GORUCK Tough is a physically grueling team event that lasts anywhere from 10 to 12 hours and covers 15 to 20 miles. Participants must carry weighted backpacks—aka rucksacks—loaded with 20 or 30 lb., depending on the weight of the participant. The challenge leaders emphasize team focus throughout the challenge, and the event should never be mistaken for a simple race.
When Owen Valuch of CrossFit Sav-Up was trying to convince longtime friend Matt Transue of CrossFit Sonoma County to participate in a GORUCK Tough challenge, Transue was hesitant.
“For me, (Valuch) has always been the guy that says, ‘Hey, this is something that you need, and I don’t want you to question it,’” Transue explains. “And of course I always question shit that he says because it’s always crazy.”
Transue, a high-school teacher and CrossFit trainer, has experienced ups and downs in his fitness and was unsure he could complete the challenge successfully. After high-school football ended, Transue says he lost touch with the fit guy he once was.
“I couldn’t compete,” he says. “There wasn’t a cause anymore. There wasn’t something to get ready for.”
Noticing his friend’s predicament, Valuch, a fire-service instructor and CrossFit trainer, encouraged Transue to take charge of his health and introduced him to CrossFit.
“Fitness—you can’t fuck around with it,” Valuch says. “You have to be physically fit in life to function.”
Watch as the two join their team and take on what is arguably their greatest challenge yet.
“When we start tonight, we don’t know what any event is going to be,” Valuch says. “We don’t know what’s going to be out there. We don’t know how long the event is going to last. You’ve gotta count each rep like a zero.”
Video by Gary Roberts.
51min 39sec
Additional reading: “3-2-1 … Snow!” by Hilary Achauer, published Feb. 12, 2015.
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