Photo By Staff Sgt. Candice Harrison | Ascarate Park was the home to the first Jailbreak El Paso, April 13. The event is...... read more read more
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EL PASO, Texas - Colorful characters caked with mud. Aspiring athletes dripping with sludge. The dirty day delighted all. The only things left clean were the teeth that shined through the muddy smiles of the participants of the first Jailbreak El Paso April 13.
The Jailbreak was held at Ascarate Park starting at 9 a.m. with heats starting every half hour until the final run at 1:30 p.m. Each wave consisted of 400 runners.
The grueling 3.1-mile, 18-obstacle course challenged the will and dedication of everyone involved. Each participant had different motivation for attempting the Jailbreak.
Cat Hernandez, the wife of a soldier with 501st Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division, at Fort Bliss, said that the Jailbreak was part of her “bucket list” after having gastric bypass surgery.
“We’re here for the challenge. This was one of my goals after losing weight,” said Hernandez.
Individuals and teams participated. Some teams wore matching outfits.
Creative ensembles ranging from super heroes to florescent tutus could be seen throughout the entire course.
While some very outlandish costumes existed, matching T-shirts were enough to designate one particular team.
Hernandez was joined by two of her friends and her sister. They came to support and participate with her.
“She tricked us,” said Jessica Arroyo, Hernandez’s sister, jokingly. “She said we would have fun, and there would be (refreshments), and we would get T-shirts. We said, ‘OK, we’ll do it.’”
While Arroyo teased her sister about the Jailbreak being a lot harder than they anticipated, all four women said they would do it again next year.
“We’ll just spend more time training before next year’s Jailbreak,” laughed Myshelle Loosemore, also a wife of a 501st BSB soldier.
Some of the obstacles the team of women and the other thousands of participants encountered were rope ladders, mud tubes, A-frame wall, a tire climb and two very large inflatable slides, just to name a few.
Some of the obstacles were more difficult than others, with many mud pits along the way to ensure maximum dirtiness.
“We had mud in our mouth, nose, ears, anything with a hole in it,” said Loosemore.
The four women agreed that the tire climb was the most difficult obstacle for them.
“For me, the tires were a little far apart,” described Hernandez. “I felt like I had a hard time reaching the next tire. Definitely difficult for short people.”
While the group of women were worn out from their excursion, they laughed together and went to indulge in some well-deserved barbecue and beverages while listening to live music being performed on a near-by stage.
When asked about advice the team would give to those who plan on trying the Jailbreak next year, the team shouted in unison, “Start running now!”
| Date Taken: | 04.13.2013 |
| Date Posted: | 04.19.2013 18:50 |
| Story ID: | 105514 |
| Location: | EL PASO, TX, US |
| Hometown: | EL PASO, TX, US |
| Web Views: | 55 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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