Did one last year and it was a blast but honestly, it was mind boggling how little safety procedures there were (we did a winter one and hypothermia was rampant).
Sad to see something like this happen, everyone needs to make sure they are safe when they race anywhere especially in our sport where the mind sometimes outlasts the body.
Nah they had to warm up quietly
Brilliant! I lol’ed.
My injury was 10 yards from the finish line where I caught one of the “big” electric shocks, blacked out, woke up in darkness and blinking…well that was mud i was blinking in. Hit the med tent there and it had a waiting line. 4 days later my eyes cleared up from all redness and infection. Anyhow after saying “well…ok I did that” there’s no chance I’m doing another.
Wait, what?? Electric shock? What the heck is that?
Sengupta’s death was ruled accidental by the Virginia medical examiner’s office in Manassas, Va., which said Monday afternoon that drowning was the cause of death.
Sad that it is drowning, because that was probably something that could have been avoided with a minimal amount of supervision of the water/mud pit area.
Given they’ve got so many people jumping into those mud pits and the bedlam that goes with it, I think his family should sue the crap out of Tough Mudder and see if their famous “Death Waiver” holds up in court.
These events are usually pretty large, though. I did a warrior dash and they had 50K ppl doing it over 2 days. With the amount of ppl doing these events, that’s actually a fairly small number of ER patients, no?
Wait, what?? Electric shock? What the heck is that?
Yes, 2 or 3 obstacles involve electric shocks, including the last one at every event (you can find youtube videos of people basically getting shocked into unconsciousness). I did TM in Austin 2012 with a group, basically pressured into it by my brothers. They have exploded in popularity in recent years, and that has definitely brought out many folks who have no business being there. But you can walk the entire course if you want, and you can skip any obstacle you want. That being said, after having done it, I’m surprised there hasn’t been a death before now.
I actually had fun doing it (I was fit) except for the electric shock parts, those are just senseless in my opinion. But it’s a real macho thing, driven by former military types. I have no real desire to do another.
It benefits the Wounded Warrior Project, a great charity.
Me and a buddy did the one in Austin this past weekend and were surprised by the lack of fitness that many of those who showed up seemed to exhibit. There were several people on the 250+ lbs side and a few that I saw that were the plus side of 300…and I’m saying a good portion of that was fat, not muscle. Most of these dropped out at the first or second aid station. There was one guy I overheard that said, “If I can complete this, I know I can do that 5K next weekend.” The TM only had water no Gatorade or sports drink on course, bananas, one aide station with Clif Bars and another with Shot Blocks. There were several steep grades with loose gravel that caused several participants to loose footing and suffer some sort of injury (I’m guessing turned ankles and a few broken bones.) at the top and bottom of these climbs or descents there weren’t any volunteers or staff to monitor if someone needed medical attention. All of the reporting of injuries was left up to the other participants to cross their arms in a sign of help (hopefully someone below would notice) or run ahead and hope to find someone with a radio. There were a few obstacles that you would have to crawl over multiple walls or logs and there would be exposed rebar that you would come in close contact with.
Exactly. I think the appeal of these events is that people think it is something you don’t have to train or be in shape for. The races don’t seem to do much to discourage this. Between them and rebel race one would think all the participants are smiling, scantily clad young women. Personally, I don’t have much time for obstacle races. But more power to those that enjoy them.
It benefits the Wounded Warrior Project, a great charity.
Does anyone know how much as a percentage or even just a dollar amount is donated to the WWP?
Does anyone know how much as a percentage or even just a dollar amount is donated to the WWP?
0%. TM doesn’t donate, TM participants donate. TM facilitates that via their website, collections at the actual event and the continuous awareness they raise for WWP. I believe $4+ million has been raised thus far.
Wait, what?? Electric shock? What the heck is that?
Yes, 2 or 3 obstacles involve electric shocks, including the last one at every event (you can find youtube videos of people basically getting shocked into unconsciousness). I did TM in Austin 2012 with a group, basically pressured into it by my brothers. They have exploded in popularity in recent years, and that has definitely brought out many folks who have no business being there. But you can walk the entire course if you want, and you can skip any obstacle you want. That being said, after having done it, I’m surprised there hasn’t been a death before now.
I actually had fun doing it (I was fit) except for the electric shock parts, those are just senseless in my opinion. But it’s a real macho thing, driven by former military types. I have no real desire to do another.
It benefits the Wounded Warrior Project, a great charity.
Not Tough Mudder per se, but a guy died at a different Mud Run in Dallas last year.
Yeah, okay, wow. That is a lot, and more abusive than I otherwise expected. Perhaps our friend above who said that maybe the good ol’ 5k/10k will make a resurgence is more correct than I am.
No. The people that typically do the tough mudder and similar are not 5k/10k type people. They are the weight room jockeys for whom a 5k is some sissy running race, but TM is for MEN, damnit!
I’m surprised with the number of people that participate and the likely level of preparedness for a lot of them that more aren’t hitting the ER’s. I’d bet that there were a lot more injuries than 14, those are just the ones that actually went to the ER, and didn’t just go home high fiving their buddies over their battle wounds.
John
I did the one Big Bear that was 30 or something degrees. There were weight room jocks but there were a number of whom probably couldn’t have hiked 5 miles. I was stuck under water in the ice bucket because a larger lady couldn’t climb over the wall and kept falling back. I had to shove her over.
0%. TM doesn’t donate, TM participants donate. TM facilitates that via their website, collections at the actual event and the continuous awareness they raise for WWP. I believe $4+ million has been raised thus far.
interesting…
The safety concerns aside. What sort of pissed me off from just a competitive standpoint, is there was zero timing. No timing chips, and nobody accounting for when you cross the start and finish lines. As somebody else mentioned you can skip any obstacle you want, but even if they were to asses penalties, there is no way to track a skip. Basically you pay around a $100+ for entry fee and then pay for parking. If you want to eat after the event, guess what, you have to pay. No free pizza, no sandwich, not nothing. Water, a Clif Bar, some bananas on the course, and an orange headband. But at the end of the day, there is no way to compare yourself against others in “possibly the toughest RACE in the world”. For all the WTC haters out there, Tough Mudder makes those guys at WTC look like rockstars in my opinion. If it’s true that they don’t donate anything to the Wounded Warrior Project, they are swimming in the cash they pull in.
That was exactly what I was getting at…
they bring $70 million a year, and donated $4 millions in the last 3 years, no matter what they are rolling in cash, they are a for profit co,
also it is not a race, it is a challenge, they ask you to help others, it is stated on their website
.
There was an article in Outside Magazine comparing the three big ones in the US, Tough Mudder, Spartan Race, and Warrior Dash: article. It mentions how much each organization is slated to take in money-wise. Tough Mudder is basically a rip off of an adventure race in Wolverhampton, England called Tough Guy that started around 1986. The article also talks about the bad blood between the two organizers, Tough Mudder and Tough Guy.
The safety concerns aside. What sort of pissed me off from just a competitive standpoint, is there was zero timing. No timing chips, and nobody accounting for when you cross the start and finish lines. As somebody else mentioned you can skip any obstacle you want, but even if they were to asses penalties, there is no way to track a skip. Basically you pay around a $100+ for entry fee and then pay for parking. If you want to eat after the event, guess what, you have to pay. No free pizza, no sandwich, not nothing. Water, a Clif Bar, some bananas on the course, and an orange headband. But at the end of the day, there is no way to compare yourself against others in “possibly the toughest RACE in the world”. For all the WTC haters out there, Tough Mudder makes those guys at WTC look like rockstars in my opinion. If it’s true that they don’t donate anything to the Wounded Warrior Project, they are swimming in the cash they pull in.
I think you went into it misunderstanding what it is. It is not a race. They make this point repeatedly on their website, on race day, etc. They advertise themselves as the toughest EVENT (not race) on the planet. Straight from their website:
Tough Mudder events are hardcore 10-12 mile obstacle courses designed by British Special Forces to test your all around strength, stamina, mental grit, and camaraderie. With the most innovative courses, 700,000 inspiring participants worldwide to date, and more than $5 million raised for the Wounded Warrior Project, Tough Mudder is the premier adventure challenge series in the world. But Tough Mudder is more than an event, it’s a way of thinking. By running a Tough Mudder challenge, you’ll unlock a true sense of accomplishment, have a great time, and discover a camaraderie with your fellow participants that’s experienced all too rarely these days.
They are also a for-profit business. They are what they are, and I don’t think they try to claim they are anything else.
Sad day at a Tough Mudder race this past weekend.
http://www.outsideonline.com/...articipant-Dies.html
Very sorry to hear this. Condolences to the family and his friends. No one should die (or get hurt for that matter) doing a recreational challenge, be it in a Tough Mudder, local 5K or an Ironman.
Yea, the Fort Worth Mud Run. You slide down a mud slide into a mud pit that is about 5-7 feet deep. The dude that died was dunked by other bodies that landed on him while in the mud pit. Drowned while people basically walked on him. I think he was found near the end of the day.
I volunteered at a Zombie Race thing. Think TM but people chasing after you looking like Zombies. I saw two things that makes me never want to go back. Shit ton of mud in weird places. And ridiculous injuries. A good way to smoke your ankle or whatever and not walk for a while, just accidents waiting to happen. While I personally don’t want to ever do one of these things, for some people it is a step into a healthier lifestyle no matter their route, and I have to applaud them for it and try to hold back my judgement.