<p>Anyone done one? From 5k to tough mudder? I signed up for a couple of 5ks and training for tough mudder.</p>
<p>The 5is are for women, tough mudder coed.</p>
<p>S3 did the tough mudder, I was his driver and carried paraphernalia so I sat around and watched it all day. The tough mudder is really dependent on where and when you are going for it. His was on a ski slope and that made it really tough since they went up and down the slopes, including the long black diamond. It was also late fall and the weather was cold to start. A lot of people had issues and had to drop out with the cold since you get so wet. He is planning to do it again but on a more level course and in the spring or early summer instead of fall.</p>
<p>D and her boyfriend did a 5k this fall. She said it was so much fun but then she ran XC and loved running muddy wet courses lol! She said the electric shock wasn’t bad at all!</p>
<p>They want to do more</p>
<p>I took my younger kids, 13 and 16, to one last summer. They are both really good athletes and very agile so things like climbing a 16ft cargo net or the army crawl through 50 yards of mud were not that tough for them, but I could really see how some were struggling. About half were walking by the end. It’s way tougher than a regular 5k road race.</p>
<p>Kind of like a triathlon, do it for the challenge. Dress up in costume and have fun.</p>
<p>The 13 year old finished 2nd overall, about 25 minutes. My daughter got caught mid pack and had to wait in lines for a lot of the features, finishing in about 40 minutes.</p>
<p>Oh yeah, if you want to time yourself, sign up early and try to get first flight. Parking is also better first thing in the morning and you can get the celebration started before 10 am.</p>
<p>I had a coworker who does tough mudders. She really enjoys them. She was not out trying to win, but to have fun. It was a family affair for them. She did say that competitors would help each other in the difficult parts. The one obstacle she liked the least was the electrified wires hanging down that you had to crawl under when you were already soaking wet from other obstacles. There was no way to totally avoid the wires. Didn’t sound like my kind of fun, lol!</p>
<p>Sounded like fun, until you got to the bit about electrical wires! Was there any blood shed along the route?</p>
<p>Exposed electric wires? Oh great! My D is signed up to do one of these with a group from work. You just gave me something else to worry about!</p>
<p>The one on the ski slope took 6+ hours because he pulled a muscle and walked most of it. The estimate for that one was 3 hours I believe. So the course makes a big difference in the time needed to complete. The great part is that it is mostly about completing it not winning it and they do help each other along the way. The wires are a little more than stingers but not fatal 
They do floor some people who hit them. No one crawled under them though at the one he did. Everyone just ran through. I thought they were nuts.</p>
<p>Mud runs? You have my deep respect. For the folks who are not into electric shocks but love to wander through good old fashioned mud and tough terrain, may I suggest the hike I did a months ago - the Kalalau Trail in HI? :)</p>
<p>I ran a tough mudder 15k in October–make sure you verify the course before you run it! The map online showed a dedicated 15k loop…when we got there, you ran 3 laps of the 5k! Which meant you did every obstacle 3 times…it was hell. I injured a knee jumping off an 8 foot wall and had to surrender around 12k, which sucked. Also, by the end of the race, there was nobody tending most of the obstacles, so nobody could cart me back. Luckily the people who owned the property saw me hobbling and took me back to the start so I could get some ice. I"d do a 5k though, they are very fun</p>
<p>^^^^^Seems like it would make the runners very vulnerable to injury?</p>
<p>My husband did one with 3 friends, and all of them were scraped up and bleeding afterward. One sprained an ankle, and another injured his knee. He is not anxious to do one again, as they are all serious runners and the injuries kept them from running for some time. It probably depends to some extent on your age. These were guys in their 60’s.</p>
<p>Tough Mudder should be no match for CC … Tough Mothers. :)</p>
<p>CC should start selling orange headbands for the parents who survived the admissions’ process!</p>
<p>People think its all about running, it’s much more…and you don’t have to do everything.</p>
<p>I have cross training alot, so I’m not worried the 5k sounds so fun!!!</p>
<p>My son is a freshman at U of South Carolina and is training for the Spring Mud Run, working out, etc.</p>
<p>I have a friend who does these. I only “see” her through facebook these days but she’s in awesome physical condition compared to her “before” state.</p>
<p>Just make sure you wear shoes you never want to wear again! Mine were shot with swamp water AND saltwater (ran through a swamp and the Chesapeake)</p>
<p>I like this alternative. A cross-country group hike in the UK. Five member teams. 30 miles, each member must carry a 30 pound pack.</p>
<p>[Exmoor</a> 30:30 Challenge](<a href=“http://www.exmoor3030.org.uk/Exmoor_3030/Home.html]Exmoor”>http://www.exmoor3030.org.uk/Exmoor_3030/Home.html)</p>
<p>Plenty of challenge without electric shocks. The obstacles are all just part of cross-country terrain – fording streams, etc. </p>
<p>The winning team in the active military class did it in under 8 hours!</p>
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<p>No problem! Isn’t that our kids’ typical backpack weight with all their books?!</p>
<p>I’m just always wary of any situation where I don’t have good traction.</p>
<p>D1 played a soccer tournament once during which there were major storms overnight. There were literally large puddles on the field, which made for some funny plays. Not so funny was the mud. Most fields will close under those circumstances so that the fields do not become horribly damaged, but this didn’t happen this time. The whole time it looked like the perfect recipe for ACL tears-and sure enough, it happened on the field next to ours. These do happen in soccer, though, so no way to no if mud was to blame, but I really did breathe a sigh of relief when that tournament was over.</p>