Peter Fredericks is one grateful property owner and he let Oxford Township officials know it.

Last week, Fredericks, who owns the 1,200-acre Koenig Sand & Gravel property along Lakeville Rd., stopped by the township board meeting to talk about Tough Mudder.

He leased his property to the New York-based company for the June 3-4 event that drew approximately 7,800 participants and 1,200 spectators to the community.

“We felt that it was a very, very successful event that we would hope to (continue) in the future and they would like to (continue) it as well,” Fredericks said. “We had an awful lot of happy and very respectful people . . . I think it was good exposure for the town.”

Tough Mudder is a team-based challenge where participants tackle a variety of military-style obstacles. It’s not a timed race. The goal is to simply finish the course.

Fredericks noted the Koenig mining site has been active since 1920, but these days “we are only running a small-scale operation.”

“We have a huge parcel of land with a big tax bill,” he said.

Leasing the property to Tough Mudder is helping pay that bill, Fredericks told officials.

According to township Treasurer Joe Ferrari, Koenig’s 2016 winter tax bill was approximately $22,000 and the summer 2017 tax bill is approximately $75,000.

Fredericks thanked the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, Oxford Village Police, Oxford Fire Department, Road Commission for Oakland County and township officials Supervisor Bill Dunn and Trustee Jack Curtis for all the time and effort they put in to help make Tough Mudder’s first visit such a success.

As a tangible expression of his gratitude, Fredericks is donating $1,000 to Oxford-Addison Youth Assistance.

It should be noted Tough Mudder paid for the additional police and fire/EMS personnel that were needed on site and in the community during the event.

According to Dunn, a meeting of everyone involved with Tough Mudder was held just after the event.

“We discussed what went right and what went wrong,” he said. “Very little went wrong. There (were) a lot of things (that) went right.”

The supervisor said the Tough Mudder organization “put on a wonderful event that left its mark on a lot of people.”

He said everybody he saw left the Koenig site with “a smile on their face, saying what a great time they had.”

Dunn admitted, prior to the event, he was “a little doubtful” about how everything would go. “I thought there’d be a lot of traffic jams,” he said. “I don’t think anybody thought it was going to run as smoothly as it did. (My) compliments to everybody.”

Township Clerk Curtis Wright experienced Tough Mudder firsthand. He took on the full course – 20 daunting obstacles spread over 10.8 miles.

“I wanted to see how my body could actually handle it at my age,” explained Wright, who turns 58 this week. “Going into it, I didn’t know what to expect. It really challenged you from a mental and physical standpoint.”

Wright’s decision to join Mudder Nation was a last-minute thing. He was touring the course with Dunn on June 1 and “that really started to pique my interest.”

The next thing you know, it’s 11 a.m. June 3 and Wright is at the starting line hearing Mudder MC Sean Corvelle utter that famous motivational question, “When was the last time you did something for the first time?”

“That stuck with me,” Wright said. “It definitely hit home.”

There’s no doubt the Mudder is quite physically demanding as the obstacles involve crawling through mud, climbing, swinging, slogging and diving into water.

“You’re working muscles you probably never thought you’d be working,” Wright said. “The adrenaline just flows.”

He’s no stranger to going the distance. He runs two or three times a week, covering anywhere from 3 to 7 miles each time.

But Wright noted Tough Mudder is “not constant running.” Each obstacle gives participants an opportunity to catch their breath, especially if there’s a line. Wright estimated he spent a total of about 30 to 45 minutes waiting to access certain obstacles.

He ultimately crossed the finish line a little after 2 p.m.

But again, Tough Mudder is not about beating the clock.

“There were several people walking the course,” Wright said. “It wasn’t a race. It’s challenge to reach within yourself and make it through.”

The event is also about working together with others, be they friends, teammates or strangers, to overcome the obstacles. “There were a lot of people helping each other. There was a lot of camaraderie, a lot of positive energy,” Wright said.

Wright enjoyed the experience and is now a confirmed citizen of Mudder Nation.

“It was definitely something I look forward to doing again next year,” he said.