Over the weekend, I had the great experience of enduring and finishing a 2.5 mile mud, tubing, and obstacle course. Toobabalooza. It was nothing like I expected and truthfully, so much more fun than I could have ever thought. Those who know me, know that I'm not much of an outdoorsy-type girl. Camping and this girl are not a match made in heaven. Bugs, temperature changes, public restrooms... You get the idea. I was not definitely not expecting to laugh so much that I forgot that I was waste high in a mud pit.
Before Photo looking fresh and clean
After photo - looking somewhat cleaner than we did during the middle of the run. The last part of the run is tubing back through the lake. Thank God, it allowed time to wash off most of the mud before the run was over.
So I put together a list of ten pointers for a girl like me to become one with mud during a run/obstacle course.
- Wear comfortable clothing.
This one may seem like a given, but seriously, I was SO glad that I wore a pair of these shorts underneath my Soffe shorts. Because mud + water = saggy bottoms. But thanks to my under shorts, I never mooned anyone by accident. - Remember that this is a "team" building experience. You can only go as fast as the slowest team member, so it's not about winning. It's about having a fun experience with your team.
- Hydrate the night before.
Again, another "given" but it's kind of hard when you leave town with a group of friends...It's easy to start having fun dehydrating instead of hydrating...if you catch my drift. wink, wink. - Take a pair of old running shoes + socks.
This pair of shoes + socks you will want to chunk in the trash can post race. Believe me. Take a pair that you won't wince throwing away. - Take flip flops.
For when you chunk your muddy shoes after. This way, you won't end up barefoot. And they are easy to slip off and on when you are rinsing off. - "Become ONE with the mud."
I am pretty sure I had to say this out-loud every time I got into a mud pit. TRY to not think about what could be in the mud. Just focus on getting from one side to another. - Don't worry about taking photos during the run, as there will be people working the run that will be more than happy to take your photo when you least expect it. nice.
- If you do a Toobabalooza in particular, be prepared to use your arms A LOT. It seemed like we spent the majority of the time rowing with our arms (and I am still sore today because of it).
- If you get to an obstacle that looks particularly challenging, take. your. time.
It's not fun skinning your knees on wooden planks. It's better to forget the clock and go slow. - It's a FUN run.
Have fun!!! Enjoy it and enjoy getting to know your team mates.
These are just personal pointers that I learned that I just wanted to share! Not a "guidebook," so don't quote me on this!
Thanks for dropping by :)
