I am Sparta!

Outside of vacation, the best thing I did this summer was run a Spartan race, a 4-mile mud run with 13 obstacles like mounting an 8' wall, an 8' inverted wall, rope climb, hill runs while carrying weights, a 2-story high beam walk, dragging a tractor tire, spear throw, 50-yd rocky belly crawl under barbed wire, and a fire jump. 

I signed up to volunteer for the race before running it. I got to the complex, about an hour away, at 6:15 and then spent until 1:00 working the mud hills, an obstacle where you ran into water up to your chest and then up a hill of mud, into water up to your chest, up a hill of mud--four times. It was a treat to watch the early morning male and female elite heats of those who were competing in the race for money. Compared to the later heats, they were like gazelles leaping through obstacles. It was also great to see all of the friends and family teams competing--couples, whole families, a teenager with his super buff grandma, etc. Spartan hosts a Junior Spartan, too, with competitors as young as four. If Avonlea Jane hadn't been in Indiana, she would have been a Spartan. 

I got to watch some of the other obstacles besides the one I was overseeing. If there was an obstacle you couldn't complete, you had to pay a penalty of 30 burpees (a terrible, terrible exercise invented by demons).

 

That's just 1 burpee. Now, do 30 of them--quickly.

The greatest obstacle to watch was the rope climb. In one of the early heats--a hurricane heat, where teams did the course three times--the teams who were competing had to all complete an obstacle or every member had to pay the penalty. There was one woman who just couldn't get up the ropes, and one of her teammates had her climb onto his shoulders and he then climbed the rope for her, letting her stand up on his shoulders at the top, then his head in order to be able to ring the bell at the top.

Before showing up that day, I'd been a little nervous about going without a team or a buddy, as most people, unless they're competing in an elite heat, go as a team. There would be obstacles that I knew I wouldn't be able to do without some assistance. Heats released every 15 minutes with a wave of 200 runners, and when my heat started at 2:00, I had no worries. I didn't need a team; every runner there was on my team. There were challenges where I didn't have to ask for a boost, as soon as my foot would slip, there would automatically be a hand steadying my leg. When I was unsure of where to step, there would a voice calling out, "You've got this! Drop your left foot six inches." The greatest moment was after climbing a 2-story ladder, once I got to the top to walk one of the beams, I was frozen. I hate heights and had no idea how to get across. I saw many fabulous athletes freeze and either decide to crawl across on their hands and knees or climb back down and take the penalty. I didn't even know how I was going to get back down, but there was suddenly a hand in mine and woman said, "We're going to walk across this together." We did, and then on the 2-story climb down on the other side, she stayed right by me. It was the hardest obstacle of the day, as it was almost entirely mental. 

I did my share of burpees that day--120 of them to be exact--each one after having given a tremendous effort in trying to complete the obstacle. I failed at the rope climb, the monkey bars, a muddy traverse wall (walking across a 20'+ wall with muddy toeholds), and the spear throw. Failing those few did nothing to temper the awesomeness I felt after successfully mounting an 8' wall.

Just like I had been helped along the course, I was there, with a shoulder to stand on in order to grab the top of a wall, or a boost with my hands, a "way to go," or a hand to help someone up. It was a really great experience, and I definitely felt like a Spartan when it was all over.

This is after a high pressure wash, a nap, a meal, and two showers. My appearance right after the race was laughably dirty. 

I ran most of the race wet, muddy, sweaty, and sunburned.

I didn't know what muddy really meant, though, until doing the barbed wire crawl. The wires varied in height, but everyone got caught by them at some point. This photo was taken at the end of the wire course, after needing to swim under a wall submerged in the mud. I had mud up my nose, in my ears, and thanks to my habit of smiling while I race, all in my mouth. 

Despite my appearance of looking like a zombie, I was having the time of my life.

If you follow this link, you can see video footage of my race. You'll see me cross the start line at about 8 seconds after the countdown. I'm on the right side in a green tank, right in front of a team in red. This followed by a rather embarrassing view of my rear as it climbs out of the above-pictured mud pit; I'm the first one coming through, closest to the camera. 

About two hours after I started--sunburned, filthy, bloody, scratched, cut, bruised, with rocks in my hair and clothes, and with a hurt shoulder caused by falling off the other side of my successful 8' wall climb--I crossed the finish line, happily looking forward to my next one.