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Reservists tackle mud, snow, water, electricity for Wounded Warrior Project

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Scott P. Farley
  • 310th Space Wing Public Affairs
BEAVER CREEK, Colo --  The first rule of Tough Mudder is it's not a race, but a challenge.

At the starting line, competitors recite a pledge, vowing to uphold the tenets of the Tough Mudder before embarking on a challenge that takes them over 4,000 feet of elevation change, through icy water, putrid-smelling mud, up mountain ski runs, and through an electrified obstacle, all while raising money for the Wounded Warrior Project.

As a Tough Mudder I pledge that...
* I understand that Tough Mudder is not a race but a challenge.
* I put teamwork and camaraderie before my course time.
* I do not whine - kids whine.
* I help my fellow Mudders complete the course.
* I overcome all fears.

It is with these instructions that six members of the 310th Mission Support Group set out among a field of thousands to complete the nine-mile challenge in Beaver Creek Resort in Avon, Colo., on June 26, 2011.
While the Tough Mudder was the pinnacle of the challenge, the challenge started in mid May with Tech. Sgt. Alex Sanchez, the 310th Space Wing Logistics Supply Manager, logging into the Tough Mudder Web site and deciding he was going to sign up.
"Once I logged in, I knew I was going to do it and right away told (Staff Sgt. Conrad Jones) about it and he was onboard to do it with me," said Sanchez.
Sanchez said through his softball sponsors funding some of the wing participants, they quickly had a team of competitors who started training for the event that was only two months out.
"I've never done anything like this before," said Sanchez. "I've done cross country, but not a half marathon; I've done 5Ks, but never a 10K, but I've run seven miles several times over the last couple of weeks."
The group of Buckley Air Force Base, Colo., Reservists, Sanchez, Senior Master Sgt. Peter Price, Staff Sgt. Christian Schweiger, Staff Sgt. Aaron Hunt, and Jones, began a training regimen that included seven-mile runs, running stairs at Red Rocks Amphitheatre and uphill zig zags. The team would later include Master Sgt. Eric Vesey.
"The best training we did was when a group of us went to Red Rocks a couple of time. We ran the bleachers and the stairs," said Jones, who works in the 310th Force Support Squadron education and training office.
After two months of muscle confusion and unusual workouts, the day of the competition brought more advanced challenges.
"The day of, I had butterflies going into it," said Sanchez. "It was something new I've never done. I've never done more than three miles in a race. I knew I could do it, but I didn't know what I was getting myself into."
What the group was getting into was a competition that tests toughness, fitness, strength, stamina, and mental grit all in one place and all in one day, which Tough Mudder claims is probably the toughest event on the planet.
Facing 25 obstacles and nine grueling miles with no game plan, the Reservists quickly found out that camaraderie was the key to the Tough Mudder.
"This was the ultimate success story," said Jones. "It was difficult. It was team. The camaraderie of our personal team was impressive. We weren't even sure in the beginning how we were going to split up or stay together. It was a little muddy until the last minute."
Jones said they knew they wouldn't leave anyone alone, but it wasn't until the last 24 hours when it became clear how they would proceed.
"It was a little muddy until the last minute, but the minimum was nobody was ever going to be left alone," said Jones. "In the last 24 hours, we started getting the vibe that Tough Mudder is all about the team. So Sergeant Sanchez and I decided we would all just stick together. Let's get everybody through. I played anchor and worked with whoever fell back. I pushed them and carried them along."
Even working as the anchor throughout the course, Jones found himself face to face with obstacles that left him questioning his ability to complete them.
"One of the toughest for me was the underwater tunnels," Jones said about the obstacle that requires swimming several feet through and under icy water. "They warn you in the very beginning that you are going to approach some bodies of water that are as cold as they can make them without being frozen. Right there you have a decision to make. Do I think that I can get through this and if I don't, is it worth dying today for this? And we're going to say no, you should walk around it. They warned you in the beginning it was cold. I talked to some guys that had done it on sat who said the water was the most difficult event. None of those warning prepared me for what I had to deal with going under the water. I stepped into and got up to about mid chest and whole body just cringes. When you go under water, time seems to change. That is the first time I have had that kind of shock on my body in my whole life."
Jones said the course was filled with many obstacles that offered shocking trials for Tough Mudder challengers, but it was the camaraderie of the event that stood out the most to him.
"The combination of the team thing was amazing, but it was like that the entire course with everybody," said Jones. "I'd see these superstar guys who could just about leap these 12 foot walls, who would sit there and hang out for a couple of minutes to help five or 10 people over the walls. That's just not normal. I've been to marathons, half marathon and 5Ks and there's nowhere I've seen this kind of team and camaraderie."
Jones said members of this year's team are already planning to participate again next year in the challenge that is also for a good cause.
Tough Mudder events are held across the United States and have raised over $1 million for the Wounded Warrior Project, a non-profit organization that assists warriors as they recover and transition back into civilian life.
Jones added that not only is he talking to people about participating next year, but also starting to set goals.
"Next year if I could have a goal, it would be that almost every person in this unit would either compete or watch the event," said Jones.
It is with this goal of getting more Reservists to come out that Sanchez and Jones are already looking forward to the 2012 Tough Mudder in Avon, Colo. Jones said that just about any Reservist should be able to not only complete this challenge but find it formidable no matter what fitness level they are at.
"It seemed like you could make it as hard as you wanted to make it," said Jones. "A very average person could do it and that's what was cool to me. An extreme athlete could truly be challenge and scarred up and busted by it, depending on how hard you decide to attack it."
Even with all of their bumps and bruises, Jones said participating in this unique event left many thirsty for more.
"When I was coming into work the day after, Price said to me, "What are we going to do next? That's cool," said Jones. "Nobody said that after the marathon. Nobody said that after the P.T. test. Nobody said that after the half marathon. Nobody said that after the 5K. That's not normal."
Go to the Tough Mudder Web site for more information or to join the 2012 310th Space Wing team, contact Sanchez at (720) 847-1668.