19 decided it would be a good day after all the threats of Zombies to post at Stonehenge (language) to see for themselves what all the fuss was about.
Bloody Moleskin:
It was an honor to lead again today. Mr. Bean calls it a VQ if you never have Q’d Stonehenge. Now I think I understand why! Great group of guys posting today. Thanks to Tiger Rag for bringing the iron and so graciously setting up. Also for the closing prayer. Tclaps to TR and Outback for a little pre-run before the post.
Items of Interest:
GLADIATOR GAMES V ON 12/12/2015 – all levels of fitness are welcome. Step up and post!!
2016 Joe Davis Memorial Run – Support our Brother Rock Thrill as his event changes lives!
Area51 Christmas Party on 12/12/2015 – Look for tweets and info
21 Pax (probably a site record) showed up to crush their timed mile, except for one who made it his mission to help others crush their timed mile. The idea is to run the timed mile periodically to use as a baseline for other interval work and to assess progress along the way. I can tell you this with certainty, the MG regulars have indeed improved, no doubt many overestimated their time, in other words, they crushed it! Was exciting to see the guys give it all they had, or more accurately for YHC to see about half the guys give it all they had since I couldn’t see the other half who were crushing it in front of me.
Anyway, it went something like this:
Warm up mile
Dynamic stretching
Quick briefing by the un-official A51 Running Nantan (Bratwurst) on how to use the strangely curved starting line and off we go:
Take a cool down lap or two, cheer on the remainder of the pax and then organize a 4 x 400m relay, some saying this was harder than the mile, only because you already ran the mile. Fun seemed to be had by all. Team 2 appeared to be the winning team, you know who you were.
Cool down mile or close to it and then up to the cars for COT:
The results for tracking look like this:
| Name | 1-Mile Time |
| Fletch | 5:33 |
| Joker | 5:50 |
| Tiger Rag | 5:51 |
| Bratwurst* – not his actual capability, ran the 6:00 as a pace for others, that’s just the kind of guy he is. | 6:00 |
| Turkey Leg | 6:02 |
| The Mouth | 6:09 |
| Sensei | 6:25 |
| Slim Fast | 6:25 |
| Floor Slapper | 6:40 |
| Icicle | 6:46 |
| Strange Brew | 6:52 |
| Huggy Bear | 6:58 |
| Voodoo | 7:02 |
| Early Bird | 7:11 |
| Nomad | 7:18 |
| Booyah | 7:22 |
| Venus | 7:54 |
| Retread | 8:01 |
| Nuke | 8:10 |
| Freedom | 8:31 |
| Sony | 8:56 |
We will be using the timed mile baseline in conjunction with the Jack Daniels Run Smart Calculator:
https://runsmartproject.com/calculator/
You plug in your number at the top and then click the “Training” tab to see related R, I, T, M, E paces
Don’t read too much into the “Equivalent” longer distances unless you are a very experienced runner, for example YHC could NOT run a 3:42 marathon as the chart suggests, that is Slim Fast territory and YHC is NOT in Slim Fast territory. However for the shorter distances it is definitely closer.
NMM:
There were many notable efforts out there and I’d like to see guys sounding off below on them (yours or others) but those that I saw include: The Mouth going sub 6:10, what? Do you remember telling YHC when you ran a 10:00 mile, yeah, that is in the past now isn’t it? How about Freedom hitting 8:31 when the mile used to feel so much longer. Sony showing up to his first Mountain Goat since he signed up for the Joe Davis Run, yeah brother, that’s what you do, that’s how you get at it! Booyah wanting to do it again (not right away though) because he knows he can do a better job on pacing, yup that’s part of it, YHC remembers talking to Huggy Bear the other week and he was talking about a 7 min time, yup, beat that too! Anyway these are only some of the notables since YHC was trying to run himself and sucking wind and what not are not conducive to making all the mental notes. Also shout out to Slim Fast for pulling this workout together with YHC and running with Sensei for him to hit a great time of sub 6:30.
Announcements:
Pretty much everyone at this workout is going to the Joe Davis Run I’m sure:
https://joedavisrun.racesonline.com/register
Freedom took the pax out with a solid focus on the day and the One that matters most.
9 men showed up for a physical examination at The Rock. Here’s their story.
Warmup (SSH, IW, Mountain Climbers) over near the soccer fields. Mosey over to the parking lot with the islands. Continue warmup with forward and backward jog, carioca, etc.
Line up abreast for the beast (lowercase, due to modifications). At each of the 6 medians, do 6 of the called exercise, then run back to the start. Merkins, Squat Jumps, LBCs, CDDs, Sister Mary Catherines, Freddie Mercury).
Begin jog to Day Zero. Varying paces and stops along the way for some Mary. Nobody home at DZ, so we went through to the Yellow Rose (RIP) parking lot. Partner up for the lap around the block. Hand slap merkins at the end. A few of us saw another group of weak looking men during the lap – we invited them to join F3 next weekend.
Head back home, stopping for pullups (as many as you care to do), finishing with a solid Indian Run back to the entrance to the parking lot. AYG to the picnic tables.
10 left leg raises (squats?), 10 incline merkins, 10 right leg. Repeat with derkins and dips.
Mosey over to the parking lot for Mary with intermittent sprints.
Moleskine
The mark of a great weinke is one so well planned that it seems fluid, flexible, open to inspiration from the land and the PAX. That bear crawl up the hill with no way to safely get back down? Planned. The meandering path through the parking lot to where we did the Mary sprints? On the weinke.
Nice work from the guys this morning. Good to have McGee join us after his recent move to the Southland. Dude was fast. Everybody kept up today though – no real six to speak of. Solid work. Lots of good pop culture reference sprinkled throughout too. Bonus. Fragile was dress in several layers of long sleeves and pants, a hat, gloves. I can’t wait to see what he wears in January.
Announcements
Turkey Bowl is on Thanksgiving morning. On a football field somewhere nearby.
Flipper is running a race somewhere and invited others to join him. I stopped listening after he said 13 miles. Not right now, thanks.
9 grown men went trick-or-treating at 0700 in 704-South. Well gents, da boyz are back in town. @Pro, back fresh off a solid 26.2 in chi-town. @HB, back from a solid 26.2 glasses of wine in NorCal. Great to see a solid core of the regulars out there, and the used-to-be regulars in their new absentia routine. Come on back when you’re ready guys.
Tha Thang:
Trick-or-treat COP:
@Pro emptied the treats out of his 2 year old daughter’s pumpkin trick or treat back and filled it with some terrible exercises. We circled up and passed the pumpkin with each guy pulling an exercise;
Burpees, merkins, diamonds, LBCs, wide arms, other horrible stuff on the DZ gravel lot.
Mosey to Brechin hill for some scary 7’s. Jump squats at the bottom, merkins up top, 4 burpees midway on both the up and down trip. Ding-dong-ditch every house on the way down.
@HB took the crew on an indian-mosey across 51 to the neighborhood behind Reafield apartments. We passed a FiA group along Baybrook – looking strong, ladies.
Clockwise lap around Woodleigh Oaks (0.8mi), stopping at each side street (8 total, think “legs of the spider”) for 10 merkins. Indian-mosey to the back side of the Yellow Rose (R.I.P.) for a flyby. The place has been closed a month and looks like it’s been abandoned for years. Thanks @SG for not using the toilet left on the back porch. @Radar, if you need a spot to squat (#1 or #2), take note.
AYG from the Rose back to campus. Circle up on the gravel – Flutter, J-Lo.
Notable stuff:
@KelseyGrammar ran to Gastonia and back before the workout. @Swede looking strong pushing through sleepless nights. @Strawberry might be a licensed garage door guy – @HB’s springs are hangin’ tough #NKOTB. @Pro #MartyMcFly fought through the cobwebs and delivered a nasty dose of pain. The pumpkin king himself, @Glossy, celebrates a birthday today. Hope someone buys him a new pair of copper shorts. @DA still waiting on a response from @linsanity on his hair product. If you dont get a response, ask @SG – dude pulled off his toboggan rocking a fresh swoop. Lots of product (or grease?) on that moptop. @Fletch led the pace, as usual. Almost lost @IH on the YR flyby. Swear I heard some sniffles and sobs as we cruised past. Hard to accept it buddy, but she gone.
We ran 4.7 miles today and banged out 200+ merkins. Pretty stout for a workout not advertised as a running workout. @PH- watch out #FastTwitch
Thanks @IH for the takeout. Thoughts and prayers for you and your crew in Nicaragua on the bridge next week. Make sure that harness is high and tight, kinda like yer shorts.
22 of So. Charlotte’s finest decided enjoy the gloom with QIC this fine Friday. With this being QIC’s 2nd Q if the week, I had to dig deep in my bag of tricks for one of my old favorites. Simple yet brutal…and a Lobsta Roll workout with no burpees!
It took a bit for the PAX to catch on to this repeat workout and when they finally did I saw Halloween horror on faces all around. I do respect this group for hanging in there with me this morning….Here it is
Mosey from the parking lot down to the track for a warm-up lap and circle up at mid-field.
All exercises were done in cadence for 25 counts. Each exercise was followed by 25 merkins and after each set a lap around the track
1 – SSH (total merkins = 25)
2 – SSH & IW (total merkins = 50)
3- SSH, IW & Squats (total merkins = 75)
4- SSH, IW, Squats & LBCs (total merkins = 100)
5- SSH, IW, Squats, LBC & Sister Mary Catherine (total merkins = 125)
6- SSH, IW, Squats & LBCs (total merkins = 100) ****Ran out of time on this set
Total merkins = 475
Great work by all out there…That’s a lot of merkins!!
Announcements:
Christmas Party
Joe Davis run
Food/Can drive
Check the weekly email for details on each of these events.
13 brave men headed out for a nice jog in the brisk morning air.
The Thang……
This was a veteran crew so we headed to the parking lot in the corporate park for a quick warm-up.
In cadence:
20 – SSH
20 – IW
I thought about doing a Triple Nickel on the Ben Nevis hill, but as I measured out the mileage on the drive this a.m. I noted that would be 7.5 miles and a really boring workout. So to ensure I didn’t receive a beating from the Pax. I altered my plan.
We headed to the bottom of Ben Nevis for a little running with exercises mixed in. As a side note, I have found out who (or actually what) Ben Nevis is. it is actually the highest mountain in the British Isles. My guess is Haggis had something to do with naming this one.
Anyway here is what we did:
Run up the hill with a stop at each side street.
1st – 5 Burpees
2nd – 10 Jump Squats
3rd – 10 Merkins
4th – 10 Heels to the Heavens
5th – 10 Jump-ups on the wall by Lancaster Highway
Repeat this down and up the hill one more time. Group Mary while we wait for the 6.
Next I thought that a ¾ mile Indian run would be a prudent way to move the Pax from one part of this large AO to the other.
We stopped to catch our breath with 6 count Burpees. The only problem was I was counting and doing 8 count body builders. Just because I made that mistake we did an extra 15. You would have thought that I would know how to call an exercise and do that exercise in cadence by now, but I don’t. My goal is to have that down pat by my 1 year anniversary.
We then moseyed over to Loch Ness.
Start at the picnic tables 20 – Dips
Then to the first building for 20 – Incline Merkins
Then the 2nd building for 20 – Jump-ups
Rinse and Repeat 3 times
The group completed a little Mary and plank work while the 6 caught-up and then we headed back to the start point for some more Mary.
Heel to the Heavens
Flutters
The Chippy Cross
Toe Tap Crunches
The Moleskin:
There was a small amount of mumble chatter, a little harassing of the Q for bad cadence, and some overall groans from the Pax today. The funniest thing I saw was when Pebbles convinced One-Niner that he had to do 10 Burpees instead of 5 on Ben Nevis and laughed as he took of up the hill. Everyone pushed hard today especially during the Indian run. One-Niner was killing it the whole workout. I was really impressed by the ability of all the PAX to stay pretty close together and push each other the entire workout. Wild Turkey and Tuck really pushed on the Indian Run Sprints all the way to the end. One last comment, no matter what Champagne says I did complete all the exercises around Loch Ness and he was just running a little slower than normal.
It was a pleasure to lead this fine group of men. I appreciate all of the work from the Pax. Thank you for giving me the chance to lead and pushing me to work harder each time I am out in the gloom.
Announcements:
Join up for the Joe Davis 5k or 10k, check the weekly email for details
Gladiator Games are 12/12 – Be there to beat Pebbles
Thanksgiving Weekend Turkey Bowl- Will be in the News Letter this week
Meet at VGBG at the music factory and hang out with some Mecca guys
Spartan Beast in 2 weeks – Champaign and Ickey will be there
1 day shy of Halloween and 15 men dressed up in full workout gear regalia at Centurion. Not very creative. We have seen that costume before. However, they all played the part very well. Here is how it went..
Warm-Up: SSH x30, FSSquat x25, IW x25, Merk x25, LBC x25, Fludder x25, Merk x25
The Thriller..
Brisk mosey to workout spot @ Carmel Business parking lot. Paused for 10 merkins.
4 stations spread through business park and grassy knoll
Station 1 – 90 degree jump squats, Station 2 – LBCs, Station 3 – Step-ups, Station 4 – Dying Cockaroaches (must say like scarface)
Repeat 3 times
Brisk mosey from parking lot to Aquatic center
Partnered up. PAX 1 – bear crawl to second light and run back. PAX 2 – 1 legged squats sundials touching the ground at 10, 12, 2 and 6. Alternate legs. Repeat 3 times
Back to home base. Complete
The Devil’s Turn launch point is a lonely and desolate place at 4:45 am. Not even the early rising RFYL’ers are crazy enough to start that early.
At 5:15, a crew of 10 had assembled to get the #F3DevilsTurn party started. After a brief discussion and a threat of outright mutiny, it was decided to abandon the plans to go to the track and instead head to the #DangerZone for the morning constitutional. It wasn’t until well into the workout that YHC realized that any latecomers would not know where we were. However, we were committed at that point.
At COT, we learned Mall Cop and an illusive Wolfman had run the course to the track and back after arriving 5 minutes late. They seemed ok with it though.
It was a fairly standard day at the ‘Turn once the plan was ironed out. After navigating the dark and dangerous sidewalk up to 51, we were in the clear to open up all cylinders on the bike lanes and rolling hills of Rea between 51 and Colony. Mr. Brady took off once there and was mysteriously missing at the turnaround to come back toward 51. Was he that fast that we completely missed him heading back? Nope, it turns out there was a Johnny on the Pot that captured his fancy on the way out. At least he didn’t pull a Mr. Bean or Frehley’s move out there.
One Niner visited DT for the first time today. It is a fur piece for he and YHC coming from the likes of SC to run with the faithful. He seems to be a natural for DT though as he was leading the PAX for the duration of the workout. Welcome my IL brother.
Ironsides made his second trip out to DT today to avoid the muck and mire. We are glad he did. Strong runner that Ironsides. Although he was feared lost at the end, he made it back to port with no dents in the armor.
Huggy Bear continues his push toward faster paces and has his eye set on half marathon greatness come Spring. There is no doubt whatever race is chosen will be dominated. The man is on point. (he is also from GT, so there’s that too)
Gumbo is also hitting the running workouts hard and looking strong out there. It is good to have him out there pounding the pavement again.
O’Tannenbaum, Marvel, and Mistaflex were pushing each other out there and looking strong. It is great to see our regulars out week in and week out. Thanks brothers!
Prohibition is back in stride after his first Marathon in Chicago. After achieving greatness in his first, he is now ready to go for that next one. Too early? Well you will get that itch again brother. It will happen.
No announcements today. That’s what Twitter is for right?
Back Blast from Sensei for a Peak51 record-setting beatdown! Excellent Q!!
After a couple of rainy days in and around Charlotte, 26 PAX came out of hiding to help celebrate no rain and my birthday Q. After the disclaimer was given, it went a little something like this.
Run around the front of FBC Matthews to the side parking lot for COP
SSH x 20
5 Merkins OYO
IW x 20
4 Merkins OYO
Peter Parker x 20
3 Merkins OYO
LSS x 20
2 Merkins OYO
Parker Peter x 20
1 Merkin OYO
We took a moment to stretch the hammies then…
Mosey down Sadie Dr to Baucom Park and find a bench for some circuit work
Rd1: Wide Arm Merkins x 10, Dips x 15, Step Ups x 20
Rd2: Repeato w/ Incline Merkins
Rd3: Repeato w/ Decline Merkins
Rd4: Repeato w/ Diamond Merkins
There was some chatter about Runstopper and a predator owl who was not happy with our intrusion onto his turf that early in the morning. All PAX were present and accounted for at the end of the workout, so no harm done.
Form 2 lines and Indian Run back down Sadie Dr to the church parking lot
Time for some Merry:
LBC x 20
Dolly x 20
Flutter x 20
Roll over to plank and do some Jack Webb…Up to 10 (Runstopper favorite)
Mosey over to the school to find some wall
3 rounds of PC
1st round we just sat there and enjoyed each other’s company; 2nd round w/ 50 air presses; 3rd round w/ 100 air presses (Thanks Runstopper for the audible, that was a real crowd favorite)
2 rounds of BTTW w/ 10 count…Slow 10 counts as it turns out
Mosey back to the parking lot for COT
Ah, one minute left so we did as many Burpees as possible until time was called
Moleskin:
Thanks to Slim Fast, Header and Booyah for the company on the prerun. All are welcome to join us each Thursday prior to the workout.
Dora and Zombie did a pre ruck, as well as kept them on during the workout. That must have been an amazing experience during Jack Webb.
So, I’ve been in F3 about 18 months and have Q’d enough now that I know what I am doing. That being said, I was blown away with the number of guys who came out this morning to support me for this Q. All of you guys rock and absolutely help to push me as well as each other.
Thanks for taking us out Header
Chime in if I missed anything and with any other comments. Thanks again for allowing me to lead a group of such great men.
Announcements:
1. Joe Davis signups are now open for the 5k/10k on 1/9. Kick off your new year the right way while helping a fantastic cause. http://joedavisrun.racesonline.com/
2. Brew Ruck 5 will be on 11/14. Another great cause you can participate in if you’re not running Thunder Road.
18 tough guys from South Charlotte and beyond entered the friendly confines of Elizabeth Lane Elementary armed with enough Bells to put cracks in the one of the roughest parking lots in area51. Fortunately for the parking lot, we wouldn’t be putting the bells down much today. Plenty of sweat this morning thanks to the surprisingly warmer temps. The pax was properly disclaimed and we launched into the Warmup.
SSH x20
20 two handed swings OYO
Low Slow 3 count Squats x 15 IC
Merkins on your Bell x15 IC
Cleans x 10 Each Arm OYO
Snatches x 10 Each Arm OYO
The Main thing went down like this. After a few comments about needing to pass out headphones so the Pax can hear the tunes, the volume was adjusted and away we went.
4x4x4’s (Complete 4 reps each arm of the 4 Called exercises for 4 Rounds)
Round 1
Single Arm Swing
Cleans
Rack Squat
Snatch
(50 LBC once done)
Round 2
Single Arm Swing
High Pull
Reverse Lunge w/bell in Rack
Shoulder Press
(50 Merkin when done)
Round 3
Single Arm Swing
Single Leg Dead Lift
Lawnmowers
Rack Squat shoulder Press
(25 Merkin, 25 LBC when done)
Partner Up w/like Bells for Doubles: 5 Rounds of Each Exercise – Partner 1 on Bells, Partner 2 maintains static hold
Double Swings x5 (partner 2 Holds Low Squat)
Double Cleans x5 (partners 2 Holds 6 Inch Plank)
Double Alternating Should Press (partner 2 holds feet up 6 inches)
Moleskin: it was a great day to keep the bells in motion and get a good sweat out this morning. The usual Meatheads were in attendance and getting after it – lots of heavy bells being moved around the circle. Radar made a cameo and we even had Simba working out in his DasBoot. Turkey Leg is becoming a Meathead staple and getting in the double down pre-run (sorry I was there for the pre-run this morning brother). There was plenty of chatter before the start and during the warmup, but that quickly went away once the heavy lifting began. Strong effort by all in attendance as usual. Hopefully everyone got their money’s worth today. Always enjoy leading Meathead, thanks guys.
Thank you Simba for the takeout
Announcements: Joe Davis Run See link for Signup and PreBlast: http://f3nation.com/2015/10/28/2016-joe-davis-memorial-resolution-run-pre-blast/
Turkey Bowl – Thanksgiving Morning – Grudgematch of Type of AO (Running, Bootcamp, Gear) more details to follow
Bring back Kevlar? There was chatter in COT about brining it back. Bulldog is looking for interest, anyone interested in taking on co-site Q or Q hit him up.