Tough Mudder XII

 So I reached the 12th tough mudder event and my 6th this year but if you're a regular reader you'll notice that its all I seem to bang on about these days, anyway moving on, I was contacted by my brother David on my birthday back in April and I asked him if he was still interested in doing a Tough Mudder event, he said he was but would need one when he wasn't at work, so we opted for the September event, my Dad also said that he would do one if my brother was doing one, so he got them both signed up.

Now my dad is a veteran runner of many years, including off road, so the running wasn't going to be an issue for him but he was worried that the climbing obstacles might be an issue but I reassured him that there were plenty of people of all shapes and sizes and all strengths take part so not to worry as there is always help there for people who need a hand, so he shouldn't worry too much.

My parents also decided to have a bit of a holiday whilst we were doing the event, so as it was our wedding anniversary Susan came along to see me doing an event and it was nice to have a comfortable bed for the night before the event and to not have to get up extra early to get there.

We arrived on site nice and early and I discovered that I'd forgotten we to pick up my gloves which was annoying but not a major issue, I decided to have my hair mohawked and we skipped the warm up before heading for the start. They seem to have stopped with as much legionnaire talk but they still do the 'take a knee' to see who is left standing.

We set off at a really quick pace, as my Dad was off like the proverbial rocket and we chatted as we ran, he remarked that it was odd that people were walking after only a mile but that's the runner in him. The weather wasn't exactly warm but not as cold as the first one of the year, we hit the creek crusade and the water was quite the wakeup call, chest height and a bit on the chilly side. We plodded on and reached the log jammin' which was one of the obstacles that made a come back. Glory blades was a little difficult for them but I was fine and no cramp thankfully, we did start to lose our numbers at this point so I stashed them in my camelbak for safety.

Mud mile was exactly as it sounds and incredibly muddy, forcing us to crawl through the mud, before hitting another creek crossing, I used my tried and tested method for getting past island hopping and was pleased to see my Dad doing the same, David was stood up and managed to get over without falling in, which impressed me. We reached arctic enema, which was one of the obstacles that worried David and my Dad but we lined up together and went for it, the water was the coldest that I remember probably comparable to my first ever event, I ended up with the worst pain in my head and had that warm cold sensation you get after being in something incredibly cold but coming out into the warmth.

Sewer rat was awful, muddy water that you didn't want in your eyes, with a very slick muddy hill to climb straight after. We reached pyramid scheme which was new for me, I was the person at the bottom of the pile and after getting them up, climbed on the shoulders of someone who I thankfully just missed kicking in the head. We reached hangin' tough at which point I was thoroughly tired but trying to keep up with my Dad, who at 63 is bloody quick. We all managed two to three rings before falling off, then it was another mud pit and the cage crawl, which was really claustrophobic, as the water was really close to the top, I helped my Dad get through as he had a look of discomfort on his face.

Balls to the wall was really easy, now that they've added the ladder of sorts to the front of the obstacle, then for the hero's carry, we carried David like a king's chair, then my Dad, I've done enough events to not warrant the carry. We had trench warfare, which was what I imagine actual first world war trenches were like, with ankle deep mud to crawl through, then onto kiss of mud, which had actual mud this time.

Funky monkey was another one where we managed two rungs before falling in, and then onto boa constrictor which was as tight a squeeze as it normally is. We hit everest which took me four attempts as I had the extreme version which was ten inches or so bigger than the regular one.

At that point we separated so I could go off and do the additional obstacles of the legionnaire loop, I skipped hangover walls as I was wrecked at that point and by the time I got up to fire in your hole I'd lost David and my Dad, so I skipped electroshock but they had done it, David thought it was nothing and after meeting up with Susan and my Mam, we went back to the car to change and head back to the cottage for a lovely lunch. I think they might do it again but I'll give it a few months before asking.