The rescheduled Panther Run was held Saturday down in Springville, AL. We had a team at one point, but it fell apart until it was just Matt and Ben running. Matt had been training all along, Ben I think ran 3 times the entire year.
Anyway, I wrapped up my ankle well and headed to the race with them. I stopped in and picked up my official orange vest so I could be on the track to take photos. I needed an official MAP as I had no idea where the dang obstacles were!! I was the ONLY idiot in a vest. hahahaha I tagged along with another photographer who was taking shots of his wife and her friends in the race and kind of remembered where some spots were from a couple years before.
First, my sole artsy endeavor of the day, a road to the sky.
Okay, RACE!
I braided Ben's hair up, I loved it. He wanted it to stay out of his face while he ran and this worked very well.
Lots of this, they were getting all pumped up!
They were in the 9 a.m. wave. There were waves every half hour from 8 until 11 with about 70 people per wave. That's a lot of people anxious to die of heat stroke!
There were 24 or 26 obstacles. 8 mud, 8 water and 8 physical...so 24 I guess. hmmm. Math.
They had already run a mile of the 3+ miles at this point when it looped back to right where we had parked, so that was kind of nice. For me. hahaha
It's water filled with water balloons. And a lot of mud.
I love running in 100 degrees!
See Ben's shoes, well, shoe? THOSE are the 'trail running in muddy conditions' 100% recommended Backpacker Magazine Editor's Choice shoes that I was wearing my blue version of when I slipped on a damp spot and killed the rest of my summer with sitting in bed with a swollen foot.
His worked.
I missed them at this one, but took photos anyway.
I liked shooting strangers, I took about 125 shots of other people to share on the race site. The guy above was one of half a dozen men in kilts. Next year, Matt wants a kilt, too. For the record, they all had running shorts on under them because I saw up every one of their skirts during the day. It's a mud race, not a modesty race!
That being said, if anyone has stumbled across this just looking for 'Panther Run photos', then women, I have some advice. Wear doubled up lycra because I saw several buttcheeks from tears. Also, camel toe does not photograph well and if your bottoms are mashing you in half, go up a size. Or two. Seriously, it's not worth the yeast infection to get in that medium.
YEAH!
3 miles in and my boy is one-handing over the obstacles. I was so impressed, especially since his training involved lots of Minecraft.
The end is in sight!
Last obstacle of the day!
Yes, one other orange vest, but he was getting paid. He got a 4-wheeler, too.
Soapy water slide!
You can see Matt launching off at the top behind Ben
And SPLASH.
Matt in his underwear in public
He enjoyed going shirtless so much that he has said he is never driving with a shirt on again.
