Yesterday was quite the day! I ran walked (let’s be realistic, here) my first 5k with Tyler.

In the mud.

First off, how was the race?
Alie: We got so dirty and it was great. The race started off with a big, muddy hill that was nearly impossibly to run up! I got a bit injured in the beginning of the race, scraping and badly bruising my left shin. It kind of made things suck a little throughout the remaining 2.5 miles, but I survived.
Tyler: It was pretty fun. You start out running on a huge mud flat up a hill. It was funny to look back and see so many people just slipping and falling on their faces 100 feet into the race. Then when we were almost to the top, there was a huge sprinkler to spray us down. It was definitely different than your normal city 5k, but in a good way.

How was the mud?
Alie: Funny you should ask this. I never thought I would be analyzing mud, but here I am. The mud was runny in some places and like cow manure in others. Mostly runny and ridiculously slippery on the uphills and thick, pasty, threatening-to-pull-your-shoe-off in other places. I got pushed in the mud by Tyler quite a bit, but he was the one in the end who finished with mud covering the right side of his face. It was really hard to run through and extremely slippery.
Tyler: It smelled like compost, manure, and all kids of sewage. Sometimes the mud was runny (and looked like chocolate pudding), sometimes it was really thick (and looked like brownie batter), but you can be sure that I made it a point to make sure we were covered with it head to toe by the time we were done. Needless to say, I bet the 2002 olympic committee is fairly offended that we have used the Olympic biathlon complex by covering it in mud and sprinklers.

How were the obstacles?
Alie: The obstacles would have been easy peasy if the giant hose/fan spraying water wasn’t directly on you. Oh, and if you took away the fact that there was a huge pool of slippery, muddy water in front of each one.
Tyler: There were climbing walls, more sprinklers, super swampy parts where your feet almost get stuck. There is a huge water slide, and a “hog wash” at the end where you are waist deep in mud. They were all very fun, and very dirty. It was quite a challenge to try to stay on your feet most of the time. Also of note was the stuff we left with that was definitely not mud. We had twigs and branches in our hair, and I had plenty of small rocks in my shoes.

How was the run itself? Did you make it?
Alie: The run was difficult. And yes, I made it. Barely. One of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my entire life. We trained on concrete and flat land and this race was muddy, obstacle-y, hilly, and on uneven dirt. It was blazing hot in some places and cold in others. I think for me the biggest setback was the hills. Oh, the hills!
Tyler: It was actually easier than I had thought. The obstacles and mud made for an interesting twist, but generally the race was easier if you were running. When we ran, I felt the mud dry up and fall off my body.

Would you do it again?
Alie: Definitely. (Not.) Maybe if we keep up this running thing and I feel more fit I will. Tyler can take a stab at it next year. I’m sure he’d enjoy someone more fun to be his running partner!
Tyler: Oh yes. However, I doubt I will ever be in Provo around June time too much in the future, so I may be trying to do the 10k with whoever wants to run with me. That and I’m going to run the piglet plunge (for kids 2-12 yrs) with Jack when he is old enough.