Mud Run (Oct 17, 2009)

So this was my third time running the Mud Run. Only this time we decided to mix it up a bit. We decided to run as a team in boots and military utilities. So five people, 6.2 miles, mud, boots, pants, and no training as a complete team. A virtual recipe for disaster.

At first I was going to be really cute and write this up as the Gilligan's Island Theme Song:

Just sit right back,

And you'll hear a tale,

A tale of a fateful run,

That started from Camp Pendleton,

With 5 girls out for fun,,

The rules required military boots,

And also utilities,

Five women started off that day,

On a 10 k run,

A 10 k run

The course it started getting rough,

Our turtle's cookies were getting tossed.,

If not for the lack of any other way to get back

The race it would be lost

The race it would be lost

The team continued on the race

Through the uncharted desert lands

With Joanne

And Carol too

Ann-n-gee

and Jane

Kar- a-ry

Making up the Team "In search Of"

Running the Mud Run

And then I thought it was too gimmicky - so back to the prose:

So were there disasters? Yup.

Disaster one were the boots. My fault, not the boots. My failure was waiting too long to try to break them in. So about a week before the race, I took my first real hike in them, which apparently is different than just walking around in them leisurely. The result? After about a mile up the Mt. Wilson trail, a silver dollar-sized blister on each heel. Pretty! Really, they were gross and pussy, and could not wear shoes with backs on them for a few days. But the bright side was mid-week Joanne and I did a couple runs up Myrtle, and I figured out how to bandage them up, so was hopeful.

Disaster two was the team. Friends - absolutely yes. Same fitness level - not that day. So at the beginning of the race, the announcer talks about every team having a rabbit and every team having a turtle, and having to deal with that during the race. I never considered myself a rabbit. But in light of some physical conditions of some of our team that day, we ended up with some imbalances for the run. We were not more than 11 minutes in, and we knew that there were going to be issues.

So being the compulsive problem solver I am (because we all know I am not the least bit competitive) - I go into problem solving mode. First came coaxing (that failed), second came encouragement (failed again), third came offering to carry our "turtle" (This failed as well - we had one veto on this or this would have been the solution), and last came some frustration (ding, ding, ding). So a few of us ended up running just to stretch our legs and then standing around waiting for the rest to catch-up. Rinse, repeat, for 6 miles. We were never that far apart, but it was a good lesson in being a team, analyzing skills, and having patience.

But on the bright side, it did leave us ample time for photo opportunities - so here are Joanne and I in the last mud pit of the race. In the end, my blisters did make a reappearance. More like the old ones totally ripped off, as bandages really don't stay very dry in water and mud - even "waterproof" bandages. Who knew? But I just dealt with it. Not much you can do about it when you are miles away from the finish. Ironically we ended up with what I call a finisher's medal.

It says second place, but there were only two teams in our division that finished, so you tell me - second place medal? Finisher's medal? I call it my finisher's medal.

So not a very satisfying run (bummer being an over-achiever some times) - even though it did give me a chance to try out my boots and utilities on the course. Note to self - next time, better planning and communication!

And thanks to Dave-O for playing the role of support crew and photographer!