdude04]

Looks pretty awesome. I am intriged.

[JumpinMacFlash]

what happens if somebody comes up to an obstacle, and basically says, "Screw this" and just runs around it?

 

I might be wrong about this, but I believe if you want to skip an obstacle you can. The event isn't timed, so there's no real winner and you pay for it, so if you want to short-change yourself, you can. I think they bank on the idea that if someone is paying to do this they're serious about it and, if not, it's their loss.

 

I'm pretty sure that's their stance.

[rwa12]

That is what I read as well. The experience is yours, how much you choose to complete is up to you. There is no penalty for choosing to avoid an obstacle.

[brwrsfan]

You can avoid obstacles if you choose (though I didn't see a single person do this anywhere on the course). I did see people try and fail at obstacles several times before finally succeeding or having other people on the course help them.

 

The event is timed, but there are no prizes, it's not a race. You take an oath at the start that helping your fellow Tough Mudders and finishing the course is more important than your actual completion time. You did pay money to do this, so I think everyone pretty much did everything. I did see 1-2 older people bypass the electric shock at the end, probably a smart move if they have any sort of heart issue or whatever, but otherwise nothing else.

[pitchleague]

yeah, see I would be all over this event, but (a) I can't swim so jumping into ponds and swimming would be out, and (b) I have a heart condition so getting zapped by 10,000 volts might not be such a good idea. I just wondered if I would ever do something like this, would I still be received as a "finisher" by the other racers or as some "party-pooper" or "loser" who wussed out on stuff. My money is on the latter, but what do I know. Maybe I would need to make a t-shirt that states my (a) and (b) points so people would be more understanding.

[stoutdude04]

I would think that if you are happy with your performance thats all that matters. I don't think you should worry about what others think.

[brwrsfan]

We did have a guy in our group that couldn't swim. There really wasn't all that much swimming involved. There is one part where you had to jump off a 15 foot ledge and swim about 15 yards to some floating tubes, then go underneath them. Once you made it to the tubes, you were fine, as you could almost reach from one to the next. There were a couple of other very small parts (see photo above) where you could walk most of the water and had a few small sections over your head. Obviously that would be up to you if you felt safe doing those or not.

 

They specifically tell you that if you have a heart condition to absolutely NOT do the electroshock at the end. Nobody would think any less of you, it wasn't really like that. It's all about if you feel you completed the course.

[pitchleague]

that's good to know brwrsfan. That's pretty much the answer I was hoping to get from you.

[TracyThom]

How deep was the water when you made the jump off the 15-foot ledge? I'm just curious if you saw anyone do anything cool like a dive, flip, etc.

Also, I saw your crew was all wearing matching shirts. When Bert the Conqueror did the Tough Mudder for his Travel Channel show, it appeared that there were lots of people who came in matching clothing or costumes. Did you see a lot of that?

[brwrsfan]

The water was pretty deep, deep enough that I never touched the bottom of it after hitting the water. I didn't see anyone dive into it, though I did see some people doing flips and cannonballs and stuff. I have a bit of a hard time with heights, so I just jumped in - nothing special.

 

As far as the shirts go, those certainly aren't required. We just got them made to feel more like a team I guess. I would say at least 75% of the groups of 6-10 or larger had some sort of shirt or outfit that they were wearing together. I washed/bleached that shirt like 8 times and the best I can do is get it to be light tan colored, kinda funny.