Survivor Stories: 'No question I’m going to finish'

When Mildred Wilson watched her son Danny Wilson compete in a 15k Tough Mudder competition as part of his pit crew, she made the off-handed remark she wished she would have done something like it when she was younger. Her son told her if she wanted to compete in a shorter one, he believed she could do it, and he would compete alongside her.

At the time, Mildred was 80 years old. Now, at age 83, she has completed three Tough Mudders and one Conquer the Gauntlet race. She holds the honor of being the oldest person to compete in a Tough Mudder. She has been interviewed by CBS News, the New York Post and the Daily Mail, and she is a character in a comic book for residents in nursing homes in London, her story inspiring people around the country and world.

“It’s exhilarating,” Mildred says of competing in the competitions. “Before [the race] starts, actually, I’m nervous, and I wonder if I can do it and all this. But once it starts and we get started, then I’m not worried anymore. I realize I can do it, and Danny’s right there with me. He’s not going to let anything happen. Actually, it’s fun.”

A 5k Tough Mudder consists of a 5k course with 13 obstacles such as a three-story-tall net contestants must climb over and a wooden turbine that turns in water that many contestants together must hang on to and turn before falling off of one by one on the other side — two of Mildred’s favorites obstacles — and a wooden wall that curves and then is straight for eight feet at the top that contestants must get themselves over, which Mildred says is the biggest challenge. To be able to do these obstacles, Mildred signed up for membership at the local Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) gym and trained for eight months to strengthen her upper body after initially deciding to compete in a Tough Mudder.

For the first Tough Mudder she competed in, her husband of 57 and a half years, Farrell Wilson, was there cheering her on. In 2020, however, he became ill with COVID-19. Although they thought he was almost better, he had a heart attack due to the stress the illness caused on his heart and passed away.

Mildred and Danny decided to compete in the four-mile, 25-obstacle Conquer the Gauntlet competition they had signed up for the following month because Mildred says Farrell was “so supportive” of her doing the competitions and was very proud of her for it. The youth group Danny leads was raising money to build a well in Africa, and Mildred decided to do the competition to honor Farrell, raising funds in his name. Through her efforts, she raised $12,000 for the cause. She says now, “I feel him with me the whole way.”

For Mildred, it’s determination and commitment that motivates her during each competition.

“Once I start, there’s no question I’m going to finish, as far as I’m concerned,” Mildred says. “So I don’t know that I necessarily need a motivation; I just know that we’re going to finish.”

Since she started competing in Tough Mudders, she says she has started trying different types of activities more often. This past summer, she began kayaking. She wants to take a hot air balloon ride. Next April, she plans to compete in another Tough Mudder.

“There are some things that I still want to do,” Mildred says. “And if I get the chance to do them, I won’t hesitate because of my age. That’s not going to matter to me. … Why worry about what might happen? And it maybe never happen. Just go on and enjoy life. We don’t have all that many years left.”