Why I Ruck

It was 2015 and I was on recruiting duty for the Navy, recruiting future Naval Officers. One of those was a hopeful Navy SEAL. Spoiler Alert: he wasn't selected for the SEALs but did get selected to fly and today, he's in uniform pursuing his Wings of Gold. That person mentioned this thing called "rucking" to me, the challenge event, and of course, the gear. Like any good "GRT," he brought his ruck into the office to have a session of "show and tell." As someone who was an ultra-runner for the previous 17 years and a newbie CrossFitter, and watching the military "feel" that the GORUCK YouTube videos had, I dipped my toe into the water and did what anyone does when curious, I Googled it.

Very shortly after that, I stumbled on the newly founded Cleveland Area Rucking Crew (CARC) and decided I'd show up for a local ruck. That was January 3, 2016 in a local park and like any good rucking event, there was someone to take photos to prove it happened. Even if you don't read it, click here to read my report about it and at least browse the photos. They really sum it up well! It was THIS experience that thrust me "all in" to rucking. That little bug was planted and I wanted all of it. Like any smart GRT does (GRTs is an acronym used for anyone who has completed a GORUCK event....stands for GORUCK Tough.), I quickly signed up for my first event: The 24+ hour Heavy. This editorial today isn't about regurgitating every report and event I did, so I won't but let's just say the "Heavy" isn't typically the starting point in a GRT's journey. It was an epic experience and I earned my patch. All of my AARs can be read at the AAR link here on my blog.

From my experience over Father's Day 2016 in Detroit at the Heavy, I met more new friends and that's a MAJOR reason for "why" I ruck. From the Cadre who led that event, one of which is a Team RWB Eagle, to other GRTs who I continue to stay in touch with today, the people make rucking all that sweeter. As time progressed forward, I got more and more involved in our local rucking club, always meeting new friends and eventually, my wife got a ruck and did her first event a month after the Heavy. While she is not a fan of the challenges, she DID fall in love with rucking itself and today, she'll proudly proclaim "Rucking's my favorite!!!" Actually, the next time you see her, ask her about her first event. This was how it started. Now if you know her, you can only imagine her thoughts when the sprinklers popped up and Cadre Geoff told us all to start low-crawling through them...

In the end, though, she got her patch and she'll tell you it was the hardest thing she's ever done. Yes, it was a GORUCK Light but if you know anything about Cadre Geoff Reeves, a "Light" in his book is essentially a 5-6 hour "Tough." While she'll never do a traditional event again (we did the Rock-n-Roll Light in 2017), she loves to ruck at the rawest level. There is just something about putting weight on your back and heading out, especially with a least 1 other human...or your dog. If people would just give it one shot, many would be hooked.

Several months ago, we came up with an idea when I was involved in a leadership position with Team RWB, to lead local rucks that have an extremely low barrier-to-entry, had no PT, and simply served to introduce rucking, meet new friends, and break bread together. That's when our Ruck-n-Brew "series" was born. That first one was held at an ice cream shop but quickly morphed into a craft-beer centric thing. The concept was simple: ruck for about 90min, talk about rucking/life/etc., and end near the time that whatever establishment is opening for business. Park at or near that same location, too. We had a huge turnout at that first one which catapulted us to where we are today. Next Saturday, we lead our 6th Ruck-n-Brew in Akron, OH where we'll meet up at Thirsty Dog Brewing, ruck on the University of Akron campus, then end right when they open for business. EVERY SINGLE TIME, my bride and I think "maybe no one will show up and we'll still do it" and EVERY SINGLE TIME, they show up and always, someone new as well. It's contagious, it's fun, it burns some calories and you know what? It's not running. Yea, as a prior distance runner, I'm not going to hate on running but a lot of people who run and/or hate to run or are beat up by it love to ruck because of the zero-impact it brings.

Our first four ruck-n-brews

Elevation Ruck in Canton

Our reasons and drive aren't the same. I have done a handful events, to include two Heavys, 2 or 3 Toughs, a few Lights and now, the 50 Mile Star Course. I enjoy the "suck" where my wife doesn't. That last Heavy in August 2018 had special meaning to me and I'm so glad I did it. But in the end, we both just love to ruck, it's something we can do together and we continue to meet new friends. That's called LIVING LIFE to its FULLEST! Just this past weekend in Columbus, OH, we did the 50 Mile Star Course and it was incredible! I used my experience in ultra-running and caring for my feet and passed that on to this event and it paid off big time. We actually finished second overall which was stunning! Again, I wrote a report from that event and it's well worth the read if you're considering it. No PT in that event at all...just rucking a city hitting a bunch of points-of-interest. Then 5 days later this past Thursday night, an impromptu meeting in Canton, OH for the newly released GORUCK challenge dubbed "Elevation Ruck" where we had to climb 1500 steps with 4 or more others. SO glad we went out because EVERYONE who showed up was new to us! You see? It just keeps on flowing...and it's never the same. I could brainstorm just about anything and throw it out there to the local community and someone is going to show up. Everyone has at least a backpack sitting in the closet and everyone can throw some stuff in it and go for a walk. That's rucking. Sure, you'll probably want a "real" ruck and maybe even some steel plates to go in it (or wrapped up bricks) later but why not just dabble in it first and see what you think? You may just love it and if you do, there is a massive, growing community out here ready to welcome you in.

Our 50 Mile Finish in Columbus, OH on April 13, 2019