Well, I dont know how to really put it into words without taking up too much space. I’ll do my best and I’ll definitely fill you in one-on-one sometime 🙂 The trip started off with my luggage being lost and I still do not have it but I didnt let it bother me cause it’ll turn up sometime, I hope.
I can tell you this – You get very very dirty – like insane muddy, with sand and crap in your teeth and ears and underwear and shoes but I expected that. For me and many others, I was incredibly Cold throughout the entire course… It was 12oC in the AM and got up to almost 16-17oC but there was no sun, 15km winds and it was hella-Hard to warm up… The 1st obstacle was a mudcrawl under barwire so you were wet from the get-go BUT then the 2nd obstacle was the ARTIC ENEMA. This was just 2 miles in and was the absolute WORST obstacle for me personally. I have done Polar Dips before but they do not come close to this and you do not get a nice towel at the end… my body totally went into shock-mode when I hit the water, I couldn’t breathe and panicked bigtime. It was essentially an IceBath pool with 8inch layer of ice cubes on the top AND THEN in order to get to the other side of the pool once you jumped in, you had to duck under a wood barricade which was waist level under the ice bath – It killed my spirits fast and early! I trucked on cause “Damn this is just 2 miles in John”!!!!. Simply saying that the obstacles were cool and challenging, some much harder than others, doesnt do it much justice but I’ll highlight that the 6th obstacle (mile 4) had a bunch of run down cars (like 20 of them) that was like something out of a zombie movie that you had to jump over and then had rows of tires on the ground that forced you to traverse them like a football player by high-stepping for about 50 feet… for some stupid reason, I fumbled my feet and sprained my right ankle pretty bad.. then with the pressure of people coming behind me I stood right up only to take a few steps and invert the other ankle (which is better now, but right ankle is still swollen). The next mile sucked bad, as people yelled at me to walk/run it off, it freaking killed. But I did and I quickly forgot about it because by mile 5 I went into full cramp mode in my lower legs (front and back of shins). Anytime I forcefully pushed off my legs (jumping, running) I would cramp and that really slowed me down and added nothing to my already frozen and wet self. But I trucked on, Never skipping a single obstacle which I said I would do. The monkey bars, the HayBale jumping, waist-high muddy water trudging, 12-foot wall scaling, dirt pile broad jumping, cliff-climbing, balance-beaming over water, running/walking, and lots of net obstacles were all tough and energy zapping! The whole 6th mile had us walk with a 30-40 lb piece of wood which was pretty much a rest obstacle for me. Ugh.
Finally, Yes I jumped the 15 foot platform into the crappy Muddy water and their wasn’t much swimming cause I signalled the rescue guy to just save me and be there for me, cause I already knew I would cramp in the water hahaha — Stupid maybe – But I wasn’t skipping anything. The quarter-pipe obstacle was fun to just watch, as people would run up it, fail, and slide all the way down. I made it and thankfully did not cramp up but there were always Mudders around to pull you up and give you a hand. By Mile 8, an old injury returned with a vengeance. ITB Friction syndrome which is essentially lateral knee pain from overuse. It makes so you cannot bend you knee due to pain so I kinda just rain with straight knees. Horrible!
Sorry to be so long but I’ll just tell you that the Shock therapy was brutal but the finish line is just on the other side so you get pretty amped up to just finish the race. There is a sign at the start of the obstacle that says “Real tough mudders go through this running and standing up” because you can opt to go on your belly and crawl through the mud and avoid the wires which dangled to knee height. Anyway, I ran through with a group of people, in one big group hug which I guess is worst way to do it cause the shock is worse through all of us and Yep when it hit us we all went down fast!!!! It’s like nothing I ever really want to feel again. My teeth chattered and every muscle contracted and you feel a snap in your skull… It sucks it really sucks but its over, I crossed the finish line, and I can say I’m a Tough Mudder. I got my cool headband (which is to replace the medals you would get in a running race) and I enjoyed my free beer and shower at the end soo much!! It truly is an event that the goal is just to finish – their is so much camradie it reminded me alot of Crossfit Moncton. Thanks again everyone for your support and well wishes! I cherish every pain I put myself through and found it very rewarding to have overcome the pains and misfortunes of injury and still finish. I will be doing another one and want to form a team of at least 10 people BUT just might wait a bit to actually sign up cause I need to get the pain of the shock and ice bath obstacles out of memory banks before I do. Love y’all Lots and I thought of you OFTEN throughout the race. Honestly. I’ll see yas in a few days!! hehe
Amanda
Wow. Thank you for sharing. I knew you’d finish, but I didn’t know how hard it was going to be. And I don’t think you’re one to overstate pain, so I can’t begin to imagine what your body felt like! It’s a testament to your character that you were able to mentally able to push through that. Great job..very impressive.
cheyenne
Your note has left me in awe, John you have incredible endurance. Congratulations in achieving this goal. Would you do this again or is it a bucket list type thing?
Leesa
Congrats on such a achievement very impressive!! 🙂
Nadine
Thats INCREDIBLE Jonny!! WOW!!
Thank you so much for sharring!! Looks like a really crazy course!!
GREAT job finishing it!! Knew you would!! 😀
excellent summary John, you are one tough mudder. what a feeling of satisfaction you must have in finishing this event. i would suspect that there are many who tried and where unable to finish. this is a testamnet to the hard work and dedication you have to your training to be able to compete and complete such an event. my hat goes off to you buddy, you are one tough machine.
Bender
YOU DA MAN JOHNNY……but I am going to decline the offer to fill me in one on one sometime! Perhaps a little much.
Liam
Amazing Johnny!
Congratulations on the finish!
Hope you shake your injuries quickly.
After this you deserve a little down time to get yourself right.
Hat’s off to you buddy!
Lora
Very inspiring, Johnny! Congratulations, Tough Mudder! 😀
Marcel
OK Johnny it’s official you’re nuts! Amazing story and great perseverance.
Owen
Holy shit…I’ve read about this before and thought it was nuts…..just hearing your details is painful enough. Deck of death, 400 lunges, Fran, ……… nothing else comes close. Good for you for getting through it …….and surviving!!!
Maria
Unbelievable Johnny. I can only imagine the pain you felt and what it took to push through this. You are one Tough Mudder. Congrats on finishing!
WOD: 3 Rounds — “MODIFIED”
7 Floor Press – 15# Dumbbell (Left arm ONLY)
14 Push Press – 15# Dumbbell (Left arm ONLY)
21 Back Squats – 55#
TIME: 7:39
Didn’t expect 15# to feel soooo heavy by the end. Left arm fatigue!
Jeff S
3 rounds
7 Floor Press (115)
14 Push Press (same weight)
21 Back Squats
8:39
On paper this didn’t look too bad.. Apparently I’m on a grade two reading comprehension level when it comes to WODS.. Another ass kicker!
Lora
Nice work on the WOD! Definitely an ass kicker, disguised as something much easier (hate those!)
WU x 2 – 10 squats/10 pushups/10 pullups/samson stretch
WOD @ 75#
7 Floor press
14 Push press
21 Back Squats
Time: 10:20
Chantal L.
WOD @ 75# (60% of push press)
Time: 10:57
What an arm burner. I even felt it when holding the bar for back squats!
Patrick
WOD @ 95#: 7:57
Before I started, I was disappointed that I had to scale this one. My bench press strength wouldn’t allow me to go higher. After finishing, I’m some glad I didn’t use 115#. That was a killer!
Corinna
WOD @ 75 lbs
Time: 7:12
I quite liked this WOD! Be cool to do this one as Rx next time around.
Great job Kevin and Joanna with the WOD tonight. It looked kick ass! Looking forward to doing it!
Pierre
WOD at 115# –> 12:39
I struggled a lot on that WOD. I maybe should have used a lighter weight.
Corinna
Great story Johnny. I loved reading every word of your crazy adventure. I laughed out loud quite a few times visualizing you in different parts of the obstacle course. I admire your will power!
Mat
John absolutely amazing !! Good for you, an experience most couldn’t dream of committing to !! Congratulations !!
Max time 2:30 per round. Time left over from each round is score and amount of rest until next round. If you go over 2:30 in a round keep going to finish the round but subtract that from total.
Max time 2:30 per round. Time left over from each round is score and amount of rest until next round. If you go over 2:30 in a round keep going to finish the round but subtract that from total.
Rest per round (or amount i went over the 2:30)
1:13
:56
:26
+:12
+:35
+:48
Score – 1:00 (60 seconds) total rest. Looked so much better on paper…ick.
Heather S
OK – the math in this wod looks like the real challenge – maybe not a good wod for those of us who are struggling counting to 10!!
Heidi
Warm Up.
WOD @ 60#
Time = 9:26
Well I think there is general agreement that the push presses were tough. My last round were 3 at a time.
Thanks for the update Johnny. What an incredible story. Ice baths & shock therapy….sounds awesome. I can’t believe you are thinking about the “next time” already. Congrats on finishing this.
Ron
WU x 2
10 squats
10 push ups
10 pull ups
WOD: 3 rounds at 95lbs
7 floor press
14 push press
21 back squats
Johnny I just watched the video from a link on Kevin’s Facebook and all I can say is wow. Vermont in July eh? Wonder if there should be a Crossfit Moncton group entry for that one? A few carloads of people and we’re off to the border.
Bring a Friend Day tomorrow! Yes, the WOD is first, followed by the strength. 21-15-9 Russian KBS Box Jumps Pullups HR Deadlifts x5 50-55-60-65-70% *full…
Tough Mudder Arizona 2012
Well, I dont know how to really put it into words without taking up too much space. I’ll do my best and I’ll definitely fill you in one-on-one sometime 🙂 The trip started off with my luggage being lost and I still do not have it but I didnt let it bother me cause it’ll turn up sometime, I hope.
I can tell you this – You get very very dirty – like insane muddy, with sand and crap in your teeth and ears and underwear and shoes but I expected that. For me and many others, I was incredibly Cold throughout the entire course… It was 12oC in the AM and got up to almost 16-17oC but there was no sun, 15km winds and it was hella-Hard to warm up… The 1st obstacle was a mudcrawl under barwire so you were wet from the get-go BUT then the 2nd obstacle was the ARTIC ENEMA. This was just 2 miles in and was the absolute WORST obstacle for me personally. I have done Polar Dips before but they do not come close to this and you do not get a nice towel at the end… my body totally went into shock-mode when I hit the water, I couldn’t breathe and panicked bigtime. It was essentially an IceBath pool with 8inch layer of ice cubes on the top AND THEN in order to get to the other side of the pool once you jumped in, you had to duck under a wood barricade which was waist level under the ice bath – It killed my spirits fast and early! I trucked on cause “Damn this is just 2 miles in John”!!!!. Simply saying that the obstacles were cool and challenging, some much harder than others, doesnt do it much justice but I’ll highlight that the 6th obstacle (mile 4) had a bunch of run down cars (like 20 of them) that was like something out of a zombie movie that you had to jump over and then had rows of tires on the ground that forced you to traverse them like a football player by high-stepping for about 50 feet… for some stupid reason, I fumbled my feet and sprained my right ankle pretty bad.. then with the pressure of people coming behind me I stood right up only to take a few steps and invert the other ankle (which is better now, but right ankle is still swollen). The next mile sucked bad, as people yelled at me to walk/run it off, it freaking killed. But I did and I quickly forgot about it because by mile 5 I went into full cramp mode in my lower legs (front and back of shins). Anytime I forcefully pushed off my legs (jumping, running) I would cramp and that really slowed me down and added nothing to my already frozen and wet self. But I trucked on, Never skipping a single obstacle which I said I would do. The monkey bars, the HayBale jumping, waist-high muddy water trudging, 12-foot wall scaling, dirt pile broad jumping, cliff-climbing, balance-beaming over water, running/walking, and lots of net obstacles were all tough and energy zapping! The whole 6th mile had us walk with a 30-40 lb piece of wood which was pretty much a rest obstacle for me. Ugh.
Finally, Yes I jumped the 15 foot platform into the crappy Muddy water and their wasn’t much swimming cause I signalled the rescue guy to just save me and be there for me, cause I already knew I would cramp in the water hahaha — Stupid maybe – But I wasn’t skipping anything. The quarter-pipe obstacle was fun to just watch, as people would run up it, fail, and slide all the way down. I made it and thankfully did not cramp up but there were always Mudders around to pull you up and give you a hand. By Mile 8, an old injury returned with a vengeance. ITB Friction syndrome which is essentially lateral knee pain from overuse. It makes so you cannot bend you knee due to pain so I kinda just rain with straight knees. Horrible!
Sorry to be so long but I’ll just tell you that the Shock therapy was brutal but the finish line is just on the other side so you get pretty amped up to just finish the race. There is a sign at the start of the obstacle that says “Real tough mudders go through this running and standing up” because you can opt to go on your belly and crawl through the mud and avoid the wires which dangled to knee height. Anyway, I ran through with a group of people, in one big group hug which I guess is worst way to do it cause the shock is worse through all of us and Yep when it hit us we all went down fast!!!! It’s like nothing I ever really want to feel again. My teeth chattered and every muscle contracted and you feel a snap in your skull… It sucks it really sucks but its over, I crossed the finish line, and I can say I’m a Tough Mudder. I got my cool headband (which is to replace the medals you would get in a running race) and I enjoyed my free beer and shower at the end soo much!! It truly is an event that the goal is just to finish – their is so much camradie it reminded me alot of Crossfit Moncton. Thanks again everyone for your support and well wishes! I cherish every pain I put myself through and found it very rewarding to have overcome the pains and misfortunes of injury and still finish. I will be doing another one and want to form a team of at least 10 people BUT just might wait a bit to actually sign up cause I need to get the pain of the shock and ice bath obstacles out of memory banks before I do. Love y’all Lots and I thought of you OFTEN throughout the race. Honestly. I’ll see yas in a few days!! hehe
Wow. Thank you for sharing. I knew you’d finish, but I didn’t know how hard it was going to be. And I don’t think you’re one to overstate pain, so I can’t begin to imagine what your body felt like! It’s a testament to your character that you were able to mentally able to push through that. Great job..very impressive.
Your note has left me in awe, John you have incredible endurance. Congratulations in achieving this goal. Would you do this again or is it a bucket list type thing?
Congrats on such a achievement very impressive!! 🙂
Thats INCREDIBLE Jonny!! WOW!!
Thank you so much for sharring!! Looks like a really crazy course!!
GREAT job finishing it!! Knew you would!! 😀
Here’s a video I found on youtube… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LmujB1lD-ZY
WOW!! Again, GOOD JOB Jonny!!! 😀
excellent summary John, you are one tough mudder. what a feeling of satisfaction you must have in finishing this event. i would suspect that there are many who tried and where unable to finish. this is a testamnet to the hard work and dedication you have to your training to be able to compete and complete such an event. my hat goes off to you buddy, you are one tough machine.
YOU DA MAN JOHNNY……but I am going to decline the offer to fill me in one on one sometime! Perhaps a little much.
Amazing Johnny!
Congratulations on the finish!
Hope you shake your injuries quickly.
After this you deserve a little down time to get yourself right.
Hat’s off to you buddy!
Very inspiring, Johnny! Congratulations, Tough Mudder! 😀
OK Johnny it’s official you’re nuts! Amazing story and great perseverance.
Holy shit…I’ve read about this before and thought it was nuts…..just hearing your details is painful enough. Deck of death, 400 lunges, Fran, ……… nothing else comes close. Good for you for getting through it …….and surviving!!!
Unbelievable Johnny. I can only imagine the pain you felt and what it took to push through this. You are one Tough Mudder. Congrats on finishing!
No rep, maybe. But nobody can rock a pair of white socks like I do.
Johnny thanks for sharing your adventure. That’s some wild stuff man!
Remember, you can come at any time between 4:15 and 7:30 for the workout. However, please register online for any class.
Mobility
2 Rounds
10 Squats
10 Pullups
10 Pullups
Samson Stretch
WOD – 3 Rounds
7 Floor Press 115#
14 Push Press – Very Hard!
21 Back Squats
Time: 8:54
Well done Jamie!
Mobility &
2 Rounds
10 Squats
10 Pullups
10 Pullups
Samson Stretch
WOD – 3 Rounds
7 Floor Press 55#
14 Push Press (same weight) Harder than I expected
21 Back Squats
Time=8:21 🙂
WOD @ 55#: 11:31
That was a tough one! Particularly the push press!
Johnny, Absolutely incredible. You are one tough mudder for sure. Congrats on completing this.
WOD
9:37 as Rx……. probably could of done better had problems with the clamps on my bar.
5 muscle ups
Mobility
2 Rounds
10 Squats
10 Pullups
10 Pullups
Samson Stretch
WOD 3 Rounds
7 Floor Press 55#
14 Push Press
21 Back Squats
Time: 6:38
Tough WOD!!
Worked on double unders and kipping T2B.
STRETCH 🙂
WOD (115#) —> 8:06*
21 Reps short. I did 7 PP each round instead of 14… Oops!
Still a tough WOD and happy I did all sets unbroken.
WU = 2 Rounds: 10 Squats; 10 Pushups; 10 Ring Rows
WOD: 3 Rounds — “MODIFIED”
7 Floor Press – 15# Dumbbell (Left arm ONLY)
14 Push Press – 15# Dumbbell (Left arm ONLY)
21 Back Squats – 55#
TIME: 7:39
Didn’t expect 15# to feel soooo heavy by the end. Left arm fatigue!
3 rounds
7 Floor Press (115)
14 Push Press (same weight)
21 Back Squats
8:39
On paper this didn’t look too bad.. Apparently I’m on a grade two reading comprehension level when it comes to WODS.. Another ass kicker!
Nice work on the WOD! Definitely an ass kicker, disguised as something much easier (hate those!)
Mobility
2 Rounds
10 Squats
10 Pullups
10 Pullups
Samson Stretch
WOD – 3 Rounds
7 Floor Press
14 Push Press
21 Back Squats
1st round was at 115#
last 2 rounds were at 95# – the push presses were too heavy at 115
Time: 11:31
Nice job Francis. Those push presses were BRUTAL, weren’t they?
thanks, yes, they were evil
This WOD got SOOO much harder with each round!
Mobility
2 Rounds
10 Squats
10 Pullups
10 Pullups
Samson Stretch
WOD – 3 Rounds – 70#
7 Floor Press
14 Push Press
21 Back Squats
Time: 7:72
7:72??? New time system…
Hahah, damn small laptop keys :7:52
Thanks Marcel
WU x 2 – 10 squats/10 pushups/10 pullups/samson stretch
No strength
WOD as Rx – 3 rounds of:
7 Floor press (85#)
14 Push press
21 Back Squats
Time = 8:27
Waaaaaaaay harder than it looked on paper. Push presses damn near killed me.
Practiced double unders.
Good work Lora! Push press was very tough but you rocked it as RX’d!!
Awesome job doing this as Rx Lora!
WOD as Rx’d -> 6:53
So much for Paleo! Subway….eat fresh! LMAO
😀
Awesome job Marc!
Wod 3 rds
7 Floor press (85#)
14 Push press
21 Back Squats
Time: 6:31
WOD @ 65#
Time 10:51
Push press were hard! Thanks everyone for cheering me on :). Great job everybody!
Nice job Martine. Great form!
Thanks Corinna! You did awesome!!
WU x 2 – 10 squats/10 pushups/10 pullups/samson stretch
WOD @ 75#
7 Floor press
14 Push press
21 Back Squats
Time: 10:20
WOD @ 75# (60% of push press)
Time: 10:57
What an arm burner. I even felt it when holding the bar for back squats!
WOD @ 95#: 7:57
Before I started, I was disappointed that I had to scale this one. My bench press strength wouldn’t allow me to go higher. After finishing, I’m some glad I didn’t use 115#. That was a killer!
WOD @ 75 lbs
Time: 7:12
I quite liked this WOD! Be cool to do this one as Rx next time around.
Great job Kevin and Joanna with the WOD tonight. It looked kick ass! Looking forward to doing it!
WOD at 115# –> 12:39
I struggled a lot on that WOD. I maybe should have used a lighter weight.
Great story Johnny. I loved reading every word of your crazy adventure. I laughed out loud quite a few times visualizing you in different parts of the obstacle course. I admire your will power!
John absolutely amazing !! Good for you, an experience most couldn’t dream of committing to !! Congratulations !!
Mobility
2 rounds
10 squats
10 pushups
10 Pullups
Samson stretch
WOD – rx’d
7 floor press 115#
14 push press
21 back squat
13:20
Took longer than I hoped, but glad I finished !!! Great WOD !
Woohoo as Rx’d Matty! Good job.
Mobility & 2 Rounds
10 Squats
10 Pullups
10 Pullups
Samson Stretch
WOD – 3 Rounds
7 Floor Press 105# (60% max push press)
14 Push Press
21 Back Squats
Time: 9:38
Those push press were tough, thanks for the push at the end Marc!
Did this one a few weeks back to test it out.
As rx’d in 8:26
Callout #6
6 Rounds
2 Power Clean 155#
2 Push Jerk
2 Squat Clean
75 Double unders
Max time 2:30 per round. Time left over from each round is score and amount of rest until next round. If you go over 2:30 in a round keep going to finish the round but subtract that from total.
1:12
1:16
1:14
1:02
1:08
:54
Rest = 6:46 (406 seconds)
6 Rounds
2 Power Clean 155/100
2 Push Jerk
2 Squat Clean
75 Double unders
Max time 2:30 per round. Time left over from each round is score and amount of rest until next round. If you go over 2:30 in a round keep going to finish the round but subtract that from total.
Rest per round (or amount i went over the 2:30)
1:13
:56
:26
+:12
+:35
+:48
Score – 1:00 (60 seconds) total rest. Looked so much better on paper…ick.
OK – the math in this wod looks like the real challenge – maybe not a good wod for those of us who are struggling counting to 10!!
Warm Up.
WOD @ 60#
Time = 9:26
Well I think there is general agreement that the push presses were tough. My last round were 3 at a time.
Thanks for the update Johnny. What an incredible story. Ice baths & shock therapy….sounds awesome. I can’t believe you are thinking about the “next time” already. Congrats on finishing this.
WU x 2
10 squats
10 push ups
10 pull ups
WOD: 3 rounds at 95lbs
7 floor press
14 push press
21 back squats
Time: 9:26
Really loved this workout
WOD @ 55
Time 8:48
WU x 1
WOD @ 65# ( had to use lighter weight due to my unhealed shoulder)
7 Floor press
14 Push press
21 Back Squats
Time: 6:34
John – I have no words to even describe your journey with tough mudder!! So happy for you!
MOB
WU x 2 as:
10 squats
10 push ups
10 pull ups
samson stretvh
No strength – practice floor presses
WOD: 3 rounds:
7 floor presses (Rx 115/85 – 60% Push press) 70#’s
14 push presses
21 back squats
Time 10:50
Tough WOD in the third round.
Practiced box jumps unbroken:
12″ X 10
14 1/2″ X 10
16″ X 10
18 1/2 X 5; x 4
Toes thru rings
T2B with band
Johnny you are one scary guy – I am impressed and horrified at your perserverance!
WU X 2
WOD w 95 lbs = 7:45
Great job man!
MOB
WU x 2 as:
10 squats
10 push ups
10 pull ups
samson stretch
No strength – practice floor presses
WOD: 3 rounds:
7 floor presses 85#
14 push presses
21 back squats
8:36
Johnny I just watched the video from a link on Kevin’s Facebook and all I can say is wow. Vermont in July eh? Wonder if there should be a Crossfit Moncton group entry for that one? A few carloads of people and we’re off to the border.
And you definately should submit that video to GoPro.