Russian River Mud Run 10K Race Recap

I had always been interested in doing some sort of obstacle race so when a friend asked if I wanted to do one, I was totally up for it. She had done the Russian River Mud Run before and liked it a lot. I was skeptical at first because I am on the weaker side when it comes to strength, especially upper body, but saw that this mud run had obstacles that were doable for all. It looked like the perfect mud run for a beginner like me.

This mud run was located in Forestville, CA so about an hour and 40 minute drive from my place. We went with race day packet pickup and had to pay an extra $15 but it was worth it due to the drive. The race started at 8am so we left pretty early in the morning. We got there about 50 minutes before race time so we had lots of time before the run. We picked up our bib and shirt. There were two options for the race, the 5K or 10K, and we went with the 10K because the friend that did it before felt the 5K was too short.  

This is the shirt we got. It's a nice shirt however I was pretty upset when I found out that the person that gave me my shirt, gave me the wrong one. She gave me a unisex shirt instead of the women's v-neck that looked a lot better. Unfortunately I didn't notice I got the wrong shirt until after we left the race and couldn't exchange it. I did email them after the race, and they said they had extras but have not heard back yet on if they can mail me one. So far they have been very slow with communication. :(

Here is our pre-race pic and yes we were photo bombed. :p

Here is a map of the course:

The race started pretty much on time. I was pretty excited when we took off. In the pic below we were heading towards the woods. I remember running through the thick mud and thinking this is going to be interesting. :)

The course was mostly on trails and it was really pretty. Running through the forest and even going up some steep hills got me thinking about trail running and how I really want to get one in this summer at some point. One of my favorite parts of the course was wading through the Russian River. It was a blast because we ended up splashing each other. 

Photo Credit: Captivating Sports Photos

Photo credit: Captivating Sports Photos

It was actually quite refreshing and then we continued on with the run. It seemed like a lot of running and then an obstacle then more running. I was fine with it but it was harder for my friends that weren't used to running. There were lots of crawling obstacles and even one where we had to go backwards through the mud. That was one where we got really muddy. 

It wasn't until towards the end where the obstacles were a lot closer together. Another of my favorites was the slide. It was sooo much fun to go down the slide face first and into the soapy pool at the bottom.

Photo Credit: Captivating Sports Photos

We all had a blast going down and could not resist getting a fun group pic afterwards. 

Photo Credit: Captivating Sports Photos

I think the hardest obstacle for me was getting over the wall. There was a hay bale to help but it was still kind of hard for me to get up and over. 

 

Balance obstacle.

Photo Credit: Captivating Sports Photos

Finish line pic!

Photo Credit: Captivating Sports Photos

Pic with our medals.

After hosing down and changing into clean clothes we had some complimentary pancakes and orange juice. It was pretty nice after such a fun mud run! 

Overall, I had a blast running my first mud run! It was a great mix of running and obstacles and in beautiful scenery. I think there were about 12 obstacles and they were all doable. It's an untimed race so no pressure which was also great. I'm not sure I'm ready for a Spartan but this one was perfect for me. I think what also made it great was the friends I went with, so thanks Bessie for asking me to join you guys. It was so much fun. 

I'll leave you with a close up of the bling we got. :)

Happy running and racing!!