Tough Mudder Brother

So, I have a big brother. Well actually I have two of them. But today's post is just focused on one of them. 

It's Robby.

I feel sad for all those people out there who don't have a big brother. A big brother is just special. Yeah sure, he might torment and tease you when you're little, but at least he had cute high school friends :) Then you grow up and he becomes your friend. The five years between you don't matter as much anymore. He lets you join his college soccer team with all his buddies. He picks you up from school so that you don't have to walk home alone in the dark. He takes a class with you. He marries an awesome girl who makes you a bridesmaid. He feeds you sunday dinner. He runs half marathons with you. He lives right upstairs from you, and he lets you borrow chocolate chips, as long as he can borrow butter. You just know that no matter what, your brother is there for you. Its good stuff.

Early this year, Rob set a goal to compete in Utah's Tough Mudder. If you don't know what it is, click here and prepare to be amazed. Last weekend was the big weekend. Diane, Christie, their mom Jackie and I all went to Tooele to watch and cheer him on. It was a blast. Rob powered through this 11ish mile course and finished 5th in his heat out of a LOT of people. It was amazing. Inspiring. Incredible. Awesome. And i'm glad I was there to witness it.

The morning dawned bright, clear, windy, and cold. Its time for some Tough Mudder y'all.

See him there right at the front? Yeah he held that position through the whole thing.

Time to get pumped up.

Off he went. And then the four of us were faced with a challenge of our own: looking at the stupid little map and figuring out where to be and when so that we could see him dominate the obstacles. I learned that I would not be good at The Amazing Race. Thankfully, Christie was a pro and before long we figured out a system.

Emerging from the underground army crawl. My favorite picture from the day.

An easy climbing wall for a practiced climber.

Had to do a bunch of these in a row.

TOO STRONG.

The little sisters :)

Wish I had been able to see this one in person.

While he worked his butt off, we got to enjoy the gorgeous (but seriously, really cold) morning out in the country. Its sights like these and the feelings that I get there that make me feel like I could totally be a country girl.

Right before he got to this obstacle they pulled a dead frozen groundhog from the water. 

Yum.

So. This was my personal favorite part of the day, because I actually got to participate! This was the Wounded Warrior carry. The only two other people around went piggy back, and Robby wasn't about to be weak sauce and just skip this one. He was there. I was there. And in a flash he had thrown me over his shoulders and was carrying me through the obstacle.

So, time out for a minute while I get cheesy. This is what big brothers are all about. They carry you through when you need help. Without any hesitation they use all their big brother brute strength to carry you mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and yeah, sometimes even physically. What better way could my earthly brother have exemplified my heavenly brother, my Savior Jesus Christ, as he lifted me and carried me through this obstacle? At the time I laughed and screamed and worried about getting all wet, but looking back I hope it is a moment that I never forget. Now if only there had been someone else there to take pictures. But that was my job at this station, and I was a little busy trying to think "light thoughts" so that maybe i'd feel like a feather instead of an elephant on his shoulders.

Jump!

Welcome to Tooele. I guarantee that unless you're from Utah or you look it up, you won't say that city name correctly.

One of the hardest obstacles, and he did it like it was child's play. Everyone else we watched really struggled with it and took several tries. First try, he flew up it. And then proceeded to help two more people who never would have made it without him.

At the very end, they ran through these wires that all had voltage running through them. Definitely a highly entertaining thing to watch.  

#5!

Good job Robby, so proud of you!

Dude. Internet has been down since Thursday. It's back. This is exciting. Here's to hoping it lasts.