Fierce 82-Yr-Old Proves Age Is Just A Number By Completing Her 2nd Tough Mudder Race.

grandma completing tough mudder

Completing a Tough Mudder 5K is no easy feat.

The infamous race mixes 3.1 miles of running with 10 wet and muddy obstacles that provide contestants with a “challenging, one-of-a-kind event.” Definitely not somewhere you’d stereotypically expect to see an octogenarian!

Mildred Wilson is an 82-year-old grandmother from Sikeston, Missouri. Her interest in Tough Mudders began when her son, Danny Wilson, invited her to watch him slog through the mud.

“I had watched him do the World’s Toughest Mudder in Vegas,” Mildred said. “He asked me last fall if I would like to do one. I said yes, but, if I do it, I want to be able to really do it. Not just be out there.”

She first went to her doctor, who quickly gave her “the thumbs up.” She then joined her local YMCA and started working on her strength, speed, and stamina. By 2019, Mildred was ready to compete in her first Tough Mudder with her son by her side!

“I realize it’s something I could do,” she said. “The very first obstacle I believe was getting down on our hands and knees and crawling under barbwire, in mud! From that point on, you were pretty much muddy.”

Later, she said she couldn’t have done the Tough Mudder without the support of her son and her husband, Farrell Wilson.

“I was all for it,” Farrell explained. “She’s tough. I knew she could handle it.”

Sadly, Farrell passed away before he could see his beloved wife take on her next challenge. So Mildred decided to tackle the Tough Mudder once more in 2021 in Farrell’s honor!

“I have decided that I am not going to let my age decide what I can or can’t do,” she wrote on Facebook. “So, with two obstacle courses completed, I decided that I am going to spend Mother’s Day 2021, crawling through mud and climbing over walls with my favorite son at the Missouri Tough Mudder.”

In May, Mildred took on the Missouri Tough Mudder and put people everywhere to shame!

She handled most of the obstacles no problem, but when it came time to heft herself over a wall, she needed some assistance from Danny and their team.

“I don’t think it was quite as tough as I thought it would be,” she said with a laugh. “Except for the wall! I always wanted to try that wall. I realized it wasn’t a piece of cake. It took a whole village to get me up.”

Mildred finished the event strong and hopes to do it again next year! Will she become the first 100-year-old Tough Mudder contestant? We think so!

Share this story to celebrate this tough grandma’s achievements.

Want to be happier in just 5 minutes a day? Sign up for Morning Smile and join over 455,000+ people who start each day with good news.