Reflections on the Savage Race and A Little Virginia Tough Mudda

Sometimes leaders go in alone, and other times they run with the pack.

Author Unknown

 

It’s been more than a few weeks now since I participated in the Mid-Atlantic Savage Race – or The Great Crawl as my knees lovingly refer to it around the house. Honestly at this point we also have the Virginia Tough Mudder behind us as well. I think by this time I have had ample time to reflect on my experience - in all honesty, I simply didn’t get this post done before I left for the Virginia Mudder and now have to readjust my thinking. Readjusting – I think I’ve written a post on that.

After every race I like to take some time and actually think about the lessons learned and participating in the Mid-Atlantic Savage Race was no different. I had thought of doing another Most Firsts posts – maybe The Most Most Firsts – but even for me that seemed rather cheesy. Especially due to the fact that we ran the Virginia Mudder and really experienced the most first, so how long can I actually keep that theme going.  There were quite a few firsts from the Savage Race though that I thought were relevant to share.

1. The first solo race for a Year in the Mud team member. Running solo – definitely overrated. It took this experience for me to truly appreciate the camaraderie of tackling the obstacles with friends.     
2. The first non-WTM three lap day. Granted the mileage equated to 2 Tough Mudder laps, but the 75+ obstacles put a beating on you.
3. The first non-sighting of fat, retired Superheroes. I must admit the Superheroes at the Savage Race were all pretty buff. Very “superheroey”.
4. First official interview. Just in case you have not seen my 3 seconds of fame, my brudda Big B graciously posted it to all of our fans here.
5. First time running with a veteran of the Iraq/Afghanistan wars in full combat gear – minus loaded weapons of course.
6. First time taking a shower with muddy water pumped from a nearby pond. Enough said on that one – but really – muddy pond water???

So what did I learn on this particular solo race in terms of educational lessons? No matter how much I’ve thought about it, one thing keeps coming up again and again. There is quite interesting balance between the individual and the team in any of these races. Simply running this as an individual is one of the reasons why I am not super excited about doing a marathon or a triathlon. I am in my head enough. The last think I need to do is think about how much pain I’m in over the course of 26 miles.

 In the end, I guess none of us can get away from being in our heads during any type of race. There is a time when you shut down and all you have is yourself for awhile. I never really experiences this in a Tough Mudder until the 2013 Worlds Toughest Mudder, but now I get it. But the one thing these races have over other experiences are the times when you look to the right or left and realize that your buddy next to you is experiencing the same thing. Then right up ahead there’s the next obstacle, we all come out of the fuzz we’re in, and the comraderie takes over. Depending on how late it is and one of our team need a hand or someone next to us needs a boost, this is the time we get to take a moment and help someone else with their race.

There was a time when I was on top of Colossus when I realized how much I like to help others on the course. It is the most fulfilling part of the race for me in many ways.  

 I think for many of us in education, not that these lessons are limited to eduction, this exemplifies most of our day. Most of the day we exist as lone individuals in our classrooms or offices trudging through the crisis du jour, plowing through to the next obstacle, and then it happens. The moment when you look to your left or right and realize that you have colleague who you can turn to for some help, advice, thoughts, or just an end of the day pick me up. And for me that is when everything really starts to change. I always find it amazing how much clearer I can think when I have others there to help me think in a new way or push me to move in a new direction. This is when the creative juices really get flowing and it is the same feeling I experience when we are thinking about the best way to attack a new obstacle. This obstacle might be one we have done 20 times, but sometimes it is the push of a teammate to move you to rethinking the way you have always done something.  

A great example of this for me was at the Virginia Tough Mudder. During our second lap, Brian simply turned his head when we got to Funky Monkey and said – monkey swing – and that was all he really needed to say. I knew exactly what he meant. For those non-constant readers out there, you might not know that I absolutely stink when it comes to hanging from one arm. Hence my dilemma with freaking Hangin’ Tough. I have developed a decent strategy for Funky Monkey, but it means moving rather methodically through the obstacle and always having two hands on a bar before moving to the next. It took Big B to push me over the edge – maybe a glimmer in my eye that he recognized – but it was time to try something new. This is the camaraderie and the teamwork that I really love to be a part of whether it is out in the mud or back in the office planning for a new school year. And for the first time – I swung like a monkey!

The scratches from The Long Crawl have healed – even though that did take longer than expected. The Virginia Tough Mudder has come and gone (hopefully I will have a post about that in the near future), and I am looking forward to my first Spartan race in July. Other than the World’s Toughest Mudder, it will be our first true race. And while we may still be debating how we handle a "race" as a team, I feel I'm in a pretty good place. Because while my bruddas are faster and stronger (you can choose which is which), I know on any course I run there will always be someone to the right the left who will be there and help move me down the course.