So, dudes who did it today....what did you think? Any words of advice for those of us dashing tomorrow?

It was fun..
Hot as F, even in the morning on the backside..

Wear turf or trailshoes that you no longer want..

If you are serious, get in the front when they fire the whistle/flame off.. If not you will behind a shitload of people on narrow trails..

As for check in.. They did a good job.. I would not take any electronics or such.. Just id and cash..

In order, get your packet, install stuff, go get your id badge for drinks, go to gear check, write your number in marker on your bracelet and check it in..

Wear sunscreen..

Worst obstacle of the whole course is trying to wash off.. Other then the obstacles are easy, but the course sucks..

longer then 3.1miles.. Say 3.7..

When you convert your money to tickets, count them there.. Lil ****ers ripped me off..

My daughter ran at 3....she was a muddy mess when she finished.

I finished it today. Unbelievably exhausting! Running on roads is to running on trails what riding a bike with training wheels is to riding a bike. I was sucking wind HARD. Even had to walk for a few parts, which is something I am dead-set against doing. I wasn't too far from the front of my heat and just about everybody around was as well at times.

My advice:

1. Yeah, if you are hard core at all, get to the front of the line before start. (Usual SOP for any race, but probably more important here.)
2. Stop for EVERY water station. I usually skip water on a 5K. But I skipped the first station of this race and regretted the hell out of it.
3. Doubleknot your shoelaces. Otherwise when you run through water and back out again, they will come untied.
4. At the end, when it's time to jump in the mudwater and crawl under barbed wire, don't try to just walk in. Jump in feet first and get down. Everybody who tried to wade in fell on their ass. Plus the cameras are broadcasting you to the whole complex at that point, so you want to look like you are still mean and ready to kill.

Good luck!

We're signed up for tomorrow. Does it cost to check your bag? Is the bag check pretty secure? This is my first 5k of any kind. Not excited for the jogging, but I'm pumped for the obstacles.

Bag check is free and secure. We had iPhones and $100 in cash in a backpack and it was not disturbed. However, the lines to get bags after the race were pretty horrible at times.

I appreciate the info, guys. I had planned to try to get to the front anyway, but now I know I need to for sure. I watched a video that a guy took at one of the previous ones (must have had a helmet cam or something) and it looked like he had to wait to get on to a few of the obstacles.

I started the race probably at the end of what would be the first 25% of people. Lines at obstacles were not a problem at all for me. The much bigger bottleneck was narrow runways. There are quite a few spots where there is really only room for one person unless you opt for less-even footing.

Really though, once everybody hits mud and water the rest of the race is one big exercise in not falling down. I am amazed I made it through without wiping out.

Thanks for the info guys. I am pumped!

I have done a few marathons, can blow thru 5ks....but I am nervous about gettin hung up in some of these obstacles...mainly the cargo net stuff.

Oh well...

Is it hard to weasel your way towards the front of heats at the beginning or are people dicks and dont let you thru?

Thanks for the info. I'll prob start near the middle or back... Going more to get muddy and have fun than to post a good time. Never done a 5k, but I have been doing 3 miles/night a few times a week in preparation. I think we start at noon tomorrow. If I like this one, I'll prob do RunRuckus in November. That one looks like a blast... climb across a horizontal pole 18 ft above water.

It's not difficult. 95% of the people at this event don't give a damn at all about trying to win. It's just one big party. My wife and I "weaseled" our way up the line quite a bit. No dirty looks. In traditional 5Ks it's actually the norm to work your way up where a post is being held saying "7 minutes", "8 minutes", etc to indicate average mile pace. So that gives faster people public "permission" to walk up to the front of the line. Here there were no signs, so I was kind of just walking up to somewhere semi-competitive, but far enough back that I wouldn't be in the way of the really hard-core runners.

Edit: Realize the sign post thing is obvious info for you if you've done marathons and 5Ks, but FYI for newbies.

The obstacles really aren't that difficult. However, the course is hilly and rocky in parts. Also, near all the water obstacles, it gets pretty slick. My Merrill's worked out pretty good, but I saw a lot of people in standard running shoes having a difficult time so wear some trail shoes if possible.

It was hot as balls, so get a little extra sodium in your diet if you can.

Well I don't have any trail shoes and I'm sure as hell not going to buy some just to ruin them. Guess I'll be busting ass!
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I was wearing Merrell Trail Gloves myself. They aren't ruined. They are designed so that you can just run them in the washing machine, which I did. They are for barefoot-style runners, though.

I love mine, but they aren't trail gloves. How do you like them? Heard nothing but good things....