* From: michael j downey
* Event: tough mudder – Long island
* Date: 2015-08-15
* Event Details
this was my first time ever doing a TM and i had some idea of what these events were about and went in with a idea of what i was expecting from it and they exceeded it.
parking was a major issue as the final details were not released till close to the event lucky for me and my group we stayed with a friends a few miles away and just took a cab and got dropped off at the same location as the buses dropped off. i was a little surprised how far away the buses dropped off everyone it had to be close to a half mile away from the village. the village was in a parking lot so it was flat and even ground although no real tents to hang out in before or after for shade so in the middle of the afternoon when it was 95*+ it was not so comftable. schwag is there orange headband , a goodie bag from cellulor with some samples and a towel and a finisher shirt that is of a rather low quality.
* Race Details
this was there first time ever at the venue and being that it is a old time village ( think old sturbridge village) there were some limitations for them. my biggest gripe with the course was all the switch back and back and fourths used in the course to try and get the millage up. towards the end they had a mile 9 marker and i think that may have been a strech. there was a few times you would go down a path for a bit get to a water station and then get sent right back the way you came. my POV is i am not paying them to do stuff like that to try and pad the millage just to get close to what they advertise, i would rather a even be short on millaage and add a few obstacles to make up for it because thats what we are there for.
here is a copy of the course map and seems rather accurate to what we got https://toughmudder.cachefly.net/sites/default/files/Long%20Island%20Course%20Map.pdf
not going to go blow by blow on this just gonna hit the highs and lows.
best obstacle of the day – king of swing. quick recap of what it is, they took walk the plank and gave it steroids and now when you get up the platform about 6 feet out is a gianlt metal T bar hanging there and the goal is to jump grab on the the bar go for a wild ride and on the other side is a bell and ring it then drop off and take a swim.
worst obstacle of the day – cliffhanger . not sure what it is normally but this day it was just a walk up a 50 ft hill with a easy slope LAME
other fun obstacles were everest 2.0 this was a real comunial team work obstacle becasue very few will be able to do that one solo and its a heck of a rush as you run up the wall and you inch closer to someones hand and once you grab each other and know your gonna make it you will fight like hell and not let go. artic enema was fun but unfortunately it was a casualty of the heat and they could not keep the ice in there for very long but after being about 7-8 miles in and hot it was quiet refreshing to get a ice water bath.
electroshock therapy – yea ummm it feels exactly how you would expect it and i think the worst part is your running and know your gonna get hit but dont know when and it just comes out of nowhere and scares you.
balls out – very fun and with the help of a volunteer i was able to make it to the end
overall i had a blast with the obstacles and this race really helped push me out of the comfort zone and stop thinking and just do.
another thing i liked was all the large obstacles had a well marked ” obstacle opt out path ” and i saw people use it but most would make a attempt or two before using it and i could have cared less if and when someone used it and knew all those who did had valid reasons. it was a nice and refreshing way to see a race run and rather let people have a few swings at obstacles and give it there best.
i was a bit bummed with the obstacle count and really would have liked to see a few more obstacles added considering they had quiet a few in the book they did not use like cry baby, ladder to hell greased lighting , fire in your hole and ring of fire and shawshanked
overall i had a blast doing this event and was a nice change of pace from the other events i have done and odds are good i will be doing one again as long as i can get in for a decent price
* Rating
Above Average
