– Windham, NY

Some of the members of this year’s Tough Mudder team assembled in Windham this week to start preparing for this intense event…A 12 mile march through every type of mud imaginable…over, under, and through numerous obstacles built by Tough Mudder’s sadistic course designers.  And, did I mention they electrocute you…a lot!?!

Last year the Adaptive Sports Foundation, through Wounded Warrior Project, brought a team of warriors and staff to the Tough Mudder in Englishtown, NJ. The team was nearly 20 strong, including one team member in a wheelchair.  We completed the course in a little over 8 hours, and tackled every obstacle we faced.

This year we are forming a team of returning Tough Mudder veterans and newcomers.  This was reflected in our event this week, as the group was split 50/50.  Again, we have a team member in a wheelchair.

We took to the mountain to begin working on the skills it takes to navigate rough terrain with a fully loaded wheelchair, and practiced some of the technical skills it takes to assist someone with a spinal cord injury over a wall.  After two days of hard work, it was nice to end each day with some well deserved restorative techniques.  MELT Method and Restorative Yoga were combined to bring us all to a chorus of snoring.

After these past couple days I can say we are all charged up to be forming this team.  The Tough Mudder is a challenging event for anybody, and forming a team of wounded warriors, as well as having a team member in a wheelchair, all with the common goal of completing this event is truly humbling to be a part of.  The staff is getting ready…The warriors are getting ready…Come October, this team is going to be locked, loaded, and ready to crush this year’s Tough Mudder.