So, a couple
Saturdays ago I participated in the Tough Mudder. It was basically an 11 mile
long obstacle course, with obstacles pulled directly from a boot camp set up in
the 80s by Dr. Kavorkian. The weather was normal for April, meaning that it was
cold and rainy. And the rain made the already muddy course even muddier.
So it went
like this:
- Run through mud
- Jump over 15 five-foot walls
- Run through mud
- Wade through waist deep ice water
- Run through mud
- Swim through mud
- Run through mud
- Run up a hill, down a hill, through a lake, up a hill, down a hill, through a river, up a hill, down a hill
- Jump off a 25 foot high platform into a freezing cold lake
- Run through mud
- Run through a field that is on fire
- Run through mud
- Etc.
- Etc.
- Etc.
Do you get
the idea?
There were a
total of 24 obstacles spread throughout the 11 miles. They don’t call it tough
just for fun. I think that there were three separate ways in which it was
challenging. The first, and probably easiest to prep for, was that it was long;
it tested one’s endurance. The second was that it required bursts of strength
to get over the obstacles.
The third
was that it was mentally challenging. I have to admit, I was a little freaked
out waiting my turn to jump off the high dive into that lake. The volunteer
said, “One – Two – Three” and I took a step forward, off the platform. As I was
falling I realized that taking that step wasn’t actually what I had wanted
to do. I’m glad that I didn’t take the time to think about it. Several of the
obstacles didn’t require any particular feat of strength or endurance, but just
made me decide whether I was going to give up or do something that was
uncomfortable.
I’m happy to
report that I survived, with the help of some great teammates (and some helpful
strangers), although my legs are a little worse for the wear. Going back to
work most people thought I was crazy, and I probably am. I like the sense of
accomplishment that I get from stretching the limits of what I think I can do,
whether it’s a marathon or a Tough Mudder, and the lessons I learn about
myself.
**********
Since I really took a pounding I thought I'd share the recipe for an awesome pound cake we made a few weeks ago. (Thanks to my wife for the juvenile word play). It's full of butter and that can only mean one thing: it's from Paula Dean.
Mama's Pound Cake
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter, plus more for pan
- 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
- 3 cups sugar
- 5 eggs
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
With a mixer, cream butter and shortening together. Add sugar, a
little at a time. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition.
Stir dry ingredients together in a bowl and add to mixer alternately
with milk, starting with the flour and ending with the flour. Mix in
vanilla. Pour into a greased and floured tube pan and bake for 1 to 1
1/2 hours, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes
out clean.
