Ellie Hetebrij, The Photographer: Tough Mudder

My Flatmates and I, Just after finishing Tough Mudder

My arms are on fire, my left shin is swollen, my eczema is making my pigmentation and skin colour appear to be more camouflage then skin, yet I’m buzzing, my cheeks beaming, and a overwhelming sense of pride feels my soul , lameness aside I’m generally a bit surprised we actually finished it. I mean don’t get me wrong, we do care about our fitness and we eat healthily, but were also typical students and somehow without training or any real knowledge of Tough Mudder, we have just run 12 miles and completed 26 obstacles, including being submerged into ‘Artic Enema’ a skip full of Ice ( imagine being submerged into a tank with an average temperature of 1⁰c) before taking ‘Electroshock Therapy’ to your butt cheek, the noises we made throughout the course were definitely not suitable for all age ranges and I’m glad were not caught on film.

Walking up to Mudder Village, Matterley Bowl, Winchester and seeing the 8:30 time slot start their journey through the estimated 475,000 litres of mud, the least I can say is we were a little worried about what we had signed up to do, yet being the legends we are we put on our numbers, drew on our mustaches and headed over to the start line, I could give you a obstacle by obstacle low down or how we did on each part of the course, on how many times we swore trying to clamber over something, or how much of the race we ran whilst wringing out our shirts, but instead I want to talk about the values behind tough Mudder.

‘’The Idea of Tough Mudder is not to win.. but to have a story to tell’

New York Times

Looking back at the 26 obstacles spread around Matterley Bowl, without the help of other Mudders I doubt we could of completed the 12 miles, I mean how do three girls clamber up a 9 foot ‘Hero Wall’ without the help of beautiful strangers.

Before the Competitors are let loose on the course they agree to the Mudders Pledge.

- I understand that Tough Mudder is not a race but a challenge.
- I put teamwork and camaraderie before my course time.
- I do not whine – Kids wine
- I help my fellow mudders complete the course
- I overcome all fears

Despite being amongst some of the 13,000 other Mudders when this pledge was taken, I was still shocked at the helpfulness of these complete strangers, I mean you practically use them as a ladder to mount fences and a human crane to haul you up the last part of Everest , and why, why do we pay for volunteer ourselves for this, Tough Mudder is not a half Marathon, or a army style assault course but a massive trust exercise, I mean you are not only looking into complete strangers eyes as your pushed, pulled and hauled up but you’re doing exactly the same to everyone else, participating in the unspoken rule of helping the next person overcome the hurdle.

Looking Fresh the competitors start the 12 mile run. Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

Teams will on their teammates as the assault course begins. Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

My thoughts on 'Arctic Enema'

Picture this the temperature is 1 degree, its dark, your trying to emerge, despite only remembering one line of tyres, you feel like you've been under for ages, you didn't think it would be this dark and the temperature has shocked you, (no wonder they had just plied you with snacks and water), you fight through the muddy ice water and try to emerge, narrowly scraping the tyres as your reach the surface, pushing through the last layers of ice your reunited with the daylight, you see the edge and wade through it clamber out, only to realize that your not even 4 miles in.

Mudders escaping from Artic Enema, a Skip in which you have to full submerge in Ice Cold water. Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

A rather shocked Mudder pulls himself together after Arctic Enema . Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

A participant seems way to pleased about the cool waters of Arctic Enema. Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

Mudders escaping from Arctic Enema. Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

A mud laden Mudder escapes from Arctic Enema . Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

The Shock kicks in, Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

Arctic Enema, Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

Walk the Plank

Possibly one of the easiest obstacles, a 4 metre drop into cold dirty water.

Walk the Plank, Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

A Mudder's realization that he has not quite finished the course , Tough Mudder South, Matterley Bowl, Winchester, October 25th 2014

A Electroshock Therapy

Its all good fun until you get a shock to your funny bone, then you get pins and needles in your arm for around half an hour. Not the best thing to have when your trying to take photos.