Tough Mudder Challenge

We spent this past weekend down at Devil's Head ski and golf resort for the 2011 Wisconsin Tough Mudder. It is a 10 mile, 25 obstacle, adventure race that was honestly one of the most fun events we have ever been to and by far the most fun race we have ever done. No one was timed because the goal was to overcome your fears and work as a team to finish the race (without getting hurt). Everyone on our team finished together which was an awesome experience. We went with friends from church, Bonnie (our photographer), Bonnie's dad (our spectating cheerer), Kevin, Tom, Diana and Ryan (a fellow pastor friend). I think the hardest part of the race was the terrain, going up and down the black diamond slopes.
We got very muddy!
They provided huge high pressure hoses to "rinse off" throughout the race. (I really enjoy the woman's face behind us. Intense!)
Here is us at the finish end, 4 hours later! The last obstacle was electro shock therapy where you run through a bunch of dangling wires, not knowing which ones are live with 10,000 volts of energy. 4 out of 6 of us were shocked (weird feeling!), sending 2 of our teammates to the muddy ground. I think we look pretty good for just being electrocuted! I wish I had a picture of each obstacle because they were that cool. It was a long and challenging course but Preston and I already want to do another one. (They have them all across the country.)
The big "to do" at the race is earning your orange sweatband at the finish line. They don't sell these anywhere, you have to earn them. We thought Pax looked pretty cute in it. We are starting his training soon to be a future Tough Mudder. :)
If you are interested in doing a Tough Mudder go to www.toughmudder.com to find more info.

On a personal note this was a really positive opportunity and experience for me. I wasn't sure if I would be able to complete the race and was pretty scared of some of the obstacles. I had settled into the, 'I'm a mom now' phase of life and just wasn't sure I could do this. It was an empowering experience to face my fears do well in this race. I would highly recommend this race!