Competitors Display Resilience, Teamwork at Fort Drum's Mountain Mudder

More than 1,000 Fort Drum, New York, community members answered the "call to dirty" Aug. 14, putting their laundry detergent to the test as they dove into the muck during the base's annual Mountain Mudder.

Hosted by the installation's Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation, the grueling 5.5-mile course was a showcase of resiliency and esprit de corps. Competitors raced through 27 formidable obstacles, ranging from icy water plunges, towering rope climbs and sticky mud pits. To be sure, running shoes were separated from feet, socks went from white to gray in an instant and it even took a group effort to fish one competitor's eyeglasses out of the mud. But after completing the final obstacle — the warped wall — and receiving a medal and complimentary power-hose shower, most participants left with a profound sense of accomplishment. "I feel unbelievable," said Army Sgt. Kristen Kisner. "It was so nice to actually have this experience with some of my battle buddies." Kisner ran her first Mountain Mudder alongside fellow members of Company C, 548th Division Sustainment Support Battalion, 10th Mountain Division Sustainment Brigade. For her, the most rewarding part was helping each other overcome the course's physical demands to finish as a team. "Just working together and making sure we were staying together," she said. "Going over the walls was challenging, because some of us are really short, so we had to work as a team to actually accomplish those climbs." Kisner, who arrived at Fort Drum in the spring, is relatively new to the 10th Mountain Division. She said her job has kept her busy and participating in the event was a welcome break. "This was absolutely amazing, and I'm glad that our leaders had the time to come out and support us," she said. "Some of them did the challenge with us, so we loved that."

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The event was also a first for Army Spc. Tanner Sublett, assigned to the Multipurpose Company, 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment, 1st Mobile Brigade Combat Team. He ran the course with his platoon and said the final warped wall was the day's toughest test. "But it was really a lot of fun, and I just like challenging myself," he said. "You know, seeing something that looks tough and then going out and doing it just to prove to myself that I can."

One of his teammates, Army Pfc. Nathan Simmons, recently returned from supporting cadet training at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. He said it was the challenge that drew him to the Mountain Mudder. "Honestly, I heard this was going to be tough — getting through 27 obstacles on a 5-mile course — but this was something I really wanted to do," Simmons said. "The hardest part for me was getting out of the water and running to the next obstacle — that transition when your body is weighed down from all the water. But we got through it."