Constellation was a nice change in that it wasn't a beat-down like the Tough and similar events that I've done before (HH12HR). They called it a gentleman's event, in that it's not about the PT. I came across a chart that summarized the differences between these events, and it suggested that Expedition and Immersion would be more physical, but I wasn't sure how so. Immersion would be first, on May 5, and Expedition would be afterwards, on May 19.
Immersion was the evolution of Beached events that they tried last year. In my head, I pictured being out on a raft for a good bit of the time learning how to survive on a raft, and being on land some of the time, learning stuff about surviving on shores after getting marooned. Haha... I'd be wrong.
TRAINING LEAD-UP
I wasn't training for Immersion or anything, but this was what I did in the weeks leading up.
Tuesday, Apr 24:
50 min strength session
- Pullups: 4 + 5
- Crunches: 400/side
- Plank: 2.5 + 4 min
- Lunges: 100
- Pushups: 20 slow and deliberate were hard
- Adductor/Abductor Leg Lifts: 95/130
- 6 in: 75s
- Single Leg Squats: 75 + 80 shallow
- Russian Twists: 40
- Assorted Dumbells
5.0 in 41:27, 8:18 ave, 2 degrees of incline. My heart had to work hard. Legs were achey at first, but were fine in the second half. Did it after 8 not-all-the-way-down perpendicular bar pullups. After the run, I did 6 normal pullups.
Saturday, Apr 28:
In the morning, I participated in the MS Walk at Upstate USC. It was good to see old friends again from SC. I got in about 1.5 mi of rucking there.
After that, I went to Kings Mountain National Military Park. It happened to be the end of National Park week, so I started with a photo scavenger hunt along their Battleground Trail (2 mi).
It's a beautiful and underrated park and trail system. Many in Charlotte talk about Crowder's and the Whitewater Center, but this place is great as well. The National Park System never disappoints.
After finishing the scavenger hunt and getting my bookmark prize, I wanted to get in some more rucking. Their parking lot closes at 5pm, and it was 2pm, so I hustled to try to get to Lake Crawford and back before closing time. It was good incentive to go at a decent pace. I did my shuffling jog when I could, and walked more on the way back.
The trail goes along some little creeks, and my turnaround point, which
was within the SC Kings Mountain State Park, was a dam. I had done this
ruck with my dad once before, so I knew what to expect.
You don't need to be in rucking shape for Immersion, but I had a HH12HR coming up, plus a bunch of GORUCK challenge events the rest of the year. Now that I usually go to the gym at work, I don't get in the 1-mi periodic rucks that I used to get when I'd ruck to my subdivision's gym.
Sunday, Apr 29:
I went to the USNWC to watch a rubber duck race that benefited charity. It was something to see! The show lasted longer than I expected, because the ducks took a while to all make their way through the rapids and eddys. It was quite a spectacle, seeing all the ducks get scooped up afterwards, too. It looks like a fun job. There were a ton of people there, watching.
Afterwards, since I was already there, I decided to go bouldering, using my season pass for only the second time so far this year. I ran across some Spartan friends there, which was fun. My legs weren't runnable after the rucking yesterday, so bouldering was a good option.
Monday, Apr 30:
I went back to the South End Pub Run for the first time in a while. With the big race weekends recently, I hadn't felt recovered enough for a Monday run, but it was a good day to go back. I was still at work at 5:45pm, so I might as well.
5.1 in 42:10, 8:16 ave.
I sometimes dread the paces that I end up going at the runs, like feeling my stomach turn. We went easy today, though. I still don't fully know all of the turns on the route, so I was happy to follow. Glad to not be going suicide pace today (7:17 last time).
Tuesday, worked until 6:45pm and tired, so no gym.
Wednesday, team bonding at Sycamore Brewing. Good beers. Good to get to know my colleagues better.
Friday, May 4:
The treadmills at the gym got some new features pushed to them, including RunTV, which shows a screen that makes you feel like you're running through various beautiful venues. I usually watch Food Network TV, but this is better. You get some benefit of feeling like you're out in nature, and you're incentivized to finish the run to not miss any of the scenes, not that the scenery changes much within a show. The shows last for somewhere between 35-40 min, and the treadmill must stop between shows, so you can't do multiple consecutively.
I ended up doing 2, so that I could start to work my way through the 6 options. I did Above the Snow (alpine run) and Beach Buzz. The former went up to 9 degrees of incline, and I found out for the first time that the treadmills could go downhill, too! It was quite a suprise.
8.5 in 1:12:34, 8:32 ave.
Since Immersion wouldn't be leg-intensive, and I'd be up all night so I probably wouldn't have much energy for workouts the rest of the weekend, I wanted to get in a more substantial run beforehand.
MLK JR NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE
As I mentioned, I'm a big fan of the NPS. Since I was driving all the way down to the ATL area, I wanted to swing by nearby NPS parks. On the way there, since I was still clean, I went to the MLK Jr. National Historic Site. It's located in the neighborhood where he grew up. Exhibits talk about the history of Jim Crow, the Civil Rights Movement, and his life. It was really powerful. When I saw examples of the separate but [not] equal stuff that was imposed on fellow humans and the degrading way in which they were treated, it broke my heart as much as learning about the Holocaust was. It was so wrong... not much better than the Holocaust.
GORUCK IMMERSION
I got to Red Top State Park a little early. I scoped out the meeting area, visited the gift shop for a hiking medallion, and then grabbed a quick Letterbox Geocache before heading back to the meeting point to prep my gear. More people assembled. I saw one car that clearly had some 6 hr people in it... they were drying their clothes. Since they were still around, they must be sticking around for more. While we got ready, the 6 hr duo shared their experiences and tips.
It was going to be in the low 60's that night, and we'd be getting wet. Although it wasn't on the packing list, I brought my fleece jacket in case. Good call.
Once we met the cadre, we carpooled to a place where we collected some firewood for later. Then, we had a swim test, to assess our comfort in the water, since we'd be there a while that night. It's one thing to swim in a pool in a swimsuit, but swimming in clothes and shoes is outside of one's comfort zone. It's not as bad as I thought, though.
We learned how to waterproof our rucks and make them good flotation devices. We swam with buddies, to keep each other safe. My buddy Frank was really nice and looked out for me the whole time. We doggie paddled for a long time while the cadre taught us how to improvise flotation devices with pants, kickboard rucks, rucks behind, rucks in front, and contractor bags. It was chilly and physically demanding to paddle, but it was exciting being in a new environment like that. I was already shivering, though, so I wondered how easy it would be to make it through the whole night.
We had a few fire breaks throughout the night, where we could warm up,
rehydrate and refuel, and learn more modules. We learned about first
aid (tourniquet, superglue, splint above and below the impacted joints,
arm sling via bandana).
Our first water session had been chilly. I was glad to have my fleece. When it was time to get back into the water in the cold air and the cold water, I wasn't sure how it would go, but you just start going. Once you get into the water and start doggie paddling, you magically start warming up, and it isn't so bad.
We learned various rescue techniques, getting the person to swim to you, or catching them from behind and pulling them along with a strong, one-arm, over-chest grip, and neck splinting. Like with Constellation, we got a lesson and demo, followed by practice with coaching, all the while, doggie paddling with our floating rucks. When I read on the Immersion site that we'd be swimming with flotation devices, I thought we'd be using PFD's... this was much cooler and much more realistic in the case of an emergency.
At another fire break, we learned how to make improvised oars and rafts (with the benefit of an air mattress for most groups, although one group had to use logs). We assembled this in teams, and then the teams had to race each other. I'm proud to say that Boat Crew 1 finished first, so we got to be captains for the final challenge!
Each of the survival events end with a CULEX, where we put all of the new skills into practice in a culminating scenario. We found ourselves in the water in the cold night with nothing, and then wreckage and rucks came raining down on us. We had to assemble a raft, give first aid to casualties with various medical issues, navigate the raft to a specific point, then come back.
Many times, in situations like this, leadership is tested. How do you manage when many people have ideas on how best to handle the situation? Who can be decisive, start giving assignments and organizing people, etc? I was really impressed by my fellow Boat 1er who would soon be off to Ranger School. It had been a long, cold, and wet night, but we all pulled together and got the job done. Everyone worked hard.
Someone else who really impressed me was this funny girl from the West Coast. In the middle of miserable conditions, she'd say something funny and make everyone laugh, and it would turn the whole thing around. In challenging times, it's good to have people like that around, who can see the light through the darkness and lift people up. She had ridiculous amounts of energy, too. Turns out that she's a Spartan and a marathoner, too, although my demeanor is kind of the opposite. I'm more of the suffer-in-silence type, so I have much to learn from people like her. That ability to help people is powerful.
It was a really cool and unique experience. I understand why this event is on the high end of physicality. Our shoulders were all sore by the end, maybe from doggie paddling (plus rowing). We were tested mentally and physically more than I expected, with the cold water. I had some doubts about whether I could make it through without giving up out of being cold, but the team and the cadre supported everyone and showed a lot of determination and grit. Whatever we were doing, the cadre made sure that they had it even tougher, so that they could make sure that we weren't put into any unreasonable situations. They are experienced like none other and looked out for us.
I didn't expect to have to fight so hard to get this patch, but I did, and I'm so much more proud of having earned this because of it.
KENNESAW MT NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD
We must've burned a gillion calories during the event, between the swimming in the cold. Normal swimming makes you really hungry. Swimming for that long in the cold is something else.
I was thirsty, too, so I re-hydrated and warmed up with Starbucks.
KENNESAW MT NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD
We must've burned a gillion calories during the event, between the swimming in the cold. Normal swimming makes you really hungry. Swimming for that long in the cold is something else.
I was thirsty, too, so I re-hydrated and warmed up with Starbucks.
Afterwards, I wanted to hit up another NPS site. Kennesaw Mt National Battlefield was on the way home. I had stopped by the museum on the way up, but now, I'd get to do some trails. The battlefield trail goes up a steep rocky mountain, and then Burnt Poplar trail is fairly flat on the way back. I tell you, it's gorgeous there. The flora is green, there are wildflowers, the rocks are picturesque, and from the top of the mountain, you can see downtown ATL, too. It meant even more, knowing the history of the place, too. In the closing days of the Civil War, the Union wanted to take Atlanta, which was the Confederate hub for industry and train transportation. This was one of the Confederacy's last stands.
5.7 in 1:34:46, 16:37 ave. 1,000 feet of elevation change. It was about covering the trail and exploring, rather than speed. Georgia is beautiful.
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