Adrian and I joined a team to run through a course of muddy, nasty but thoroughly entertaining obstacles at Philadelphia's MuckFest 2014. The event raises awareness and support for people living with Multiple Sclerosis, a disease of the central nervous system that can lie dormant for a while and then suddenly impact individuals of all ages.
Our team ran as "Cheryl's Crew," in support of my friend Amanda's mom, who was fairly recently diagnosed with MS.
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| Most of Team Cheryl's Crew with Cheryl smiling in the middle in her turquoise shirt. She cheered us on! |
- The husband of a girl in my high school graduating class
- A great girl I met in college
- One of my brother's best friends
Each of these three people are within a few years of my age and are daily battling challenges from this illness that we may know nothing about.
As our team lined up at 11:00 a.m. to start our race, the event director reminded us that when we come to a muddy obstacle and think...How am I going to get through that? That's often how people with MS feel when a new obstacle arises from this disease. I have to admit, I'm sure we had much more fun tackling the obstacles we faced today.
The 9:30 heat getting muddy before the race even started!
Today's MuckFest was the first official "bib" race for everyone in this picture except me.
They did fantastic!
Two couples having fun - Brad and Amanda are awesome!
Team Cheryl's Crew
Getting ready for the start of the race
And we're off! (The next photo was taken over an hour later...)
Amanda hangs on tight to the Swinging Rope and prepares for dismount.
Nothing quite like swinging yourself into a giant mud pit!
Brad and Amanda crawling out of the mud pit. Dirty, mucky mess!
"You got this babe," at least that's what I imagine Brad said.
Look at that strong man...and the drowned rat in the background ;)
Get me out of this muck!
And now that we "rinsed off" in the mud pit, let's get slimy muddy again!
So close, only the Belly Crawl stands in the way between us and the finish.
Muddy but still standing and having a great time.
Amanda and her Dad emerge from the Belly Crawl
Al...most....there...
WE FINISHED AS A TEAM!!!
It took about 1.5 hours for us to complete the MuckFest run.
Keep in mind we did have to wait our turn at many of the obstacles ;)
Proud MuckFest Finishers
Amanda and her Dad happy to support a woman they love.
And what's getting dirty without a little smooch at the end ;)
It was so great to have my husband join me for the first time in a running event.
These showers at the end at least helped us remove major clumps of mud...
Post race picnic and party.
So that's why about 7,000 people participated in this mucky race this weekend (including another group of my Delaware friends on Saturday.) We ran for MS and we ran for Fun! Adults like an excuse to get dirty and play on playgrounds too you know. Even if they do make us fall down and get back up again. I totally did faceplant at the bottom of the Cargo Net crossover.
We may have gotten dirty, dirty, dirty but we had a great time doing it and helping others!
Loved reading about your day! Wonderful pictures and captions. The finish line team-finish photo brought tears to my eyes, I love everything it represents!!! -Jenny T.
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