Read time: 4 minutes.
Welcome to my weekly newsletter – Where I use real stories from my life to unpack lessons and insights I have learnt. I hope you enjoy the material and gain something impactful to apply to your life.
What’s in store:
- Competing in a 24hr race at zero degrees with no gear and no idea.
- Four South African athletes out of their depth and in over their heads.
- Five valuable life lessons I learnt from this race that you can apply.
- Quote: Run your own race at your own pace…
It was 15:00 and zero degrees – I was standing on the start line, the rain heavy and the visibility minimal. Alongside me were three fellow South African athletes. We were in the middle of a forest outside Atlanta, Georgia (USA), preparing to tackle a twenty-four-hour obstacle race – Typical South Africans; we had no idea what this race truly entailed nor what it would throw at us, but we didn’t care, we were going to give it everything we had.
It was Thursday night, and I had just arrived at the hotel from a two-day trek across the Atlantic. I realised I had only a few hours left to order a wetsuit on Amazon if I were to be sure it would arrive the following day. The following day was the day before the race. I was about to embark on this crazy race with no gear and no idea! It was a grueling 24-hour obstacle course race segmented into 8km loops with about 30 obstacles around a cold, wet, misty stud farm just outside Atlanta. I was out of my depth and way over my head. What was I thinking accepting this invitation? The weather was meant to be in the mid to high teens; however, a freak cold front swept in the day before the event with torrential rain and below-zero temperatures then persisted. I was happy to accept that I may not be coming home.
The start gun went off; there was no turning back…
I have made many poor judgment calls in my life. This was unique in the sense that I was carrying an injury, but the FOMO was too great of a pull not to accept the invitation to go. How could I pass up on an opportunity only offered to four South African athletes? It was a fully sponsored trip; I needed to go – wouldn’t you?
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Lesson #1 Know when enough is enough. How often has there been a situation you know you should not go through with, but the lure is too good, the dangling carrot is too tasty, and you can’t walk away? You know you should, but you just can’t. How do we make better decisions in these moments? A key indicator is to try putting yourself in the future and see the negative outcome of this instant gratifying decision. The future feeling of disappointment or unhappiness needs to be a big enough pull not to make the wrong initial decision, even though it seems incredible at face value. You need to care. We so often do not care in the moment about the future. However, we need to try.
With each stride, I took in my spanking new purchase (what a joke). All I could think of was what a wrong decision this wetsuit choice was. This was going to be a long twenty-four hours. I looked up, and the girl in front of me had something running down her leg; I then realised this was a serious race. There was no time to stop and figure out the most efficient way of peeing in a wetsuit; you just let it go. The first few obstacles were not too challenging, and I decided I could do this as long as my injury held up. I spoke too soon. The next obstacle was barbed wire lined over a dam. You had to swim across the dam, and when you got to the barbed wire, your only option was to submerge your head below the water to prevent your eyes from gauging out. You are freezing, and the last thing you want to do is submerge your head below the water. You had to do this a few times. Finally, I made it through the water and onto dry land, not before I saw what was ahead of me, massive holes filled with mud; there was no way around, only through.
Lesson #2 – The only way is through. Thinking back to those mud pits, they were a good metaphor for life. We will have to face seasons of struggles – be it relationships, health, or finances. I had to fight tooth and nail to get through the first pit. I just managed to make it through; I was exhausted, yet triumphant. I took a breath, and as I stood to my feet, thinking that nothing could be more challenging than this and thankful that it was over, I saw another massive pit in front of me as my eyes looked ahead. Disheartened, I knew my only option was to move forward into the next hole, as going back seemed pointless, so I hoped this subsequent struggle would be the last one. You make it through, then realise another one is ahead of you. You say to yourself that you can’t handle it anymore. This is it, yet you make it through the next and the next. Resilience is building inside of you, a level of fortitude. A part of your mind is becoming calloused, is hardening. You did not realise that the mud pits were getting deeper and longer. The struggles were more challenging, but you could handle them because of what you had just conquered and the tenacity you had established from each prior battle.
I finally made it through the last one; I was covered in thick icy mud but was free. The thought did cross my mind that this was the first lap of many, and I would have to face that demon all over again. It was disheartening, but in some small way, I knew that each time I would have to come up against this obstacle, this struggle, I could make it through; I could face the fear and beat it because I had done it before, and so I could do it again – so can you.
I was four or five laps in; it was pitch dark by now, and my leg injury was starting to rear its ugly head. The restriction of the wetsuit and its sheer weight from being wet and covered in mud restricted my range of motion, my running form was compromised. My run had turned to a slow jog and, eventually, a hobbling walk. I was halfway into the lap, so I had roughly four kilometers of walking before returning to camp. The problem with walking was that the cold was settling in much faster, and my toes and hands were numb, even though I had surfing booties on under my shoes and gloves on my hands. The shivering became so intense that my teeth felt like they were about to break off. I finally finished that lap and stumbled into camp. My other South African athletes were also there, trying to warm up. We managed to get a boiling kettle of water from the organizers and poured it directly on our feet to try and defrost our feet a little. I took off my racing bib to change into some dry underpants and socks; even though I knew it was pointless, it was a mental relief for a few minutes. I put my ice-cold wet suit back on, and when I went to pick up my race bib, it had frozen stiff. (no idea how I actually took this picture)
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As the race progressed into the early morning hours, they opened up more and more ridiculous obstacles. Ten-metre cliff jumps into ice-cold water below. That’s not too bad if you don’t mind heights, but now try that when it’s pitch dark and you can’t see what’s below you. You start asking yourself if water is below you or if you are jumping to certain death as sleep deprivation starts setting in. Obstacles that shock you if you make a mistake monkey bars that tilt on an axis as you make your way up them; however, they are covered in ice and virtually impossible to hold onto. If you slip, you land in a pool of ice-cold water. It was a test of mental grit in this race. It certainly taught you perseverance.
Lesson #3 Persevere amidst the pain. One of the most valuable lessons you can learn from an obstacle course race is perseverance. These races are designed to be challenging, and you will likely encounter impossible obstacles. However, by pushing through the pain and refusing to give up, you can overcome these obstacles and reach the finish line. This same mindset can be applied to the challenges we face in life. We can overcome obstacles and achieve our goals by persevering and refusing to give up.
I was not the only one carrying an injury so too was one of the other SA athletes. Our injuries worsened, and it did not make sense to continue and do permanent damage. Although we were so far in and committed, it was a tough call we needed to make. We had already run about sixty kilometers and decided to be the seconds instead (those supporting & nourishing the competing athletes). This lets the two boys still run and continue to go even further. We should have realized that all the athletes had people helping them. Most athletes had two people each to help. On every lap they completed, their helpers(seconds) were there with a hot drink, fresh clothes (even wetsuits), a hot meal, and some words of love and encouragement. We should have realized how important this was and saw the difference it made when we became these people for the remaining two guys.
Lesson #4 – Teamwork makes the dream work. Having a support system in your life is invaluable. We all know how important community is for us as humans. To feel connected, to feel valued, to feel loved, to give us purpose, and to support us through trials and tribulations. Not to mention raising kids. “It takes a village to raise a child.” Do not disregard the support of loved ones. You may say you are happy doing life alone because people just let you down constantly. To that, I say, I do not believe you are truly happy alone. Yes, you may enjoy your own space; I do too. However, the time will come when you need the help or support of someone, and you will be glad if you have that true friend that will come to your rescue at the drop of a hat.
The sun rose from behind the mountains, giving the last few remaining athletes a renewed vigor and a renewed sense of hope in pushing their limits further. The twenty-four-hour mark came and marked the end of the race. Athletes and seconds were exhausted, sleep-deprived, and freezing. Most athletes had pulled the plug in the middle of the night and headed home. Were they wise, and were we dumb for hanging around? We didn’t have a choice, uber had dropped us on the farm, and there was no way back to the hotel anyway. Either way, we were sticking it out with the last few athletes.
The two South African athletes managed 100 kilometers of running with hundreds of obstacles. The winning athlete ran 100 miles (160 kilometers) insane feat. However, he was prepared and conditioned for this – he knew what he was in for and prepared accordingly (good lesson). The furthest I had run in my life was 30km before this race, and the other SA athletes were around a marathon distance (42km). Overall, it was an incredible display of grit and determination from every athlete that day.
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We fell into each other’s arms in exhaustion and excitement as we had survived the freezing weather and the grueling race (kind of) together. A bond was created between us. Once you suffer with someone, you instantly connect on another level. It is a unique bond you have that you can’t explain to others that didn’t experience it.
Lesson #5 Mental toughness – By developing mental toughness, you can learn to push through pain, fatigue, and other obstacles that might try to hold you back. This same skill can be applied to the challenges we face in life. We can overcome challenges and achieve our goals through mental toughness and resilience. In conclusion, participating in an obstacle course race can be a valuable learning experience that teaches us valuable life lessons. We can become more adaptable and confident by applying these lessons to daily challenges. So, the next time you’re faced with a challenge, remember the lessons you learned from this newsletter. Better, I implore you to enter your own obstacle course race, or any race for that matter. You will be amazed at the lessons you take from it.
We packed up, still exhausted, freezing, and tired; we walked down to the car park to catch a taxi back to our hotel, an hour’s drive away. There were no taxis or wifi, and we had no American SIM card!
We thought our race was finally over, but little did we know it had just begun…
Run your own race at your own pace and in your own space.
Please do write to me. I would love to hear from you.
In your day, be courageous, confident, and curious.
Your Friend
Trev.
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