down and dirty

September was a bust regarding my 30 by 30, but I did manage to squeeze one in before the end of the October.  This past weekend, I ran my first 5k and can now cross it off the list!  Okay, this is a bit of a lie, since I maybe ran about .5 miles total.  But that's because it wasn't the easy flat-course race I had initially envisioned.  Instead, I signed up for the San Diego Mud Run!

Here's the truth-- I had no idea what "mud run" actually meant.  In my mind, you'd run three miles, and at the very end, jump through a couple of pits of mud and look all happy.  Negative.  It apparently requires you to be an ÜberAthlete; there were hills, trenches, knotted ropes to climb, crawling through tunnels, and over 50 mud pits.

My friend L was down to partake in this little adventure with me.  L is a beast; she runs triathlons, is a former abs instructor (insane!), and is training soon for the upcoming Ironman.  To put this into perspective, she was running the Mud Run on her "off" day; I was sore and hobbling and taking asprin for the next two days. 

L & I pre-race

Though I was bruised and battered by the end, in all, 5k Mud Run was totally disgusting  super-fun!  I learned a lot about mud, running, and myself.

Mud Pits!!

Deciding running is not for me

-  Mud is heavy.  Shoes filled with mud are especially heavy.  Did you know they recommend duct-taping your shoes so they stay attached to your feet?  Hardcore.

-  I am not a runner.  I really like sports, but I prefer one where there is a ball or goal or something in front of you.  Running is not "my thing".

-  No matter how much you want to keep your shoes/clothes, there is no way to salvage it all.  Especially your socks.

-  Ziplock bags aren't enough to save your camera that you have inside your pockets.



Due to the camera casualty, sadly, there are no "after race" pictures.  But, by the end, I looked like this guy:

Gloppy Molasses from Candyland

I'm still figuring out what's next on the list, but I'm pretty confident it won't require me to shower four times in one day.