Mudder Nation, you have quite the imagination. Submissions to the Innovation Lab have been equal parts interesting, mischievous, cruel and challenging… right up our alley. You like to keep us on our toes, and all we have to say is keep the ideas coming. Whether it’s a totally bonkers mash-up of your favorite on-course experiences or a completely new teamwork-demanding challenge, you impress us every time. But, truth be told… we want to see more, so we decided to get in on the action.
SO WHAT?
A few weeks ago, members of TMHQ gathered together for an impromptu brainstorming session, in hopes of innovating the next generation of Tough Mudder obstacles.
The Tough Mudder experience belongs to you just as much as it belongs to us, so we wanted to give you a little behind the scenes peek at the inner workings of our imagination.
We’ve put the pen to paper, but we want your opinion. How did we do?
IDEA #1: EIFFEL TOWER
With the goal of creating compression not tension, Eiffel Tower is the opposite of Texas Hold ‘Em. A true test of teamwork, you’ll need to pair up with another Mudder to shimmy across this obstacle.
How will we promote this new innovation, you might ask? We’re one step ahead of you…
- “We’re not in Texas anymore”
- “What happens in Paris stays in Paris”
- “Size doesn’t matter with this tower”
- “Close your eyes & enjoy the ride”
- “In this Eiffel Tower size doesn’t matter”
- “The journey’s worth the climax”
IDEA #2: BASHING BALLS
Participants must help push each other down the track, where they must dismount towards a yoga ball covered in cargo net, grab on and shimmy down a pipe.
But don’t let this illustration fool you, successfully completing this dismount will be difficult. Similarly to Well Swung, you’ll need to muster up significant momentum if you hope to go the distance.
IDEA #3: CAVE CRAWL/SPLUNK’D
Teamwork! Darkness! Pulleys!
Lay on your back as someone pulls you through a dark tunnel, where you’ll encounter water and other miscellaneous challenges. Playing on your fear of claustrophobia and dark spaces, you’ll have to decide what scares you more – keeping your eyes open or closed.
IDEA #4: LONG KONG
A twist on a prior Innovation Lab champion (innovation squared!).
Multiple mudders will need to work as a team to move the pully system from side to side, which in turn will move the barrel up back and forth, carrying mudders across the obstacle. Long Kong won’t be an easy feat – requiring constant teamwork and upper body strength.
NOW IT’S YOUR TURN:
It’s time for you to put your mark on the mud. We need your help to make the best OCR course in the world even better – one epic obstacle idea at a time. It’s simple:
- Post an image and description of your idea on Instagram, including the hashtag #TMInnovationLab
- Generate support for your concept by getting as many “likes” as possible
TMHQ will review the most liked concepts monthly and selected ideas will be passed to beta testing, where we’ll build and test them with live participants. Exemplary concepts that succeed in beta testing will have the chance to be added to the permanent Tough Mudder obstacle menu.
Does your obstacle idea have what it takes to make it to the mud? Go ahead, we are eager with anticipation.
Learn more at toughmudder.com/innovation-lab/.
