THE TWELFTH RULE

Take It to Extremes

“LET’S DO THIS!SAID THE E-MAIL TO DAVE HARRIS FROM ONE OF HIS best friends.

It was early 2010. Harris’s friend had learned about an endurance event coming in a few months to Bear Creek Ski Resort near Allentown, Pennsylvania. Seven miles. Military-style obstacles. Slogging through mud pits. Scaling walls. Running through fire.

To Harris, who calls himself “Dave The Harris” Braveheart-style on the blog where he chronicles his athletic adventures, the answer was a no-brainer. “As a man, if your friend suggests doing something like this, it’s not a question. To answer ‘No’ would question your manhood,” he wrote.1 Harris’s dad signed up as well.

The three men didn’t know at the time they were in the vanguard ...

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