Marton’s The Mudder a sell out

This year's The Mudder is a sellout.

This year’s edition of The Mudder is a sell-out.

Six hundred participants will line up in the annual event which has participants navigating a range of obstacles through a Rangitīkei farm setting.

Event manager Andrew Stewart came up with the idea for the annual event in 2013 after taking part in an Outward Bound course.

“That course made me think about different ways we could use our farm and one of those was using the natural springs and muddy patches to create some sort of event that people could have a really great day out in the countryside,” Stewart said.

With the option of 8km, 5km and 3km there is a course for all athletic abilities.

Featured obstacles include slip and slides, bogs, giant trees, and foam islands floating on waist-high mud.

Stewart said the event was more about socialising and having fun rather than racing.

“We started out timing people then we quickly realised people turning up weren’t really interested in their time up to the point where they never even looked at the time. We then realised it was more about the social and fun aspect and organically people started getting dressed up,” Stewart said.

“The focus shifted into that kind of costume thing.”

Food vendors and live music are now featured at the event.

“Getting out in the fresh air, and getting some exercise, and doing it with friends and family is a really powerful motivator for the people who do it, and they just have a really great day out is what we’ve noticed.”

The Mudder 2024 will take place on September 21, and although tickets are already sold out spectators are welcome to come and get a taste of the fun at 498 Makuhou Rd, Marton.

Olivia Reid is a multimedia journalist based in Whanganui