Run around building and settle in for some People’s Chair-o-rama (2 x 90 seconds)
Mosey back to to parking lot and split up into groups.
10 burpees OYO because you can’t have a burpee-free workout — I’m pretty sure that’s stated in the fine print of the Disclaimer.
Run back to the safety of the parking lot for COT.
Moleskine:
– Stated intention of the workout this morning was to do a basic bootcamp, hit the major muscle groups, run around a bit, and have a wee bit of fun along the way. Based on feedback, I’m happy to report mission accomplished.
– The unstated intention of the workout was to complete most of the field work in the sprinklers. Unfortunately, the sprinklers weren’t on today. Why do it in the sprinklers? For some stupid reason I thought it might be fun – that’s why. Perhaps even more than a wee bit of fun. And we all need more fun in our life. Heck, for many of us, F3 is about as fun as our day gets.
– As always, it was a privilege and an honor to lead you guys.
Announcements:
– HDHH tonight (sorry, I posted this while HDHH is going on, which means I didn’t get my own message. I should be HDHH’ing, not posting right now…)
– New gear/Saturday workout: Olympus. Word is The Hoff will hunt you down if you don’t post.
– Spring Mudrun. Sign up. Stagecoach will hunt you down if you don’t.
11 men got a chance to throw around some weight at The Maul.
MOSEY
4 stations, 1 minute at each with a 20 second rest in between.
4 more stations, 1 minute at each with a 20 second rest in between.
MOSEY
MOLESKIN
It was a nice weighted workout today. It’s good seeing the brothers Grass Stain and Crab Grass showing up on a regular basis. Both seem to be pushing each other during the workout. Pinkman made his return to the Maul as well. Keep coming out my friend.
30 men gathered under the lights of the South Charlotte Middle School parking lot awaiting the latest trip down into the real Death Valley. According to the #MadHatter, it’s where dreams go to die…for us, it is at least where we go to work out hard for 45 minutes. The temperature was perfect, with just enough chill in the air to have the Pax eager for the start. Off we went at 0530.
The Thang
Mosey down into the Valley for a warmup lap around the track (no clipboarders, just us)
Circle up around mid-field for some COP:
Line-up on the line along the goal post for some exercises and sprints:
Back to mid-field and circle up for the finish:
Mosey back to the parking lot…a little bit of time left: Dollies – 20 cadence
COT
Naked Moleskin
Announcements
We started with 38 but ended with 37. Not sure where Wolfman ended up but he might have been the only sane one among us.
Knowing there would be lots of snatches and swings, Your Q advised the Pax to remove watches and rings. Many were not able to do so–#sausagefingers. Chatty mosey down to parking lot and knock the stink off with some SSHs, I Walkers and Squats. If you are wearing sleeves–on a 57 degree morning–do some burpees then go straight to your VW Cabriolet, get your man card out of your purse, and turn it in. Because that is some weak sauce. Fifty. Seven. Degrees. That’s just sad.
But there’s nothing we can do for our besleeved comrades, so we move on to an exercise I am fond of: the two-handed swing. Just forty or so to get the hips firing, hamstrings and glutes activated, core engaged. A prelude for….
The Secret Service Snatch Test. The SSST is as brutal as it is simple: do as many snatches as you can (with good form, of course) in 10 minutes. You can put the bell down and you can switch hands. It’s meant to be an indicator of mental toughness as much as anything but from what I can tell, people that care about these things consider anything below 200 substandard. And that’s with a 53 lb. bell, mind you. The ladies have the option to use the 12kg (25lb) or the 16kg (35 lb) bell for the test. If that weight more closely resembles your bell you were probably wearing sleeves. For the record: 155 with a 45 lb and it sucked.
A Short Leg-O-Rama: tried a hack squat of sorts with the bell behind the back, but that didn’t work so well. Followed by sumo squats, KB lunges, Good Mornings, and then KB lunges to each side. Just enough time to let the arms recover for….
The Swing Ladder A variation of my solo #sadclown workout when I can’t post:
An asinine amount of snatches and swings result in the Dead Fish Handshake. Go with the fist bump today.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Seven strong Men of Fast Twitch put up 4+ miles each on the #speedcircuit, while the bagpipe SOBs apparently continued their remedial work today on running a single mile.
Launch promptly at 0515, run down 51 to Davie Park.
Circle up for brief COP: 20 SSH, 20 Squats
Speed Circuit:
Partner 1 runs up to the end of the front lot and into the playground for three exercises:
Run back to starting point.
Partner 2 runs to back lot, around parking lot and back to starting point.
Partners do 20-30 burpees total combined (20 for groups of two, 30 for group of three).
Flapjack, repeat the above 3x+
Jailbreak back to school for recovery, COT.
Total Mileage: 4.4 – 4.9, depending on where you were when we stopped in the circuit.
15 strong men completed a few rounds of pain this morning at the SOB hideout known as Bagpipe.
The Thang:
Mosey to warm up spot: 25 Side Straddle Hops, 20 Imperial Walker, 25 Merkins
Mosey to Loch Ness wall #1: 10 slow Durkins, 10 slow dips, 20 slow squats.
Run around Loch Ness to wall #2: 10 slow Durkins, 10 slow dips, 20 slow squats.
Mosey to second lake (Loch Doon). 10 Burpees at own pace then lap around lake.
Mosey to foot of long hill up to bridge…. fast run up hill to bridge. Peoples chair at the top.
Mosey back down to parking lot for Mary Merkin Madness: 2 merkins, 20 flutter, 4 merkins, 20 dolly, 6 merkins, 20 heels to heavens, 8 merkins, 20 rosalita, 10 merkins, 20 little baby crunch, 8 merkins, 20 left side raise, 6 merkins, 20 right side raise, 4 merkins, 20 mason twist, 2 merkins, recover.
Mosey to Loch Ness. 3.3 laps = 1 mile time trial. Selected results below:
Frehleys Comet (7:52), Chipotle, Brisket (6:23), Gumbo, Spinner (7:06), Peaches, Wingman (7:43), Mighty Mite, Grass Stain (7:00), Crabgrass (7:46), Puppy Love (6:55), Long Distance, Flip Flop, Rolling Rock (7:40), Haggis (6:14)
Back to parking lot for COT.
Moleskin:
From SKywalker: So for those of you who know Hamlet, our QIC today, you know that he is a man of few words at times, but man can he Q. So, since Hamlet didn’t give me a Title for the backblast, YHC came up with one.
Now, for the backblast….
The Thang:
• Run to Carmel Middle, stopping at speed humps for Merkins (M) x5, Mountain Climbers (MC) x5, Carolina Dry Docs (CDD) x5, and Rock Hoppers (RH) x5.
• COP – M x15, SSH x25, MC x15, Imperial Walkers x15, CDD x15, Sumo Walkers x15, RH x15.
• Count off 1 & 2 – 1s Dip in cadence / 2s sprint length of parking lot and back – Flap Jack (x3)
• Run to track – Run ½ lap Mx15, back ¼ lap Dolly x20, repeat with MC / Freddie Mercury, CDD / Russian Twist, RH / Oblique Sit Ups.
• Run ¼ track crab walk to center of field, sprint back – Plank
• Run ½ track bear craw to center of field, sprint back – Plank
• Run to upper parking lot – backward run to front of school
• Run to 1st speed hump – M x5 / squats x15
• Run to 2nd speed hump – CDD x5 / RH x 5
• Back track to 1st speed hump – 10 MC
• Run to church parking lot
• Mary – Dolly x20, Freddie Mercury x20, Russian Twist x20.
• COT
**This post is intended to get the message out about the GRC 815, and we are going to add to it as we go. Please send me your thoughts and pictures (to Shawn.Kelly@windstream.com) so I can insert them into the Post so the PAX can see images of what is outlined below. My photos are blurry.
01:00 Inspection Line Up
Cadre Dakotah / Cadre Greg
And 11 Shadows (Dora, Culkin and Angler were among the 11)
Coupons: (8) Military Water Jugs – filled up, (2) 55LB KB’s, Fire Hose, 40LB Sand Bag, 120LB Ball, (2) 80LB Sand Bags….AND a 1200 LBS Pole.
31 brave souls (18 of them from F3) were nervous and excited to embark on what would be a life changing event. With over 20 of the 31 admitting to never doing a GRC before, this was definitely something that would become a defining moment for many in the GORUCK class 815.
Cadre Dakotah addressed the group by mentioning that he and Cadre Greg were both active duty Special Forces Green Berets. Dakotah told the group that he joined GORUCK in June, but has been a GRC Cadre every weekend since, and was well accustomed to dishing out the pain. He also mentioned that he joined up with the Army in 2002 and was thankful to have the chance to serve our country in Iraq and shortly thereafter, was selected to be in Special Forces riding along with the 182nd as a medic.
Cadre Greg also added in that he joined the Army in 2003, with 10 years of service and was selected to be in Special Forces and served overseas. Cadre Greg currently is a specialist in training soldiers for the Special Forces selection process and he had recently completed his first GRC. The 815 was to be his first opportunity to Cadre for GORUCK.
Needless-to-say, these fine warriors were more than ready to give the PAX a taste of what life is like during the selection process for The Green Berets. What the PAX was about to go through was quote, “Exactly what we do during the first day of the selection process to assess where our candidates are physically and mentally” – Cadre Dakotah
Once the introductions were made and Rucks inspected, Cadre Dakotah called out for our Team weights…almost our First infraction since only 1 person brought a fire hose and we were lacking a team weight. Not thinking totally through it, I (The Hoff) realized that I had an extra Kettle Bell in the trunk so offered that up. Cadre accepted and asked us to get the KB out for our team weight…again, poor decision on my part as the KB I had in there was 55LBS, 30LBS heavier than then what was required – Trust me, there was a lot of chatter during the 12 hour and 30 minute Ruck about how terrible that bell was.
Welcome Party 01:15-03:15 Lower Field
Most of us were thinking there would be a similarity to the 707 with the Tunnel of Love and Dip in the Creek, but boy did the Cadres have other plans in mind. Formation and Teamwork were the key here. The Cadres were solely focused on breaking us down as a unit and forcing us to work as a team while performing perfect reps. Dakotah even told us they wouldn’t be talking to us for the first 3-4 hours and we needed to talk to each other instead. The Welcome Party consisted of Pushups, Lunges, Squats, Thrusters, Overhead Ruck Press, Flutters, Six Inches, Jumping Squats, Jumping Lunges, 100+ Arm Raises, “On your Belly-On-your Back-On your Feet, Planking, Duck Walks, Frog Jumps, Bear Crawls, Team Sprints with 5 Gallon Jugs, Leaning Team Merkins, and much…much more.
Mosey to Playground for Pull-Ups, Hill Sprints
Fountain Time 03:15-03:30
In the fountain, after we were all smoked from the PT, some were actually looking forward to cooling down…for the most part. Burpees, Push Ups, Flutters…then came the song that would resonate through our heads for the remaining 10 hours:
“On your belly, On your back, On your feet” – Cadre Greg singing as the PAX had to go from belly fully submerged, to your back then squat jump to your feet – exhausting. Followed of course by a roll through the sand just to make sure we were uncomfortable for the upcoming Ruck.
Ruck Time:03:30
Time to Ruck…Cadre selected the youngest person in the group to be our lead and told us that we had to pick up a package at Veterans Park. Funny thing was no one had a clue where the park was and we were told that we has 1.5 hours to get there. Along the way and a few wrong turns, the Cadres began killing off many of the PAX. The first incident was because one of us accidentally stepped into the street and the others to follow were punishments for not being in formation (infractions began piling up…check back later about the infractions…ugh)
Veterans Park 05:00
At this point it was clear the Cadres were becoming frustrated with our lack of teamwork and decided to take us to the baseball fields for more punishment. Bear crawls, Jump squats, etc. to get the PAX back in the right mindset. Once completed, our mission was to find the package that was waiting for us and what was to follow was one of the most horrific items that would haunt us for the remaining journey…a 1200 LBS Telephone Pole. This thing took 12 men to carry and was awful. No hiding from the pain and with us packed in so tightly just to carry it our steps were much shorter than we would have preferred, which in essence doubled the amount of pain we were in under the log.
When we got the Log up, Cadre announced that we needed to find the Holiday Inn in Center City. Off we went…
About ½ mile in and WAIT..FLAG TOUCHES THE GROUND! The punishment for this was devastating. Those on the log had to press over head in cadence alternating from one shoulder to the other, while the others pressed Rucks and Jugs in the same fashion until shoulders were completely smoked. We learned the hard way to never do that again!
Along the way, the rain started and the sun began coming out. Many spectators were asking us what we were doing, but the PAX was not allowed to say anything other than, “GORUCK”…we couldn’t even ask for directions.
Holiday Inn 07:30
PAX gets a nice history lesson, water break learns about what it is like to be a new recruit staying in the Holiday Inn the night before going to boot camp. Cadres then give us orders to find Fraiser Park and we have 1 hour to get there. If we don’t get there in time, more penalties in store.
Fraiser Park 08:45
At Fraiser we were met up with a local and learned that in war time, the Army takes time to train the locals there to aid and assist in the War efforts. These brave people act as our allies and help the soldiers fight during wartime. In addition, we offer them back some assistance in supplies and transport. It is here that things got really tough for the PAX. 3 more coupons of epic proportions. (2) 80lbs bags and (1) 120lbs ball. Time to move out! Orders are to move out to the 5 point intersection off Morehead Rd, then to the Met. We have 2.5 hours to get there.
After 8 hours in, a strange and unforeseen thing started happening. The PAX became 1 team. We moved more efficiently and move faster with the extra weight. Since we were all at this point carrying something, there was no relief at all. Everyone had to dig down deep and work together. The pain turned to focus as we made our way to the Met.
The Met 12:30
DROP LOG OFF. 6.5 hours of carrying that enormous pole was over. Drop Ball and Extra Coupons.
Cadre called out “20 minutes to get back to Independence Park” and we all double-timed it. But the Cadres had other plans…killing off the big guys. For the last mile, 8 of us were killed off and it took everything we had to move those bodies through the streets. Dead guys’ arms were around 2 people’s necks while legs held up by 2 more. At this point, everyone was carrying a human. We almost didn’t make it on time, but dug deep and made it back to the park.
Independence Park 12:50
Could this be? We finished 10 minutes early…NOT!!!!
INFRACTIONS – Cadre called out our 15 infractions, therefore we owed him more time.
Infraction Exit Party:
15 rounds, 15 exercises with sprints up the hill in between each round. If we didn’t perform in perfect cadence or rep range, we start all over!!
Rounds (Squats, Push Ups, Squat Thrusts, Lunges, Mountain Climbers, Ski Abs, Flutter, Burpees, Overhead Press, Arm Raises, Belly-Back-Feet, Frog Jumps, Jump Squats, Thrusters, and Slow Squats in Cadence) – Basically did an intense F3 routine at the end of a 12 hour Ruck.
Finished 13:22
I’ve never been so proud to be a part of something in my life. It didn’t hit me until Cadre Dakotah shook my hand and handed me the patch when I realized the true meaning of what we were doing. I became overwhelmed in emotion as I thought about the team…the guys that I trained with at SPEARHEAD for months and the new friends I made from the class of GRC815. Finally, I realized what it all means…it isn’t about 1 person, but the team. I looked over at BLC, Iron Horse, Sweetness, Check Point, Culkin and the rest of the group and was a moment that will stay with me forever. What we accomplished was unreal. Our bodies were physically beaten down to a point of complete failure. Our mental stability and strength was tested the entire time as we would not give up. We would help our brothers in need regardless of how sore or tired we became. We were there for each other no matter what. It is with great appreciation that I thank everyone who was involved and moving forward recommend this to everyone looking to achieve what we did that day.
For a link to photos from the GRC Class 815 click: https://sites.google.com/site/spearheadf3/photo-gallery
As always an honor to be able to be a part of something like this!
Respectfully,
Shawn Kelly aka The Hoff
16 men gathered on the Mckee Road Elementary School grounds to dodge bullets at The Matrix.
The Thang
-Jog around back fields
-Warm up… you know the drill… IW, SSH, Squats
-Playground… you know the drill… three cycles of pull ups, dips and merkins
-Lunge / CDD combo
-Butt kicks / High Knees / Karoake / Back Pedal / Merkin combo
-Mary
-20 burpees
-10 merkins
Moleskin
8 of the strong SOB’s (Sons of Ballentyne) dusted off their cold weather gear and entered the Foxhole for what turned out to be an all-out total body assault. After finding the Sports Connection boot camp crew on our turf (literally), we thought there could be some actual assault. However, there is enough room on the spacious Elon Park fields for 4 simultaneous boot camps so no problems were encountered.
The Thang:
Run to side of school and begin warmup
– SSH x 60 (Bratwurst joins half way through)
– Old Fashioned Toe Touches x 15 per side
– Backward Lunges x 12 per side
– Mr. Miyagi x 10 per side
– Monkey Humpers x 10 (Chipotle’s personal favorite)
Rack ‘em and head to the fields for the real work
– Audible called upon realizing we were not alone (Sports Connection boot camp has infiltrated our AO)
– Head to the other side of the field
– Round 1:
– 2 hand swings x 20
– Juggler x 45 sec
– Snatch x 10 per side
– 10 count pause for effect
– Round 2:
– 2 hand swings x 20
– Juggler x 45 sec
– Snatch x 10 per side
– Figure 8 x 45 sec each direction
– 10 count
Line up on side line
– Bear crawl to center field / jog back
– Crab walk to center field (w/ KB on your stomach) / jog back
– Bear crawl to center field / jog back
– Crab walk (no KB) to center field / jog back
(Editorial Note: If there is ever a crab walk competition, don’t challenge Market Timer. You will lose! #strangelyproficient)
Head even further away from Sports Connection crew since the hooting and barking noises were getting distracting.
– Round 1:
– Clean & press alternating hands x 10 per side
– KB curls holding the ball of the KB x 20
– Triceps extension x 20
– Round 2:
– Rinse & Repeat
– Jog 100 yds and back
Begin 6 minutes of mary
– Full sit-ups x 40
– Mason twist x 20
– Freddy Mercury (called by Bratwurst) x 20
– Dolly (called by MT) x 20
– Mission impossible x 10 with a hold while Greatest American Hero intro was sung (another Chipotle favorite)
– Protractor (called by Frehleys) with some 62deg Dolly thrown in
The Moleskin:
– At 42deg, it was a cold start this morning. Frehley’s even broke out the tights (thanks for wearing the shorts over them!). Once we got to the monkey humpers though, everyone was sufficiently warm to get to work.
– It was good to meet Whiplash (brought to the Foxhole by Rock Thrill). Thanks for coming out brother. Hope to see you out again.
– Due to Chipotle’s great reaction, monkey humpers and the Greatest American Hero song may deserve repeating in future workouts. Pretty funny stuff.
– Overall great effort by all. It was on purpose that there was not much running involved today, but hopefully you would agree, it was still a total body burn.
Announcements:
– Jan 4 Convergence and Joe Davis 5k – the post and instructions are up on the website. Sign up for this great event! NOCO, Metro, The Fort, and Area51 all expected to represent. http://f3nation.com/2013/10/20/convergence-and-5k-run/
– Football 2nd F Event – November 10 – Fox & Hound in Ballantyne – See Evite
– Holiday Party – December 7 at TR and M-TR’s house – See Evite