F3 New Orleans

Tag: Rock City

  • A Bunch of Asses

    “The Borrower is Slave to the Lender” – Proverbs 22:7

    YHC (Borrower) was in debt….3 beatdowns Q’d, and no backblast in sight for the NOLA Pax(Lender)…I mark it up to writer’s block.  Anyway, being a slave to the lender is no fun, and the best time to make a change is N:OW.

    Nine Pax gathered in the Rock City gloom to get better today.  Let’s get to it…but first….

    DISCLAIMER

    The Thang

    Mosey over to the rocks, and select a small friend…something that you can move around for 30x reps. (Did they listen??)

    COP #1: Warmup

    30x Rock Jacks IC…(No, they didn’t…plank and wait since YHC is merciful)
    20x Rock Marches IC
    15x Right Pantry Loads IC (I may need to rethink my naming abilities…Maybe I could take a note from Hawg and call it THE Pantry….or maybe a note from Marlin and call it Pantry, Baby….or Bogey and cal…actually….sing it as Swweeet, Pannnntry Loadssss….bah bah bahhh…)
    15x Left Pantry Loads IC

    Mosey over to the patio and bathroom structure, and partner up.

    Dora 100s

    YHC posted with F3Houston last Wednesday @ The General, and wanted to share an exercise circuit that Duggar introduced to me.  A note about F3….F3 is awesome, but you don’t feel the really cool awesomeness of F3 until you post in another region.  No matter where you go, you can always plan on a group of guys standing around a shovel flag, the DISCLAIMER, a kick ass beatdown, and finishing with a COT.  This is the power of consistency and discipline that makes F3 so awesome.

    Now back to Duggar’s circuit…it sucked last week, so let’s see if it would be better this week.

    Pax 1: 5x Donkey Kicks (rep counter), then 5x Box Jumps, mosey back to Pax 2.
    Pax 2: Flapjack between 5x Goblet Squats (w/ rock) & 2x Burpees until Pax 1 tags you out.

    Paused in the middle (at 50 Donkey Kicks) for station identification.

    COP #2: 4MOM

    15x Crunchy Frogs IC
    15x Flutter Kicks IC
    15x Hello Dolly IC

    Back to the Dora 100s.  Each Pax ended up with roughly 50x Donkey Kicks, 50x Box Jumps, 100ish Goblet Squats, 40ish Burpees, and a great time with the Pax.

    Pax collected their rocks and leaned on the wall for a breather….they thought we would do wall sits.
    Pax moseyed over to the baseball backstop….and this is where we do wall sits.

    10x Overhead Press Wall Sit IC
    10x Rock Curl Wall Sit IC

    Mosey back to the rock pile to drop off our friends, then mosey over to the track.

    100m Sprints

    Pax jogged the curves, then sprinted the 100m straight-aways.  We did 3 laps.

    Mosey back to the flag, where we finished the beatdown with a plankorama.  Held the COT, which included the Countoff, Nameorama, and a Prayer.  Thanks for letting me lead.

    -Shorty

  • The number of the PAX shall be 10

    YHC arrived a bit early at Pontiff to explore the lands.  I had some ideas for new things I wanted to try.  2 important discoveries: the football field was a swamp, so that was off limits (the rest of the park was also a swamp – but if we’re going to dig up turf, lets do it off of the football field); more importantly – the steps in front of the rec center building had railing arranged such that no more than 10 PAX would fit.  So as long as we numbered 10 or less, YHC would get to try a new trick from the F3 Lexicon

    Moseyed back to the VSF (Where are the flags.  Did someone leave a flag with Shorty again?), Bogey was already waiting.  Then JV.  Milkman, and DuctTape rolling in again.  Tool’s truck, prolly with Amnesty.  Marlin (hey Baby!) and we could hear the squeaking sounds of Hawg’s bike indicating an imminent arrival.  Walleye emerging from the gloom.  10 PAX, still 5:28.  YHC was confident that Cowbell and Shorty would not show, and they didn’t disappoint.  So at 5:30 – 10 PAX rolled out through the first puddle and off towards the rocks.

    COP #1: Normal spot for warmups.  SSH x5. #Mumblechatter about how calves were feeling it. NOW GRAB A ROCK.

    COP #2: Since we couldn’t use the football field, head over to the next best open area of grass and line up the rocks.  But first, plank-o-rama

    • Peter Parker x25
    • Mountain Climber x25
    • Parker Peter x25

    The Thang:  OYO

    • 5 Burpees
    • Allelujah walk/trot to the fence and back, con rock (about 50 yards each way)
    • Bear Crawl to the last tree, Crawl Bear back (about 25 yards)
    • Repeat
    • Repeat again (subbing out Lunge Walk / Walk Lunge for the Bears)

    Interlude: Head over to the rec center steps.  F3 Lexicon calls it the “Deep Sea Diver”, though YHC cannot fathom why.  (#seewhatididthere).  Each PAX gets a lane on the steps (and there are only 10 lanes…)  Plank up at ground level.  Hip Slappers (in cadence) x5.  Feet up one step (starting to decline).  HS x5.  Feet up one more step.  Repeat.  Up 6 steps, then back down.  Shoulders feeling it.  You know what shoulders need?  MORE ALLELUJAH.

    COP #2 Again: Repeat 2 more times.  Burpees, Allelujah, Lunges.

    COP #3: Mosey to the Swingset area and drop all our rocks in a pile.  Partner up.

    • Pull ups
    • Rows
    • Curls
    • Squat Jumps (YHC swears he saw Amnesty leave the ground at least one time)
    • One lap around the track (timer)

    As PAX grimaced while watching Milkman and Marlin stop for tea on their lap, YHC decided to call audible and rotate when running PAX reached the far side of the track (rather than waiting for their return, which might never happen).

    Gather rocks to return to the pile

    But Wait COP: YHC realizes we still have a few minutes to spare, so circle up for one last set:

    • Curls x12
    • Rows x15
    • Bench Press x15
    • LBC x25
    • Cockroach x20
    • Curls x10
    • Rows x12

    Now return your rocks and sprint back to the VSF.

    Countoff (did I say we had 10 PAX?), Name-o-rama.  Announcements – check emails and the CSAUP posting for information about upcoming events.

    Gather for a prayer to send the happy and sweaty PAX off into a glorious Monday.  Lord, give me vision and strength to serve you today.

  • Pinky Spartacus

    DISCLAIMER and let’s mosey to the Warm-Up COP:
    -SSH x 30 IC
    -IW x 30 IC
    -Mtn Climbers x 30 IC
    -Arm Circles x 30 IC (15 ea. dir.)
    -J-Lo’s x 20 IC
    Grab a rock, medium, one you won’t drop on your head…Let’s mosey to the shelter (cuz it has benches).
    It’s time for some Spartacus. The timer on my phone had us working out for 1 minute with a 15 sec rest for each exercise:
    -Goblet Squat w/ rock
    -Feet-Elevated Mountain Climbers
    -Kettlebell Swing w/ rock
    -T-Pushups
    -Step up, alternating legs with or without rocks
    -Rock Row
    -Elf on a Shelf-Side Lunge and Touch Rock (like moving the virtual rock pile back and forth)
    -Merkins
    -Rock Lunge and Rotation
    -Rock Push Press
    Rinse and Repeat for a total of two rounds.

    COT: countoff, namerama, announcements, shoutouts and a prayer. See you in the Gloom!

    For those in the pax with the Pink Eye…heal up quick and keep your germs off my rock…

  • Rock ‘n’ Run

    The Pax showed up in good spirits on this beautiful Monday. Amnesty remarked what a cool August morning this was, with only a tepid 70% humidity. However, there was a bit of a stank in the air, “similar to the gutters of Hong Kong.” Ask JV about that one, apparently he knows the smell…

    Warm-up COP:

    • SSH x 20 IC
    • IW x 20 IC
    • Peter Parkers x 20 IC
    • Plank Jacks x 20 IC
    • Windmills x 20 IC
    • Arm Circles x 20 IC (10 forward, 10 backward)
    • J-Lo’s x 20 IC

    We grabbed our favorite rock, and moseyed over to the track for some rock circuit training. A simple circuit for a simple Monday.

    • Shoulder press x 20 IC
    • Curls x 20 IC
    • Rows x 20 IC
    • Low slow squats x 20 IC
    • Chest press x 20 IC

    One lap around the track: sprint the straight-aways, jog the bends.

    • Shoulder press x 15 IC
    • Curls x 15 IC
    • Rows x 15 IC
    • Low slow squats x 15 IC
    • Chest press x 15 IC

    One lap around the track: sprint the straight-aways, jog the bends.

    • Shoulder press x 10 IC
    • Curls x 10 IC
    • Rows x 10 IC
    • Low slow squats x 10 IC
    • Chest press x 10 IC

    One lap around the track: sprint the straight-aways, jog the bends.

    Next we moseyed to the outfield of the softball field for some Mary.

    • LBC’s x 20 IC
    • Flutter kicks while holding rock overhead x 20 IC
    • Hello Dolly while holding rock overhead x 20 IC
    • American Hammer (without rock) x 20 IC
    • Crunchy frogs x 10 IC

    Return our beloved rocks to the pile, and run back to the flag. COT, name-o-rama, and a prayer for our country’s leadership. Thanks for letting me lead on this beautiful morning!

    Walleye

     

  • Rock City Q School

    New leaders bring new ideas and new ideas bring growth.  In hopes of accelerating that growth Tool suggested we have a Q school at Rock City today, so we gathered 17 strong in the gloom for some lessons in leadership.

    Disclaimer

    Most of us don’t do a good job with this, as we usually gloss over it as we start our mosey.  It’s important to emphasize a few points – We are not professionals, this is going to be physically demanding, there are inherent risks (physical exertion, it’s dark, mud, roots, rocks, etc.) and all participants assume those risks, and you should modify if necessary.

    Getting Started

    We moseyed past the rock pile to the t-ball field (Pontiff Playground was in surprisingly good shape after serving as a reservoir during Saturday’s street flooding).  It’s important to set a good tone for the workout early.  You want to portray that you believe that what you are about to do is worth doing.  That it is worth getting out of bed and to the park for 5:30.  We have to make it hard or it won’t be in important to the Pax.

    • 20 Burpees OYO (On Your Own)
    • SSH x 15 (IC); Imperial x 20 (IC); J-Los x 10 (IC)
    • Burpees EMOM (Every Minute on the Minute) x 6 minutes (Reps: 12, 12, 12, 12, 10, 10)
    • Peter Parkers x 20 (IC); Plank Jacks x 20 (IC); Parker Peters x 20 (IC)
    • 12 Burpees OYO

    Total Burpees during Warm-up = 100.

    Cadence and Counting

    An important part of our workouts are the commands used to lead an exercise in cadence.  We use 3 two-part commands.  The fact that we use the same commands every time promotes efficiency and pace and keeps us together.  The commands are straight up army style, consisting of two-parts, a preparatory command, followed by a very brief pause, followed by a command of execution.  Example:

    • Next exercise is….the side straddle hop
    • Ready position…move
    • In cadence….Exercise

    There is great deal of controversy over whether it is Ready Position…move or Starting Position…move.  In the infamous DREDD/OBT video “How to Count” DREDD says “Starting Position.”  I gave my Freed To Lead Book away two years ago, so I’m not sure what it says.  However, I am pretty sure OBT used “Ready Position” when he taught me how to do it.

    Kimchi took over at this point and provided instructions for the different cadence counts we use.  Some points to remember:  The Q always counts 1-2-3, while the Pax responds on the 4th count with the number of the repetition.  The Q must change the tone of his count on the last rep to let the Pax know the exercise is ending.  If you are on the ground, tell the Pax to get up by saying “recover” after the exercise is over.  If you want the pax to stay down so you can lead them through 15 variations of plank and merkin exercises a la Rudy, then don’t tell them to recover until the end.

    • Red Bull Count – This is a super-fast 4 count.  Kimchi demonstrated by leading us in Red Bull Smurf Jacks
    • Normal Count, but slow exercise – This is a normal count, but you do half the exercise on the first 3 counts and then complete it quickly on the four count.  Normally used with Low Slow Squats, which Kimchi demonstrated with, but also works well with Merkins.
    • Slow Count – This is a super slow four count.  This one can be a little difficult and takes metronome like skills to keep everyone together.  Kimchi demonstrated with Merkins.  Personally, I use it for Don Quixotes and Good Mornings.
    •  8 count – Used for our more complicated exercises.  Kimchi demonstrated with 8-count Body Builders #crowdpleaser.  Also commonly used by JV for Dr. Ws.
    • Woz then reminded us that we left one out – the 2 count aka up/down cadence.  This cadence works well for all exercises in which you move up and down.  The Q calls out the commands Up and Down (or Down then Up depending on the exercise) as the Pax counts after Down (or UP).  Woz demonstrated with Squats.  #GRT

    Throughout this section, several men posted to the middle to practice leading an exercise.  T-claps to Babyface, Milkman, Marlin, Yo-Yo, Tiny Dancer, and the aforementioned Woz for stepping up to lead.

    Smoking the Pax

    When structuring a workout, you want to make sure that you smoke the super fit guys without leaving everyone else behind.  You also don’t want to make it so that the really fit guys are waiting around a long time for everyone else to finish.  The goal is to create a workout that smokes everyone, regardless of fitness level.  Shorty took over at this point and gave some examples of exercises one can use for this purpose.  You want to use exercises where the intensity is not dependent on time or distance.  For example, Tabata is a good one where everyone stays together and each man does as much as he can during each 20 second interval.  The EMOM used during the warmup is another good example.  Shorty suggested partner work.  Partner work is good because one partner may be able to carry more of the team load than the other.  As long as you don’t let Jadaveon and El Wire partner up together, it seems teams are usually more even than individuals.  Shorty led us in a round of abbreviated Dora.  One partner did Jump Squats while the other jogged to 40 yards and back.  Teams were to complete 300 jump squats, but we ran out of time around 200.

    Circle of Trust

    If there are FNGs, it’s a good idea to recap what F3 stands for and why we find it important.  We always finish with countarama, namearama, announcements and a prayer.

    Naked Man Moleskin

    • Great turnout today for Q-school.  We should have at least 17 for every Rock City.
    • Judging fro the mumblechatter, the 100 burpee warm-up seemed to be as much of a hit in The World as it was Uptown.
    • Good input from all the Pax today:  Triple Shift reminded us the importance of paying attention to the Pax as you lead and that it is ok to stop and correct form when you see people doing it wrong.  Tool suggested that splitting your VQ with someone else is always a good option.  Walleye reminded us of the importance of planning a total body workout and not just focusing on one area.
    • Rudy had a section planned on Trying New Things, but we didn’t get to it.  One reason we want new Qs to step up is because they often bring fresh ideas.  It never hurts to try something new.  If it doesn’t work, you don’t have to bring it back.  But more often than not, it works.
    • That brings me to flexibility.  Today, the cadence training was going well and we had a lot of newer Qs that we wanted to give some practice to.  We spent some extra time on that section, knowing it would cost us Rudy’s section at the end.  You want to bring a plan, but always be prepared to change it during the workout.
    • Also, it’s much better to over plan than under plan.  You never want to run out of things to do and then just be making stuff up to kill time at the end.  You want to finish strong.  In case you do run out of stuff, you can always finish with Mary, but it works best to have a go-to Mary series ready, instead of making it up on the fly.
    • If you attended the Q school today, let me know what worked well and what didn’t work well.  You can post it in the comments below.  I would love to have your feedback.  We are going to take this show on the road at the end of the month, and I would like for it to be better than what it was today.

    Thanks,

    Hawg

  • Wrong Way Wrudy

    Looking at the Q list on Sunday, I saw quite a few blanks for this week (and for upcoming weeks – lots of opportunities, fellow PAX!!!).  But I decided to take the chance to fill my name in for a number of them this week.  First up, Rock City.  I hope everyone enjoyed the relatively dry air – a delightful July break from the preposterous humidity!

    PAX gathered around the VSF, and at 5:30 – we were off.  In retrospect, I think I forgot the disclaimer.  Oops.  But out of the gate, we turn left rather than right.  That caused some immediate grumbling.  “What about my rock?” asks KimChi.  “Does he know what he’s doing?” asks Walleye.  “I just want to sing!” bellows Bogey.

    COP #1: A clearing sorta near a bandstand, just off the path.  Not really sure where we are, as we don’t normally go this way.  But find an ant-free spot in the grass.  Everything x25

    • SSH
    • IW
    • Peter Parker
    • Mountain Climber
    • Parker Peter
    • Plank Jacks

    Continue our mosey through the uncharted lands at the south end of the park.

    COP #2: The Playground in the land of far-far-away, or where-the-heck-are-we.  Partner up for 5 stations (Welcome, Woz!!!  Better late than never, and how exactly did you find us here???)

    • 15 8CBBs as the timer.  (All other stations AMRAP)
    • Squats
    • Derkins
    • Pull Ups
    • Lunges

    Finish with 10 Burpees just because Kim Chi was acting sassy.  Then hop back onto the path to continue the mosey through the wild unknown.

    COP #3: The Shack.  Oh, wait – I recognize this place.  I think perhaps I can smell the rocks, we are getting closer!  Grab a bench

    • Channing Tatum x25
    • Tatum Channing x25
    • Dips x20
    • Irkins x12

    Water break, and continue the mosey.  Bogey and Kimchi are out in front, they are definitely anxious to hit the rock pile.

    COP #4: Grab a rock.  Go as big as you want, we aren’t gonna mosey anywhere.  Everything is in cadence, but YHC encouraged the PAX to focus on form rather than speed.  (The Q took this advice to heart, and enjoyed calling out cadences faster than he was lifting….)

    • Shoulder Press x15
    • Curl x15
    • Row x15
    • On your 6 for Bench Press x20
    • LBC x25

    Repeat with x12 (with a few extra rows thrown in as “Tool Counts” – since apparently we weren’t doing enough reps for him).  Then repeat with x10.  Then return our friends to the pile and mosey back to home.

    Finish with our countoff and name-o-rama.  A few announcements of upcoming CSAUPs (Da Parish for a triathalon).  Next week is Q School here at Rock City.  Close with a prayer, asking for wisdom to use the gift of today effectively, in service of each other and our God.  Ask for blessings of cures and comfort on those afflicted with illness.

    We’ve got some Rock City VQs coming up in August!  Looking forward to what StubHub and Milkman are preparing for us.  Just be warned, gentlemen: The PAX at Rock City do not like things that veer from the tried and true… (like saving the rock pile for the end…)

    Thank you for the opportunity to lead – even if in the wrong direction.

     

     

     

  • Birthday Week Spartacus

    What better way to start my birthday week than with some Spartacus.

    Can’t get too much Spartacus…and 12 men showed up to get some…

    DISCLAIMER and let’s mosey to the Warm-Up COP:
    -SSH x 30 IC
    -Mtn Climbers x 20 IC
    -Arm Circles x 30 IC (15 ea. dir.)

    Grab a rock, medium, one you won’t drop on your head…Let’s mosey to the shelter (cuz it has benches).
    It’s time for some Spartacus. The timer on my phone had us working out for 1 minute with a 15 sec rest for each exercise:
    -Goblet Squat w/ rock
    -Feet-Elevated Mountain Climbers
    -Kettlebell Swing w/ rock
    -T-Pushups
    -Step up, alternating legs with or without rocks
    -Rock Row
    -Side Lunge and Touch Rock (like moving the virtual rock pile back and forth)
    -Merkins
    -Rock Lunge and Rotation
    -Rock Push Press
    Rinse and Repeat for a total of two rounds.

    With a short break in-between sets we took a seat with the People’s Chair and pressed some rocks…

    COT: countoff, namerama, announcements, shoutouts and a prayer (T-Claps to FNG Summer Fig for taking the prayer on his first day…well, he is a preacher). Thanks for letting me lead and see you in the Gloom tomorrow at the Stomp!

    Hey Cowbell….ANNOUNCEMENT:  The Plunge is moved to Wednesday and the Foundry is moved to Thursday at Okwata.

  • Expect the Unexpected

    Rock City was one of our many Q-less AOs on the list this week.  Being the excellent AO Q that I am, I waited until midnight Sunday night before signing myself up to take it.  I gave it some brief thought as I dozed off, and actually dreamt of some new exciting exercises – Quadraphilia with rocks anyone?  Alas, upon waking I faced the fact that there would most likely be a small clan this morning, given that 1) It’s the day before a holiday and 2) no one signed up to Q.  I decided it was a perfect time to do a half-murph.  I wanted to see how long it takes us.  Amnesty has an idea of making Pontiff the Murph AO and having Pax members opt for a Murph anytime they want, like when JV is the Q and you don’t want to do 45 minutes of Wall Sits, or when Amnesty is the Q and he leads us in the same workout he has led us in that last 12 times he’s Q’d as Bogey sings along to the 80’s Australian Pop emanating from Am’s iphone, and you want no part of that.   What is the name of that workout?  The Iron Eagle or the Steel Guitar or something like that.  Anyway, I digress.  I thought the optional Murph idea is worth trying so I thought I would get us used to it today by making it not so optional.

    As I rolled in hot on the bike, I found 5 or 6 guys ready to go.  More than I anticipated, but with a little creativity we could all find a place to do pull-ups.  We completed my standard set of warm-ups, since I know Amnesty doesn’t like change:  SSH x 25, IW x 20, and DQ x 15.  Then we took off away from the rocks toward the playground about the same time the train released 4 or 5 more cars.  There was a flurry of activity as cars screeched to a halt rutting up the local resident’s yards as middle-aged men in badass black slammed doors and hustled to join us.  No way we are fitting on the pull-up bars now….about face.

    A total of 13 men grabbed a rock (go big or go home – t-claps to Triple for taking me at my word – he stayed and went big) and circled up near the T-ball field.  We completed 3 sets of the following:  Shoulder Press (IC), Rows (IC), Curls (IC), Squats (IC), Calf raises (IC), and Dead Lifts (Down Up Cadence).  15 reps for the 1st set, 10 for the 2nd, and 7 for the last.  (T-claps to Walleye for helping a brother out).

    From there we moseyed half way back to the rock pile and got on a line.  Sprint 60 yards, bear crawl 30 and mosey back to your rock for the prescribed exercise.  Round 1 = 50 Bench presses, Round 2 = 40 Merkins, Round 3 = 30 Shoulder Presses, Round 4 = 20 Curls, Round 5 = 10 Burpees.

    Drop off the rock and mosey back to the VF.  Prayers for special intentions, safety during the holiday, and peace in our country.  Thanksgiving for our freedom.

    Moleskin

    • T-claps to the Pax for showing up today.  I was not expecting that many.  It’s always more fun with a big number.
    • There were some big rocks chosen today and a lot of sweat trying to lift them.  T-claps for going big.  We are getting stronger
    • Good times at coffeteria this morning.  I’ve been watching my macros all day.  So far today – Carbs 33%, Fat 30%, and Protein 36%.  Not sure what that last 1% MyFitnessPal?  I’m scared to look.
    • The Milkman continues to deliver – consistency is the key to success people.  Pay attention to what this man is doing.

    Thanks,

    Hawg

  • Four Corners

    Front blew through last night, bringing with it a bit of a break from the summer humidity. Perhaps even a hint of briskness in the air. At the stop light on the drive to Rock City this am, I checked the Q sheet. “Oh great, I better think of something.” Shorty’s name was on the list, and we all know what that means….

    5:30am comes, 9 PAX gathered around the flag. Tool decides to give us a moment to gather our thoughts on what to do next – so he bellows “10 Burpees On Your Own. Exercise.” Great, YHC thinks. Because I can always think better while burpee-ing. But with 10 Burpees under our belt, YHC leads the PAX on a mosey to the rockpile.

    COP 1: Get the blood flowing:

    • Windmills x15
    • Arm Circles x15 each way
    • Imperial Squat Walkers x20
    • Plank-o-rama with Plank Walks, Plank Jacks, Peter Parkers and Mountain Climbers

    Over to the rock pile to find your friend.  Then Mosey to the playground.

    COP 2: Audible!  On the way to the playground, YHC sees the gate to the tennis courts.  I’d often wondered where the gate was, but never actually looked for it.  But lo’ and behold, there it was – calling us.  So – head to the tennis courts!  Everyone plank-up while YHC tries to figure out what we’ll actually do here…

    Aha – Four Corners!  Pax split into 4 groups and take their rocks to a corner.  The rocks will stay put, while the pax mosey.  20x of exercise at each corner.

    • Corner 1: Bench Press.  Then Bear Crawl to….
    • Corner 2: Shoulder Press.  Then Crab Walk to…..
    • Corner 3: Curls.  Then Lunge Walk to….
    • Corner 4: Rows.  Then Duck Walk back to corner 1.

    Fortunately for PAX, KimChi and TripleShift decided to bring their mammoth boulders to Corner 1.  I don’t think they would have worked nearly as well at, say, Corner 2.

    We got through 2 cycles.  Then PAX were calling out for more, so 1 more time round the circle!

    Gather up rocks and leave the tennis courts.

    COP 3: Time enough for some pull up work.  Pax split into 3 groups:

    • Group 1: Pull-ups AMRAP
    • Group 2: Dips AMRAP
    • Group 3: The timer: a lap around the track.

    Side note: its pretty impressive to watch Babyface knock those pull-ups out.  Wow.  Nice work!

    One cycle through.  Just enough time to get rocks back to their beds, and mosey back to the flag.

    Count-off, Name-o-rama.  Circle up for our prayers: thankfulness for our blessings, remembering those facing sickness – especially FracSac.  Prayers for the Cheech’s family, and all of those impacted by that tragedy.  Close with St. Ignatius Loyola’s Prayer for Generosity.

    Thanks for letting me lead, and thanks for patience while I tried to figure out something new for us to try.  Now that I know where the gate to the tennis court is, I think that may start taking a larger role in the RockCity workout.

  • Post Ruck Blues

    Sitting at the railroad tracks in the light drizzle, waiting for the train to pass, YHC pondered whether any of the ruckers would make an appearance, or whether they were all still in recovery mode.  Staring at his watch as the train ground to a halt, YHC began to wonder whether he would make an appearance.  Time for an audible – head to back gate and park, for a fast jog across the park arriving at 5:27.  And what was waiting YHC?  An empty field….  Just the raindrops to keep me company.

    But lo and behold, cresting the levee – Duct Tape making his triumphant return!  Welcome back, Kotter!  Word had it that others were still stuck at the railroad tracks, so the 3 on-time PAX (including one FNG EH’d by those still at the tracks) planked up to wait.  And wait, while Amnesty made his appearance, and oh-so-gingerly pulled his glow-yellow gloves on to protect his delicate fingers.

    Then the disclaimer, a bit of background on F3 for our FNG, and off to the quarry.

    COP #1:

    • SSH x25
    • DQ x15
    • IW x25
    • PP x25
    • MC x25

    Go find a friend

    COP #2: Find something resembling dry ground.  YHC waited while some PAX floundered and appeared to struggle with basic instructions.  Once situated, lets get to work

    • Shoulder Press
    • Curl
    • Row
    • Squat

    First round x12.  Then x10.  Then x8.  Then x6.  Tool ventured a guess as to what was coming next.  x4 and x2.

    COP #3: Mosey to the bandstand.  The rain had now stopped, so we were no longer in need of that protection.  But YHC was trying to be thoughtful for the PAX.

    • Tatum Channing
    • Dip
    • Channing Tatum
    • Incline Merican

    First round x15.  Then x10.  Then x5.

    Bring our friends home, and mosey back the VSF.

    COP #5: Finish up with some Mary

    • LBC x31
    • Penguin x20
    • Hip dip thingies – I’m sure they have a name – x10 each side
    • American Hammer x20
    • Plan for a minute

    Finish with countoff and naming of the FNG (Milkman, in honor of The Dead Milkmen song celebrating the car of FNG’s youth).  Announcements (struggled to find something to talk about, as the Ruck and Summer Series are both in rear view mirror now – but up next Spillway Classic).

    Finished with prayer of thanksgiving and asking for blessing of God’s grace to use the gift of today wisely.

    YHC is very thankful for the men this am.  In the few minutes while I pondered the workout alone, I honestly thought about turning and heading for home.  Would I have the perseverance to do this on my own?  I doubt it.  I remain thankful for the gift of all of you, helping to inspire me to do more than I think I can.