Started out a little easy to get a feel for running in boots. Worked my way through the crowd with Andrew beside me when we hit obstacle 1: the mine field (belly crawl). Got down under the wire and got nice and muddy crawling my way through. Then it was back up and running to obstacle 2: the low crawl. This was the same thing but lower and with standing water in the pit. Now it was really starting to get fun!

Obstacle 3 was the wall. Just get a good grip and pull yourself over followed by a good long run. Andrew was right beside me and we were really starting to pass people now. Obstacle 4 was four increasingly taller hurdles and then another long run. Next was a log walk and then the stairway (climb up and over). After that was my favorite obstacle of the day: the pit. Nothing is more fun than a big trench with chest high water and huge logs that you have to climb over and under alternatively. Once I got to the other side it took me a second to realize what I was doing and then I was right back to business.

Obstacle #8 was the quigley. A big hill of loose dirt and a steep downhill into a mud pit. Crawl through the pit and run up another steep loose dirt hill. This nearly killed me. Running in boots was hard, but doing the obstacles adds so much to the difficulty. Then you have to run while you're soaking wet and carrying that extra weight just kills you. From this point on I felt like I would throw up at any moment.

Running down the road to the maze (more trench crawling) was mentally draining. I could see the water just pouring out of my pants and boots. I tried to move my legs as fast as they could go but it was like I was crawling. Hit the next mud hole and crawled through the series of smaller and smaller tires. Then onto a series of soft mulch piles that would throw you to the ground if you didn't look where you stepped. Next was a smaller tunnel where you had to bear crawl along hunched over and unable to look up.

Struck up a conversation with a guy who had run Boston a few times. I knew these Marines were in good shape but Boston Marathoners are some of the best in the world. The last obstacle before the turn was another wall which I was up and over quickly. Next was a cargo net climb which took me a little longer than it should have because of a slow guy in front of me. Once I was on the other side it was time to head back. Got a cup of water from the aid station, drank half and threw the other half at Andrew as I passed him going the other way. So back over the wall, through the tunnel again, the mulch pile, tire crawl, the maze, that killer quigley, the pit, the stairway and the log walk.

Next was the hurdles which gave me a bit of trouble the second time around. They were hard the first time, but once you're exhausted they're monstrous. Took me two tries to get over the second tall one but other than that I made it through pretty well. The next obstacle was a long small tunnel with knee high water. You couldn't stand up, you couldn't lift your feet out of the water, you couldn't see the end; it was just a beast. Once I finally found my way out I was off and running and I knew I was close to home.

Next was the rope swing. I could see the guys ahead of me falling into the water so I knew that I'd have to sprint and get a good push to clear it. I came close but had to drop just at the edge of the mud and climb out. Made my way back to the first wall and did my best to look like I wasn't struggling. Returned to the low crawl and dropped to my stomach and churned my arms to pull my way through. There was another pit with lower wire and deeper water which I went through as well. Turns out that I only needed to do one of them, but hell, I was having fun! Then it was the final stretch down the runway to the finish line. Kept churning my legs and could feel myself getting faster and faster as the water drained out of my clothes. Crossed the finish and a Marine gave me my finisher card and time to give to the timing guys.

Results: Still not posted yet. I'll update this when they're up. I know that I was about 12 minutes behind the winner and looking at last year's results I can guess that I'm in the top 20. I thought Marines were supposed to be good at this stuff.

UPDATE: Results are posted. I was 18th out of 235 for the the individual males and 19th if you include females. Pretty damn good for an event where I didn't know what to expect. I listed Individual Male as my age group on my report and combined it with the Individual Females for the overall. I was talking with Jennifer (the only girl who beat me) while we were running the course and she'll be at Iron Star this weekend. Small world.

Didn't get enough water along the way (I missed two water stops). I had no idea what I was getting into so I'm sure next year I can be faster. Also got a good tip from a veteran at this kind of stuff: cut out your pockets! That way water won't collect and slowly drain but flow right through instead. Damn good idea. I bought a pair of camo pants from the Army/Navy store just for this race so I don't mind altering them for this race next year.

Turned in my time card and went back to find Andrew. I couldn't make out who it was but I could see a guy with hair flying everywhere. That had to be him. So I beat Andrew by a good two and a half minutes which was a total shock to me. Having to stop and readjust his knee brace really slowed him down.

So Andrew and I walked back along the course to watch people crawl through and swing and fall into the mud. We got back to the pit and someone recognized me as the flag guy. Of course a Marine would give me shit for not being willing to crawl through the mud with my flag. So we watched the Marines yell at the people going along and telling them that there wasn't enough brown on their shirts and faces. Turns out my friend Mallory was racing as a group with her sorority and I got to talk with her while they were going through.

Once the runners started to thin out and we decided to jog back. So we did a good two to two and a half miles at a fair clip. It was great to have Marines looking at us and telling us we were crazy for running after what we had just done. Got to the Jeep and changed while we waited to see the winning times.


Inexperience and pockets. Now I know what kinds of things I'll have to do on a Marine obstacle course and how to keep water from pooling in my pockets.


I had a great time! This race was so much fun. My elbows and legs and torso have all sorts of cuts and bruises and I've never had more fun getting them. I did end up with a good blister on the side of my foot which will be fun to race on at the LAC tri tommorow. Anyway, this race was a blast and I'll definitely be back next year. It's now the only 10K I'm willing to pay an entry fee for.