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Tough Mudder Injuries Update

A teammate sent me another story about injuries sustained during the 2013 Mid-Atlantic Tough Mudder.

As I mentioned earlier, a man died during the Saturday running. The death was ruled accidental, and it was caused by drowning (apparently he jumped into the pool at the “Walk the Plank” obstacle and did not surface for some time). Surprisingly, he was part of a team. I don’t know how his team members didn’t realize he hadn’t surfaced. And there were officials in the water helping people exit the pool. I wonder why they weren’t alerted/couldn’t locate him for so long.

I’m sure there is more to this story, but I don’t want to be ghoulish during this tragic moment. I’m sure the folks at Tough Mudder are working hard to prevent similar occurrences (my suggestion: have officials at the top of the platform, like water park lifeguards, to tell people when, and when not, to jump).

There was also another “potential drowning” at the race and two heart attacks. 20 people in all went to the hospital.

I don’t post stories like this to dissuade anyone from running a Tough Mudder (this was the first death since the event started in 2010). Instead, I post it so that people who are running a Tough Mudder (or considering them) will take them seriously, train hard, and know their limits. Remember, Tough Mudder doesn’t force you to do every obstacle. You can skip them. Run a safe and smart course, everyone.

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