Tough Mudder Utah 2012

I have wanted Matt to do a mud run for a few years now.
However, I wanted it to be more than a 5k, because of how much you have to pay.
We have been waiting for October 13 to come around since February.

Matt and my BIL Paul decided to run in the Tough Mudder Race.
10.1 miles with 21 obstacles set up by British Special Forces.

I was so excited, this was going to be a blast...
Asher was concerned, because Matt would have to run through electrically charged wires...
And Abbie told Matt he looked like a horse with his Tough Mudder Orange Mohawk:)

At the Start

Their start time was 9:00.
It was 46 degrees when we got there.
First they had to pump themselves up with the dynamic Emcee.
Then they repeated the Tough Mudder pledge...

As a Tough Mudder I pledge that...

- I understand that Tough Mudder is not a race but a challenge

- I put Teamwork and Camaraderie before my course time

- I do NOT whine- kids whine

- I help my fellow Mudders complete the course

- I overcome ALL fears

After the pledge, the countdown began- they took off!
The second obstacle in the race was Arctic Enema...
A giant box filled with a huge crate full of ice cubes...
Dumped into freezing water and blue slime.
I was too short to get any good pictures
But you can head over to the Tough Mudder Facebook page for pics from Matt's race day

I hiked my 30 weeks pregnant butt for around 5 miles on race day...
It was worth every sore muscle I felt the rest of the weekend:)



Electric Eel
A crawl through muddy water with electrically charged wires- up to 10,000 volts- zapping you on your way through.

Nacho Libre after the Electric Eel Obstacle:)

Just be glad I spared your eyes the winner of the least amount of clothing...

The man wearing nothing but an American Flag Speedo.

I was at this obstacle waiting for over an hour for Matt's wave to make it through.

I got to stand with some journalists who were there supporting some runners as well.

We had such a blast, and were laughing so hard.

The generator cut out, so a bunch of runners made it through the Electric Eel without being zapped.

The next thing we know:)

A huge group is going through the wires saying how easy it is...

When the generator kicks in, right in the middle of their crawl.

All of the sudden you here 15 guys start to scream, yell, swear.

The zaps were so loud, that it sounded like Glow Sticks being broken.

One big guy with a shaved head was laughing, because his bald noggin got zapped more than 5 times.

I thought it was hilarious to see Matt and Paul gear themselves up to crawl through.
I found out later though,
That every time Matt got zapped he blacked out for 1 second.
He said it felt like someone was hitting a reset button on his brain.
It made him face plant into the muddy water, and stumble when he got out.
He said when he runs this race again, he will most likely skip the zapping ones...
Because of how it made him feel.
Asher was relieved when we picked the kids up that Matt wouldn't do the zapping ones anymore.
Asher kept telling us that he would put the race workers in jail for zapping his Daddy:)

Funky Monkey
Monkey bars that go up an incline then back down. The bars are wet, muddy, and some of them rotate.
If you can't make it across, you drop into a cold pool of muddy water:)

I love that when Paul surfaces, he holds up one finger...

So that it is known that he made it one bar farther than Matt:)

Walk the Plank

Climb the wood planks, then get up the courage to jump into a deep pit of muddy water. 

Walk the plank was so fun to watch...
Especially when the people were afraid of heights and basically had to be pushed off by teammates.
I have a sick sense of what if enjoyable, I know;)



Everest- Half Pipe
Run a short distance and launch yourself up the side of a half pipe...
Hoping the hands of others will catch you.

















Matt was so close, and jammed his toe.
He slid to the bottom and had to walk around.
It will be interesting to see if he loses the toenail after this one.



Electroshock Therapy
Run through the electrically charged wires- up to 10,000 volts- and hope you stay on your feet... 
But you won't:)

It was funny to see everyone psych themselves up to do this final obstacle before the finish line.
They knew what to expect, and that it would hurt.
They would start off running, thinking they could make it through...
When they would get zapped, and knocked off their feet.
What made it worse, was the fact that you had to crawl up and over the muddy hay bales...
Putting you closer to the wires.
Matt got zapped right on the ear, and could still feel the sting Sunday night:)



 At the Finish

They finished!

They got their shirts and head bands.
They got bananas, protein shakes, and protein bars...
They got hosed off, and we went home.
Matt was very glad that I had the kids' fleece blankets in the van.

Matt and Paul did a great job!
I can't wait for Matt to do it again:)