𝕸𝖞 𝖊𝖝𝖕𝖊𝖗𝖎𝖊𝖓𝖈𝖊 𝖌𝖔𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖔 𝖆 𝖘𝖈𝖍𝖔𝖔𝖑 𝖋𝖎𝖊𝖑𝖉 𝖙𝖗𝖎𝖕: 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕸𝖚𝖑𝖊 (𝖕𝖆𝖗𝖙 1)

My experience going to a school field trip: The Mule

{ft. the laments of a mud-covered primary schooler}

{true story, but people are replaced with different names for privacy and safety reasons}

I have moved to a new primary school in Queenstown.

And there was two more weeks till the school term of the year had concluded. That means Christmas, and the mark of a new year awaiting me. And honestly, I was pumped that I finally had an opportunity to take a break and rest up before going back to school and listening to the teachers again. 

But that meant I had one more end-of-year event left to face. The teachers had anticipated this event supposedly a while ago, mainly because this particular event was planned out months before, so they had to overcome the stresses and worries of sorting and considering the groups for those not going, those who have last-minute changes, etc. 

Mentally prepared for the fact that I will be cover in all sort of substances you'd find in nature, I anxiously stroll to my new primary school, situated near mountains and near a body of water. It doesn't take me long to clumsily not watch where I'm going walking down stairs, and taking a great toll on my ankle, leading me to spraining it. And, the worst part? 

2 people are witnessing this.

I wince at the injury, and proceed to walk it off, but not doing it exactly so efficiently. 

Goodness me. I haven't even gone to the event and I'm already limping badly on one leg. What an incredible feat.

Now, most likely, you may be wondering. What was this end of year event that the two teachers were stressing about and involved mud? That is "The Mule".

The Mule is an obstacle course guided by a person who used to work in the British Parachute Regiment fine tuning his logistical skills and a further 10+ years working in the corporate. Dugald Peters. The obstacle course can be for all ages, ranging from easier courses such as The Mule, to "The Vanguard", which is typically takes up the entire day. 

a photo of one of the stages of "The Vanguard", from the official website

My school has two Year 7 classes; one is mine, the other is another class full of Year 7s. The 2 Year 7 classes are going to The Mule together, along with my teacher, Ms. Miller, and Ms. Billy.

And speaking of teachers, the moment I enter my classroom, my eyes lay on Ms. Miller , who is scanning the teams assigned for The Mule, with a concerned, excited and worried expression, but all at once. 

Honestly, the fact that I might potentially sprain my ankle again, and lose energy at the first hour of the obstacle course is making me less excited and looking forward and more... concerned??

Ms. Miller perks up, and gazes the movement in the buzzing, chatty atmosphere. "Alright class. Come sit down on the mat please." Once everyone is seated, she does the roll call, and I can sense the excitement in everyone's minds. 

*

The morning went as normal. Sure, it was hectic to arrange 2 classes into 6 teams even with a list of the kids with their teams, and get them into the bus, but based off my experience, this was as expected.

A bus drive later, or 45 minutes or so to be exact, we all arrive at our destination. The Mule is located in between Moke Lake and Ben Lomond Station at the edge of Queenstown, and now I step out of the bus, taking it all in. The crisp, mountain air, surrounded with nature, with a slight scent of...

Eww... is that horse poop??

I witness, and unfortunately, smell the dump that is loaded right in front of me. Not fragrant at all, possibly the polar opposite of it.

"Can I have everyone's attention?!", a voice practically cuts through the air, everyone staring at the direction where it was produced. It sounds like the type of command and tone you would hear in a military base. 

"Thank you. Hello, everyone. My name is Dugald, and right here beside me is Matt, who'll be assisting us today." He gestures to the man in his right. "Welcome to The Mule. Your primary school was the very first school to try out this event, and has been going ever since. I'm always looking forward every year another great set of fantastic kids." he looks at us proudly.

"Today, we'll be training and focusing on using our teamwork skills. Remember, you can't win by yourself, because you're not doing it on your own. You're doing it as a team. You're helping the people in your team so that you can cross that finish line with your teammates. 

I glance at the people by my side, who are just pumped as I am. For some weird reason, my excitement levels have been rising since the moment I stepped out of the bus. And perhaps loads of adrenaline. "Every time I say instructions, you say "Yes Staff.". And if you don't understand the instructions, say "No Staff."

Huh. I guess we're in military training right now.  

"It's quite straightforward, really. So, do you understand?"

"Yes, Staff." The two classes states.

"I said, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!" Dugald yells.

"YES STAFF!" We all match Dugald's energy.

He grins. "Good. Now, for our first training of the day, we'll be heading to those walls out there." He points at a far distance, filled with grass and hopefully not anymore horse poop. There are indeed walls built stationed almost as an obstacle course. (it's because it's one heh..)

"Now, let's lightly jog to there to get our hearts racing."

He does an "come on" gesture, and we all obey, jogging in the grassy land, the cool wind gushing at my face. It feels relaxing, like sort of tickling my face with the breeze.

a photo of one of the stages of "The Mule", from the official website

We eventually arrive to "the walls" which reminds me of those type of walls that you would use to train horses, but in this context, for kids. 

"Our first training will be that you'd need to get over these walls. As you can see, this wall," he taps on it, "is 5 feet tall, so it's shorter than me. I can easily get over it. But there is a way that we want you to use to avoid yourself getting hurt and injuring yourself."

"The first thing you need to do is you need to face the wall, and lean forward into it, so that your tummy and chest is touching it. Then, swing your right foot to your right, and still with your tummy and chest in contact with the top of the wall, push your right foot forwards, and," he lands with any effort, "land on two feet."

The fact that he makes it look so easy is proving that he really knows his stuff. Or maybe that it's just an easy task in general. One of the two.

"Now, I want you to get into your teams and in your team, form a straight line." The adult who's in charge of our team, Lisa, ushers us all together as Team 3, and we do exactly so, form a straight line and are now facing the wall.

One teammate by one, we all swing over the wall, our muscle memory building up. Originally, when I first looked at this obstacle, I was half-expecting that I would find it easy and at the same time, half-expecting it to be a bit difficult at first. Turns out both of my thoughts were right. I knew that by practice, I would find it easier because of my muscle memory. So all it took for me and my teammates was a few more practices with swinging over the walls. 

"Your first part of the training is now complete. Your next training will now be in "The River"." Dugald states.

Okay...

...

WAIT WHAT DO YOU MEAN RIVER?? I'M GONNA GET WET ALREADY?!