A Mud Obstacle Race Adventure!

Ever since MrJ did the Tough Mudder race, the Beans have been very keen to do a child’s version – you know, minus the obstacle where you run through a field of dangling wires clicking as 10,000 volts crackle through them…

When I chanced upon the Nuclear Race Rookie Rush race, I knew it would be right up their street. A 3km course with 20 mud-based obstacles, they’d have the chance to get covered from head to toe in glorious mud, as they zip lined or slid down into muddy pools, scrambled under cargo nets, crawled through tyres, climbed slippery ramps, squeezed themselves through tunnels and so much more.

Unfortunately, Bean11 was recovering from a summer cold, so it was just me and Bean10 driving up to Brentwood, Essex this weekend for our muddy adventure. It was a HUGE hit; we both absolutely loved it!

The event, which is open to 4–14-year-olds (4–8-year-olds do a shorter 1.5km race), was extremely well organised. Abundant friendly staff made the registration process slick, pumped the kids up at a warm-up event, and helped/encouraged them with each obstacle if they needed. There was a real focus on teamwork – helping your fellow competitors rather than being all about getting the fastest time, and the overall feel of the day was positive and upbeat with smiling children and adults alike.

Although Bean10 sprinted off extremely quickly at the start, when I next saw him at the first spectator’s point, he’d clearly opted for a different approach which was to relax and just enjoy every moment – not rush through it. There was one obstacle – kind of like part of a half-pipe covered in slippery mud which you had to run up – that none of the kids seemed able to do. There was an option to go around the obstacle and over the steps instead, but Bean10 was having none of that. He was determined to get himself up that half-pipe by hook or by crook. After about 10 attempts, he still refused to give up, and I was a little worried we’d be there all day, but after some encouragement from the helper, he agreed to let me help him by putting my foot half-way up to give him some traction. Finally, he made it over!

To give you a feel for the adventure, here are some photos from the day and a little video we put together.

As they crossed the finish line, the rookies were given a medal, a milkshake and a hot shower, before changing and heading home. It was a fantastically fun day out. We’re definitely going to book in for next year and I might even try out the adult version too (either 7k with 50 obstacles or 12k with 90 obstacles…). If you’re interested trying out this awesome event, here’s the link to the site – there’s another race scheduled for September 11th!