MORE ONLINE: For photos and video from the event, log on to SpringfieldNewsSun.com.
About 600 people came out for the National Trail Parks and Recreation Department’s Mud Mania event at the Buck Creek Nature Park on Friday morning.
More than 500 children participated in the Mud Run, which included different obstacles such as a low crawl, tunnels and a slippery hill. The district promoted the event on Facebook and anticipated a large crowd, Recreation Specialist Penny Dunbar said. Many came from across Clark and Champaign counties.
“This definitely exceeds the amount that we thought,” she said.
Andrew Lowe, 11, and Ben Radford, 10, both drove from New Carlisle for the event. Both wore cut-off shirts that read “Mud Run.”
They were covered in mud after walking off the course.
“I’ve been waiting all week,” Lowe said. “It was awesome.”
New Carlisle resident Jennifer Kennedy brought her children Tyler, 11, and Hannah, 8, and six of their friends to the event after seeing it on Facebook.
“They’ve told me they’ve had a ton of fun,” Kennedy said. “They’re going to get in line and go again. We didn’t expect their to be so many people. It’s really cool. We would probably come again.”
The event originated from the Mini Nuts Health Camp, which was put on through a partnership between National Trail and the Ohio State University Extension Office.
It was sponsored by the Community Health Foundation. The course was designed by the park district staff and water was provided by the Springfield Fire/Rescue Division.
The mud run was the finale of the five-week camp, which focused on nutrition and physical activity. The district eventually decide to open the course to the public.
“Getting the kids out here exercising, going through the obstacle course is a great thing,” Dunbar said.
About the Author