The first tough mudder of 2014 for 2/3 of our team is in the books. DC was unable to attend and posted the top 5 things he would miss by not going. You can read those reasons
here. I thought I'd post my top 3 moments from the trip. They are in no particular order.
1.
Skittles - Tough Mudder has added a new legionnaires portion to the course and the headband quest. This new feature is designed to create return mudders by providing both course and headband incentives. The course portion of this concept will not make the list of favorite moments but the headbands will. Our Year in the Mud was already hooked and racked up the whole rainbow of headbands in Atlanta.
Leadership Lesson: Incentives do matter as long as they are the right incentive. I love the idea of having a portion of the course for returning mudders. This incentive doesn't work if the part of the course is a letdown as it was in Atlanta. I was skeptical about the headband incentive but have warmed up gradually because it led to conversation among people before, during and after the event. The best part of this journey is really
2.
People Watching - Rarely do I have an opportunity to just watch people run a Tough Mudder. We typically get to the course early , run as many times as we can and then leave. When DC and I ran in New Jersey we spent some time watching people go through Electroshock Therapy before we left. It was one of the most entertaining 20 minutes I've had. In Atlanta I was nursing a hip issue that came out of nowhere to slow me down. Yet another sign that the big 4---0 is looming. Patrick was determined to do two laps so I decided to sit out the second lap. This meant I had about 3 hours of downtime. I spent about 45 minutes of this time unable to find our car in the field or cars. After that I spent the rest of the time watching fellow Mudders conquer obstacles like Funky Monkey, Family Feud and most importantly Electroshock Therapy. I am completely in awe of the mudders that conquered the course while I watched.
Leadership Lesson: Leaders often spend most of their time talking and directing. Leadership is most effective with a nice mix of watching and listening. I learned a great deal about people, strategies, and fears by watching people face Electroshock Therapy. Nobody loves being shocked and if you do please don't tell anyone because that is just weird. Nevertheless, people push through and come out on the other side. Everyone that entered the obstacle made it to the other side. Some came through with no problem. Others had to crawl through while a few were actually dragged out. In the end they made it to the finish line, got the coveted orange headband, and celebrated with their team. People are amazing if you take the time to notice.
3.
Teamwork and Camaraderie - I only started this journey because of a team. This team has traveled thousands of miles in the mud and are different people because of it. The teamwork on display in Atlanta was inspiring. There were teams of all shapes and sizes on the course. There were teams in fancy shirts and others that were formed on the spot at an obstacle. I am certain that the bonds between these teammates were strengthened as a result of completing the course together.
Leadership Lesson: The teamwork and camaraderie displayed on a farm in Atlanta by teammates and complete strangers is often lacking between coworkers and companies. This occurs because the goal of a mudder is crystal clear to the thousands of people who run them every weekend. The goal is to make it to the finish line and it will take more than just what you have within you to make it. Even a seasoned mudder needs a hand along the way. More importantly, a veteran mudder always stays to lend a hand. How clear are your goals? Who is on your team that will help you accomplish them?
There are a bunch of other memories that could have made the list and some may eventually become entire posts. For example, the gazelle almost got passed on the pole dancer obstacle by a very angry, determined female. That is a great story and one that will be exaggerated for years to come because it is his word versus mine. There is also no video evidence to back up either side and my version is far more comical.
For now the lessons around incentives, people watching and teamwork resonate most. The countdown to VA is on and the team of 3 will be united again.
We are about three weeks away from our next race. This race is actually the closest one to home that we have run so far. Keep in mind that last year's Virginia Beach race (which was 2 hours from the beach) was cancelled due to storms. Let's hope that there is no place like home when it comes to running a Tough Mudder. This race will be exciting because it is the first race since World's Toughest Mudder that all three of us will be running together. We have taken different paths over the course of the past few months with an eye on running this mudder together. 
So, we've reached the one year anniversary of my ankle surgery. I would consider my "ankle-versary" to be May 8th, since that's when I actually tore it, but since I didn't have the surgery until the 17th, which would be the real date of when the healing started, that's the day.
There is, of course, the psychological effects to deal with. My ankle is strong enough to do pretty much everything I'd want to do with it. Since last fall, I've run six laps at three different regular Tough Mudder events, and another six laps at WTM. I've finished various rounds of Insanity, Asylum and T25, and I've been able to run a long run while averaging sub-10 minute miles, so, I would assume that this means that the physical part of the recovery is pretty close to done, but learning to trust the ankle again isn't coming as quickly. I still find myself being overly careful when getting down off of obstacles - most notably, Berlin Walls. The drop is a bit scary because I'm not sure how my ankle will react to a sudden jolt. This might not be a bad thing, obviously. Being cautious around obstacles is good practice. I don't want to be careless and put myself in physical danger if it can be avoided.
