Went Down to Georgia: Part Two

I talked with some of my fellow Tough Mudders last night, and when we were trying to describe the experience to other people- that weren't there- at first we said it was "intense", but that wasn't quite right. "Grueling" is what we came up with:

gru·el·ing also gru·el·ling  (gr-lng, grlng)

adj.

Physically or mentally demanding to the point of exhaustion: a grueling campaign.

"Intense" implies something extreme, but maybe a little more focused...at least to me. There were intense moments for sure- like jumping of the 20ft platform into ice cold water (they literally dumped ice in it) or right or dashing into a tangle of electric live wires.
The bigger challenge of this lay more in the duration and constant level of difficulty. I consider myself a pretty strong willed and athletic person, and this kicked my butt. I thought the run would be a piece of cake, but instead of flat/ semi-flat trails that I could fly through, it was all on mountain and dirt bike trails in the Georgia mountains that amounted to a roller coaster for runners. Some inclines were so sharp I grab had to grab tree trunks and pull myself up them. Some downhills were so steep runners just slid down them (or in a few unfortunate cases, fell and hurt their ankles). And that went on and on and on. The last several miles were also just flat out a surprise. The course maps we were given listed an 11 mile distance. As we passed mile 10's marker though, there was no end in site and multiple obstacles left to complete. I think that was the point that was the most difficult: being mentally prepared to finish, then realizing we're still miles away from the finish line.
The second to last obstacle was this platform jump. That icy water took my breath away, but also give me one last burst of energy. Just in time to bolt through the last obstacle, electrical wires, and hurl myself across the finish line.

I 'm so glad I had these ladies with me; I probably wouldn't still be smiling at the finish if it hadn't been for their comradeship. Even when I made a totally nonsensical statement in a moment of exhaustion, they just went with it and seemed totally supportive of my decision, although no one besides me actually knew what the heck I was talking about. I mean if someone said "No, I don't want to joggle anymore.", would you understand that means "We have to carry a log on our shoulders and I just want to stick with the one I already started to pick up even though someones trying to hand me a different one." No? Well, when I told Sarah E and Mary Taylor that in complete seriousness, they went with it. Then we laughed hysterically about it later, and laughter is one of my favorite ways to burst through the wall of physical and mental exhaustion.
Well done, ladies! And gents (The pic up top is of Cary rocking the monkey bars! he made it across- I did not.)! Was it extremely rough? Yes. Was it the hardest thing I've ever done? No. Will I do it again? Probably!

Me, Mary Taylor, Sarah E

 

 

Georgia Tough Mudder

 OK, I'm alot slower posting about this than I thought I would be. I'll blame it on how sore I was after this race! I went to down to Georgia with some friends (not the devil) last weekend to run the Tough Mudder. WOW, did I underestimate how difficult it would really be. For one thing, it was seriously muddy-the entire time. The course was a  half marathon in the red clay mud with 18 obstacles sprinkled throughout.

 Obstacles involved scaling walls, climbing through drainage pipes, crawling under wires, carrying logs through the woods, monkey bars over mud pits, and more and more and more.

 Many of the obstacles involved a team effort. It wasn't as much an individual race as it was a group adventure. Only 71% of entrants actually finish; I'm proud to say my group ALL rocked it and came away relatively unscathed.

Here, we are
realizing we've gotten to the obstacle I was most afraid of, Electroshock Therapy". Yes, electric live wires that you have to run through. Some are only mildly charged, some have up to 10,000 volts. True story.
Being shocked was not as painful I as expected, more of a bizarre loss of physical control. My mind still knew to keep going, but when I was zapped by a strong wire towards the end I felt it shoot through my body and my muscles just locked up. When I explain it to people I realize it does seem strange that I paid a good bit of money and traveled 4 hours to experience this.
I feel this experience was epic enough for two posts, so stay tuned for part dos tomorrow!

Racing for Wounded Warriors Project

On March 12th I am racing in a 10 mile event called the "Tough Mudder" ; it is an obstacle course designed by British Special Forces to test all around strength, stamina, mental grit, and camaraderie. The course will be over 10 miles, and will include 18 obstacles such as scaling walls, hurdles in the mud, climbing through tunnels, jumping over fire, etc!

 I am dedicating my race to our countries severely injured service men and women. I am slightly terrified (if you check out the website, you'll know why!), but ready to take it on. Although this will be a BIG challenge for me; I know it is a small thing in comparison to the toughness our injured service men, women, and their families exhibit in their everyday lives.  I ask you to support me in this goal by donating to the nonprofit Wounded Warrior Project. 

Here are some details about the project:

The W.W.Projects goals are:
* To raise awareness and enlist the public's aid for the needs of injured service members.
* To help injured service members aid and assist each other.
* To provide unique, direct programs and services to meet the needs of injured service members.
Wounded Warrior Project began when several individuals took small, inspired actions to help others in need. 

 One night while watching the evening news, a group of veterans and brothers in Roanoke, VA were moved by the difficult stories of the first wounded service members returning home from Afghanistan and Iraq. They realized then and there that something needed to be done for these brave individuals beyond the brass bands and ticker tape parades. WWP began as a small, grassroots effort to provide immediate assistance when a warrior of this generation was injured. They felt the most good could be done by providing more comprehensive programs and services to the newly injured, rather than spreading too thin by trying to help all veterans. They also knew there were many terrific veterans' organizations for warriors from previous conflicts, but very few focused on serving our newest generation.

The support and resources WWP provides for physical and mental injuries is very impactful. Please donate on my fundraising page HERE . Twenty dollars or five dollars, no amount is too small to matter!

"No act of kindness, no matter how small is ever wasted. "
       - Aesop