So. How do I put the events of yesterday into words. As some of you know, I'm a fairly prolific wordsmith. Yet, I'm not sure even I can adequately put down what it was like to be with such a group of people, from the meet and greet Friday night, to Operation Chew-n-Brew last night. But I will attempt to do so...
Friday night, Mellow Mushroom donated 10% of their profits from 1700-2300 to Operation Enduring Warrior. I'd like to thank my schoolmates Max, Erika, Alexis, and (I'm sorry, I forgot his name) Alexis' beau for coming out and supporting us. After they left, I went out to mingle with my teammates, and met some of the coolest damn people you could meet. And most of them are not from the area. And with every person I met, all of whom were either members of OEWs operational arm, or have been OCAs from at least last year's Spartan at Bragg, not once did I feel like an outsider. I left satisfied that the next morning's run would be great. Little did I know HOW great...
My packet
It's been a VERY long time since I've had to be up at 0-dark-30...
I arrive at Smith Lake a little later than planned, but that was fine, as it was still earlier than the team was asked to arrive. Went through security, went to the line my bib number was in, received my packet, but then was told we couldn't enter yet because they needed more security...so, back out into the bullpen. Opened my packet, went through it, and put my headband on, all while waiting for an 'all-clear' or something. Time slowly rolls...15 minutes later they reopened entrance to the lake area.
Two of our Adaptive Athletes
Only half the team is pictured here, with the tent for Biggest Team just left of center...
Scott calls us together for some instructions, but has to stop early as time has caught up to us and we have to head down to the DJ booth on the beach to collect the award for Biggest Team, where we are met with applause.
For the second year in a row, OEW takes Biggest Team, nearly doubling last year's number
We return to the tent area and Scott calls us together again for more instructions, then he and the rest of the MAT members head off to get into their gear and masks while the Adaptives are assisted down to the sidewalk near the changing area to prepare for our procession to the starting corral, while some of us follow the MAT members to provide a wall for them to get into their gear and anonymous personas. When all is prepared, the Adaptives are lead out by the MAT, followed by the remainder of us (OCAs) marching 2x2 down the hill, across the beach, and up another hill to the start, all while being led by the Fayetteville Light Infantry's Bagpipe Corps and to thunderous cheers and applause. Our team's total compliment: 323 MATs, AAs, and OCAs. No, we did not all fit in the corral, and somehow I kept falling towards the rear of the group. By the time I got to the wall to enter the corral, our heat had been started. But, for the first time in my life, I was not stymied by a freakin' wall (like I was in BMT), and I was up, over, and on my way...
It's a long run/jog/walk to the first obstacle, so I spend the time not running or jogging by getting to know some of the other OCAs near the rear of the group. Some are active duty Army, Air Force, and Marines. Some are veterans. Some are spouses of service members, active/reserve/veteran/retired/passed. And some are civilians that are thankful for what we do/have done/have sacrificed for this country. We reach the first obstacle, the hurdle, which is basically the wall without the bottom of the wall. I hate this type of obstacle. But, I've committed myself to doing this. Hands on the angled square log, leap, push, lean forward...elbows give out. Arms crash on the angle, right shoulder pops, momentum has me spinning around the log like a returning yo-yo. Way to start the day, dork! Well, thanks to that, had to skip the second log. The next obstacle was not that far off, 3 water pits (muddy water, of course). Shawnie decides he wants to cannonball into the first and third pits. We are now covered in this crappy water...thanks Captain Safety (so called because he decided to wear two PT belts for the race). Next was the Under-Over-Through walls. We blow through this one and get to the first water station only to realize that Shawnie had disappeared. So we hung around trying to locate him as the next two or three heats storm past us (forgot to mention that we averaged 1 mile per hour on the course). Ah! There he is! He was assisting a few MATs with Casey, one of our AAs. Righteous. So we fell in with them. There was some difficulty moving Casey along in his wheelchair in this area as it became very sandy, so he requested to walk. Onward and upward!
Here it becomes muddled as to what order things came in. My mind is still processing everything, so I will go through everything we went through, it just may not be in chronological order. And remember, throughout this entire course, we were always near a group of MATs with their AA, so while it is called a Spartan Race, it wasn't about time for us and them. It was about persevering, about showing what the human spirit can achieve, about proving that these men and women, who sacrificed so much for the country they love, are STILL among the best of America's defenders. There are calls of "OCAs to the right!" telling us that runners are coming through, we need to clear the left for them. And it was the rare runner indeed who failed to shout encouragement as they passed ("You guys are great!", "Way to be awesome!","Keep driving on!", "Thank you for your service!", "You got this!" are a few of the ones I remember).
Again, these are in no particular order, with the exception of the last six (seven, really, but the last one was a group thing, not an official obstacle). We traversed a monkey net wall, then on to the Atlas Carry. A little further along was the A-frame wall, which I required assistance in starting, as my shoulder flared up on the Atlas Carry. Once started, though, it was up and over. Somewhere in all of this were two fetid mud pits that were just under knee-deep for me. There was the Plate Drag (which I personally blew through, didn't know I had it in me, lol), and Horizontal Wall Traverse (the only obstacle that I had to take the 30 burpee penalty). At about the 1/3 point was a large post-board for the Memory Test (based on the last two digits of your bib number, there was a call letter and a seven digit number; mine was Tango-827-6129, no burpees for me!). The Pancake Carry was a pain, as my shoulder was again acting up and it just didn't feel right carrying it on my left. But up the hill, around and down I went. Dropped off my pancake and up the other side of the hill to the Inverted Wall. Again, required assistance due to the shoulder, but once started, I was able to continue on and complete it. There was the Bucket Carry which involved a mud pit just after the "quarry" we filled our buckets at. I very nearly failed the Hercules Hoist, as I almost let the bag drop near the end, but with a nifty butt/leg maneuver, was able to stop the sudden descent, lol! We had a low-crawl through mud under a monkey net, then there was the jungle gym (rings, ropes, long bars). That one hurt, but I was able to slap the bell before losing my grip. There was a monkey net version of the A-frame that was twice as high (about 50 feet). We get to the home stretch, which passes through the camping section of Smith Lake, and Jess, Bill, Eric #2, and I meet an elderly couple who cheered us on, and the lady said, "Don't give up! It's all downhill from here!"
She wasn't kidding. Our first obstacle of the home stretch was the barbed wire crawl. And, while it wasn't muddy, it was pretty rocky (ask, and I'll show you where my knees were cut up), and it was...downhill at about a 30-degree angle. And looooooong. A hundred yards if it was a foot. At the completion of the crawl, we came across the Memory Test, and, as I mentioned above, I nailed it. Right after was the Spear Throw. Some of these things were so bent, it looked like Lamarr Latrelle's spear in Revenge of the Nerds...
Anyway, it was after this obstacle that we regrouped as one, 323 strong, to take on the last three obstacles and cross the finish line as a unit. First up, the Rope Climb, and for every single AA who went up, a roar arose from the crowd watching us finish. This one gave me more trouble than it should have, but the ropes were slimy as hell. Then came the Slippery Wall which turned out to be pretty damn easy. Finally (sort of) was the Fire Jump. Once everyone was over the fire, we regrouped one last time and low-crawled the last bit of distance to the finish line before popping back up and taking the final few steps. Here we were met by volunteers who awarded us our medals. The sweet, little old lady who put mine around my neck took a look at me and said, "you look like you can use a hug," and I wrapped my arms around her and gave her one of my typical lift-you-off-the-ground bearhugs. We get our timepieces removed, pick up our banana, Clif Builder bar, FitAid, Recovery Milk, and finisher's shirts, then get our individual/couples Victory photos. I eschewed the beer, I don't know why, it wasn't even my head that I had one coming.
So, back up the hill to the OEW area to grab my bag, get cleaned up, and change. But some goodbyes were in order, as some people, like Jess, were not staying for Chew-n-Brew later that night and were heading back to their respective cities. Then I figured, well since there's several hours before Chew-n-Brew even starts, and I only live on the other side of post, I'll just go home and get cleaned up there, where I'm not in a rush because other people needed to get cleaned up as well.
I lived. And those socks WERE white when I started, I swear.
A closer view of my medal and Sprint Wedge
Get home and do as planned. No time for a nap, gotta head clear out to the airport in Raeford. And, Lord, was I filthy.
No, that's not the picture of a black man's leg wearing black socks...
Not so sure these are salvageable...
As the only OEW shirt I had was the one I raced in (and was therefore filthy), I decided to go ahead and wear my finisher's shirt:
Hmm, I'm starting to cut a somewhat impressive figure...LOL!
Arrive at the airport, check in, and wander around seeing the sights, grab my first brew, checked out the silent auction, then took a seat and listened as the entertainment started.
Lady from WKML introducing opening act
Opening act guy. Forgot his name. Local, though.
Started to finally get hungry, so went and picked up my plate, and come across one of the cooks that works in the Green and Gold Café on campus. We joke for a bit, then I grab my grub.
Yeah, I let myself eat the bread...
I eat and relax some more, then go pick up my other brew, and sit back down to enjoy the breeze and some of the skydivers that were jumping in. People started to show up, and under the tent began to fill up.
Yes, that's an Adaptive in the blue shirt...
Wider angle shot showing the filling up of the tent
Raffle drawings were held (didn't win anything), as well as a 50/50 (again, didn't win), this Luke Combs guy performed, the silent auction ended and the winners paid for their items (some pretty nifty stuff, I tell you). Some fire-dancing is performed, a discussion with the new OEW president, Team Captain Eric (former president Scott stepped down near the end of the night) is had, and the day was finished off with a spectacular fireworks display that lasted nearly 20 minutes. More goodbyes were made, with promises of seeing each other at next year's race.
As I told TC Eric, yesterday became one of the three BEST days of my life, and funnily enough, all three are in some way service connected.
November 19th, 1991 - the day I swore my oath of service to faithfully defend the Constitution of the United States.
January 9th, 1992 - the day I graduated from BMT as an Honor Graduate and headed off to the Presidio of Monterey and DLI.
September 10th, 2016 - the day I completed my first Spartan Race with some of the most impressive and dedicated people I've ever met, a reminder of what it takes to answer our country's call to service.
My life has again been fundamentally set on its ear, more so than I expected. I knew yesterday would be transformative, just not in what way. As it turns out, it was, and in more than one way.
My appreciation for those who have TRULY stood by me through my recent and past turmoil was tremendously renewed in light of the support shown and given to our Adaptive Athletes by the MAT and OCAs not only during the race, but before and after. And though there are few of you, I still cannot adequately express my love for each and every one of you.
My forgiveness for those of you who are my haters, deniers, and doubters remains, but it is now mixed with pity for your narrow-mindedness, meanness of spirit, and self-loathing. They say people hate what they can't be. Well, I learned one thing: The saying "Whether you think you can or you can't, you're right" is defeatist. The Spartan (and supportive) saying is "If you think you can't, you're wrong." Don't hate me because you aren't me. Don't hate me because I'm not you. Don't hate anything except the self-doubt that makes you think you can't do/be what you want. Be a Spartan. Better yet, have the drive and determination that our Adaptive Athletes have to not let life be dictated by fate, but by your own convictions and perseverance.
And my determination to be what I want to be, and to have the wherewithal needed to accomplish what I need to become what I want to be, exploded into the deepest and darkest recesses of my being. No more blowing off practice, or homework, or gym time because I might be a little tired, or a little sore. If these men and women, who, through no fault but a quirk of fate, can rise and overcome a much more serious issue, then I can do my utmost to improve myself, and, in turn, help them help themselves.
God bless you, my friends and colleagues, instructors and pupils, girls, guys, and tenors.
And please consider supporting Operation Enduring Warrior in their endeavors. You can click the link at the top of this post to donate, or you can visit www.enduringwarrior.org to read about this robust and worthy group.
Again, God bless, and good night.
