Knowing that it was going to be cold on the Mandeville Lakefront this morning, YHC cast about late Friday for an appropriate pearl of wisdom to drop on the PAX. Almost instantly, Thomas Paine’s immortal words from the American Revolution came mind:
These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; it is dearness only that gives every thing its value.
The parallels to a beat down in the Gloom on a cold, windy and kind of wet morning in South Louisiana are too obvious to require explanation. Let’s just say that eight winter soldiers and stout patriots assembled in a brotherly manner to make themselves better this morning.
The Warmup
Steve has the Bulgarian squat, Butt Splice owns the longest block, EiEi is best friends with Jane Fonda, Einstein likes to lunge backwards, and Shooter frequently employs the front plank to adjust the PAX’s attitude. For YHC, it’s the stairs at Rips Restaurant and so that’s where we headed for this morning’s warmup:
Partner up, one partner does SSHs while the other heads up and over the Rips’ stairs, switch up, rinse and repeat for 10 minutes alternating SSHs with IWs and the straight runs up and over the stairs with crossover runs.
The Thang
Short 10 count then short mosey to the East for the first COP:
Round 1: Merkin Wave to 80; then on our Sixes holding feet at 6 inches for an Up and Out Circle Leg Raise Wave to 80; back on our feet holding the People’s Chair while executing a Vertical Jump Wave to 80.
Round 2: Another Merkin Wave to 80; then on our Sixes holding feet at 6 inches for a Out and Up Circle Leg Raise Wave to 80; back on our feel holding People’s Chair while executing a Knees to Chest Vertical Jump Wave to 80.
Recovery walk morphing into a mosey to the Harbor Playground, spicing up the mosey with random short accelerations, Merkins, and soccer style headers. Formed up for the next COP on arrival:
Isometric lunge hold left leg forward to a count of 30 followed immediately by 30 lunges pulses; switch legs and repeat; then Mission Impossible hold for 30 seconds followed by 30 Merkin pulses.
Mosey to the Harbor Pavilion where we spread out among the benches for a few rounds of box jumps. Every 30 seconds, the PAX was asked to perform a set of three jumps, a straight jump, a lateral jump to the right and a lateral jump to the left. We then picked up the pace for the second round, executing four box jumps every 30 seconds. Round 3 called for six jumps and then the 4th and final round called for eight jumps.
Mosey to the baseball field where we partnered up once again for two rounds of pull ups, Northshore Merkins (OK we officially claim the name of Northshore Merkins for plyo pushups), Tonya Hardings, and lateral squat jumps.
Indian Run back to the Shovel Flag for a round of Mary: back plank bicycles IC 20x, side plank dips IC 20x each side, and J Lo’s IC 20x.
Countorama, nameorama, and Tanked Up prayed us out on the way to THE Manny funded Coffeeteria.
Moleskin
CRAZY IVAN. It’s on next Saturday, January 20th at 2100. Mandeville Lakefront AO. EiEi scientifically has designed this CSAUP event to be .001% better than the Southshore’s Gnarly Nutria. We’ll see if the Southshore PAX forgo their regularly scheduled Saturday evening bubble baths in order to cross the Causeway for some Cold War games. Bragging rights for the next six months are on the line. The Northshore Cold Warriors are ready.
Chewy is off IR and how appropriate to have one of our Founding Father’s Kotter on a Thomas Paine themed beatdown.
YHC learned at the Coffeeteria that Carpool’s employer has traded him to the Houston AO. We’ll miss him here on the Northshore but of course are proud of him for his promotion and know that he’ll represent us well at the Houston AO.
Captain Sparkles and Turtle are hunting with Shooter this weekend. Will Shooter make it home alive?
