Dubbed as one of the hardest courses to date, this year’s Toughen Up Challenge tested even the fittest competitors.
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A combination of trudging through mud, throwing weights and climbing obstacles has more than 400 competitors feeling a little sore this week.
In its sixth year, secretary Lynn Lennon said the event has continued to grow exponentially.
“This year we had to completely re-jig the course and it seems like we hit a winner. Competitors, especially out-of-towners, commented on the fact the course showcased Inverell,” she said.
Held along both sides of the river, the course was a tonne of fun which included a challenging obstacle farm, skip dive, tyre carry and mystery leg.
“It’s funny we only changed a few obstacles but it seemed to change the whole flavour.
“Rachael Sutton from the local crossfit set one of the obstacles this year which brought a lot of people undone,” Lennon said.
This year’s mystery leg was a slip and slide along the Warialda highway and proved popular among many participants.
The Toughen Up Challenge officially kicked off on Friday evening as juniors, aged five to 13, took on a modified course.
More than 400 juniors, in teams of two showed no fear in taking on the challenge.
"One of the juniors said they absolutely loved it, the only problem was it was only held once a year and he'd prefer it to be once a month.
"It's proof in the pudding when you have kids who love the event especially when the point of the juniors is the grow the gene pool for youth and seniors," she said.
Bright and early on Saturday morning around 440 youth and senior competitors set off on the adult course in teams of four.
There were eight divisions with competitive and non-competitive sections for males, females, youth and mixed teams.
Volunteers were overwhelmed with how many teams thanked them during the day, with one newby shocked with how many times he felt appreciated.
"Volunteers give their whole day freely for us so kudos to our entrants for being so understanding. It is a big event and for them to acknowledge the work we put in, and what our volunteers give, was really lovely to hear.”
