Yea, so it rained a little bit. I checked out the AO yesterday afternoon, it was already soggy, so you could imagine after the deluge last night. So 17 PAX learned to navigate puddles and a full-on bog while conditioning their minds and bodies this am. Good size crowd this am, I gave a disclaimer which included knowledge of the rain-soaked terrain and off we went.
Workout: Quick warm up with SSH and IW x 20, then started a warmup lap around the school giving instructions at four different stations. 10 Burpees OYO to complete the warm up then we split up into two groups to spread out and began the AMRAP.
Station 1: Run with sandbag around mini-track in front of school. 20 Merkins or Burpees before or after depending if a sandbag was available
Station 2: 20 Box jumps or step ups on the tree stumps or picnic table at the rear playground
Station 3: 20 LBC and 20 Carolina Drydocks in the lower parking lot
Station 4: 20 overhead press and 20 curls using the cinder blocks at the edge of the sports field
AMRAP until 6:10 approx. Quick mary with flutters and dolly x 20. Done
Moleskin: Site Q Poptart was diligent reminding me last Friday of my duties this am, hope he’s pleased. Solid group and I hope the workout delivered since we were so spread out, I couldn’t read the vibe. I heard some breathing and saw some sweaty brows during COT. Slight grumbling about all the nasty puddles, YHC took a slightly more wet than necessary route in the beginning to get everyone’s feet wet early. The field was really bad, at that point, your socks are wet…deal with it. Total lap is approx. 0.75 miles so everyone got in 3+ laps…not bad. With McGee present I had to make sure we had some Burpee options, which he took advantage of and knocked out his 100 for the day #impressive. It wasn’t my intention but this was a nice prequel to a couple announcements: Sandbags = CSAUP this Saturday at 7am, McAlpine. Soaked feet = Mud Run and Savage events upcoming, ask somebody or look on F3 site for info.
Lastly, thanks to Poptart for the oppty to lead this am. Thanks to Squid for the takeout. And this morning yet another reminder of how precious and short life is and how we need to cherish every minute with loved ones. Our thoughts and prayers are with McGee and his family, as his mother passed away this am.
I’m a fan of tracking activity, clean slates, fresh starts, etc., so with much anticipation, I was excited to lead on the last day of the year. Buttermaker had me scheduled well in advance so I had time to prepare. And with that knowledge I wanted to come up with something memorable. So one by one, 11 PAX reluctantly left the comfort of heated seats to end the year right. And with a standard disclaimer…we took off.
The Thang: YHC led 10 PAX out of Calvary Church down Rea Rd. into the Trader Joe’s parking lot for COP. SSH, IW and Romanian Deadlifts x 20 with 5 burpees OYO after each. We continued right on Bevington up to Elm Lane north back up to Hwy 51 and back to Calvary Church next to hot box/field. Quick plank to let the six catch up then moved on.
Five pain stations with gear were set up with the PAX paired up at each. P1 uses the gear while P2 does a different exercise, flapjack until rotation to next station.
Station 1 (Timer): P1 has 10 foot slosh pipe, zercher carry (jog, walk) out and back approx. 100 yards total while P2 does jump squats.
Station 2: P1 runs parking lot around light post carrying a 10 lb. dumb bell in each hand while P2 does merkins.
Station 3: P1 does two hand kettle bell swings while P2 does step ups in hot box.
Station 4: P1 runs down sidewalk and back uphill carrying sand bag while P2 does LBC (any mary)
Station 5: Both P1 and P2 do squat thrusters with sandbags.
Following two rounds at each station we mosey’d to the “suicide lot” to do just that, burpee suicides at each island. Mosey’s back to cars for a few minutes of mary: flutters, Freddy Mecury, LBC. Done.
Moleskin: I felt a little more at ease with this Q knowing we have a huge AO, a full hour and a group that is typically up for anything…including some decent running. I’m sure the sub freezing temps kept a few people home but I was hoping for a solid group to break in the slosh pipe…and I got my wish. It’s clearly more difficult than anyone expects, supposed to really work the core along with your back and pretty much every other muscle in your body. Maybe the best part was how the other four stations would watch the PAX carrying the slosh pipe to find an “easier” way. Nope. Size, strength and technique all matter. I think McGee found a new favorite toy and is probably at Home Depot right now gathering the materials. Hops manned up with the shoulder carry. I was impressed with Nemo toughing it out. Everyone was struggling the second round but all succeeded. Chatter was light, we covered 3.4 miles approx., lots of reps, awkward loads to carry and enough burpees for most, although Alf challenged McGee to finish his December Burpee pledge which some others joined in as we wrapped up. Hard work by everyone. Thanks to Hops for the takeout. Happy New Year everyone!!
Announcements: Joe Davis run next Saturday, convergence on Monday at Matrix and another convergence somewhere else, watch twitter or ask a friend where to go on Monday.
Pretty excited to Q Day Zero for the first time. Even though I never got the memo earlier this Summer due to some email address “typos”, I got word in plenty of time to put together what I was hoping would be a classic DZ high intensity romp at McAlpine. Perfect size group, 12 Pax including one FNG. Quick disclaimer then off we went…
THE THANG:
-Mosey from McAlpine to the adjacent strip mall/construction site/Sunshine House for COP
-SSH x 20 then 5 burpees, IW x 20 then 5 burpees, Low Slow Squat x 20 then 5 burpees
-Warm-up mile run on Bevington Place all way around to bottom of Carswell Ln. Plank for the six.
-Run 7’s From bottom of Carswell Ln., Squat at bottom, Merkins at top of hill
-Run/Mosey to school basketball court. Broke into three groups to run around school path doing exercises in three stations…
20 Thrusters w/sandbags, 10 Merkins, Step-ups on wall (2 laps)
20 Good mornings, 50 LBCs, 10 Derkins (2 laps)
Mary on basketball court: 15 Dolly, 15 Flutters, 15 Rosalita. Hustle to top parking lot for sprints and dips, then AYG back to cars. Total distance approx. 4.35 miles.
MOLESKIN:
Perfect size group of guys today with 12 PAX plus one rambunctious chocolate lab. Radar’s dog got more out of the workout than he did…and almost a mid-morning snack of a poodle during the Bevington run. Once the group was finally assembled, Radar pulling in late parking in the COP, then Finkle (FNG) caught up to us during 7’s on Carswell, everyone worked pretty hard. I bobbled a bit delivering accurate instructions for the laps and station work at the school…it was better on paper and in my head…I just couldn’t verbalize it. Spackler and others made a valiant effort to break my shiny new duct-tape sandbags…aside from a couple minors tears in the tape, no grains were lost on the court. Healthy chatter and a solid workout. Our FNG, Michael Seelin (sp?) who is a football coach at Myers Park was welcomed in as Finkle. Thanks to Buttermaker for asking me to Q and thanks to Purple Haze for the takeout.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Sign up for Southern Discomfort which takes place in 3 weeks, October 22nd and there might still be some Ragnar spots open…tweet someone if you’re interested.
It was a beautiful morning, 78 degrees and only 84% humidity with clear skies. YHC led 16 PAX on a sweaty hour long workout. Since I’m still a novice Tweeter, only a couple saw my pre-blast which contained the following sparse information: we would be running a majority of the time, it would not be flat and we would not be in Raintree. And with a brief disclaimer we set off at 5:15am….
The THANG:
-One mile warmup. Mosey from SCMS up Strawberry left on Hwy 51 left into Davie Park down Windswept to parking lot for COP.
-Low Slow Squat x 15
-25 Merkins OYO
-Mosey out of Davie park, left down Hwy 51, left in to Carey Ridge to the end at Coburn Ct., plank up for the six.
-Run to the other end of Coburn Ct. and back (aka Half Pipe) as many times as time allowed. Regroup at other end of Coburn at 6:05 for some Mary. Flutter x 20, LBC x 20.
-Run back toward school, up Brownes Pond to Rosecliff to Strawberry. Indian Run back to SCMS.
MOLESKIN:
A smaller group for FT this time of year. Everyone worked hard on the hills of Coburn…it was a tough .6 miles each way, everyone got in at least 4 lengths with the faster guys doing 6. Turkey Leg fresh from vacation led the way with Alf and Gerber not far behind. Wasn’t too much chatter, we were all gasping for breath in the warm air. Sundancer was an FNG to FastTwitch, he seemed quite pleased to join the “running workout”. Kudos to PopTart, who despite confusing the post start time, still headed out to Five Knolls and Piper Glen just missing the group #ellobosolo. Thanks to Purple Haze for allowing me to lead these fine men. Thank you to Mermaid for the takeout.
Announcements:
F3 Pool Party this Saturday, August 20th, see web site to sign up, $10/family.
BRR Team still looking to fill a spot, contact Geraldo if interested.
YHC will be Q for another warm sweaty romp through the streets off Hwy 51. Here’s what I’ll share:
Come join the fun…tell a friend!
What a perfect day for a morning workout. 25 PAX including two FNG’s showed up for my VQ at Kevlar. Because of the nice weather and history of great workouts at Kevlar, I knew it would be a solid turnout and was not disappointed. After a disclaimer we took off…
THE THANG:
MOLESKIN:
I heard some grumbling, probably a little more running than some wanted, about 3.2 – 3.6 miles. I was told it resembled an earlier version of Fast Twitch. In hindsight, with only 45 minutes to work with, 7’s would have been a better choice, leaving more time for Warner park where I had some more exercises in my bag. Two FNG’s, Sidecar and Brexit jumped into the mix today and now hate the number 11. When they come back, hopefully they get some tire hairburners, weights, bear crawls and more of what Kevlar has to offer. Thank you Squid for the takeout prayer and thanks to Alf and Horsehead for the opportunity to lead these fine men.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
Following some chilly weather the past couple days, pouring rain last night, the air was warmer than normal with no rain as 10 PAX set out at 5:15am to achieve an aggressive hour long workout. Not wet asphalt nor first time cadence jitters would get in our way…let’s do this!
The Thang: Quick disclaimer then off we went up Strawberry, mosey down 51 into Raintree.
COT at Willow Point landing pad: SSH x 20, IW x 15 then the real fun began.
First Branch: Run to end of Willow Point, 20 step-ups on concrete barrier (10 each leg) then run back to pad and do 20 Merkins. Mosey down Raintree to top of Windbluff Dr.
Second Branch: Run to end of Windbluff at Providence, 10 squats then run back and to top and do 10 Carolina Dry Docks. Mosey down Raintree to top of 4 Mile Creek Rd. Plank up.
Third Branch: Run down 4 Mile Creek Rd to light (Whitethorn Rd.), 10 Merkins then run back to top and do 5 Jump Squats.
Indian Run back up Raintree to Rounding Run Rd. Mosey to Woodfox then AYG back to SCMS.
Moleskin: Great tight group today with 10 PAX on a wet but warmer than normal morning. We were missing a couple speedy regulars so Alf stepped up to lead the charge through Raintree. Hairball and About Time also kept a quick pace up and down the hills. Lots of encouragement and teamwork amongst the group. The morning was a success with mileage ranging from 6.5 to 6.9 along with enough reps to loosen the upper body. Thanks to Purple Haze for inviting me to lead this morning. It’s been great getting to know everyone, week after week. It’s not always easy getting up this early and I’m always motivated and impressed by the dedication and commitment of this group.
Announcements: F3 Party at Metro on March 5th, Signups Now Open. Available Bib for Corporate Cup (see Hairball). 10 Mile Run this Saturday at Earthfaire Greenway Loop.
As mentioned by others in previous weeks, the demand for a Pre-Blast is overwhelming. Since this is my VQ, I’ll try to appease the masses yet flexible enough to accommodate poor road conditions, poor weather conditions, or just plain poor planning and performance pressure by YHC.
We’ll leave SCMS, mosey up Strawberry then down 51 into Raintree and make a stop on Willow Point landing pad for a quick round of exercises…mainly to see if I screw up the cadence. From here the plan is to do four branches of intervals along Raintree Lane, each branch a different road out and back with exercises on each end. The branches are Willow Point, Windbluff, 4 Mile Creek and the last will be finishing Raintree Lane to the end at Providence. I’m going to wait and decide which exercises and how many reps once I get a feel for the vibe of the PAX. Time might also play a factor.
From there we’ll head back via Rounding Run and Woodfox…more than likely AYG. If need be we have Rising Meadow as a fifth branch. Nothing original or fancy guys. I just want everyone to have a strong workout and feel good about it leaving the parking lot. See you tomorrow am.