September 16, 2008
Jennifer A.

The last thing I would have imagined myself doing is voluntarily crawl through a mud pit... let alone, paying to do so.

At the Chicago Diabetes Training Camp, Michelle had suggested a race called the Muddy Buddy when I told her I was getting a little bored with some of my fitness routines. When she described it, I thought to myself… why would anyone do a race like that? Where would I put my insulin pump? How would I manage my blood sugars during the obstacles? How would I “train” for this type of race? Of course, in typical fashion, I was using diabetes as an excuse.

For those of you who don’t know, Muddy Buddy is a team adventure race. They have races in several different locations across the country. You have 1 bike and 2 participants in a team. One person starts out biking while the other one runs, alternating for 5 legs of the race for an approximately 10K distance. In between each leg is an obstacle course, which includes either climbing a cargo net, sliding down a water slide, crossing a balance beam, etc.

I was really concerned about my insulin pump. I thought I could take it off before the mud pit, but what about the other unexpected obstacles. Would I need to get it wet in any of the obstacles? Well… one of the advantages of being diabetic (yes, there are some advantages), is that when I e-mailed the race coordinator in advanced and explained my situation, she sent me the list of the obstacles in advance. She ensured that I had nothing to fear because the Chicago location did not have any obstacles that would endanger my pump.

The day of Muddy Buddy, I was still a little concerned about the mud! But, I went forward. The race was in a farm outside of Chicago. I had 3 legs of running and 2 legs of biking. I made a plan with my partner that we will meet before the mud pit (as we had to cross the finish line together). Then, I can put my pump in my bike bag away from the mud. Since she had 3 legs of biking, I thought she would definitely be at the finish before me. My blood sugar before the race was 90. I downed some sports beans and started my run. Running and biking on the uneven and hilly trails was much more difficult than the running and biking along the lakefront I was used to. I was able to beat my friend to the finish. Blood sugar was right on target before the mud pit. I tried to gracefully crawl into the mud pit but ended up slipping and falling in. I even had mud in my ear! Despite the diabetes and despite all the mud, it was a blast! And, it was definitely worth the adventure. www.muddybuddy.com