Weekend Warriors

The world of extreme military-style obstacle courses is taking the country by storm. In total, 205,000 people ran obstacle races in Britain in 2013. Globally the industry is estimated to be worth over half a billion dollars. This film follows five men over the length of one of these courses, the Tough Mudder. As they attempt to conquer the 12-mile course they face 12-foot walls, crawling through mud-filled trenches, enduring electrocution, and submerging themselves in giant skips full of ice. As well as following their gruelling training regimes, the programme explores the reasons why they are subjecting themselves to this torture. Amongst those taking part are a father and son who hope the course will help rebuild their strained relationship, a man struggling to come to terms with his recent separation whilst missing his two young children, a bachelor with a broken heart, two builders who have left their training right to the last minute, and an exceptionally determined ex-army personal trainer who will do whatever it takes to fulfil his dream of being first across the finishing line. His biggest fan, his mum, is there all the way to cheer him along. Weekend Warriors is not about sport or fitness, but about the hopes, fears and dreams of the average man. This is a poignant examination of fragile 21st-century masculinity.