Legions of shirtless men and wet t-shirt clad women wore mud on their faces Oct. 8 as they vaulted through a 10-kilometer obstacle course on a patch of sparse ground off Lerdo Highway between Oildale and Shafter.
It was all for a good cause.
The half-naked Kern County participants put Darwinism to the test and collectively trudged, raced and swam through muddy manmade pits filled with millions of gallons of water during the event known as the Volkslauf, which is German for “mud run.” The event is hosted by Marines to raise money for their annual Christmas Toys for Tots event.
As contestants slogged through watery mire and scaled walls and hills, several Marines and correctional officers were on hand to “motivate” the runners, as Pfc. Tony Devoto put it.
“My job is to make sure people don’t cheat,” said Dirk Ming, a Shafter community corrections facilities officer.
For a $45 individual fee and $140 team fee, contestants braved a 60-obstacle course and a Marine boot camp-like atmosphere.
“Come on meat head!” One Marine hollered.
“Jesse, you were talkin’ some big smack, shut up!”
“Get off of my wall!”
“Hurry up, jar head!”
“Come on, you paid for this, smile!”
“We’re gonna die,” a contestant dryly remarked.
“Get off of me!” another contestant yelled as another clambered past him while they trundled through the sludgy pit lined with barbed wire and caution tape and up a rocky hill.
“This is kind of what Marines go through,” Devoto said, stressing “kind of.” “You could say real Marine training is a little harder.”
There were four different races for individuals, teams, law enforcement and the military, Ming said. Work crews from the Marines meticulously maintain the race ground, he said.
As to why people would submit to such bizarre torture and rigors, Ming said it is for the feeling of “camaraderie, family teamwork, cohesiveness and to enjoy the athletic challenge.”
“My mommy made me do it,” said Jeremy Toone, a participant and local electrician. His mother and brother-in-law were also in races.
His brother-in-law, Robby Schuck, a California Highway Patrol officer, said he was doing the race as a “family thing.”
A friend of theirs, Christopher Burciaga, a Bakersfield salesperson and administrator, said his wife had been “wanting to do this race for three years.”
Speaking of all of the contestants, Kurt Sickles, grandfather of 7-year-old participant Haley Benavidez, said, “They’re great, they’re wonderful.” Sickles’ wife also ran in the women’s individual race.
Richard Pedersen, Kern County probation officer and group counselor for Camp Erwin juvenile facility in Kernville, was trainer and team captain for 12 boys from the camp who engaged in the races. Pedersen believes that participation in the race helps the Erwin boys “build up self-esteem.” About the rest of the contestants, Pedersen said he “admired everyone” in the races, and that the races help everyone “stay in shape.”
“It’s also important to raise money for children who need help,” Pedersen said, speaking of the ultimate goal of raising Toys for Tots funds.
One spectator, Marylou Rosel, whose son was one of the several boys from Camp Owen juvenile facility to join the races, said that she was “really proud” of her son for being in the Volkslauf race.
The first contestant to make it through the course by a wide margin was former Bakersfield College student Giovanni Perezchica, who finished in 42 minutes and 20 seconds.
“This was my first time (at the Volkslauf) and I was a little confused, but I feel fine,”said a glistening Perezchica, who participated in track and cross -country for both high school and college.
A Cal State Bakersfield student majoring in liberal studies with an eye toward becoming an elementary school teacher, Perezchica admitted he was eager to try the Volkslauf.
Also at the Volkslauf challenge were Liberty Ambulance, Fox Classic Rock 98.5 radio jockeys and two representatives of the “A” Battery First U.S. Artillery. The “A” Battery participates in the annual Civil War reenactment at Fort Tejon. Brothers Daryl and Jim Kennedy, along with a replica of an 1862 cannon, have been to the Volkslauf for “six to seven years” now, Jim Kennedy said.
With the cannon, “We help start the races, make a lot of noise, and have a lot of fun,” Jim Kennedy said.