Mud –– it’s one of the marvelous glories of spring. Eliciting the exuberant joy of youth, mud provides plenty of mucky fun for all ages, and nothing proves that more than the annual Sunriver March Mudness Spring Break Mud Run. Now in its fifth year, March Mudness, presented by the Sunriver Owners Association (SROA), draws hundreds of participants of all ages each year; proving that playing in the mud isn’t just for kids.

Recognizing the growing popularity of mud races across the country and wanting to give families another reason to visit Sunriver, the SROA recreation department came up with their own take on this outdoor adventure trend that complements the environment and lifestyle of Central Oregon so well.

“In asking ourselves ‘How do we make it work in Sunriver and have it be different from other mud runs?’ we looked no further than the multi-generational audience we serve every day,” said Emily Savko, SROA recreation programs manager. “To make our event family oriented, the Sunriver March Mudness was designed to be a non-competitive, non-timed event that the entire family can complete together.” However, if you are competitive, a timed wave of up to 100 competitors kicks off the event, with prizes awarded to the top three male and female finishers.

Designed by the SROA recreation and public works departments, the 1-½-mile family-friendly course comprised of muck and obstacles is an adventure for mud run rookies and muckfest masters of all ages. Cheryl Storm of Sunriver has participated in the event for the past three years. After watching the mud run in 2013, she teamed up with her granddaughter and her friend Pat to compete the following year.

“We created the team Dirty Divas, and my athletic life as a mud obstacle course runner began,” said Storm. Their team name was changed in 2015 to the Dirty Divas and Dudes when their husbands decided to join in the fun.

“[John] figured that since he loved playing in the dirt as a kid, then in his more senior years it would be fun to do it again,” Cheryl noted about her husband joining the team.

The March Mudness obstacle course includes scaling walls of varying heights, tire runs, a spider web weave, balance beams, mud crawls, and wading through mud pits, just to name a few of the challenges. Most of the obstacles remain the same from year to year, Savko said, but each year they redesign, add, or eliminate an element or two.

“The course has design elements to encourage cooperative participation and, most of all, fun,” said Savko. “Every year we take time to painstakingly deliberate and scrutinize each obstacle before constructing them to ensure the course appeals to all ages and abilities.”

One of the biggest challenges last year was the water obstacle. Participants had to wade through a pool of water and dive under logs that were spread out over the top of it. Due to the wintry weather, the water was ice cold.

“My plan was to dive head first into the water and swim under the logs all at once,” said Crystal Bonotto of Redmond, who came in second in the competitive wave, “But, when I dove into the water it was so cold that it took my breath away. I had to come up for air and brace myself on one of the logs.” Aside from the water obstacle, Bonotto said the weather was challenging, noting that there was still snow on the ground.

“It was freezing cold and it rained throughout the entire race,” she said.

Randal Olsen of Roseburg took part in the event for the first time last year. It was also the first running event he had ever participated in.

“I enjoyed the positive runners’ culture of the event, which I don’t usually subscribe to,” Olsen said.

In spite of the harsh weather conditions he had a muddy good time. His favorite obstacle, because it was his most memorable, was the tunnel made out of tarps and mesh that participants had to army crawl through in the mud.

“It was so cold out that the mud froze, and the serrated surface of the mud cut my knees open,” Olsen said, hinting that opting for long pants instead of shorts during the run would be advisable.

Olsen’s friend, who took part in the race with him, quit the event after this obstacle due to his own injured knees.

“He’s not as extreme as me,” said Olsen, jokingly.

Despite his battle wounds, Olsen is looking forward to participating in the mud run again this year and sharing the experience with his 5-year-old son — it will be the little guy’s first mud run.

Experienced mudders recommend wearing kneepads and gloves to help with the crawling and climbing as well as bringing extra layers of clothing in case the weather takes a turn for the worse.

“I thought it was cool how prepared people were,” said Bonotto. “There were so many people with duct tape on their shoes and ankles to make sure their shoes didn’t come off in the mud!”

Costumes are also encouraged, with a prize for best dressed awarded at the end. One of Storm’s favorite parts of the run is creating her team’s costumes, which change every year. Last year they wore bikinis and swim trunks over white painters suits.

“Pat and I chose bikinis because, at our age, we figured we would never really wear one again,” exclaimed Storm.

Compared to most mud runs, March Mudness is fairly short in order to make it accessible to everyone; however, it still involves a lot of planning, time, and effort to put together.

“In the week leading up to the event date we have about a dozen people finishing the course,” said Savko. “But in the month prior, there are two to three individuals that focus on staging and organizing the implementation and placement of our course.”

The most challenging aspect of putting the course together is the weather. The race is strategically held in March because, ideally, spring provides a natural mud supply due to snow melt and runoff. However, some years are a little too dry while other years leave the event planners designing the course in knee-high snow. When Savko and her team need to give their mud supply a boost they utilize their event partner, the Sunriver Fire Department, to pump water on the obstacle course. When there’s just too much snow, the Sunriver Public Works Department is called in to plow.

“Weather is the biggest friend and foe of our event,” Savko said.

Regardless of the weather, rain or shine, hundreds of mud lovers show up for this filthy frolic each year, sloshing and squelching their way to the finish line and proving that the most memorable days usually end with the dirtiest clothes.

“Do it for fun, and don’t let your age stop you,” said Storm. “Wear a costume. Be silly. Get dirty. It’s a blast!”

For the complete edition of Spring 2017 Under the Sun Magazine with more upcoming Sunriver events click here. The annual Mud Run will be held Sunday March 26. For information, call 541-585-5000 or visit sunrivermarchmudness.com