The Tough Mudder: From a spectator's point of view

Reporting from the sidelines of the Tough Mudder, Englishtown, New Jersey
Written and photographed by Nora Sun McLaughlin

I wasn’t tough enough yet, so I went online and signed up to be a spectator:
“When you first learned about Tough Mudder, what kind of event did you think it was?
(a) a fun mud run, (b) fun obstacle course, (c) tough military-style obstacle course, or (d) charity fundraising opportunity.”

Without having seen a Tough Mudder event, my initial impression was B – a fun obstacle course. Check.

But after hurdling through my own spectator obstacles, while supporting a friend who welcomed her 30s by personally challenging herself and participating in Tough Mudder, I’d like to amend my answer to C – tough military-style obstacle course. Check and check.

Tough Mudder, which proudly sponsors the Wounded Warrior Project, puts its participants through “probably the toughest event on the planet.” I wouldn’t doubt it after hearing a man call out during one of the last obstacles, “I hate this” and hearing my friend’s behind-the-scenes-thoughts of wanting to quit after the second mile.

The 32 military-style obstacles, most of them dealing with mud, stretched out over 12 miles of rough and tough terrain was founded by an Englishman, whose background includes financial counter-terrorism for the British Government coupled with an MBA from Harvard University. He was looking to create the ultimate event that would challenge even the toughest, in personal endurance, strength and fortitude, while helping your fellow Mudders pull, push or claw their way through mud, water, fire, tires, hay, walls and lakes.

And if that doesn’t convince you, seeing the parking lot full of abandoned war-torn sneakers was a true testament to how satisfying it is to be done with such a tough event.

Tough Mudder isn’t a race against others or against a clock. It’s against nature and yourself. The goal is to simply finish. When you’re done, you get a cold refreshing beer, a bright orange headband to wear proudly into the office Monday morning, and the satisfaction that you’ve just completed a feat most people would shy away from.

An average of “78% of Tough Mudder participants finish the event.” This past Saturday at the Tri-State locale, my friend victoriously held hands with her brother and team members while crossing the finish line.

Sometimes we’re given the opportunity to do things in our lives that challenge us beyond our physical, emotional and mental capabilities. Yesterday, I found a hero in my friend.

“If you can do this, you can do anything you put your heart and your mind to it.” ~ ToughMudder.

For more information and to sign up to participate or spectate, click HERE.