Mother Files Wrongful Death Suit Against West Virginia ‘Tough Mudder’

By | May 7, 2014

  • May 7, 2014 at 1:42 pm
    Sympathy says:
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    While my heart bleeds for any parent who has to outlive their child, I would imagine that the son signed waivers and knew possible risks involved with this type of event. Not pointing fingers and saying who’s to blame, it’s a tragedy no matter what. But unless there was a true total negilence situation on behalf of the event organizers at hand here (which is not clear from the article)I am not sure if the mother will have a leg to stand on with this. Good day to all!

    • May 7, 2014 at 4:29 pm
      wayne says:
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      There have been plenty of examples of people “assuming risks” with other parties being found negligent or being in a contributory negligence state. The host do not get to act recklessly simply because the event itself is inherently high hazard. There doesn’t need to be “true total negilence” (sic) for a jury to find for the plaintiff.

      People seem to want to rush to sound wise by throwing out “assumption of risk” as if people lose in court every day in such cases. They do not.

      • May 8, 2014 at 9:49 am
        Don Quixote says:
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        But they should.

      • May 8, 2014 at 1:44 pm
        Sympathy says:
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        Wayne,

        I most definitely was not trying to “sound wise” by throwing “assumption of risk” around. Simply put, I do not need to throw around terms to sound wise, I am wise. In addition, reading is fundamental my friend, I chose to use the following words after “am not sure”. How do you surmise that they event organizers acted recklessly? They had medics at the event and responded, unfortunately, it was not in time to stop this horrific event from unfolding. As I stated, my heart bleeds for this mother..and yes I would know as I have watched my own mother deal with the tragic loss of a child, who was my brother. But my mother knew that the tragedy was part of my brother’s own doing and did not try to find other’s to place the responsibility on.

        You also mentioned in another post below to another about “make you feel superior to post something like that”. We are all just posting our opinions in a very courteous, professional manner, it would be nice if you could try to show to the same respect. It also helps make your points seem a little more valid and worth reading. I appreciate your opinion and can slightly see through the attitude that you are portraying in your post. I just see so many being hateful and negative on these IJ blogs, when in reality we could all maybe learn something or get a new point of view from each other.

        I do believe most of us up here are good hearted people no matter what state we are in or what political or religious beliefs each has. Let’s try and be respectful of one another.

        I hope you are having a good day and continue to friend.

  • May 7, 2014 at 1:52 pm
    JS says:
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    Curious to see what happens. Sad story. As a participant in this event, waivers are signed prior to starting. Waivers go over all details and what could happen. Will that stand in court?

    • May 12, 2014 at 2:38 pm
      Destro says:
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      There was this sci-fi show in the 90’s called Sliders where a group of people were constantly “sliding” through wormholes to alternate universes. One of the universes was inhabited by people who were all lawyers. Right away when they find themselves in this new world they see some guy in a suit getting beaten up so they intervene and save the guy. They end up getting sued by the guy they saved. Your comment reminded me of that episode.

  • May 7, 2014 at 2:03 pm
    New Bob says:
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    I guess the mother of the deceased never heard of the concept of assumption of risk. It will not be long in this country until you will not be able to participate in any activity due to the potential for suit.

    • May 7, 2014 at 5:23 pm
      SWFL Agent says:
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      JS, I’ll be the first to squawk about the lack of personal responsibility and “it’s always someone else’s fault” attitude that is now so common. But I just don’t think this article gives us enough information to know the facts. Did he sign a waiver? Was there safety persons positioned throughout the course? This article doesn’t answer this.

      • May 8, 2014 at 11:15 am
        UCT says:
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        I have participated in these events. You are required to sign a pretty solid release prior to competing in the event. This particular event is incredibly difficult and the waiver states death is possible. When you sign the waiver, it doesn’t mean the host isn’t responsible for watching over you, but in my reading of the waiver, it makes it clear the race isn’t for everyone and there may be some serious health risks involved, including death.

        If you would like to read the actual waiver you must sign, I am providing a link. https://toughmudder.com/sites/default/files/PRO9783_TM_Participants_Waiver-1.pdf

        Note that the waiver does not, in any way, make this sound like a safe event. Unfortunately, most people do not take the time to read these.
        I’ve been at these types of events and have never finished one without seeing some type of injury. Normally it is a knee or an ankle, but there are times when you will see someone fall from a rope climb, or simply fall while running and they get pretty torn up. This is NOT marketed as an event for everyone and I believe the waiver makes that clear.

        • May 9, 2014 at 12:05 pm
          Don't Call Me Shirley says:
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          UCT, you are one tough Mudder!

  • May 7, 2014 at 3:20 pm
    wayne says:
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    Make you feel superior to log on to make a comment like the above? Something tells me that if your child died in such an event you would be looking to hold others responsible as well.

    “Assuming risks” does not mean you get to act negligently and does not release another party from acting recklessly. Were you there to determine if this applies? It is for a jury to decide and that is fine by me. Could it be both that the party assumed some risks but that the host was also negligent? Did you think about that before rushing to make your point?

    • May 8, 2014 at 9:57 am
      Don Quixote says:
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      Why would I be “looking to hold others responsible”? That doesn’t make sense. Why is it so hard to accept that bad things sometimes happen to good people and it doesn’t have to result in a lawsuit for money? It seems to always be about the money.

      Why can’t we just be sorry for the family while recognizing that the individual in question knew the risks (yes, Tough Mudder gets a signed waiver) and accepted them in order to participate. Like another commenter stated, we are moving toward a culture of zero personal responsibility and 100% blame on others (with reward of money damages) for anything bad that ever happens to us. It’s just not right and eventually people won’t be able to participate in many fun activities like Tough Mudder, skiing, skydiving, surfing, boating, mountain biking, etc. because they will be lawyered into submission. What a shame.

    • May 8, 2014 at 10:01 am
      Destro says:
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      Was the host negligent?

      • May 8, 2014 at 4:23 pm
        Libby says:
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        The article, in typical IJ fashion, doesn’t give us enough information to know without searching other sites for details.

  • May 8, 2014 at 9:52 am
    Destro says:
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    Personal responsibility has become a myth in America.

    • May 8, 2014 at 10:08 am
      Ron says:
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      Destro,

      I could not agree with you more!!

      • May 8, 2014 at 10:46 am
        Destro says:
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        Ron agrees with me?! And I didn’t even need to site a source!

    • May 8, 2014 at 11:29 am
      Libby says:
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      Surprise, Destro! I agree with you, too.

    • May 8, 2014 at 1:46 pm
      KY jw says:
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      Let’s make Destro’s day! I agree as well. Sadly, I don’t see this trend ending anytime soon.

  • May 8, 2014 at 4:42 pm
    txmouthbreatherboogereatertx says:
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    I though a tough mudder is when Paul Ryan purposely bends over and grabs his ankles in front of the Koch Brothers. Bottoms UP!!! It’s his personal responsibility to use baby wipes.



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