POLSON — Chenoa Villegas got to enjoy a feeling of freedom in the Boys & Girls Club Fifth Annual “The 5K Mud Run” Saturday morning at the Polson Fairgrounds.

Villegas, a 10-year-old “Mud Run” contestant, got a chance to dirt get dirty, something she said she would normally get in trouble for at home.

“It was really awesome to get dirty,” Villegas said. “My mom normally never lets me get that dirty and this is the dirtiest I’ve ever been in the whole world.”

“The 5K Mud Run” was filled with a multitude of obstacle courses presented to people of all ages and fitness ability levels.

“I really liked how they set up the long distance portions of the race,” Villegas said.

Another “Mud Run” participant Layla Reese also enjoyed the messy aspect of the race.

“It was funny, hard and messy,” Reese said. “It was a good upper body workout and there were lots of ropes in the contest. It was a good opportunity to get in a lot of cardio.”

The 40-plus volunteers were some of the key components that have helped maintain the success of the “Fifth Annual 5K Mud Run,” according to head organizer Lowell Tyler.

One key volunteer in getting local businesses to participate and sponsor the event was Jamie Russell.

The limited time window to get local participants involved didn’t deter Russell from helping get a number of local people involved.

“Several small businesses were so kind and they got on board in helping sponsor the event with no questions asked,” Russell said. “They were able to magically make the event happen and give these kids a fun and safe place to go.”

Lowell estimates they had more online signups this year than in the previous four years of the event. Last year, the Boys and Girls Club raised approximately $1,500 dollars for various programs.

“We probably had more online registrations and that is helpful to get more locals running in the event,” Lowell said.

Lowell credited the volunteers for making their fifth annual “Mud Run” a success.

“We got the word out on this event mostly by the volunteers’ help,” Lowell said. “They were able to really spread the news of this event by word of mouth.”