No lounging on the beach
SAS & Tough Mudder Training Blog 5
Wow, what an experience we had at the weekend, my brother and myself had a little taste of SAS training as a preparation for the Intrepid Race.
Now let me begin by saying, all these guys go through a none stop beasting and I have nothing but respect for anyone that attempts the selection training let alone complete it. Our little team of 6 had just a tiny taste of what it was like we didn’t have to deal with sleep deprivation, interrogation or all the other joys these guys have all gone through.
That being said, this was still the toughest physical challenge I have ever completed and we all completed in fact, no one rang that damn bell.
The Dam bell!!
So, we arrived for a 10.30 start at Weymouth beach front, our first task, warm up by running along the beach front, then we made our way onto the pebble beach. The setting for the physical training a long stretch of pebble beach, sea and a massive muddy hill that looked pretty steep in parts.
At our debrief we were told if we want out all we need do is shout, “Stop, Stop, Stop!” or ring the bell.
They made an instant impression on us, as we hit the hill we were greeted by a man in a balaclava yelling at us to kneel behind a sand bag each. We then proceeded to put the sandbag on our head, get our wrists cable tied and lay face down in the sand. We then done flutter kicks for what seemed like forever with staff, yelling at us to not quit on ourselves keep our legs up, keep going.
The theme was set, blood was pumping and a strange mixture of excitement, adrenaline and fear set in. All that was soon changed after we got the bag and ties off and ran to the sea for a quick refreshing plunge in the sea, followed by a long energy sapping run up to the top of the muddy hill. This horrible combination was repeated a few times with some horrible flutter kicks in the sea to boot.
The rest of the day followed on with more punishing physical challenges including sand bag carries, bear crawls, squat walks all done to absolute kill our muscles and sap our energy. We were having a constant battle with our bodies, the rocks, and the tide. We all had wobbles at different points, but continued to push through.
It took personal focus and a lot of team morale to push ourselves, my body were pushed to a limited I have never been to before, shoulders hurt, legs hurts, cramp was setting in, but still we all continued to drag that sandbag, climb that hill, and do whatever Staff ask of us. I won’t give away too much of what else we done as I feel it is something that writing about, just doesn’t give it justice.
By the time, they called it a day we were all beaten, tired and cold, but all had smiles on our face at what we had just achieved. The Intrepid arm band we had been given at the start was ours to keep, we had earned it
The biggest take home for me from this, was just how much more I can do, how much further I can go. The whole point of my upcoming races was to see just what I am made of and how far I can go and I feel mentally this has given me a positive experience to draw on, to help me push myself that little bit more.
With just over 5 weeks until the intrepid series, it’s safe to say I am pretty excited over it and can’t wait to see what they have in store for us.
Dean
Thats what I call blending into the surrounding!
