F3 New Orleans

Tag: Roughneck

  • 2 Year Manniversary of F3 Thibodaux! A Brief History of F3 Down the Bayou – from Goose

    The highly anticipated day had arrived. Costumes were donned, and the gloom was dark. So dark, in fact, that Paradox, fully decked out in unlicensed Jack Sparrow gear, did a full Helen Keller on an FNG, hands all over his face saying, “Goose, Goose is that you?” just because the guy showed up in a grayish Tundra. The FNG was accomodating, and YHC did show up a little later, overjoyed at the PAX’s costumes and their total disregard for how they’d fare in the rain, the dirt, and through at least 100 burpees. From giant furry vikings to skin tight Moana characters to full size pickles, these dudes were all in. Thankfully, God delayed the rain for a few hours, so the weather was perfect and the morale was super high (made even higher by Head Cheese’s dramatic entrance). We had record numbers at The Peltch, coffeeteria planned for the first time, and 2 years of an unprecedented journey to tromp through–it was an awesome morning!
    Warmup of the usual with last minute costumers trickling in (Picadilly’s pickle balls were amazing, even if they fell off during the first set of mountain climbers). PAX grabbed coupons out the truck, and we were off toward the lower field for the First Era of F3 Thibodaux: Goose-olation

    Era 1: The Genesis of the Beginning, The Dawn of the Origins, Part I
    Goose arrives in Thibodaux from Mandeville with nothing but a list of backblasts from NOLA, Northshore and BR. He couldn’t stop the progress, though, and had high hopes for what might develop. So, the backyard would have to do. For months, what drove him on was knowing that F3 brethren somewhere had already sweat through whatever beatdown he had pulled from the backblast list, so he wasn’t completely “alone”.
    The routine for this era would be The Big Bang:
    All PAX start in a bunch huddled around the coupons. First round, grab a coupon, do 5 OH presses, then mosey 10 steps out from the pack and do 10 burpees (facing outward for max isolation) before returning and plank up for the six.
    2nd round: 5 OH presses, mosey 15 steps out, 15 merkins
    3: 5 OH presses, 20 steps, 20 burpees
    4: 5 OH presses, 25 steps, 25 Hammers
    It’s a reality that pushing alone is way harder than pushing together, and the contrast was felt. Glad to move onto Era 2.

    Era 2: Random pop-ups
    The first to follow the dancing idiot into the madness was technically Cardinal, though he wasn’t seen again for many months (quoted as saying something like “that’s for the birds”). So, Wet Tap gets T-claps for coming out unaccompanied to throw himself into whatever Goose and his Goslings were doing out at Peltier. Then came Gordon, G.I. Joe, and Percolator, though because of work schedules and getting over the initial hump, attendance was random.
    This seemed a great opportunity for the randomness of the Deck of Death, so Wet Tap started us out under the Thunderdome with a random pull followed by three more (Irkins, Bulgarian split squats, and whatever those other two were…). Then, for the sake of time, we moseyed to the baseball field.

    Era 3: Enron
    Goose’s isolation, especially on weekdays, changed unexpectedly with the arrival of Enron. With the dogged determination and willingness to endure pain that only a younger brother could posses, Enron showed up to every beatdown he could and pushed himself hard to keep up with Goose. This quickly led to intense progress and his VQ (alone at The Peltch–for character building). His determination has never slowed, and his Q’s are well thought out (and typed out), usually including some sort of element of chance (for Cardinal).
    PAX partnered up for a grinder as a reminder of all those mornings at The Stage with just Goose and Enron. Split duty on 100 burpees at home plate while partner 2 runs the bases.

    Era 3: Return of the EH (and Crab Walk) King
    Cardinal eventually did return, and not only did he stick with it, even on weekdays, but the PAX quickly began to swell with his FNG’s, and his move to Chackbay has only widened his EH territory.
    The exercise would be Bear Crawl Tag Infection–Cardinal started at the pitchers mound and bear crawled around tagging the PAX, who were crab walking to get away within the confines of the infield. Once someone was tagged, he became part of the cult, switched to bear crawl, and began tagging the rest of the sad clowns (crabwalkers). It took no time for all to be tagged, ironically with Head Cheese being the last…So, we moseyed to The Chimney for Era 4.

    Era 4: Paradox
    As soon as Paradox even heard there was an F3, he had purchased tiny Mudgear shorts and within minutes had memorized the entire Exicon and the last 100 backblasts from the top 5 regions. And, his foot has never let off the gas. This next routine would be a nod to his name (you know, cuz he’s a doctor, and his wife is also a doctor, so they’re a pair-o-docs…), and to a couple of his Peltch Q’s.
    Partner up, both partners do 10 burpees, then one partner body drags another about 20 yards to the chimney, both do 10 more burpees, then flapjack and body drag the other back to start. This is where Paradox’s mustache exploded (the remainder of his facial hair) which made him Orlando Bloom’s character instead (props to Lil’ Cuz for that observation).

    Era 5: Lumen Christi
    Earlier this year Cardinal was able to talk a few of the young men who worked at the chancery with he and YHC to come out to a new beatdown on Tuesday mornings at Lumen Christ, the retreat center behind the chancery (with showers and everything). It was a glorious AO with a great crew, and some of the Thibodaux PAX would show up every now and then, too. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t last as the retreat schedule filled up (I guess it seemed a little less retreat-ish to have a bunch of sweaty dudes bear crawling down the hill to the Top Gun soundtrack or Indian running past the windows with cinder blocks over their heads).
    In a nod to Tighty Whitey (may he never be forgotten) and Enron’s near death experience at Lumen, we did Welsh Dragons up to 7, followed by a mosey to the playground.

    Era 6: SV 500
    The St. Vincent was arguably the best F3 fundraiser in the country (and maybe the world) for 2022 (and maybe for all time, past and future). Thanks to Paradox’s leadership and the buy-in of the rest of the PAX, it went off beautifully, tons of people attended, we had an incredible time, and we surpassed our goal of $10K for prescription meds for people in need. In honor if this incredibly blessed experience, we partnered up again for a quick Dora in honor of the partner race that raised the bar for many years to come.
    Partners would split duty on 100 flutter kicks on the playground side of the “mountain” while partner 2 ran over the “mountain” and did 10 Big Boy Situps on the other side and ran back. Then, moseyed back to the Thunderdome for the final eras.

    Era 7: Jerftember
    Yankee Joe’s arrival came and went like many who get a first taste of F3, puke, and don’t come back. But he did come back after about a month, puked some more, and became hopelessly addicted to growth. The Jerf was born out of this deep desire for more and more growth, and it opened a new era of Thibodaux PAX ownership, comradery, accountability, and WHOOP pressure. It also gave birth to BAPS, who still hasn’t fully proven himself.
    In honor of the Jerf, PAX lined up on the baseline under the Thunderdome for one full round of Jerfing. The sound of 17 PAX dropping cinder blocks onto concrete under an echoing pavillion is truly a glorious thing.

    Era 8: IPC and Burptober
    With one minute remaining, YHC led the PAX in 3 Kraken Burpees in honor of the unprecedented Week 5 of IPC and to finish out the 100 burpees needed for the second to last day of Burptober.

    Moseyed back to the flag, all still in full costume, for an incredible COT and our first ever coffeeteria. Fence Post was named (Welcome!!), Cue Ball was welcomed (originally from F3 Huntsville), and tables, donuts, too much coffee, and raw eggs were laid out under the trees. Conversation was awesome as the PAX rejoiced in the incredible blessing that F3 has been and the unrepeatable gift that each man has been to the whole group. The high from that morning has lasted for multiple days now, and it spilled over into record breaking numbers at The Stage this morning (including Fence Post!). Looking forward to the many years to come!

    See You In The Gloom,
    Goose

  • The St. Vincent 500 – from Paradox

    Our tale begins in the spring of 2022 in a small bayou town where a community pharmacy, after taking losses from storm and plague, had great need. After decades of providing vital prescription medicine for those in need, this team of volunteers now searched for the same helping hand. The Pax of F3 Thibodaux heard the call, and a plan was devised. We consulted our sage leader for advice. This HIM had carried the torch of 3Fs from the Mandevillage many moons ago. He knew the way of the pax and was skilled in the smithing of a fine beatdown. He peered into the gloom with a thousand-mile stare and the fate of the fundraiser hung in the balance. “if you build it..they will come” Goose said with a nod and then promptly vanished into a flurry of burpees. With a team formed and a grant secured we dove into the work.
    An event was needed and a place to rally the pax. A race, but not just any race. A challenge of physical and mental strength that would call to the hearts of the Louisiana PAX. A series of pain and cardiovascular torture so intense that no self-respecting HIM of F3 Nola could resist. It was forged in the caves of .word files and hammered through the gmail circuit boards. Welded to perfection one station at a time. A burpee here, a bonnie blair there. Precious metals adorned it at every corner to award prepared pax but many traps lay waiting for poor form. It was written, and it was done and it was beautiful.

    The beacons of aid were lit! Thibodaux called for aid…and our brothers answered.
    39 PAX (including 6 FNGs!) assembled at the stage on a gorgeous bayou morning! They came from northern shores and from western banks. From uptowns and motherships. From Grannies and Lakefronts. They came in calf sleeves, mudgears and some even bare of foot! Namesakes that struck fear like Shooter and Tanked. Some that drew intrigue like Hokie and Hawg. Famed backblasters we had read for years like Steve and Akbar. Even legends of the gloom like Frac and the Reluctant Yankee, who were there when the deep magic was gifted to us from the eastern coast. They followed a lonesome bayou road and mumbled Deliverance jokes along the way. They came as one to help a great cause and lock shields with their brothers in the bayou. The course was set, pleasantries exchanged, and the only thing left to do was make a run at 500. Let’s get to it…

    Warmup

    Goose gave the disclaimer and race details, and pointed out key safety and strategy reminders. Each two-person pax team would start at a numbered station along the course. Once the horn was blown, they would begin at their station and advance. Each station had 3 options: bronze, silver or gold. (Worth 10, 15 and 25 points respectively. So, a perfect score of gold at all 20 stations would reach the mythical 500 points. These corresponded to the number of reps completed by a team combined. They then would grab the token and secure it in an advanced technology carrying case (Ziploc bag). Head for the next station and rinse and repeat until you have finished 20 stations or ran out of time.
    After this was explained he led a thunderous cadence of our usuals stage warmups. This was YHCs first experience with a >20 pax group and the big group energy was powerful

    THE THANG

    Pair up, line up and we were numbered off 1-19 (one team of 3). Each team headed for their station and when GI Joe hit the airhorn it was geaux time. The stations were as follows:

    STATIONS:
    1. Merkins- 40, 80, 120
    2. Bobby Hurleys—30, 60, 90
    3. Freddy Mercuries—50, 100, 200
    4. Coupon Curls—40, 60, 100
    5. SSH: 50, 100, 150
    6. Carolina Dry Docks- 40, 60, 100
    7. Big Boy Sit Ups- Partner does big boys, one partner sprints to next station and back. 100, 150, 200 situps
    8. Side lunges (2 is 1)- 40, 80, 120
    9. Coupon OHP- 40, 60, 100
    10. Burpees- 30, 50, 100
    11. LBC’s- 50, 100, 200
    12. Peter Parker Merkins- 30, 60, 90
    13. Bonnie Blair (2 is 1) 40, 60, 100
    14. Brick Back Flys- 50, 100, 200
    15. Leg Raise Dora – One partner Leg raises, one partner bear crawl to next station and run back. 50, 100 or 200
    16. Mission Impossible Plank- combined time: 1 minute, 2 minutes, 5 minutes
    17. Coupon Swings- 40, 60, 100
    18. Prisoner Squats – 50, 100, 150
    19. Mountain Climber (2:1) 50, 100, 200
    20. Arm Circles while partner crabwalks to next station and runs back. Complete 100, 200, or 400

    After 1 hour of “Pax vs St. Vincent course” the dust settled and everyone returned to the flag. Chatter was high about the difficulty of the layout, the supreme fun had traversing the course and low rumblings of scores north of 400 permeated the air. A few teams completed counting up their coins while we began the count off, and name off. YHC was impressed with the veteran naming experience of NOLA and northshore pax. Their FNG naming skills were unparalled and we left with six newly minted local PAX: Welcome Sir Lawrence, Kodiak (CodyYak), MeatSweats, One Call, Wallflower and Lambchops. Looking forward to getting yall in the mix.

    Now down to serious business. YHC and Goose dramatically unveiled the official St. Vincent 500 dual trophies for the final presentation. Imagine a 12-inch manifestation of the love child between Hulk and Stretch Armstrong, in a full rage pose. Victory is all he has ever known. After appropriate oooohhhhs and ahhhhsss Goose led a suspenseful point count-off to see who the last team was standing. In the end, the combination of Tanked Up and Speedy Gonzalez tallied 470 points and took home the first annual St. Vincent 500 trophy! T- Claps on those numbers gentlemen. Phenomenal effort. We’ll all be gunning for you next year.

    Coffeeteria after provided by our St. Vincent de Paul board and it was great to get a chance to talk shop with all the pax and compare notes on course strategy.

    YHC could not have envisioned the tremendous amount of support we would receive from both our local community and our F3 community for this cause.
    So grateful for each one of you who spent your weekend time and energy for this event.

    At the time of writing this backblast we have raised $10, 451. 51!! This goes directly to purchase of prescription medicine for those individuals in need. Praise God!

    Thank you for the oppurtunity to lead.

    SYITG,
    Paradox

  • Surprise! It’s a Cinder Block! – from Goose

    YHC arrived later than a Q should, and Cardinal and Roughneck were just starting to compose a lament to top the one I wrote last Monday after being jilted at The Stage. So, YHC hurriedly threw open the tailgate and said, “Grab a coupon,” missing the blank look on Roughneck’s face that would have reminded me that he’s never attended a coupon beatdown before. I usually deliver a pitch acknowledging the awkwardness of running, squatting, gripping, adjusting, etc. with a cinder block, and raving about the benefits of all that it entails (both interior and exterior), but in my haste, the pitch wasn’t given, and Roughneck was left trying to figure out the “right way” to do it all. YHC gave some pointers as far as using your legs, saving your back, etc., but the vision for just raw “gettin’ it done” and the benefits of muscle confusion and getting strong in ways you wouldn’t in the gym was left unsaid until the very end. But, again, Roughneck stepped up and powered it out with the help of the ever relatable, always willing Cardinal.

    Warmup of the usual with a mosey to the bumper and back.

    Thang 1: 11’s
    One end was the stop sign closest to the bumper, and the other end was the next light post. Curls at one end and goblet squats at the other; rifle carry there, and random coupon carry back between the two.

    Thang 2: Keep it Movin’!
    Round 1–While Partner 1 did continuous sets of 5 tricep presses, 5 block situps, and 5 block swings (kettlebell style), Partner(s) 2 executed the ol’ block and bear (bear crawl while dragging the block forward from between the legs every couple of steps) to the benches and back.
    Round 2–Partner 1 did the same continuous aforementioned exercises, but Partner(s) 2 traversed the field and back using Murder Bunnies as the mode of transportation.

    Short Mary filled the remaining two minutes with leg raises, and hello dollies.

    COT w/discussion about the relationship between F3 and cinder blocks, and about the awesome growth in popularity of the Tuesday beatdowns in Houma. YHC prayed us out with gratitude for awesome weather and awesome brotherhood.

    Till next gloom,
    Goose

  • The Dawn of Darth Kilo – from Kilo

    As YHC was prepping for his VQ the night before, an all-out manhunt was conducted in search of Lifejacket. The search spanned far and wide from the deserts of Tatooine, to the seas of Kimino, and finishing in the dreaded lava rivers of Mustafar. The treacherous search bore no fruit. YHC concluded the search with the solemn realization that Lifejacket had vanished like a cowardly sidekick when it came time for its dual against the legendary duo, Anker and JBL. YHC made his concessions and altered his plans as necessary.

    YHC pulled up at The Peltch to 6 eager, yet cautious, PAX. They had no idea what was required to properly prepare in advance for Star Wars Day, May the Fourth, but YHC had arrived to show them the way with both a red and a blue lightsaber in hand.

    Warmup: X-Wings (SSH), Darth Mauls (WM), General Grievous (AC), IW, Anakin’s Mom (Self-Love)

    Thang 1:
    Imperial March (High Knee Mosey) to the Thunderdome. Right from the start, this proved to be much more difficult than YHC expected. Worried for what was to come, Paradox made a suggestion to Mos Eisley (Normal Mosey) when it came time to depart the Thunderdome. The merciful YHC took note, but would remember the Imperial March for later use.

    Star Wars Trivia: 15 questions, each with their own exercise. A correct answer decreased that exercise by half.
    • 40 X-Wings
    • 30 Mountain Climbers (2 is 1)
    • 20 Merkins
    • 30 Freak Nastys
    • 30 Jar Jars (flutter kicks)
    • 20 Burpees
    • 30 – second mid plank
    • 40 squats
    • 20 BBS
    • 20 leg raises
    • 60 – second wall sit
    • 30 X-Wings
    • 20 Merkins
    • 30 Freak nastys
    • 30 LBCs
    YHC was generally pleased with the level of Star Wars knowledge held by the PAX, but was thoroughly impressed by Cardinal’s ability to summon the knowledge and wisdom of the Jedi Order when threatened with Burpees.

    Thang 2:
    Mos Eisley (Mosey) to the chimney.

    AT-AT Race (Bear Crawl Race): PAX AT-AT raced back and fourth multiple times between lightsaber markings (about 30 yards apart). This yielded much suffering from the Padawan PAX. Two 10-Counts were necessary to deter mass asphyxiation.

    Thang 3:
    Light Side / Dark Side: (Basically like “Never have I Ever” but begins with “Sith Lords have…”). 10 questions. Sith Lords do full exercise, Jedi do half.
    • Sprint to Chimney
    • 40 X-Wings
    • 20 Burpees
    • 20 BBS
    • 20 Jar Jars
    • 20 Burpees
    • 40 Squats
    • 20 Mountain climbers (2 is 1)
    • 20 BBS
    • 30 – Second MI Plank
    YHC was pleasantly surprised to see that the majority of PAX were on very similar moral ground.

    Mos Eisley through Thunderdome and back to the Flag for a solid 5 minutes of MARY.

    COT and Cardinal prayed us out.

    Thank you for bearing with me on my VQ. I hope it was as enjoyable for all of you as it was for me. Darth Kilo has shown his face…and Darth Kilo will return.

    See You in the Gloom,
    Kilo

  • Run, Float, Sink, Climb – from Paradox

    YHC has a love/hate relationship with sprints. I’ll blame it on deep seated psychological trauma from high school football conditioning. YHC’s ancestors likely invented the spear to avoid sprinting from the sabertooth. Like “oh well , lets takes our chances with this stick cus running fast sucks”. Recently YHC has felt the need to address these ancestral deficiencies with tailormade beatdowns.
    When beginning my Q journey a few months back, Goose handed down some deep wisdom nuggets about beatdown architecture: Always return to the classics. Shakespeare and Thoureau you say?? No sir, “try Steve and Akbar, those guys write a solid backblast”. I dove into the Northshore archives and after surveying several gems I selected a recent sprint work piece (run, float run) created by Northshore legend Akbar. Some of his initial work like the “the Merkin Trap” changed the way I Q so I knew I was in good hands.
    Arrived to the Stage with a lonely black SUV and a single PAX in heavy stretch mode. Could it be?! ENRON! Returning from IR to get back into the mix. Great to have ya back brother. The newly minted Roughneck rolled in shortly after followed by Kilo and we got started

    WarmOrama: SSH, IW, WM, AC, Cherry Pickers, high knees, butt kicks. Bumper/Stop Sign Mosey

    JBL official warm-up
    *I must pause here and recognize that JBL remains the alpha Bluetooth speaker in this pack. There may be contenders and challengers (lifejacket and Anker) that come and go but when the chips are down, and you need soul jarring thunderous rock there is only one Bluetooth speaker king.

    Song: “Aint no mountain high enough”- High knees on whole song. Trigger words were the following: high enough=jump squat, low enough=2 deep squats, wide enough =3 merkins

    THANG 1
    Mosey to Rich Mans loop for sprint work.

    Mosey, Sprint, Float, Sink (thanks Akbar)
    Each light pole had a different gear. Started with standard mosey, then increased to sprint followed by down shift into float (which I’m learning is kinda a feel thing) followed by planking for the 6 and repeato. The key to the float is a “fast relax” with very little straining. Realizing as I type this sounds like my medical advice on not producing hemorrhoids. Our best effort was attempted. Completed 7 rounds.

    THANG 2
    Introduced the PAX to yet another cousin of Jack Webb. Today we meet his seldom seen uncle Mountain Jack Webb. Starting at the straight away with 2 Squat Chinooks then 4 mountain climbers (1 is 1) followed by lunge walks to the next cement line (roughly ten yards) and repeato. Increased increments by 2/4 reps respectively. Thanks to some quick Enron excel spreadsheet math we topped out at 28 squat chinooks and 40 MCs with a 60 MC burnout.
    Headed back to the virtual flag (we miss ya goose!) in Indian run style.
    Enough time for 20 Freak nasties and 10 Box Jumps and some mixed Mary
    15 LBCs, 15 Penguins, 15 Wife pleasers, 20 Dolphin Hops
    Count off, NameORama and Prayer intentions.
    Come out to the peltch Saturday for Kilos VQ! (Star Wars theme has been promised)

    Apologies to Enron for 45 minutes of sprints and mountain climbers on a bum knee. If it holds up after today, you can toss that Brett Favre copper sleeve in the can. Great to have you back, your premium grade mumble chatter has been missed.

    T Claps for Roughneck coming back for more after Monday. Keep pushing brother.

    Solid Effort fellas, thanks for letting me lead

    Until the next gloom

    Paradox

  • Nowhere to Hide – from Goose

    It’s tough when FNG’s come on weekdays. Smaller number of PAX means there’s nowhere to hide when you’re just trying to survive, but the soon to be named Roughneck never gave up despite the feeling of drowning that we all remember too well from our own first beatdowns. With YHC, Paradox, and Kilo mumblechattering about highlights from the Zoorich Classic on Saturday and crazy lingo being tossed about in the midst of grunting and sweating, it was with great interior fortitude that Roughneck remained smiling and in good humor to the end.

    Warmup (all in cadence, x20) side straddle hops, windmills, arm circles, imperial walkers, self-love

    Thang 1: Robot Dance (?)
    -Song 1: “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel–plank position for the entirety, but every time we heard “In Your Eyes”, we shifted to the next position in the following order: high plank, mid plank, mission impossible plank, back to mid, back to high, right arm up, left arm up, back to high plank, etc. This one’s over five minutes long, but it felt shorter due to mumblechatter about it likely being a catalyst/accompaniment for the conception of more than one of the PAX back in the 80’s, as well as a history lesson on the connection between Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins. This PAX has much to learn.
    -Song 2: “Banana Boat (Day-O)” by Harry Belafonte–similar, but with squats. Every time he said “Day” shift to the next position: standing, mid squat, low squat, mid, back to high, etc. The PAX had much to learn here, as well, about the origins of this song and the experience of banana harvesters. YHC is happy to provide some cultural exposure to these millenial zombies.

    Thang 2: Four corners/Baseball
    1 PAX stationed at each corner of the field (bases) and did as many reps as possible (AMRAP) of the following exercise while PAX at “home plate” completed 15 burpees and ran to 1st, then each advanced to the next base once replaced:
    1st base: merkins
    2nd: squats
    3rd: Big Boy Situps
    Continued until all four PAX had a chance to do burpees at home plate.

    Thang 3: Benchwork
    2 PAX per bench, completed the following, in cadence x20: dips, L-leg step-ups, Irkins, R-leg step-ups, Derkins. Then, rinse and repeat x15. (1:1 for all).

    Back to the flag for Mary: LBC’s, Leg Raises, Freddy Mercury’s

    COT and named the FNG–Welcome Roughneck! Great to have you, man! Awesome work, and looking forward to growing with you!

    See You in the Gloom,
    Goose