Category: Backblasts

  • Superfecta at The Uptowner

    YHC committed to Q four days in a row this week, and the fourth day, or the Superfecta as we’ll call it, had me up earlier than usual. 45 minutes before the alarm sounded kind of earlier. One would think that would indicate an early arrival at the AO, but nay! Pulling into the dead end parking lot at Pontiff Playground with three minutes to spare, following JV’s ride is what happened. Maybe it was too much time thinking about what the weather was going to do. 70 degree weather yesterday, but promises of weather in the 40’s today with the passing of the front had YHC a bit confused. YHC planted the shovel flag, and Tool walked up. YHC had some cones to set out, but the grounds were wet enough to be confused with a lake. Tool suggested the tennis courts, which was an outstanding idea! Setting the cones up for a circuit station beatdown, YHC noticed the wind moving the cones all over the court. Time to improvise. Return to the flag, give the disclaimer as the train passes….and then

    Warmup

    SSH IC x 31
    Imperial Squat Walkers IC x 15

    Grab a rock, one that can be used for OH press and Curls, and slow mosey to the tennis courts. YHC had planned on doing Uptowner Stink BOMBS, but it would require cones. With the wind not cooperating, YHC opted for circuits:

    Circuit One

    Double Merkin Burpees x 10 OYO
    OH Rock Press x 10 IC (4 count)
    Merkins x 10 IC (4 count)
    WW 2 Situps IC x 10 (4 count)
    Rock Curls x 10 IC (4 count)
    Rinse and Repeat x 5 (#Crowd Pleaser)

    Circuit Two (all 4 count)

    Rock Rows x 10 IC
    Rock Bench Presses x 10 IC
    Rock Squats x 10 IC
    Rinse and Repeat x 3

    Partner up for abs

    Leg throws x 15, flap jack
    Regular situps with parter holding feet. Do as many as possible in one minute, flap jack

    Mary with a rock (all 4 count)

    Flutter Kicks x 15 IC
    Hello Dolly x 15 IC
    Tin Snips x 15 IC
    LBC’s (no rock) x 15 IC
    Freddy Mercury (no rock) x 15 IC

    Times up, DownPainment made!

    COT

    Count off, name-o-rama, announcements, intentions, closing prayer

    NMM

    Thanks for posting with me today. With 4 back to back Q’s this week, YHC hopes this will challenge others to step up and Q where you can. If you don’t feel ready, ask someone that has Q’d to help, and share the Q. I had butterflies the night before my first Q, afraid it would be a disaster! Trust me, it never is, even though some of mine have had moments! Please refrain from taking this this opportunity to point out those moments…..

    T-Claps to Tool for bringing in Smooth and Abacus into the F3 fold. You’re nowhere near Triple Shift, but it still deserves recognition! Always be EH’ing!

    Crazy Ivan coming up next weekend. Looking at the weather forecast, it looks like the weather will be great! Good thing it wasn’t this weekend!

    Don’t forget tomorrow is Mahatma’s VQ at the Mothership! I have no doubt it’s going to be epic. Following the beat down, we get to witness him take a pie in the face from Rudy! This you can’t miss! Bring some cash for coffeteria…….

    SYITG!

  • Rolling Fog at Okwata

    YHC received the bad news from Surge that he was ill, and would not be posting. This was surely a sign of that dreaded day, the day where YHC would be a Pax of one. SPOILER ALERT: He wasn’t! YHC woke up to an annoying rain, one that would obviously keep others away from posting to one of the greatest AO’s of the region, so no need to even head out the door. But wait, what is that? Ah, it’s the DRP, the same one that JV chose last week when he headed to the Uptowner. YHC arrived at the AO with 3 minutes to spare, and who was waiting? None other than JV, or so it seemed. We’ll get to that in a bit. YHC planted the Shovel Flag and it was on! Walleye pulls up just before the clock struck 0530, just in time to hear the Disclaimer. Lucky for us, the rain stopped, but the heavy fog rolled in. As we moseyed toward the mardi gras fountain, we could see an image in the gloom. Abacus! His first post to Okwata, and he was waiting at the mardi gras fountain, as he could not see the other Pax through the fog. That makes three men joining YHC to celebrate this day with a solid beat down. Three men of F3 joined YHC to celebrate his Trifecta Q! It was going to be a good day!

    Mosey around the fountain, carioca left, then right. Circle up in front of the fountain.

    Warmup

    SSH IC x 31
    Imperial Squat Walkers IC x 15
    Sun Gods IC x 20 (10 FWD, 10 BWD)

    Double Shots with Jack Webb at the Barre (an Okwata favorite)

    1 merkin followed by 2 air presses in the peoples chair against the barre
    2 merkins…..4 air presses…..
    3 merkins…..6 air presses….
    so forth and so on….
    10 merkins…..20 air presses in the peoples chair against the barre

    Mosey to the intersection of Canal and Lakeshore Drive for:

    Four Corners

    Corner #1 – 10 Burpees OYO
    Mosey south on Canal across the levee to the corner of Canal and Amethyst St
    Amethyst is a variety of quartz, is a semiprecious stone, and is the birthstone for February. Now you know…..
    Corner #2 – Catalina Wine Mixers IC x 10
    A short mosey west to the other corner of Amethyst and Canal.
    Corner #3 – To emphasize the merkin during the burpee, YHC decided to add the double merkin burpee. 5 Double merkin burpees OYO! That went so well that YHC added 5 more! For those of you that struggle with arithmetic, that would be 10 total double merkin burpees!
    Mosey north to Canal and Lakeshore Drive
    Corner #4 – 8 Count Body Builders IC x 10
    Since we need to complete the box, return to start point.
    Back at Corner #1 – merkins IC x 10 (4 count)

    Mosey to Stonehenge, aka the circle of benches.

    Grab a bench

    LL step ups IC x 10
    Jump Squats IC x 10
    RL step ups IC x 10
    Copperhead Squats IC x 10 (Low slow squat)
    YHC needed one more leg exercise, and had a mental block. Calling out for ideas, Walleye suggested alternating lunge jumps. Yes, that would finish off this evolution nicely!
    Alternating Lunge Jumps IC x 10

    Mosey back to Canal St and to the top of the levee.

    OYO evolution

    5 double merkin burpees, bear crawl across the median, finish with 5 double merkin burpees.

    Mosey back to the flag for:

    Mary
    Flutter Kicks IC x 15
    Hello Dolly IC x 15
    Tin Snips IC x 15
    Russian Twist (Putin) IC x 15

    0615, time called, DownPainment complete!

    COT

    Count off, name-o-rama, announcements, end with a prayer to the Sky Q. We still kept Shorty’s M in our thoughts.

    Read the emails to see what’s going on. Lots of good stuff. What does this weeks Stomp, Foundry, Okwata, and Uptowner AO’s all have in common? Join me tomorrow for the Superfecta!

    NMM

    Want to see a Q take a pie in the face? Not this guy, but join us for the Mothership when Mahatma makes his VQ and gets a pie in the face from his LSU/Notre Dame bet lost to Rudy!

  • Rock City Trifecta

    Solid showing on Monday at Pontiff, despite the rain.  Eight men braved the iffy forecast to get the usual fix of F3 at Rock City.  The scheduled Q was out with the flu (or maybe Saints game hangover???) so a few of us stepped in to sub.  Here’s what went down:

    Mosey to the rock pile, grab a rock, and head to the pavilion for cover.

    Round 1, courtesy of Tool:

    Warm-up consisting of IPW x25, Peter Parker x25, Arm Circles x20, Windmill x15, Hacky Sack x15, LS Squat x15

    Rock Curl x20, RLSU x20, Rock Curl x20, LLSU x20

    Then, a round of the yet to be named “sucky” circuit previously done a few times, but we altered it a bit.  Three minutes of as many rounds of the following exercises OYO:  SSH x6, Squat Rock Press x6, Bench Dips x6.  Call out your count after each round.  I think a few guys made it to 6 or 7.  Rest with a countdown, then rinse and repeat.  YHC forgot his watch and was fumbling with Marlin space-age apparatus so the timing may have been off.  Either way it was good stuff.  I’m thinking original mix of SSH, Squat Jumps, and Merkins is the way to go on that circuit.

    Round 2, courtesy of Triple Shift:

    Pair up for PAX #1 to knock out Back Extensions x20 hanging off of table while PAX #2 holds #1’s feet and Flutter Kicks.  Flip Flop, then rinse and repeat with Hello Dollies on the second round.  This seemed to use muscles that YHC didn’t know he had.

    Rock Web – ascending reps of Merkin x1 and Rock Press x2, increasing the count by 1/2 each time until x10/x20 is reached.  This was a doozy and proved to be a challenge to all.  T-claps to Rudy and other PAX for finishing strong and doing full reps.

    Round 3, courtesy of JV, who was eager to share some new exercises picked up at during his recent post at a F3 AO in North Carolina.

    Monkey Humper x20?

    “Go at it” with Hindu Planks(??) x20

    Wife Pleaser x20

    Good thing no one else was around to witness 8 grown men in these motions, in particular the second one.

    Time was up so back to the flag.

    COT to seal the deal.  T-claps to Abacus on his second post and his quest to get back in shape after a 10yr hiatus from physical activity.  YHC can’t recall much else other than the fact that he was the youngest PAX there.  Not a bad morning for a bunch of almost old dudes.

    Tool

     

  • El Wire’s Gloomy Gloom

    EL Wire ordered up some nice temperature weather but some GLOOMY SOUPY fog and wet ground.

    16 PAX circled up for a Wed am beatdown led by El Wire

    El Wire started with the JACK OFF. (he said it!)

    SSH x 20, Imp Walker Squat x 20, Seal Jack x 20, Smurf Jack x 20, Plank Jack x 20, Peter Parkers x 20

    Then we mosey’d to the levee for 5 rounds of LEVEE.

    10 Willi E Coyotes on the tracks

    10 merks at the top of the levee, 25 LBCS at the bottom.

    Then we mosey’d to Audubon’s statue for some DORA  stopping for 10 more Willi E Coyotes again.

    100 decline merks, 200 dips and 300 LBTs.   Brutal but good.

    Then we bear crawl’d up and over the neutral ground and then crab crawled back.  About 15-20 yards.

    Long mosey back to the FLAG.

    Arrived 2 min early at the FLAG so 20 Burpees OYO

    Circle of Trust – prayed for Bartman’s secretary who died over the break.

  • FUBAR at the Foundry

    YHC arrived at the Foundry to find other Pax ready to roll. The gloom was especially gloomy this day as the weather wasn’t sure what it wanted to do. The fog and the high humidity were dead giveaways that the weather was a changing. YHC wasn’t really sure what to dress for either, but was surprised by a 57 degrees morning. Shorts and short sleeve F3 shirt weather has arrived again, even if only for a short time. Surely this weather would bring out some Pax ready to take on the world!
    YHC planted the shovel flag, and it was on! Who is that fresh face? Look, it’s an FNG……well done Tool! Disclaimer…..and then….Mosey to the track for….

    The Thang

    Circle up on the artificial surface inside the track
    SSH IC x 30
    YHC was going to use the 17 to 13 NDSU FCS Championship score over the JMU Dukes as the theme, but opted not to.
    Abe Vigodas IC x 10
    Imperial Squat Walkers IC x 15

    Ring of Fire

    Circle up and all assume the plank position. YHC slowly gave instructions, allowing all to embrace the plank. Starting to YHC’s right, and going ccw, each Pax does 5 merkins then says next, then the next Pax does 5 Merkins while first Pax resumes the plank position, and so on. The FNG had some difficulty with this, one would expect a good name…..
    Complete 3 rounds. Finish the ring of fire with Mountain Climbers IC x 15.

    Bataan Death March

    Indian run on the track with the last Pax dropping off to do 5 Burpees, then run to the front, tagging the next Pax for Burpees on the way. Completed one round. Mosey to the Foundry….

    Stations at the Foundry

    YHC selected the timer to be the run to the jogging path, 10 burpees, return to the Foundry. It was all good until YHC tried to prevent Pull ups from following the Burpees. 7 stations was just too much to handle. YHC was like….
    https://giphy.com/gifs/portlandia-season-2-episode-6-l3mZkrKD14zohNqyk

    Then after it was time to rotate, YHC was like…..
    https://giphy.com/gifs/l41YtZOb9EUABnuqA

    The good news was that each Pax got to do the run with 10 Burpees….but one evolution was enough
    Let’s mosey to the NOMA fountain

    While waiting for the 6, the Pax engaged in some Catalina Wine Mixers IC, just because we didn’t do enough shoulder work yet.

    Stairway at the Fountain

    Incline merkin ladder on NOMA steps. Start at the bottom step with 1 merkin, then 2 merkins on the second step, 3 merkins on the third step, up to 11 merkins on step number 11. Times about up. Mosey back to the flag.

    COT

    Count off and name-o-rama. The FNG told us about himself, and this guy is incredibly cool and smooth. Smooth it is. Welcome Smooth.
    Announcements, which included the Crazy Ivan and Da Parish King status at the Krewe of Lourdes.
    Intentions included healing from illness, especially for Shorty and his M, for cancer victims, and any others needing assistance.

    Thanks for posting with me today! You guys hold me accountable and keep me coming back for more!

    NMM

    The NDSU Bison have 6 FCS Championships in the bag from the last 7 years. They have not lost to an FBS team since 2010, including a victory over #13 ranked Iowa in 2016. They did not play an FBS opponent in 2017, and their next FBS opponent is Oregon from the PAC 12 in 2020. Carson Wentz was a Bison. Just thought you should know that……

  • Return at the Gipper

    Returning to the Gipper on this Gloom without the beanies and mittens also produced the return of Grundy and Moby from IR. Welcome back F3 brothers. While the PAX on the the Northshore have many AOs to choose, if your QIC had a choice of only (1) F3 beatdown  by far the Gipper would be the selection.., As hard as the QIC try’s to tax these men when he leads, it never fails that his mission seems incomplete as the men always impress and crave more of what they came for..

    Warmarama

    15IC GM, WM, IW

    30 IC SSH, BK

    10 IC Arm circles (forward/reverse), Overhead claps

    The thang

    Moseyed  to the Taj Mahal for our first bit of action. Circled the flag pole with the PAX holding blank while each man journeyed up the steps dropped for 2 Burpees and returned. Covered regular plank as well as left and right plank until complete. Next each PAX bear crawled to the flag pole and after the ringing of the qong was sounded each PAX would complete 2 Merkins. The QIC doubled the Merkins halfway through.. Wrapped up and then moseyed to the garage top. Partnered up for the first round of suicides half and full distance while the other did LBCs. Next was Caricoas half left and half right and the same back while the other man did Bicycles, and finally we did back pedal half and turn and sprint while the others did flutter kicks..  Mixed in a few 10 counts as the QIC noticed he may have winded a few men, which on this day is a proud moment for anyone Qing this group… Next on to Tabata (American style) as one stated standard Tabata as 20 sec of work and 10 sec rest. The Q implemented 30 sec work and 10 sec rest for 2 rounds. Round 1 Merikins/Plankjacks and Round 2 Squats/Imperial walkers.. If one ever thinks 30 sec of Work can’t get you pumped or have the sweat flowing, I challenge you to a series of Tabata and promise there will be no disappointment.. With 3 mins to spare moseyed back to AO for countarama, annoucarama, COT.

    Much respect for the men working through injuries and pain on this Gloom. Shows the dedication and determination, which inspires me to work harder at each beatdown.. 👊👊

    Special thanks to Grundy for praying us out..

  • Twelfth Morning… and no wise (or other) men in sight

    GroupMe mumblechatter Thurs pm: who’s Q at The Uptowner?  Having vowed to avoid diarrhea of the smartphone, YHC figured someone would respond and step up, but it was getting late, so he never checked further.

    Alarm at 5ish Fri am: ggrrr!  To fartsack or not to fartsack, that is the question.  Whether tis nobler in the bod to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous weather and to lift rocks against a sea of troubles and by tossing hurl them.  To die, to dream–no more–and by sleep we say end the bodyache, and the thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to!  Ahh, blue pill bull schmill, I’m posting.

    5:23pm at Pontiff: Brr.  It’s cold and windy.  Where’s the flag?  Where’s another PAX?  I suppose I’ll wait a few more minutes and then ditch it if no one shows up.  YHC has no watch, so he waits for what he thinks is about 5 minutes.  No Rudy making his usual Friday loops.  No Hawg (he’s become a figment of our cyber imagination: hope all’s well!).  No Triple Shift with his labeled rocks.  No Frac Sac.  No Tool.  No Amnesty.  No Marlin (after all it’s not Monday).  No surprise visit from Kimchee or Reluctant Yankee.  After three posts this week, no Shorty.  No Cowbell (I’m forgetting what he looks like).  No Rev Sox.  No tunes from Bogey.  No lithe Walleye.  No nobody.

    What’s a guy to do?  Oh well, might as well be the Q.  Hopefully, the PAX will keep up and keep the mumblechatter to a minimum.  So get to The THANG!

    • SSHs x100
    • Imperial Walkers x50
    • Hillbillies x50
    • Squats x100
    • Sun gods x50 each way

    Select a rock (one that Triple Shift conveniently marked 30) for some 25-20-15-10-5:

    • Overhead shoulder lifts x25
    • Curls x25
    • Tricep behind the head curls x25
    • Deadlifts x25
    • Squats x25
    • Bench press on six x25
    • Russian twists x25

    Pause for some merkins, hindu planks (or, the REAL wife  pleasers: plank where you go at it like you mean it), etc. and then a minute or so on the wall (sometimes with rock, sometimes without) and then rinse and repeat with a 20 count; then R&R again with a 15 count; etc. for 10 and then 5.

    Somewhere in this midst of this routine, where the Q was riding hard on the PAX to keep up great form and precision, out from a distance YHC did espy Stella and her two fair companions.  This ebon maid today had no worry of which PAX to greet: her focus was laserlike and not distracted from a plethora of PAX to abuse.  She came charging at YHC like, well, like Stella.  Kapow: she strikes, she wins.  YHC had been in people’s chair for 40 seconds or so when he went crashing to the ground.  A good distraction, but back to the THANG.

    After the last set of merks after 5 putins, YHC sealed the deal with ten burpees.  The countoff and namorama didn’t take long.  Thanks for this twelfth day of Christmas.  YHC got back to his car: 6:20.  Sorry, Yankee, I went over a few minutes.  If you’d been there, you could have kept me more accountable.  The book of the Bible YHC is most drawn to is Job: it’s tough, it’s cruel and ultimately it’s true and it’s comforting.  Remember: we’re not in it alone, and we’re not in charge of the world.  But we’re each responsible for ourselves, with the Sky Q ever watching our backs (and sides and fronts and hearts and minds and souls).  The toughest critic is your inner voice: keep it talkin’.  See what trouble YHC gets into when he’s a PAX of one: don’t let it happen again!

    Love for the new year, Jingle Vader

  • Getting Dirty at Grandmother’s House

    A little late-night rain and some warmer temperatures (in the 50’s!) made things a little sloppy over at Grandma’s house this morning.  Sloppy enough that Pelican requested a move onto the concrete for our warm-up.  Sure, why not.  We were gonna get dirty in other ways… (namely, by kicking the thang off with a Dirty McDeuce).  But first:

    Warm Up: Seal Jacks, Windmills, SSH’s, IW’s, Good Mornings, High Knees, Butt Kicks, all 20x IC.  Mosey over to the stage for…

    The Thang:

    Dirty McDeuce:

    Merkins, Lunges, Flutter Kicks, x12 IC.  Run a lap around the small amphitheater.

    Catalina Wine Mixers, Squats, Freddie Mercs, 12x IC.  Run a lap.

    Werkins, Squat Jumps, LBC’s, 12x IC.  Run a lap.

    Burpees (12 OYO), Sister Mary Katherine’s, Sit-Ups, 12x IC.  Then mosey to the corridor for:

    Partner Sprints: P1 performs shoulder taps while P2 sprints there and back.  Flapjack.  Next up, P1 does plank jacks while P2 sprints, flapjack, and finally, merkins/sprints.

    A couple of 10 counts later, and the PAX is ready to lunge walk the length of that same corridor.  Upon completion, everyone attempts to pick the most stable of the rotting benches for a set of Freak Nasties, 20x IC.  Then back to the corridor for Lt. Dans across, with an ascending squat count.

    Lastly, Animals on Parade: Duck Walk, Bear Crawl, and Bunny Hops down the corridor.

    Circle up for an extended (8 minutes of) Mary: Flutter Kicks, Freddie Mercs, LBC’s, Putins (Hammers), Leg Raises, all 20x IC, with Big Boy Sit-Ups (20 OYO) to bring it home.

    Countdown, nameorama, naming of FNG Penguin, welcome… oh wait, that’s just Pelican, he forgot his name… and Shooter prayed us out.

    Thank you gentlemen, had fun this morning.

  • 610 Stomp#124

    Pacecar spent the last Stomp in the kennel while YHC was off celebrating the New Year in Texas, but she was not going to miss today. Somehow knowing it was Tuesday, Pacecar stuck to YHC like white on rice while YHC was getting ready. Arriving at the AO about two minutes early to a cruel discussion about how Georgia folded like a cheap suit to Saban’s squad, Pacecar gave JV a HELLO!
    Quick Disclaimer, as all veteran F3 Men here, then simple instructions, well sort of. Run 20 minutes out, turn around, and come back. Be back at the Flag for 0610, allowing 5 minutes of added fun.
    JV, Da Parish, Woz, Pacecar and YHC got to around Canal Street and turned around. Rudy, Triple Shift and Cowbell bolted well beyond that. Well done to all.
    Back at the flag, here’s what happened:
    Flutter Kicks IC x 15
    Tin Snips IC x 15
    American Hammer IC x 15
    Seal the deal with 15 Burpees OYO!

    COT

    Count off, name-o-rama.

    Intentions included those suffering from illness, with a special shout out to Shorty and his M, as she is expecting their 2.0 very soon, and both are down and out.

    Announcement:  Crazy Ivan with the Northshore Pax is coming up soon.  There should be additional info coming out, but last mumblechatter has it set for Saturday January 20th at 2100.  Da Parish is King of the Krewe of Lourdes, so join him at his Ball on January 27th, see details here

    Close with a prayer to the Sky Q.

    NMM

    The weather is nice this week, so get out and post.

     

     

  • Crackerjack surprise

    Well committed to the Monday beat down and curious to whom would kick my but this gloom, I checked the Q sign up to see who it would be at 4:00am as I was very surprised no one had signed up to Q in this beautiful weather. Well I thought easy Q right if everyone checks the Q for the day and see’s no one signed up hey probably no one will show and I could hit it light and easy. So I signed up for the Q at 4am. Well not to my surprise there is always someone looking for a workout on the Northshore and had two hardcore F3 brothers ready to round robin it if need be. But just like in a crackerjack box they got a surprise Captain Sparkles signed up to Q at 4am. And since it was last min. This Q had no pre plans for a beat down. So it makes for a very hard backblast remembering everything that was done. But I’ll give it a shot with exercises probably not in order but most certainly done.

    Warm up all in cadence
    40 side straddle hops
    20 windmills
    20 High knees

    Moving Straight into the thing
    IN CADENCE
    25 LBC
    25 leg flutter
    2 min. Plank
    50 Putin’s
    50 Merkins
    25 LBC
    25 leg flutter
    25 Putin’s
    15 Hanging leg lifts
    5 pull-ups
    15 hanging leg lifts
    5 pull-ups
    20 LBC
    20 leg flutter
    6” off ground held legs for 60 mississippi
    25 Merkins
    20 Toe touches
    50 right leg step ups
    50 left leg step ups
    20 LBC
    20 leg flutter
    2 min. Plank
    1 min. Right plank
    1 min. Left plank
    50 air squats
    25 right side Jane Fonda’s
    25 left side Jane Fonda’s
    15 combination of bicycle/ Imperial walkers / on Butt very tuff balancing while in motion makes for a great core workout.
    Basically it was a CORE day with some or a lot of extra thrown in.
    Thanks Shooter and Pelican for being there and holding me accountable to a half way hard beat down.