12 PAX were in for 5 sweaty miles at Blakovery. It was 5:15 according to the fancy watches and 11 of us we ready to launch. After a quick consultation about the route, Bunker stepped up to lead the way. Just as we were off, a silver pick up sighting. Without hesitation we left, knowing our Q would catch up. We were ready to tackle the hill of Ardrey Kell right from the start.
THE THANG:
Run up Ardrey Kell toward the high school with plans on ducking into the neighborhood beyond the school. We didn’t even make it past Lenox and Lash and appearing in the gloom was Bratwurst, lamenting how we were not following the route he posted at 5 am this morning. Looking to correct the wrong way running, he dashed to the front to reclaim the Q and dub the route the reverse Landen Meadows.
Left on Community House, right into the Ballanmoor subdivision, through the Charlestonian type hood, winding our way to Landen Meadows and out of the neighborhood at Blakeney Racquet & Swim Club, left on Rea Rd back to the AO for stretching by Paper Jam.
MOLESKIN:
Lessons learned this morning (1) if you want to lead a workout, show up on time and in the right place, (2) when it gets hot and muggy some PAX lose their shirt along the way and strip down to only their shorts when stretching, (3) in spite of the obvious benefits, no one is really up to the challenge of partner stretches, (4) goat yoga is really a thing.
Good to be back on Monday. Needed it this morning more than anyone will know. Thanks Fraiser for hanging back with me and Bratwurst for taking us out.
Depth Charge has the reigns of Swift tomorrow, it should be fun.
9 PAX ran the Reverse Flat Branch route, while 1 PAX took a short cut trying to catch up to them in the latest episode of Blakovery.
THE THANG:
Run up Rea Rd in the direction of 485, left on Demaine Drive, then right on Elrose Place, past the traffic circle then make a right on Gander Drive. Left on Parks Farm Rd, right on Blakeney Health, right on Elm, right on Willams Pond Rd, cross of Rea Rd and make a right onto Provincetown Dr. A long stretch until Lancken Dr., then right on Bryant Farms Rd., left on Dennington Grove Lane, right on Darcy Hopkins until reaching Alma Blount and make a left. Wind through Blakeney Greens and back to launch for stretching led by Paper Jam.
MOLESKIN:
It was apparent from the beginning that folks were eager to run this morning. Bratwurst arrived 5 minutes early to confuse everyone. Wingman, El Guapo and Hoot darted quickly ahead. Picasso, who was dressed for summer, had no side effects from the weekend to slow him down, and kept up with all of them. Even JRR Tolkein left me in the dust.
By the time I reached Elm, it was determined that an adjustment would have to be made. Since this is my hood, I knew there were two short cut options to catch up to the other recovery runners. I made a detour down Rea Rd and darted into the Ravenscrest subdivision with the goal of meeting the rest of the crew at the corner of Bryant Farms and Dennington. It wasn’t too long before I heard foot steps coming up fast behind me. It was Bratwurst. Eventually I was able to rejoin the group and help them avoid going down a wrong road.
One of the tenants of F3: leaving no man behind…even when he ventures out on another route.
It makes me appreciate the bond that we have created in F3 Nation.
Another great Monday.
14 PAX came early and often to Rebel Yell to find out if we were getting in miles or working on soccer arms. We all kept waiting for Loogie to arrive, but the clock struck 5:30 and he was nowhere to be found, so after a proper disclaimer we were off and running.
Mosey to somewhere in front of Harris Teeter for:
COP:
SSH x 10, 5 merkins OYO, IW x 10, 5 hand release merkins OYO, LSS x 10, 5 hand release merkins OYO, 10 flutter
THE THANG:
Mosey down the street to Carolina Rehab parking lot for a merkin triangle using corners of parking lot and the corner of Ballantyne Commons and Rea Rd as the 3 points. 3 rounds. 10 regular merkins 15 diamond merkins, 20 wide arm merkins. Wall sits after each round waiting on the six.
Mosey across Ballantyne Commons to another parking lot with a building. Using the 4 corners of the building it was time to do some ab work. LBCs and Heels to Heaven, 2 rounds 15x.
Mosey up the service road to the “parking deck” at Uwharrie Bank and Brown Bag Now (more on that later), run up the stairs to the top and cross the street back to Stone Crest. Find the tables near Flying Biscuit to work on legs. Split squats. Two rounds 12x on each leg Q count.
Mosey over to Firebirds for step ups and dips. 2 rounds 10x each leg for step ups and 10x in cadence count on dips.
Mosey back to launch for mary. A called exercise by Mighty Mite and Strawberry left enough time for 5 burpees OYO.
MOLESKIN:
The challenge when Qing a well-established site is trying to find something new and fresh. The level of difficulty is increased when work outs are scheduled on consecutive days in that same location. I don’t remember anyone going down Rea Rd and making a left so I thought I would try that out.
Then I noticed some office space and parking lots across the street and I was confident that no one had traveled there. We did find a rock pile that would have been perfect for Loogie. Only Mighty Mite in our group seemed eager to pick one of those up.
I’m not sure how many miles we covered since I don’t own one of those fancy watches, so cannot say there was alot of running.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
On Monday May 5th, Uncle Rico is launching Brown Bag Now across the street from StoneCrest. It is a fast casual restaurant. He already has some locations in Tennessee, this is their first location in Charlotte. I tried placing a hyperlink to the website but just in case it does not work, here it is: https://brownbagnow.com/
Many service opportunities available, Speed For Need, Church on Streets, etc. get on Slack and Twitter for daily updates or to mumblechatter like a bunch of old women.
DaVinci needs a Q for this Saturday not named Strawberry, Mighty Mite or Bucky.
Thank you for allowing me to lead.
It was almost 5:15 and I could tell Bunker was nervous. It was just us. Each arriving about 5 am to do some warm up. But soon appeared a black car we did not immediately recognize. It was Alf. He was coming off an injury. At least I had someone to run with now and Bunker seemed relieved because he could go at his “recovery” pace and get his miles by coming back to check on me.
No Bratwurst in site. We discussed the options and settled on the PJ route. It was 5:15, so we took one step off the curb ready to go and the silver bullet was spotted. Into a parking space, bouncing out of the pick up truck, Bratwurst announced a different route. and we were off.
THE THANG:
Cross Rea Rd onto Tolleson Ave until Alexander Martin Ave and make a left. Right at the traffic circle to Alma Blount Blvd then right onto Darcy Hopkins Rd. Left on Dennington Cove Ln, right on Bryant Farms, left on Lancken Dr., left on Prvincetown Dr. all the way to Williams Pond Ln. Cross Rea Rd, left on Elm, left on Blakeney Health and left on Parks Farm Lane. Right on Gander Dr, right onto Elrose Pl, back out to Rea Rd and return to launch. Stretching by Paper Jam followed.
MOLESKIN:
With Alf appearing and Bratwurst having a wheel barrel in his pick up truck, I was a little nervous that there was something else planned for Blakovery today and I just missed the memo.
It was good to actually keep pace with Alf. I remember watching him crush Monday mornings at The Matrix when I started F3 about 3 years ago. Showing up in my early days to find out he was Q always made Mondays interesting. He was the first site Q to ask me to lead a workout (although my debut was at Bagpipe). He pushed me by example many Monday mornings at McKee Rd Elementary. This morning he pushed me by not letting me settle for a slower pace. It was the first time in a while I came close to 9 minute pace. Thanks Alf.
I love Mondays.
7 PAX welcomed the 20+ degree weather shift and a Paper Jam Q at Anvil this morning. A Mermaid inspired disclaimer was provided and we were off. A short mosey over to the South Charlotte Library for:
COP:
SSH x 15, flutter x 15, IW x 15, flutter x 15, LSS x 15, flutter x 15
THE THANG:
(4) In the parking lot near the front entrance of the library, 4 corners using the traffic island. Diamond Merkins, Regular Merkins, Wide Arm Merkin, Hand Release Merkins. 3 rounds, increasing reps, 10x, 15x, 20x.
(3) Mosey back to Calvary Campus using the sidewalk down Rea Rd and up the driveway to find the rock pile. Divide into teams of 3 for a triangle grinder. Carry the rock a little way to form the triangle. Station 1: rock curls, Station 2, bench dips in the hot box, Station 3, pull ups at the playground. The group at the rock pile leads the way. Two rounds.
(2) Put the rocks back and mosey to the benches near the main church entrance to work on legs. 2 exercises. Split Squats on Q count (15 reps 2 sets) and Step Ups (10 reps then 15 reps each leg). Then 2 stretches for the hamstrings.
(1) Return to the launch site where each PAX calls 1 exercise of Mary. Finish with 1 round of elbow plank.
MOLESKIN:
This was my first appearance at Anvil in quite some time and may have been my first time Qing at this site.
Lorax fought off the fart sack and end of tax season to post and I “lapped” both Brilleaux and Rachel in a called exercise. The called exercise was a hamstring stretch. The rest of the morning they were ahead of me. Good to meet Hammer. Purell and Snooka killed it as usual.
Thank you Lorax for the take out and I appreciate the opportunity to lead.
4 SOBs ignored the high winds, cold weather, and running in the Boston Marathon to post at Blakovery. With Bunker at the helm, we launched towards Ardrey Kell to cover new ground. In case you don’t have a fancy watch, this is where we went:
THE THANG:
Run up Ardrey Kell Rd until reaching Lorenzo’s Pizza and make a sharp left turn onto Longstone Lane. Then a left on Sedgemoor Lane, then make a left to cross over Marvin Rd. Go into a different neighborhood and Southhampton Drive. Run for awhile and then make a right onto Highlands Crossing Drive, right onto Commons Crossing Drive, left on Wade Ardrey Rd then right into another neighborhood onto Woodland Watch Ct. Keep on Woodland and make a left on Tamarron Drive, left onto North Community House and right onto Ardrey Kell and back to launch for a quick 5 minutes of stretching.
MOLESKIN:
Bunker executed a PR Q-Jack from Bratwurst the night before. It was either his legendary running ability or his new route that found every long hill in Blakeney that scared off the regular crowd but Strawberry made his Blakovery debut.
Good thing Bunker thought ahead and wore his red blinkie lights so Strawberry and I could still track them 50 yards or so ahead of us.
I can see this being added to our Monday repertoire.
It is tough enough keeping up with the likes of Bunker and Wingman on flat ground let alone hills and valleys. At one point I thought it was Thursday and I was at Devil’s Turn. I’m just glad I looked up in time to avoid the 10,000 pound back hoe that was parked on the sidewalk.
COT:
This morning instead of the traditional prayer, each PAX said one thing he was grateful for. Then, in order to help change our perspective, we thought about something challenging we are facing and silently meditated about how we can be grateful for that rough spot in our life.
I am forever grateful for the Monday runs but more importantly the things I learn each week from the men that post.
The drop in temperature did not dissuade 10 PAX from taking a trip to The Fishing Hole where they discovered the answers to the questions: who would Q and what would he would be wearing. Little did they know that about half way through they would receive a special treat from one of our site Qs. But first, a disclaimer was given and we were off.
COP:
Since The Fishing Hole caters to the more mature, sophisticated crowd, a new twist to the COP was added. Dynamic warm up exercises to begin the morning. Over the gate, toy solider, knee ups and butt kicks.
As expected, it was well received as demonstrated by Chelms, Mr. Bean and Frehleys Comet’s eloquent mumble chatter that ultimately led to some burpees in a more traditional COP.
LSS x 10, IW x10 and 10 burpees OYO.
THE THANG:
Mosey to the third level of the parking deck for two more dynamic warm up exercises. Swinging one leg at a time front and back and from side to side.
Partner up and stand in a parking space. Find the number of the parking space as it represented the number of merkins the team would perform. While 1 PAX stayed and did merkins, the other PAX lunge walked to the other side of the ramp and moseyed back. We were all in the mid 120s. One round was clearly enough.
Mosey to the far stairwell and down to the street towards the back lot where the handrails are located.
3 rounds of 10 supine pull-ups and 5 burpees.
Leave there, cross the street to the small parking lot next to the practice field and pick up a lifting rock. Down to the practice field and line up on the sideline for rock work.
3 rounds of curls, presses, extensions and triple lindy x10, x15, x20. At the end of each round mosey to the other sideline and return.
This was followed by field of plank. Take 5 lunge steps towards the opposite sideline and then perform the called plank. Elbow plank, right arm high, regular plank, 6-inches, left arm high and mosey back to the sideline where we started for makhtar ndiaye x10.
Return the rocks where we found them and back to the hand rails for more supine pull ups and incline merkins. This part of the weinkie was prematurely interrupted (more about that later) and we quickly left to seek fresh air and do some leg work at the benches.
Split Squats, Step Ups and LSS. 2 rounds different reps.
Then we performed some flexibility exercises to loosen up the hamstrings, IT band and calves. Just enough time left for a return to the launch and 10 merkins OYO.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
A great 3rd F opportunity for you and 2.0s over the age of 15: https://f3southcharlotte.com/2018/04/05/partnership-with-first-tee/
MOLESKIN
This morning we welcomed site FNGs Nard Dog and MAD and they were not disappointed. The runner Paper Jam morphed into the #notarunner Paper Jam and kept it to under a mile. It was time to work on soccer arms and do some core work.
Anytime a workout includes three senior citizens like Chelms, Mr. Bean and Frehleys Comet, you can expect a lot of hot air. It began emanating from the mouth but then it took an awful turn through the gestational passage way. Those who posted may never look at brussel sprouts the same way again. It was fortunate that Charlotte Catholic was not in session, otherwise the hazmat team would have been required to make the area safe for children.
Yes, we stretched at an F3 workout not named Gumby or Blakovery. It is important at any age.
This is one of the most enjoyable workouts in the South Charlotte region. A great mix of men.
I was humbled to lead them this morning.
Monday morning. Spring Break. Easter Monday. In spite of all that was against us 7 PAX rose from the bed to run 5 miles at either Blakeovery, Blakcovery, or Blakovery.
One pre-ran, one did a dynamic warm up, one was completely shaven, one showed up after almost a week of vacation in the Bahamas, one slept the day before in a car and woke up in Rock Hill, the other ran too fast for me to hear about his week, and another was unexpectedly early. Almost all showed up in yellow shirts.
With all that going on, this is where we ran: down Rea Rd past Elevation Church, right on Lindahi Lane, right on Hirsch Dr., left on Hanworth Chase Drive, left on Albury Walk Lane, right on Castlebay Drive all the way to Tonawanda Drive. Turn left then a quick right onto Burnside, right on Ardrey Woods Dr, left on Cotton Press Rd., right on Meadow Bottom Drive, left on Ginhouse and then we went down a bunch of other streets (at one point passing Escobar’s house) and ended up on the corner of North Community House and Adrey Kell. Right on Adrey Kell and back to launch for some stretching by Paper Jam.
MOLESKIN
With the family away, Bunker must have caught up on his back issues of Vogue as he was dispensing with fashion advice this morning-taking umbrage with my socks and running shoes. I was surprise he even noticed them as he is always about 50 yards ahead of me. Apparently he isn’t the only one who is enamored by my unique sense of style as Gumbo suggested I add striped socks to my repertoire.
Gumbo was pretty chatty this morning. Trying to EH me for the BRR and Swift. He claimed that it takes 6 posts at Swift and your hooked. Taking his advise, I seriously considering joining him on Tuesday morning until I saw the title of Bratwurst’s pre blast-Sprinting 101. I am not a runner and I don’t sprint. I’m out.
Thanks for staying with me this morning Ickey and nice take out Enron.
As always, you all make my Mondays fun.
9 or 10 PAX (depending how you count) fought the heavy downpour, huddled under canopies and lamented about why they didn’t stay home instead of showing up at Blakovery. It was 5:16 and no sign of the silver Toyota pick up truck speeding through the parking lot. So without proper guidance, disclaimer or warning, we were off.
THE THANG:
Run up Rea Rd towards StoneCrest Shopping Center, make a left at Williams Pond Rd., make another left at Elm St. Go all the way past the Morrison YMCA and make a left on North Community House Rd. Then goto Ardrey Kell and make another left, back home to the AO for stretching by PJ.
MOLESKIN:
When I woke up at 4am I could hear the rain outside. Since I live a little over a mile from the AO I did not think I had a legit excuse to fart sack. At 4:30, the rain was still going strong. I convinced myself that no one would show. Around 5am the rain stopped. With no excuses left, I hopped in my car. About 2 minutes later it started to pour down rain. Since I was closer to the AO than my house, I figured I would just show up and leave when no one was there. Much to my surprise the parking lot was full and there is Tootie running in with his broga mat. I spotted Bunker and a FNG (turned out it was Doc McStuffins with no beard) huddled under a canopy. But where was Bratwurst? Since no one knew the Country Club route well enough to risk getting lost in the rain, it was time to make an executive co-site Q decision-the PJ route. By the time we made it up Rea Rd, the rain stopped. Bunker, Doc, Madison and Goonie made sure that no one was left behind. As we came back to the starting point, there was the silver truck and Bratwurst. He was dry as a bone, no sweat, but still claimed he ran as he mumbled something about chic-fil-a.
He promised to make it up to everyone by running hills at Swift tomorrow. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
New AOs: Tuesday at Charlotte Latin-Hawks Nest, read about it here: https://f3southcharlotte.com/2018/03/09/hawks-nest-new-area-51-boot-camp-launches-tuesday-march-13th/
Finishing Hole on Thursday at Charlotte Catholic. Low miles. High Intensity.
11 PAX followed Bratwurst around Ardrey Kell for the latest installment of Blakovery. There were some first time guests, a few of the regulars and our fearless leader was a minute early. With a casual stroll and no disclaimer we were off.
THE THANG
Up Ardey Kell past the high school and a right into the first neighborhood. Then a quick left onto Zachary Ave and then right onto Pomerace Place. A left on Brandon Brook Drive brings us out to Old Ardrey Kell Rd, right onto Honeynut Drive, left onto Hazleview, left onto Linden Tree Lane, right onto Maplehurst, right onto Society and then out to Community House. While the rest of the PAX went across the street to do the fancy house loop, I returned to the AO to prepare their broga mats for stretching.
MOLESKIN
Last week I took a week off to rest my aching body. When Monday morning rolled around it was tough to get up. Everything in me wanted to stay in bed. Even after I go up, I still fought the feeling of going back to sleep. It is easy to stay in bed. It is easy not to do F3. It is easy to be complacent. Yesterday I was reminded by our Pastor that sometimes one of the biggest sins in my life is complacency.
Sometimes I am a complacent dad.
Sometimes I am a complacent husband.
Sometimes I am a complacent PAX.
Sometimes I am a complacent friend.
Sometimes I am complacent in my career.
Sometimes I am complacent in my fight against the sin in my life.
For me, Monday morning is less about running (#Imnotarunner) and more about battling complacency.
I am so fortunate that the other 10 guys showed up this morning and helped me battle against complacency today. I don’t get up and face that battle without them. Tomorrow morning I will face the same battle and God will send another group of guys to help me. I can’t wait.