Our Tough Mudders!

Our Tough Mudders!

31 July 2017

On Saturday 29th July 2017, six members of Wilberforce Barristers took on the Tough Mudder Challenge at Broughton Hall in Yorkshire; a 5 mile obstacle course where mud was the main event! The team included one Head of Chambers, and two Pupils, who were all looking forward to the day ahead. There were some nerves in advance of the event, and having completed the course before, I was confident in telling everybody that ‘it will all be fine…’.

The day started with lots of traffic and poor music choices in the car to get us there. At the event, Team Wilberforce was ready to go, and both excitement and adrenaline were running high. We could hear lots of noise and cheers, and the sun was shining.

The event started with a group warm up before the race got going to cheesy motivational music and high fives all around. There we falls, bumps and bruises from the off. Francesca was clearly looking to make a point; by wearing the brightest neon pink top only to get the most muddy and in the quickest time!!

The highlights included an obstacle called the ‘blockness monster’, which involved rolling over a long platform in the water with help from your team mates. Despite constant instructions from the volunteers to ‘face feet first at the top’, Claire managed to fail both attempts and gracefully enter the water head first!

The penultimate event saw Team Wilberforce at its finest. A pyramid slope that was 15 foot high, had to be climbed with only a small mid-way shelf for support. Richard was the brains of the operation, suggesting that three of the team including him, form a pyramid to help the rest get to the mid point. Sarah quickly got herself up half way – and then to the top – leaving everyone else behind. I then climbed up and over Richard – before falling and dragging everyone else down to the ground with me. The photographic evidence clearly shows a muddy pile of barristers, and not the perfect pyramid formation envisaged. I blame Joanna for laughing too much – it was distracting me!

We all completed every obstacle – and in true team spirit. At the end of the challenge we were greeted by t-shirts, headbands and a nice cold cider. We were covered head to toe in mud, scrapes and with a few torn items of clothing (some in areas not to be disclosed!). But most of all, we could not stop smiling! What a day! Team Wilberforce all the way.

After all, I told them it would be fine… Same time next year!!

Jo Jenkins