Before tackling an extreme race, know your limits, doctor and competitor say

Lehigh Valley Health Network doctors saw a rise in ALS calls during the June 1 extreme race in Lehigh County, and some serious injuries.

Finishing a Tough Mudder course tests a competitor's endurance.

For some, the extreme race's challenges linger long after the race. 

After this summer's competition in Lehigh County, patients reported burns, hypertension, dehydration and a stroke, according to a study published online this fall in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.

Lehigh Valley Health Network participated in the study.

“We saw some really significant problems that people came into this,” the network's Dr. Gavin Barr said. “Not all those people came into the hospital, but it certainly had a burden on the hospital, too.”

The network reported seeing 38 participants in the emergency room at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Salisbury Township. That's on top of typical weekend traffic of about 210 to 250 patients, according to Barr.

On that June weekend, 100 advanced life support calls went out among the 22,000 participants, according to the study.

The Tough Mudder competition is a roughly three-hour running, swimming and climbing event with obstacles designed to test strength, stamina, mental grit and camaraderie. 

The stroke patient still had difficulty moving his right leg six weeks later, according to the case series, though Barr said doctors didn't follow up with any of the patients before the study was published.

Not a normal race

Barr said the number of patients seen during the weekend of the Tough Mudder event was higher than a normal race like the Via Marathon. Medical staff varies at the events differ, as do the injuries, due to the obstacles, he said.

Normal runners aren’t jumping from heights, falling into water or going through electric shocks, he said.

The course's Electric Eel is one of the obstacles that use live electricity. Participants slide "through frigid water or, even worse, a layer of ice" with "shocks overhead," the Tough Mudder website advertises.

Though the amperage is probably the same as a static shock, Barr said being wet makes it more intense, and some patients had a bad reaction to the shock.

When reached, Tough Mudder representatives did not have a comment on injuries that competitors suffer during the race.

Preparation by the athletes can factor into the likelihood of an injury, Barr said. Even though Tough Mudder provides some suggestions on how to train for the event, Barr said there's no way to prepare for the events involving live wires.

Barr said it might be worth a review of the obstacles' safety on the part of the race organizers.

“They should look into and collect more data and information on all the races and figure out whether to have that as an obstacle,” Barr said.

Knowing limits

Justin Brown, of Upper Milford Township, said he prepared for Tough Mudder by running a lot and weight training. He said he never felt like his life was in danger running the course.

Brown admits all runners have their limits.

“I had friends talk me out of a certain event so I wouldn’t hurt myself,” Brown said.

He said people should do research and know what they are getting into before signing up.

“Everyone should know their limits,” Brown said. “Know what it is and respect it.”