PAX like us, baby we were born to run

PAX like us, baby we were born to run

It’s the new year, Peak 51 will be full of FNGs and returning vets, YHC gets to kick everything off, this will be great!

So, the forecast resulted in pulling up to Matthews Elementary to find Tweetsie’s car parked in the parking lot. No one else. Well, no other person, but plenty of puddles and a steady, but not all that bad, rain.

Soon enough, there were 7 brave souls ready to make some magic happen at 2019’s first edition of Peak, despite the rain. Well, 6, as Tweetsie had to make an emergency run to the gas station down the street, but he was coming back, honest.

A heartfelt disclaimer was given, and we took off through to the First Baptist parking lot via the long way. Tweetsie did return, coming in hot like it was Mountain Goat or something, and he was ready to join in.

COP

• Side-straddle hops x20 IC
• Imperial walker x20 IC
• Windmill x20 IC
• Hillbilly x20 IC
• Low, slow squat x20 IC

PROTO-THANG

Line up at the bottom of the incline in the parking lot. Time for a Peak 51 tradition — suicides, using the light poles in the middle as our stopping points.

• Round 1: Straight-up running, there and back.
• Round 2: Backpedal up the hill, run back down.
• Round 3: Run up, lunge walk back.

Round 3 was everyone’s favorite. So many nice things were said about YHC during the time. Also, we must point out, that shortly before the suicides … as was prophesied a long time ago, it stopped raining. Because, as the Book of Slim Fast tells us, “The rain ne’er falleth on the just or the unjust at Peak.”

Or, if you prefer The Message’s rendering, “Nah bro, it ain’t gonna rain here.”

THANG

Mosey to the back bus lot. In a callback to my VQ at Peak, time to run 11s the long way across the bus lot. Start off with 1 jump squat, run, 10 Carolina dry docks, run back, repeat until you get to 10 jump squats, 1 CDD.

This might fly in the face of physics, but I am wholly convinced that the parking lot actually gets longer as this routine drags on. I don’t know how that works, given that the Earth is flat and anything getting longer would poke holes in such a cast-in-concrete truth.

POST-THANGEM

We have time, so let’s go to the wall.

We did 3 rounds in the people’s chair.

• Round 1: 50 air presses, civilian count
• Round 2: Hold hands out for a bit, then 50 air presses, civilian count
• Round 3: Hands out, hands up, 25 punishingly slow air presses, civilian count

That was terrible. Let’s head back to launch.

COT

Counting, naming, announcements, Tweetsie with a good take out.

-30-

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Gremlin, a CSAUP event put on by the F3 MeCa crew, is January 19 on the verdant and continually under construction campus of UNC Charlotte. Preblast here.
• Joe Davis Run, a big event for F3 Area 51, SOB, The Fort, etc., is March 9. Preblast here. 5K/10K/Fun Run options. Slim Fast likely has signed you up already, so you should put it on your calendar.
• We are gathering Qs for Peak. If you didn’t get an email from Sensei earlier in the week, get with him or me via any of the usual channels.
• If you want to Q Conviction — Wednesday mornings at Shiloh Elementary out in the Union County wilderness, get with Bullwinkle, and make sure your shots are up to date.

MOLESKIN’D

So today was leg day at Peak, sort of by accident. With the forecast not looking so hot, I was thinking of a suitable routine that did not involve too many instances of hands on the ground, but would be a grinder to hopefully set a great tone for the year ahead.

That’s when it came to mind, Sensei once during one of our post-Mountain Goat coffees told me “man, I remember when you ran those 11s in the bus lot, that was good.” So, if you didn’t like it, blame Sensei for incepting the idea.

I reverted into football coach mode during the backpedal suicides, instructing the PAX to “keep those hips low,” which made me realize The Mouth wasn’t there, because that was low-hanging fruit. I also realized that I wasn’t doing a great job practicing what I was preaching.

Also, backtracking a bit, I applaud Slim and Tweetsie for behaving themselves during COP. Last time I Q’d and I called for the Hillbilly, things went way off the rails.

Great having Wild Turkey out with us. He was showing off some serious speed, but also was mindful enough to make sure the 6 was good to go. Again, set a great tone early.

Tweetsie, Slim, Sensei were their usual strong selves. Also, t-claps to Tweetsie for actually pre-running in the worst of the rain. Great job, and, when the guys in the white coats come to your house later, they are under instructions to “be gentle” with the straitjacket.

Good to have Lumberjack back in the mix. Also very strong. He said something like “I haven’t run in a while.” Didn’t show at all.

Bullwinkle, as usual, nearly caused me to self destruct as he asked me my opinion about a college football game coming up Monday night. I have feelings about one of the participants. I have FEELINGS about the other participant. I think I muttered something like “nuclear explosion blowing the Bay Area into the stone age” when he asked me what I wanted out of the game.

I registered 2.25 miles. I’ll be honest, I think I might’ve skipped an interval, because, well, I lost count somewhere in the 5/6/6/5 transition. So, whatever Slim Fast’s watch says we got, I’m willing to accept.

Anyway, as usual, it’s an honor to lead. As Tweetsie said in the takeout, there’s no other group I’d rather ring in the New Year with than this group. Looking forward to a great year ahead. Off to the rest of my day.

(Hey Alexa … how would you cause a nuclear explosion in Santa Clara, California? Asking for a friend ….)