Andrew’s favorite obstacle is Everest, a quarter-pipe challenge that instills fear in many since it’s terribly difficult to scale. That’s why he likes to help pull people up. “I’ve seen grown men cry with happiness at reaching the top.” Devon is partial to Funk Monkey 2.0 due to its level of challenge. It involves climbing monkey bars upward, then across a horizontal set, then back down more monkey bars, requiring tremendous upper body strength and coordination. She feels incredibly proud at its completion. There is unanimous dislike between them for the Electroshock Therapy obstacle where participants run through a field of 1,000 live dangling wires, totaling 10,000 volts of electricity. Bales of hay and sink holes add to the torture. It’s considered the great equalizer since strength and conditioning play no role. It’s the final obstacle – with a cup of beer awaiting them after the finish line. Devon was knocked out by it in her second Mudder event, but she’s not unique. People drop to the ground all the time from shocks. Not to be entirely short-circuited by the experience, they decided to limit their involvement with this obstacle to every 10th Mudder. In addition to her unparalleled standing in the Tough Mudder circuit, Devon has earned a sponsorship arrangement and spokesperson status with MET-Rx (a nutritional supplement brand, with the slogan “You Can’t Fake Strong”). She’s featured on the company’s website in a candid video profile where she details her Tough Mudder journey at https:// www.metrx.com/team-legitstrong/devon-musko. Devon is keen to share that Tough Mudders attract every body type, and not one in particular will prevail. “I thought I needed to be ripped to be considered in good shape and especially to be able to do this, but I don’t think that anymore.” Her evidence: a participant who is very lean and posts his diet and training workouts online proved to be no competition for Devon. “I beat him at the world competition.” “I’m not an athlete, but I do have mental strength,” she adds. “She kills it out there,” notes Andrew. The world event takes Tough Mudder to an extreme level of extreme. It’s held over a 24-hour period, and the male and female competitors who complete the greatest number of laps around the five-mile course are the winners, each garnering a $10,000 prize. One team of competitors is awarded $12,000. The couple will compete for the third time in the world competition in November in Henderson, near Las Vegas, where temperatures can plunge into the twenties at night. For the required swimming, wet suits are necessary. So is a little reckless abandon. Hills and obstacles are all part of the ordeal for which they use the weekly Mudder events to train. Last time out, Devon covered 50 miles, plus 10 of penalties which were off course. At the world event a year earlier, Andrew endured a plantar fascia tear at mile 50 and was unable to run for a month and a half afterward. Never mind setbacks. To intensify the weekly Mudders, both have made it their practice to often complete two laps around the course. Or they might attend the events on both days over the weekend. Also, Andrew frequently carries Bruce, a 100-pound dummy that gains 20 pounds from dips in mud and water, across his shoulders throughout the whole course. The dummy is inspired by the Wounded Warrior Project, serving as a way to honor a fallen, injured or overseas soldier, most notably, one who would have wanted to attend the Tough Mudder event. “It’s a powerful image. People are moved by it,” Andrews says. Devon has carried a 30-pound log in memory of a college friend who was killed in a car accident. He had been losing weight and successfully getting into shape. She thinks of him often, and his memo- ry compels her to keep going. The only rule they impose on themselves is limiting the events they attend to no more than a 10-hour driving radius from Beachwood. They depart shortly after work on Fridays, sometimes arriving just an hour before the event begins. Sightseeing and hanging out with friends after they run the course is another weekend highlight. Being avid attendees, they both buy $500 season passes each year, greatly reducing the $100-$200 cost of each event. Another way to lower costs is to volunteer at an event, while still participating, but with a delayed start. Participants earn headbands every time they complete at an event, but at 25-, 50-, 75- and 100-event intervals, special bands are distributed. Devon and Andrew choose not to wear the ones they’ve earned. “Sixty events sounds absurd!” says Devon. But that’s not the only reason. “We don’t want to diminish others’ accomplishments – just getting through the course, especially if it’s their first one, is significant.” They never intended to make this their lifestyle, and Devon certainly never planned to get a husband out of it, either, but a fateful meeting through a Facebook Mudder page, and the subsequent events they attended together, all added up to this terrific romance and a great many good times. The proposal came after an appropriate sequence of events. They stayed in Brooklyn the day before a Mudder event on Long Island and rented Citi Bikes to tour the town. This included a stop at the Tough Mudder headquarters in Brooklyn where they were warmly greeted. The ring was safely hidden in a pack Andrew carried with him all day, and after catching a subway into the city and having dinner with friends, they headed to the pier underneath the Brooklyn Bridge, which offers a spectacular view of the skyline. While sitting on a bench there, Andrew proposed. Devon was so surprised and shocked that she can barely remember the details but she said yes instantly. Then she quickly implored him not to drop the ring in the water since they were so close to the edge of the pier. Now a new obstacle course for the couple has emerged from the Mudder mud: a marriage…with love leading the way. I thought I needed to be ripped to be considered in good shape and especially to be able to do this, but I don’t think that anymore. – Devon Musko October 2015 n Beachwood Buzz 13