Superman and Tough Mothers

I did not want to go the the gym today.

I've been back crossfitting now for almost 2 months, and I'm signed up for 3 classes per week (really, with my schedule, fitting anything more would be a challenge. Eh, who am I kidding, with my schedule, fitting in 3 classes per week is a challenge). Since I registered for Tough Mudder Georgia (April 6!), I have officially put myself into training - which means making it into the box (Crossfit term for the gym) 3 times per week, as well as getting at least one run in per week. In order to meet my goal, I dutifully packed up my gym bag and threw it in my car, so I could go to the box right after work.

Well, my box posts its daily WODs (workout of the day) on its website. During an idle moment at work this afternoon, I decided to look up the WOD, to get an idea of what I would be in for.

Bad move.

The WOD was rowing. Intervals of 250m rowing sprints followed by 3 minutes of rest, 8 times on the Concept 2 (C2) rower.

I hate rowing. It makes me legs feel all rubbery and my forearms all stiff. It doesn't help that I am always the slowest rower, either.

I sat there, at work, staring at the computer screen, and excuses started popping into my head. I needed to spend more time with the kids. I really needed to finish up a report. I could always go on Friday and then Saturday and still get my 3 classes in this week - no harm, no foul, right?

And then, it hit me: if I ran away from this challenge, this WOD, I might as well quit training for the Tough Mudder right then and there. Because nothing about Tough Mudder is going to be easy: not the obstacles, not the cold, nothing. Just like the Spartan Beast, it will be about facing my limits and pushing through them. I am not going to be the toughest or strongest or fastest at the Tough Mudder (or, let's face it, at any race), but it shouldn't even be about that. Just showing up to take on something you know will be a challenge takes tremendous amounts of strength and courage. There was a great movie called "Angus" from the mid-90s. In it, Angus's grandfather is trying to impart words of wisdom to his teenage grandson, Angus, who has been the target of bullies for years. He tells Angus, "Superman isn't brave."

You don't understand. He's smart, handsome, even decent. But he's not brave. No, listen to me. Superman is indestructible, and you can't be brave if you're indestructible. It's people like you and your mother. People who are different, and can be crushed and know it. Yet they keep on going out there every time. 

I went to the box this evening. I did my WOD. Out of the the 8 other people who came for the 6pm class, I was, by far, the slowest. Out of all of the people who did the WOD today, I was the second slowest. But I did it. I showed up, gave it my all, and I walked out proud of myself for not running away.

Sometimes training isn't just about the physical - it's about the mental too. And, today, I totally smoked the WOD when it came to the mental.

OCR History 101

So, you find yourself interested in learning more about OCRs and training for one, but you're not quite sure how to go about doing so? Well, you're in luck! Follow this link to download the Spartan E-Book that chronicles the Spartan Race and has training tips to help you out.

Want to register for a Spartan Race and get a 15% discount? Follow this link  and use the code "extole15" for 15% off! It's that easy!

Joining the Spartan Street Team

I hate selling things.

When I was a Girl Scout, I pretty much flat refused to go door-to-door selling things. I had no problem manning the booths outside of stores and stacking boxes while others tried to get people to buy, but anything that required me to directly approach others for the purpose of selling - not gonna happen. When Older Boy started kindergarten this year, the school gave us the option of participating in fundraisers or writing a check.

I wrote the check.

So last Thursday, when Travis from Spartan Race put out a call for people to join the Street Team and help market the Spartan Race at the Thunder Road Expo in Charlotte, I was understandably hesitant. Give up 4 hours on my day off to try and sell a bunch of strangers on the Spartan Race? As much I love the Spartan Race, memories of school fundraisers and Girl Scout cookie sales assaulted me. And yet, for some reason, with much trepidation, I signed up for a 4-hour stint at the Expo. That Friday morning, I almost talked myself out of showing up, but I spartaned up, got in my car, and drove into Charlotte.

And had the best time.

Sure, initially when I showed up at the booth, I felt uncomfortable and a little out of place. Intimidated even. The first half-hour, I probably talked to maybe 4 people who walked by the booth. But after a while, I really got into it. There I was, surrounded by marathoners and half-marathoners, and yet I - the girl picked close to last in gym class - was the one who had accomplished something most of them had not: a Spartan Race. A Spartan Trifecta.

And I wanted to share my love of OCRs with all of them.

After a while, it got easy. I started chatting guys and gals up right and left. The most fun was shooting down the excuses I heard from people as to why they couldn't do a Spartan. As someone who did not start running until July 2011 and then did her first Spartan in March 2012, I found that I had a story to tell: I did this and you can do this too. I was upfront with people: I'm not the fastest, I'm not the strongest, but I finished all the same. Four hours flew by quickly, and before I knew it, my shift was up and it was time for me to leave to get Older Boy from school.

As I was leaving, I mentioned to Travis that manning the booth and selling the Spartan Race ended up being easier and a lot more fun than I expected. He responded that selling from the heart is the easiest and best way to market.

And he's right. In a lot of ways, I never believed that the school fundraising or selling cookies really mattered - the school or scout troop received so little in return for each unit sold. But you can't get the benefit of an OCR - the addiction, the desire to get into shape, the desire to push yourself - unless something gets you to sign up first. What I was doing really mattered - I really could have gotten someone to sign up for their first OCR that day.

And, that, my friends, is what made it so fun and easy.

Earning a free Spartan race didn't hurt either ;).

Arooo!

Color Run 2012 - Charlotte

Color Run is referred to as the "Happiest 5k on the Planet," a slogan that, whether it was planned or not, reminds one of the slogan for Disneyland. You know, Disneyland, the Happiest Place on Earth.

Unless you're a 5-year-old.

If you're a 5-year-old, Disneyland is the Most Epic Tantrum Place on Earth.

I should have kept that in mind before signing Older Boy and myself up for the Run.

I should first explain that Older Boy is very proud of his mother for running OCRs. Last year, when he was 4, he eagerly asked to enter several tot trots, or "running races." His first running race, his shoe came off not once, but twice, which led to him sitting down and bawling on the road. Running race 2 and 3 were only nominally better. I offered to run with him around the neighborhood, but much to my disappointment, after running past 3 houses, he would say he was tired and give up. When I heard about the Color Run, I had high hopes that he would finally get bitten by the running bug and we would be able to bond over races. I showed him videos of the event, and he excitedly asked to do it. We signed up as a team with one his friends, K, and his K's mother, and Older Boy would chatter to anyone who would listen about the Color Run.

The Color Run was held in Charlotte at Lowe's Motor Speedway on November 17th. Older Boy was absolutely stoked to be running near the race track. As we walked from the car to the race area, I kept having to tell him to stop running, as mommy, with her full bladder, was in no shape to run yet. He was positively pulsing with excitement. After a stop at the porta-potties, we met up with our running partners and he and K excitedly danced around while waiting for our start.

Initially, Older Boy did great. He ran and jogged along, chatting with his friend. However, before the 1st kilometer had even been run, he declared running was too hard and started pouting. Frustrated and embarrassed by his escalating temper tantrum, I picked him up and started carrying him. Some people noticed and commented on my hauling my 42 lb son up-and-down a hill; clearly, my Spartan training was coming in handy. Eventually, he agreed to use his own two legs and I put him down and he walked and jogged some more. We came to the first color station, however, and he refused to walk through with his eyes open. I agreed to hold his hand and guide him through while he kept his eyes closed. K and his mom ran through happily, while Older Boy grimly marched through the color. Afterwards, he got upset that he did not get enough color on him. So at the second station, I made sure to guide him through even slower. My reward? Red color directly sprayed in my left eye.

At least, at that point, neither one of us was happy.

Older Boy perked up a little at the water stop, agreeing to jog a little even, but for the most part, he walked, which was fine with me. I just wanted him to keep moving on his own. Things appeared to be going better until right at the end, when the finish line came into sight. K and K's mom (a runner) eagerly took off running towards the finish line. I asked Older Boy if he wanted to run across the finish line; he said no. And then he stopped walking. Ready for it to be done already, I scooped him up and started running, less than 75 yards from the finish. Somehow, this made him even more upset and he started screaming in my arms and flailing. I put him down and he ran away from me. On the bright side, he actually did run towards the finish line, but then he stopped short. I went up to him, grabbed his hand, and we walked across the finish line. Finally, it was over.

We met back up with K and K's mom. The boys had a grand time opening up their packets of color and smearing each other with them. After 15 minutes, we were ready to leave and said goodbye to our partners. Walking back towards the car, wouldn't you know it, I had to yell at Older Boy for running.

*sigh*

My hopes of Older Boy being bitten by the running bug were soundly dashed. As we drove home in silence, I realized that he was not going to be the little runner buddy that I had been hoping he would become. I decided it was time to let go of that hope and just enjoy him for the child that he is. As much as I would like to share my love of racing with him, he simply is not - and may never be - cut out for it. It was a hard pill to swallow, but after a good night's sleep, the disappointment has worn off to a large degree. It is what it is, and he is who he is.

Who knew mothering could be so messy?

Hero Rush Carolinas 2012 Recap

Obstacle course racing is still a new sport, and yet, in some ways, it lacks imagination. Once you've jumped a bale of hay, well, you've jumped a bale of hay. So, it's nice when someone puts a new spin on some of the staples of OCRs. Thus, I was excited to participate in the Hero Rush, a firefighter-themed OCR, even if it was the first year it was being held. Coming off of the Carolinas Beast, I had some hesitation about whether I would be able to actually do it, as running an OCR with a open wound on your toe is probably not recommended (I had the toenail on my right big toe surgically removed the Tuesday between Carolinas Beast and Hero Rush). And truth be told, I probably shouldn't have run Hero Rush, but well, I can be extremely stubborn at times and darn it, I wanted to do Hero Rush. So, with 2 ibuprofen, numbing cream, and numbing spray on-board, I lined up to the start line of Hero Rush on Oct 20, 2012 and took off running.

Don't tell my podiatrist.

Hero Rush was definitely unique. The Charlotte race was held at the Z-Max dragway near Lowe's Motor Speedway. Parking was plentiful and there were actual bathroom facilities, which was a nice touch. On the bad side, though, this meant that a good bit of the run was on concrete, which is not a lot of fun when wearing trail-running shoes. Waves started every half-hour, but each wave was then broken down into mini-waves which started every 15 minutes. The bad thing about this was that the DJ decided that prior to every wave starting, he needed to play "Kickstart My Heart" by Motley Crue. Unless you are a serious metalhead, there is only so much Crue one can take. By the time my friend Shana and I headed back to my car, I was ready to kick something, and it wasn't the DJ's heart.

Shana and I were signed up for the 10:30 wave and were close enough to the front to be in the 10:30 wave rather than the 10:45 wave. The DJ made some barely understandable announcements, "Kickstart My Heart" blared over the speakers, and we were off, running up wooden stairs on a platform and then sliding down firepoles, aka Dispatch Descent. There were about 4 or 5 sets of stairs to the platform and an equal number of firepoles. The organizers were smart and had the timing mat set after participants ran a short distance away from the firepoles, so the backup at the start did not affect timing. I started running down the dragway and was glad to realize that my toe was pretty numb. Unfortunately, I was still recovering from the Beast, so my energy was, again, not where it needed to be. No matter, I chugged along, marvelling that I was actually at the front of the pack.

I'm never near the front of the pack.

After running the length of the dragway, I came to Forcible Fury - a series of doorways with springs on the doors to make it hard to open them. I took a doorknob to the hip which hurt massively in the moment, but was easily run off.  The dragway ended in a patch of rocks and the next obstacle, Cargo Climb was set in this area. Up and over the cargo nets and finally onto the off-road portion, down the edge of dragway. The course then turned back and ran parallel to the dragway, but on the grass side and uphill to the next obstacle, Stretching the Line. Fire hoses were tied onto tires and we had to drag or carry them around a course. I opted to carry mine and then took off running into the wooded area behind the Z-max. I slowed down a little when I came to River Rescue - running through a pebbly creek. I did not want to run the risk of injuring my toe any further. Up and out of the creek bed and through some more trails. I realized I was running behind a cute couple and I used them to pace myself. Next up was Staying Alive: CPR Stop, in which organizers had strewn CPR dummies across the course and volunteers watched us do 30 chest compressions. The volunteers at that obstacle were three boys, one elementary school kid and two teenagers. They seemed somewhat impressed when I ran past the water stop, dropped to the ground, pounded out 30 compressions, and got up and kept going. Just a Mud Pit, which disappointingly, was just a mud pit. Or mud patch. The next obstacle was Crowd Control, which was your typical run-through-tires-hanging-from-ropes obstacle. After this was Dummy Drag, a unique obstacle in which participants had to partner up with another racer to carry a dummy (two tires tied together) on a stretcher over and under obstacles.

Running to the next obstacle, I saw people waiting down below it. It was Hoarder's Hell, in which you had to climb a ladder to a "window" of a makeshift second story building, walk through a smoke filled "room" and then go down a cargo net to the ground. There were only two ladders and rooms, and as I learned when I finally got into the room, there were a lot of scared people on the cargo net holding up the line. Cool idea for an obstacle, but poor execution. I got a little impatient when I finally got to the cargo net and went out and around two people on the net already.

The next obstacle was Basement Entrapped. You either climber a ladder or a rope in order to get to a two-story platform, and  the walked a rope down to the ground. The line for the ladder was a good 5 minute backup, but there was hardly anyone trying to get up the rope (which was actually a deflated firehose). I thought I would take the chance on the rope and was ecstatic when I climbed it up to the second story. Woo hoo! First time accomplishing a rope climb at a race! I ended up passing the cute pace couple at that obstacle, since they opted for the stairs. I was flying high still when I came to the next obstacle, Towering Inferno. Large tubes were laid on their ends and wooden slats were placed inside as sort of a makeshift ladder to the the second story; water flowed down the pipe, making me glad I had brought a pair of swim goggles along. I climbed up the tube and emerged on the second story platform. In order to get down, you had to slide down a gigantic waterslide, which I happily did. At this point, the course was back onto concrete and off of the trail. The next obstacle took place on the infield of a dirt track race course at Lowe's Motor Speedway, a variation on the dummy drag called Stretcher Evac. I teamed up with a girl who had been running a little ahead of me; unfortunately for me, she was not quite so confident in her evac-ing skills, leading to the metal stretcher falling on my hand. However, we finished and took off running again, out of the dirt track and over three fire piles for Fire Walker. The next obstacle was Foam Adventure, in which a small tank was filled with foam (like you would find at a foam party). I accidentally inhaled through my mouth while running through and had the worst taste in my mouth as a result. From there, the course went down under the bleachers of the Z-max and into the dark. There, I was greeted with a crowd of people waiting to get through the next obstacle: Entanglement. Four tubes were laid on end next to each other and cords were strung through them so that you had to inch through them, akin to Catherine Zeta-Jones in Entrapment. The backup at this obstacle easily killed my time by 5 minutes, and as I was waiting, I realized that my right thumb was wet and throbbing. In the dim light, I realized I had cut myself deeply on the metal stretcher and I was bleeding. I pushed the pain out of my mind and took full advantage of my small stature to quickly get through the tubes. Up the stairs and past another water stop, I came to Bystander Blast, in which participants had to wade through a pool of water while being shot with water sprays controlled by people on the sidelines. On to Fire on 16!, a devilish obstacle that involved hauling heavy fire hoses up and down the bleachers at the Z-max. Up the stairs was awful, but the downhill gave me a chance to recover. Two reps of that and it was off to the HazMat Zone. It's hard to explain this one. Basically, a pool was filled with day-glo water and jelly-like bits of material, making the pool more solid than fluid. We had to wade to the middle, dive under a floating barrel, and then come out. I was grateful for my goggles, once again. Climbing out of the tank, it was time to get back on the dragway and run towards the finish. But between the finish line and HazMat was Mazed and Confused, in which you had to crawl on your hands and knees through a dark maze. It wasn't bad, but I was slipping a little on the dragway surface and I was ready to be done. Getting up, I got ready and sprinted across the finish line. And headed to the First Aid station to see about my thumb.

The "5k" turned out to be 5 miles. When I found that out, my reaction was: "Huh." I guess 3 Spartans has really screwed with my sense of distance. I ended up finishing far better than I expected: 1:14:07.6, 19th in Age Group, 44th for Gender, and 165 Overall. Would I do it again? Probably not. While the obstacles were unique, I hated having to run on the asphalt and concrete in my trail shoes. Another thing that was a huge turnoff: the lack of camaraderie amongst racers. Attempts to encourage other racers were generally met with silence and for once, I really felt like I was running alone. Not sure if this was due to the kind of racers/runners the race attracted or what, but it definitely did not feel as fun as it could have been. However, I will say that it got a couple of acquaintances interested in OCRs, so that was a positive, and it would probably have been better if you were running with a group that stayed together.

So, Hero Rush. Good entry level OCR that would probably be fun to run with a group. Just make sure no one drops a stretcher on your thumb...

Calendar Girl

My race season is over for 2012 - a little prematurely, thanks to Filthy Fun Mud Run having to cancel due to Hurricane Sandy - and it is time to start thinking about 2013. This year, I did 8 OCRs, 1 sprint triathlon, and a 10k. While I enjoyed the experience of the triathlon, I've decided to focus my attention next year strictly on OCRs, so it's time to start deciding what will, and what won't, be on my race calendar for next year.

The first race on tap for me will be The Jungle Cup in early March at Carolinas Adventure World, where the Carolinas Beast was held. At the end of March will be the Carolinas Spartan Sprint in Charlotte. I'm still on the fence about doing the postponed Filthy Fun Mud Run, which would be the second week of April, but am definitely on-board for doing the USMC Challenge in Columbia, South Carolina on April 27. Rugged Maniac in Richmond and Warrior Dash Carolinas are on tap for May and June, respectively, and I am signed up for the Mid-Atlantic Spartan Sprint in August. So that is 6 definites and one maybe, and my race schedule is definitely busy in the spring, but empty in the fall.

Even though Hero Rush will be returning to Charlotte in October, I am not sure that I will be doing it again. As I will write about in my forthcoming write-up, the long lines at obstacles and the lack of camaraderie between racers really make me iffy about doing it again. Another one I am iffy about is the Carolinas Spartan Beast. Next year, it will be in November, and the thought of going 14 miles in the cold sounds beyond miserable to me, as I really hate the cold. I had been tentatively thinking about doing a Tough Mudder next year, but the dates, prices, and team members are not falling into line. I am crossing my fingers that Superhero Scramble will be coming to North Carolina in the fall.

So, as of this writing, my 2013 race schedule will finish up in August. Of course, it's only November, so things are definitely subject to change! If anyone knows of a good race within driving distance of Charlotte, let me know!

Carolinas Spartan Beast 2012 Recap

The Carolinas Beast was held Oct 13 at Carolina Adventure World in South Carolina, about an hour south of the Charlotte metro-area. I had worried that it was going to be too cold, but was pleasantly surprised to find that the temperature was in the just-right zone. All said and done, it was around 14 grueling miles and there were definite times that I wondered whether I would finish, considering the furthest I had ever traveled on my own legs (in one go) was the 10.5 miles of the Mid-Atlantic Super. But finish it, I did. And I could not have done it without the support and tenacity of one thing in particular:

The toenail on my right big toe.

I would like to take a second to give a warm "Thank You" to this particular body part for hanging on through the several creek runs, through all of the ups and downs of the trail, for mile after mile. Yes, it was definitely not fun running with a toenail that was coming off, nanometer by nanometer, but as I triumphantly found out in the changing tent, the toenail hung on until the very end. Maybe a little too long, even, as the Tuesday after the Beast, I had to go to the podiatrist to get the toenail removed. But let's not ruin the congratulatory moment, shall we?

As with the Spartan Super, this was a race I was just looking to finish. For the 6 weeks prior to the Beast, I had a hacking cough that would not go away. One week before the Beast, I was lying in bed with a fever and body aches. For me, it was all about crossing that finish line and getting that beautiful green medal.

Our wave took off under gorgeous sunny skies. Karen and I split off from Shana, Isabel, and Ali early on, after coming to the first obstacle - chest-high water-filled ditches. I had some difficulty getting out of the last ditch (the travails of being short) and was grateful for the anonymous person who pushed me up. I also felt terrible for the young guy who tried to jump across that ditch and ended up landing on his crotch at the edge of it. Ouch.

Next came the barricades. It was at this point that I realized just how hard I had been hit by being sick the week before. My energy simply was not where it needed to be. Regardless, I went over the barricades and kept going. Following the barricades were the monkey bars. Karen attempted first and fell off. At first, I was going to try wth my gloves on (I bought snazzy new weightlifting gloves for the Beast), but opted to take them off and stuff them in my hydration backpack. I went up to the bars, climbed the steps, and -

Nailed it. Across those bad boys and to the other side. "Holy s^&!" I screamed to Karen. "I made it across!"

Still flying high off of conquering the monkey bars, we crossed over a ditch on a log and then came to the first of two stump hops. My balance was a little off but I made it across. More running, and the next obstacle was the Hercules Hoist. Once again, my creeping exhaustion made itself known, as I had to use every bit of my body weight to get the rope down. Next was a creek run. While the cold water felt GREAT on my calves, the pebbles and sand were wreaking havoc in my shoes. I had to stop a couple of times afterwards to clean out my socks and shoes. The great thing about Spartan Racers? Every time I stopped, someone (more often than not, more than one) would ask me if I was ok and whether I needed anything. Love Spartan Racers.

Next obstacles: Atlas Carry 1, Tire Flip, and Atlas Carry 2. Quickly followed by Stump Hop 2. Unfortunately for most of us, the stumps on the second go around were much further apart than during the first one. Most people ended up doing burpees. The first 30 down. *sigh* (Not trying to ruin the ending, but there were more burpees in my future).

After that, we came to the Cargo Net Climb and having to go over logs that were 5 to 6 feet off of the ground. I gladly accepted help on the log crossings. Short people got tiny legs, but we are easy to throw over obstacles!

Next up were a set of ditches and mud hills. By this time, I was getting tired. I found that I had to eat a Cliff Shot Block every 20 minutes or so in order to keep my energy up and my electrolyte balance at the right level. So when we got to the Tractor Pull and were given the option between the women's weight and the heavier weight, you had better believe I went for the women's weight. Who was I trying to impress, right? I think that sentiment was echoed at the next two obstacles: Rope Climb and Traverse Wall, which were around Mile 7. Sixty more burpees for me. Yay. Not. 

More running. At this point, Karen and I split up. Being a forefoot/midfoot runner, the best way for me to deal with potential cramps is to slow down and give my calves a break, while Karen would cramp up more by slowing down and cooling down. I told Karen to go on without me, knowing that I would not catch up to her until finish line. Eh, them's the breaks.

Next came the 6-ft walls, followed by a bridge over a roadway. After the bridge was one of the steeper uphill climbs. As I was going up it, I saw a guy standing off to the side in pain. I stopped and offered him a Shot Block, which he took with some hesitation. Later on, after I had finished the race, he found me on the sidelines and thanked me for the Shot Block, saying it helped him finish. Reason #956 I will always carry extra fuel with me on an OCR - you never know who might need it more than you do.

After cresting the hill, I came upon the first barbed wire crawl. I dropped my hydration pack and went through it. It definitely seemed easier to do that (and then pick it up) rather than trying to go through with it on my back. I saw many people opting to leave their hydration packs and continue on the course, as it looped back to this point and back over the bridge to the finish. Initially, I was going to leave my pack too, but then I thought to ask someone how far the loop was. When I heard 5 miles, I went back and picked up my pack. That decision turned out to be one of the best ones I made, as I could not have finished without my stash of Shot Blocks.

Next up were the 7-foot walls. I was definitely starting to cramp in my calves, so I decided to alternate between my legs as my leading leg over the walls. Another good decision, as it kept me from having a major cramp. Nothing, however, was going to keep me for doing burpees at Rope Climb #2. *sigh* Somewhere along the way, all of the water I had been drinking started to catch up with. Good for hydration, bad for the bladder. And so, upon the advice of a volunteer, I straggled out into the woods a decent distance, dropped trou, and proceeded to water the leaves in the most lady-like manner I possibly could (while covered in mud, of course). I had never done that before (peeing out in nature), so I considered it an unmarked obstacle for myself.

After making to the last aid station, I came upon the Tyrolean Traverse. Strung across a pond were several ropes. Our job was to cross the pond only using the rope and ring a bell hanging from the rope. I watched as the female in front attempted to get on the rope several times before letting go and crossing the shore to do burpees. I was determined not to do burpees. I grabbed onto the rope and pulled my legs up, resting the inside of my knees on the rope. While some other racers used their ankles as a hang point, I chose the knees because I was wearing long tights and I figure I would get more protection. I started crossing, hanging there, hand over hand, knee over knee. That dang bell was still far off. Determined not to quit, I closed my eyes, let my head hang back, and continued to cross by feel. The next time I opened my eyes, that bell was closer and I knew I would finish. I could hear people on the side - complete strangers - cheering me on, and when I hit that bell, it felt amazing. No burpees on the side of that pond!

Coming off of that triumph, I tackled the sandbag carry, up and down hill. As I have said before, motionless sandbags are easy for a mom of a 3-year-old and 5-year-old. Was I the fastest? No. But I got up and down with no problem and headed on to the next set of mud hills and ditches, before crossing back over the bridge  to the "end game" of the Beast.

But the Beast was not finishing without a fight.

Next up was another barbed wire crawl. Uphill. With two different parts. While being sprayed down with water. It was brutal. I saw racers give up halfway through. As with the first barbed wire crawl, I left my hydration pack at the beginning. And while, once again, that was probably the best decision, I was regretting it as I had to walk down the hill and then back up again with it.

Coming away from the barbed wire crawl, I saw a clean guy standing against a tree, wearing a completion medal. Full of hope,  I asked him how much more was left to the finish. He smiled and said, "Just up that hill." I can't remember what he looked like, but he was beautiful in my eyes at that point.

And he spoke the truth. Climbing what turned out to be the last hill, the 8-foot wall came into focus. I was so tired, I needed help, which I received. Then thirty burpees for a failed spear throw (of course!). A few yards away, a min-barbed wire crawl followed by the soap wall. I pwned the soap wall. Up and over. The over the fire jump, through the gladiators, and at last: Finish line! I crossed that bad boy, gladly accepted my medal (from Dirt in Your Skirt's Margaret Schlacter, no less!) and I was DONE. 

14 miles. 150 burpees. And a pretty green medal (soon to be joined by a gorgeous tri-colored one for completing the Trifecta).

Life is good.

Arooo!