I survived the Ruckus

ON a sunny, 60 degree day in November, this is what fun looks like:

Yes, that is mud all over my face! The Ruckus was much, much muddier than I anticipated.

I wasn't in the first heat (I was in the 5th! Long wait before running) so I got to check out what the course looked like from the stands (though I did not get to see what happened once everyone ran into the woods). I saw that the first obstacle was crawling under barbed wire. And that lots of people got stuck in the barbed wire, creating a back up for those at the back of the pack. Since I'm really short, I figured I'd blast out of the start, scuttle under the barbed wire, and then let all the fast people pass me later. It worked out great!

Then I entered the woods. And saw that the next two obstacles were water filled trenches with sand piles in between, and a 20 foot long water/mud pit. (which totally worked against shorties like me. The water pit was chest deep on me!) It also meant the entire rest of the 3 mile course was run in sopping wet in shoes that looked like this:

(and yes, those socks started out white)

But, oh! what fun. There were nets to crawl under, walls to jump over, crossed-4x4's called "Normandy walls" to step over, tires to run through, ropes to climb, monkey bars to cross, a horizontal pole and then a suspended rope to traverse, cargo nets to climb. The hardest for me was an 8 foot wall to jump over. I'm only 5 feet tall! Plus, I was wet and muddy and this was around 2.25 miles into the course. (I needed a boost). It ended with a crawl through the mud under a net and a run over a huge dirt mound.

When I finished, my legs looked like this:

I highly recommend this to anyone looking for a challenge and some fun. (Just make sure not to make the big mistake I made: do not wear white, cotton underwear under your running tights. You'll regret it later)

Today I am grateful for:

1) running events

2) the chance to hang with people just as crazy as me

3) yummy soup for a recovery meal

4) warm showers

5) warm sweatshirts

oh...and Q-tips. I'm very, very grateful for Q-tips!