Mud marathon of Schermerhorn 2009
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The most important mud marathon in Holland is the one from Schermerhorn. Again we were participant and photograph. At 12 o'clock I started with the veterans. Like usual I participated just in the clothes I wear from home. I was with a brand new jeans and hoody as well. Like always the rest of the runners were gone within a minute. So I have to do it all of myself. I tried to stay clean as possible. But that wasn't easy, because the ditches are very deep. Passing the first canal did soak me to my shoulders. Later on I rest with the situation and pass horizontal with no clean spot on my clothes anymore...
The whether this year was terrible again as it used too. Always the whether is less then the days before or after. This time the shower last the whole run. Just after the last head we get wonderful nice whether. The participant doesn't bother, but the photographs does. Ton doesn't have a sun cap with them. So his lens has more trouble with the whether then mines. But nevertheless it was one big parti this year. Especially with the groups we did have a great number of nice participants. Thanks to a better equipment then before I have better and more pictures ever. Ton wasn't glad. With the back to wind, with the video and the photo camera we fight for the best.
A new female friend Mariam should drive with us, but the trains gives big troubles and she didn't have a mobile to arrange something else. We should have some fight on the border of the muddiest ditch. Without her presents it was hard to mess up all my clothes. Nobody of the spectators wants to wrestle near the mud. Even when they like the mud well. The participants doesn't bother. Several of them jump in the last ditch in a special way. The mud covered their face afterwards completely. With a somersault in the mud is only nice for the spectators and the photographs. It takes some time to remove all the mud from the ears and the eyes.
The greatest fun were this year the groups. A lot of youngsters well clothed participated. It is the meaning to keep the the women or guy in the boat as clean as possible. Not all groups does understand this well. Group 26 jumped with five of them immediately in the mud. It wasn't easy to take recognizable pictures of them after the start. Their boat almost doesn't exist and wasn't used. They try to take advantage of some child safety wares. On the picture there is boat. On the finish there were five muddy people only.
Group 34 did a better job. The lady was recognizable until the second round. The beautiful guy jumped every passing as first in the mud to help the lady to enter the boat smooth less. The clothes of the guys were black with a white mark. That makes them recognizable during a long time. I do have a great number of pictures of them. Besides there are a great number of pictures of group 11. All with jeans. .
With the groups you can win a nice prize when the lady is the cleanest of all. The lady with golden blond hear is the winner for years. The guys of group 17 does everything to keep her as clean as possible. By every passing they wait until the other groups are gone. So mud spatters can't hurt their lady. This year there was a supreme competitor in the gentleman of group 12. He was with four ladies. Al fighting to keep him as clean as possible. Of course he will end in the mud as well. But in the mean time you may hope to see him clean passing a great number of ditches. But they have some technical problems. The boat wasn't well inflated. So by the first passing the water flow in the boat already and soaked the knees of his jeans. You can see it on the pictures. In the first round I have some video shots of him. But the second round nothing. Obviously the boat broke down. So he has to travel along with the ladies completely covered with mud anonymously as well.
This year there was some hope to participate by the groups as well. I should prefer to be the coach. I hope I don't have to explain you the difference between a coach and a supporter in respect to the events afterwards. Of course a coach have to join his group on the last passing's. Mike from England could in his white trainer could go in the boat, while the others do their job better clothed then ever any group did. I met the winner of the contest for the cleanest lady afterwards in the canal. Because she joined the rest of the group after the finish. Self I had remove some mud because I took the short way with the last ditch. I was as every year in the last change, where in I have to go home. Ton took some pictures before and after.
