Push Your Limits @Devil’s Circuit

Push Your Limits @Devil’s Circuit

Have you ever imagined crossing a pool filled with ice? The mere thought could send chills down your spine. How about crawling across a swampy land under a barbed fence, only to end up in a muddy disguise when you reach the other side? Ever wanted to jump from tree to tree with the help of a rope like Tarzan or Mowgli? Do you think you can cross a pool of water by running on floating blocks of thermocol? If you are thinking - ‘Wow! How interesting!’, then you would have had super fun had you participated in Devil’s Circuit.

Devil’s Circuit is a 5 km obstacle run, a reality check on our physical fitness. Often, when I hear of such fitness events, my ‘right brain’ would have a strong urge to participate, but most often than not, the more rational ‘left brain’ takes over and convinces me to let it pass. “I have not practiced enough to be able to complete the challenge.” “My body is not fit to pull this off and I may fall ill if I strain myself.” “It is quite expensive; it does not make sense to pay for something in which you cannot give your best.” I can come up with a dozen other reasons to continue to be my lazy self whiling away my time in a sedentary lifestyle, reading books, watching movies and working on the laptop.

But Devil’s Circuit is different and it puts some of these ramblings of the mind to rest. Firstly, it is not a long run on a designated straight path, that, I find to be boring. This is an obstacle course that has 15 challenging hurdles, varying in difficulty and requiring different skills. Secondly, you could participate in either of the two categories – Competitive and Non-competitive. The Non-competitive format is not timed and you just have to complete the race; even if you are not able to clear every obstacle, it is perfectly fine. Lastly, it is easier to convince your friends for such an event than to coax them to participate in a marathon. And with friends’ company, even the toughest of the ordeals can be fun!

My friends are a bunch of quick decision makers who believe in spontaneity and just go with the flow. There are no ifs and buts. Within an hour’s discussion, we were all set to participate in the Devil’s Circuit challenge. We are a good mix of fit, partially-fit and unfit athletes. Let me introduce my friends to you.

Manpreet is a seasoned marathoner who has successfully completed several half marathons over the last 3 years; the most recent one being at a high altitude region in Leh. By far, he seemed to be the fittest among us. Bhanu is no less disciplined as far as fitness is concerned. Hailing from Rishikesh, he has spent his childhood climbing mountains and running on hilly terrains. Regular exercises and running have helped him build strong legs that Simar often compares to a delicious chicken leg piece. :P Simar is a mystery man who falls prey to neck spasms whenever he gyms for a week at a stretch. He is still struggling to build his fitness routine but has been sporadically consistent in hitting the gym in the last one year. Piyush is the dark horse, the source of inspiration for beginners like me. It has been a little over three months since he started going to the gym. But he has done well to bring discipline in his lifestyle both in terms of physical workout and maintaining a strict diet. He is a promising candidate for competitive fitness events in the future. The girls, Adi and Jassi are the new kids on the block. They have been attending fitness classes for the last couple of weeks, learning Aerobics and Zumba apart from lifting weights and undergoing functional training. In these two weeks, they have made good progress from being unable to climb stairs owing to muscle cramps on the first day to being active throughout the day now despite their early morning workouts. They are all set to raise the bar at the next edition of Devil’s Circuit. The only unfit person in the entire group is me. The only physical activity that I engage in, is playing a sport - cricket, football or badminton but that too, once in a fortnight, which amounts to nothing as far as building stamina is concerned. That’s one reason why I missed my accomplice, Vishal, who is probably the only other person in the group who is comparable to me in fitness level. We both make great plans of staying fit and end up exploring new restaurants every weekend. While I rely entirely on my height and long legs to put up a good show at such events, he trusts his body strength.

We had a pretty good start clearing the first two obstacles without much trouble – Slanted Rope Climb and Tunnel Walk. The first tough challenge was posed at the third obstacle – Vertical Climb, in which we had to climb a vertical wall that was 10 feet in height, with the help of a rope. There was a single step mid way and climbing up to that point was easy as your friends standing behind you are there to push you up. But for the second level jump, you are by your own self and unless you are able to lunge on to the rope to make the giant leap to the next level, it’s impossible to cross this hurdle. Aditi was stuck at the middle stage and we were clueless on how to proceed. But that’s when teamwork comes to rescue. Quickly, Piyush climbed up to the second stage using another rope and positioned himself well enough to pull her up while I was standing on the ground with both my hands stretched above me and clasped to create a footrest for her to step on. One, Two and Three… Up went Aditi on to the second stage and a sense of achievement ran through our nerves.

 Beyond the third stage, it was a mixed bag, some were easy to sail through while some were beyond reach. In some of the obstacles, I was so close, yet so far. Ladder Climb, Mud Crawl and Body Surfing were the easy ones. Monkey Crawl and Curved Surface Jump were difficult. You need upper body strength to be able to support your entire body weight with the help of your arms. In Monkey Crawl, I could manage only till midway before I fell into water. I was quite satisfied with my attempt on the Curved Surface Jump because twice I could jump and hang on to the bar but could not figure out on the right technique to get myself on to the top. I was too close to the finish line in Balanced Walk and Planks Crossing, just a step away, before my arms and legs gave up despite me constantly chanting ‘Jai Bajrang Bali’ J

The most eluding of all obstacles was the Tarzan Swing in which you have to cross a puddle by jumping on to a rope from one end and landing safe on the other side. While it seemed simple and straightforward, only Manpreet could clear this one while the rest of us went straight into water. One of the hard ones that I was able to complete was Cat Walk. Jassi put up a good fight on the Planks Crossing, not leaving with regrets of not having attempted it. The most impossible obstacle was Floating Blocks. Apparently, none from the non-competitive format could cross this obstacle and touching the third block was considered an achievement and some of us could just manage that. The icing on the cake was the last obstacle – Deep Freeze, crossing a pool of ice before your body grows numb and you freeze to death. None of us shied away from this one.

On the whole, it was an awesome experience, with lot of memories to take back. Devil’s Circuit was about teamwork and camaraderie among friends. It was about inspiring and motivating each other to touch the finish-line. It was about trying new things, breaking the shackles of doubt and pushing your limits. It was about ropes, nets, planks, walls and lots and lots of muddy water. Our performance was a testimony to our fitness levels. Bhanu and Manpreet performed the best leaving out only a couple of obstacles unfinished. They were closely followed by Simar and Piyush, while the girls and I finished at the bottom. Piyush reminded me of the story of a spider building its cobweb again and again even after being blown away by wind or destroyed by other means, demonstrating its perseverance and determination to achieve the final goal. At two of the obstacles, Piyush failed once, twice, thrice and many more times. But he did not give up until he conquered them at the end. Where there is a will, there is a way and I am sure I will also find my way to success like Piyush did, in my next year’s attempt. Similarly, Jassi did not want to leave the field with any regrets of not trying the Plank Crossing obstacle and she went back to it before our last hurdle to give it a shot. And she put up a brave fight to reach the mid way before she fell into Simar’s hands, who was walking alongside to protect her from falling straight into water.

                 

Everything was perfect, yet something was amiss. I was unable to figure out what until I recalled that there were no bald heads to soil with mud, no floating elephants to be spotted, no pandas rolling down the slope or lunging on to the rope. Yet I wonder how the Burma Bridge was broken down leaving us with only 14 obstacles to enjoy. We were short of a helping hand; there was a shoulder less to rest upon after each obstacle. A smiling face was missing in the crowd, our ears longed for those missing roars of laughter while making fun. We were short of a cheerleader to shout out ‘Come on! You can do it!’ Cute girls on the field missed out on impressing Mr. Sweet-talker. There was no stander-by in the after-event party, to be dragged on to the dance floor. But our photographs came out perfect with no distracted faces. We missed you, Vishal, and you keep feeling jealous on what all you missed out on. :D

Summary of our performance at Devil’s Circuit

Obstacle	Adi	Jas	Sid	Piyu	Simar	Manpreet	Bhanu	Vishal
Slanted Rope Climb	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Tunnel Walk	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Vertical Climb	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Balanced Walk	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Curved Surface Jump	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	DNP
Tarzan Swing	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	DNP
Ladder Climb	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Monkey Crawl	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	DNP
Plank Crossing	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Mud Crawl	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Floating Blocks	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	DNP
Cat Walk	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	Yes	DNP
Body Surfing	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Deep Freeze	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	DNP
Burma Bridge	Bye	Bye	Bye	Bye	Bye	Bye	Bye	DNP
Total	8	9	10	11	12	12	13	-
Next Year Target	Cross 10 mark and Attempt Floating Blocks	Cross 10 mark and Attempt Monkey Crawl	Cross 13 mark	Cross 13 mark	Participate in Competitive	Participate in Competitive	Participate in Competitive	Make your first appearance and give your best