Last Weekend we traveled to Rotorua for the Tough Guy and Gal Challenge. We were two of 7,000 people to participate in a 12K run through the mud in the middle of winter. I beleive the forcast for the day was: "Gale force winds and torrential rain storms." Considering that the events purpouse is to soak everyone from head to toe with mud, the weather forcast simply added to the excitement for the day. The kind of people who are willing to jump into giant swamp ponds, crawl under barb wire, walk a tight rope, and slide down rocky hills on their back sides are not only adventurous but spirited. About 1/2 of the participants choose to dress up in ridiculous outfits just to add to the hystericalness of it all. I think we sighted 5 brides in full on wedding garb, multiple super heroes, a flight of bug like creatures, and two little boys about the age of ten in full on suites and ties. We were a little less spirited but still managed to find Hawaian costumes at the Salvation Army about 30 minutes prior to race time, although Michael's outfit was so disorganized that he was mistaken for a pirate on more than one occasion. In the end, it really didnt matter because we were so covered with mud from top to bottom that our clothes all ended up in the rubish bin.
I cant quite imagine a race like this happening in the United States simply due to the liabilty. As your running you continulously see casulaties slipping, falling, getting their backs caught on barb wire and the highlight, seeing people get shocked by an electric fence while clibming over fences. I still can not believe they left the electric fence on. I guess it just adds to the excitment of the day. At the end of the race every finisher is handed a can of Waikato Draft Beer. A good way to end a race in my opinion. I was even one of the lucky people to recieve a "spot" prize...granted the prize I won was a man's beanie and scarf... but still I never win anything so was truly pleased! Overall, the day was truly a success and a highlight of our life in NZ thus far. I have posted the link for the race just in case you cant fully comprehend the ridicuoluosness of it all: http://www.toughguyandgal.co.nz/