9 guys posted at The Arsenal on a crisp December morning to see what kind of questionable decisions YHC would make.
YHC started with a disclaimer emphasizing social distancing, and then… hold on… someone is coming in hot! Who could it be? Let’s put our lives on hold and wait to find out. Why it was none other than General_! Wow, haven’t seen him since the Reagan administration. This was a lot to process, but we had to forge ahead in earnest, now that we were officially a minute behind schedule. Surely this late start wouldn’t cause us to finish a minute late.
YHC had previously indicated we would be heading off campus. There was speculation by some that we’d be heading deep into the surrounding dark and hilly neighborhoods. Good guess, but no. Only Wingman pieced the puzzle together. YHC had strategically dropped the word “inspiration” into the pre-workout marketing and Wingy deduced, while studying Google Maps on the shitter, that we’d be heading to the campus of Inspiration Ministries. Nice work, Wingy. General_ ,on the other hand, had no clue where we were going. Wingman 1, General -1000.
Thang
We banged a right on Doby’s Bridge, crossed 521 with ease and continued Northeast on the brand new road that the new Indian Land YMCA graciously installed for us. General_ got winded almost immediately so we stopped for some SSH and then again a little later for IW so he could compose himself. After he stopped spilling merlot and pooping himself, we continued on past the Y and finally made it to the campus of Inspiration Ministries and CrossRidge church. The journey to this point was 1 mile. Now it was time for a little exploration of the extremely beautiful and impressive campus before us.
LSS x 10 IC in the lower right parking lot.
Mosey to the oval path around the giant cross behind the pond. There are 7 benches around the oval. Each pax find a home bench. Run counterclockwise to each bench in suicide fashion, stopping for 5 derkins at each new bench and home bench. It was around this time that several pax individually confided in me that they didn’t think General_ would make it thru the workout, despite skipping most of the exercises.
Mosey to bridge going across the pond. Run around the North side of the pond, stopping at each corner for jump squats, starting w/ 10 and increasing by 10 at each corner. General_ pulled an audible and got in a quick nap.
Mosey to “big monument thing” near the 521 entrance. Grab some wall for dips and hip slappers IC.
Return to the main entrance road for route 66 burpees using the trees as markers. We got to the 7th tree before needing to head back to launch (28 burpees).
We retraced our steps, more or less, on the 1 mi journey home, stopping a couple times for mary. General_ took an Uber back.
Moleskin
Ok, in reality we had an extremely strong group which enabled us to crush the 1 mi trek to/fro and get most of the weinke in. In total we covered almost 4 miles. Strong work by everyone, including General_. This new territory will (hopefully) be a welcome addition to the Arsenal repertoire. I thoroughly enjoyed leading and exploring this area with these fine men. Thank you Brexit for the opportunity, and thank you L Train for switching dates w/ me.
Announcement
Deck Run v5 is tomorrow at the Brave. 9 decks are on the menu.
Time
Tongue-tied or short of breath, don’t even try
Try a little harder
Something’s wrong, you’re not naive, you must must be strong
Ooh, baby, try.
That was Spackler’s disclaimer & encouragement prior to launch…don’t believe me? Ok, actually that is the opening stanza of English band Kajagoogoo’s “Too Shy”, released in 1983. Why do I mention this? Glad you asked.
Puddin’ Pop, with a partial assist from Geraldo, gave me the history of the song and lead singer – Limahl, not le Maul after YHC mentioned posting at The Maul yesterday. You never know what may come out of the nether regions of Puddin’ & Geraldo’s steel memory vaults — containing all things pop culture, TV, music, etc.
By the way YHC is Hops, not Spackler, as he refuseniked the backblast and said as much during COT.
So here’s a bit of Thang & mostly Moleskinny below:
Actually only 19 of us did the workout. Site Q Emeritus and Poet Laureate of Area 51 – Sprockets – ran in for COT.
We ran over to the church parking lot for COP, where Geraldo soiled himself. Spackler then had the pax partner up, grab a rock, and run with it to Evelyn’s Hill or Evelyn’s Rock or whatever. So we ran the hill 3 or 4 times with rock exercises while partner ran up and did 15 merkins. It was Covid compliant, as we were all wearing gloves, except Proehl and maybe Lorax.
Speaking of gloves – Hopper shared how his pair of French gloves had held up beautifully for 2 years. He bought these wondergloves when he and M. Hopper were in Paris for their 20th. Puddin’ Pop guessed the boutique at which Hopper bought these mittens. Steel vault. Weird.
Now back to the church, return rocks, and head over to SCLT baseball complex for starfish work. Spackler called for modified burpees which YHC thought meant some feeble knee bends, but he actually meant squat thrusts. Also, at some point Hopper pointed out that it was the first time Brandi ever wore sleeves to an F3 workout. 25 degrees will do that, I guess.
Slingshot asked for donations to fill the monstrous pothole behind the school. I’m donating an unused bag of Sakrete.
Deep Dish updated the pax on the Vegas odds for Clemson at VT this weekend. #F3Bookie
Some other funny stuff happened…hopefully, you guys will chime in with some more flavor.
Good bootcamp Q Spackler – less than 3 miles. Glad to be back on the bootcamp circuit.
Please keep Bout Time’s family in your prayers. His young son Jennings’ cancer has come back, and they have another long fight ahead of them. God is able to heal, so let’s boldly ask Him to do so. Ask Him. Often.
We all have things that weigh on us, things we need — relational, financial, mental struggles. Risking getting too “faithy” here, but men –> there is a God who cares and listens. He is not a genie granting wishes, and He is not some cosmic vending machine. But even if you’re not a praying man – what do you have to lose? Ask. Knock. Seek. An ancient king named David once wrote, “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” He always feeds the hungry.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11: 28-29
7 PAX conquered the fartsack for a cold morning of 28 deg. YHC arrived at Calvary at precisely 516 for the latest Q of Meathead. Parking lot abandoned, was hoping for a few others to do awkward old man broga with me. Alas it’s me, my dirty yoga mat, and my degenerative lumbar spine. Cue Simon and Garfunkel “Hello Darkness My Ole Friend….” Get out of the car, boy it’s cold….stretchy stretchy. 519 Uncle Leo arrives and now we have two dudes doing some stretching. Now we’re cooking! My downward doggin’ and Uncle Leo with some magical Mark Spits stretches. Head lights of the Anvil Pax gather over yonder. Rest of Meathead PAX arrive at near launch time.
PAX: Hoover, Ickey Shuffle, Mighty Might, Sloglow, Uncle Leo, Unplugged, Voodoo
COP:
SSH IC X 20
Windmill IC X 10
Squat Stretch – Left, Right, Center – Repeato
Baby and Poppa Arm circles IC X 10 each
Thang: Goal 250 swings with some unilateral work to test our balance and build awesome obliques.
Round 1:
Round 2 repeat on right side; Round 3 – repeat left side; Round 4 repeat right side.
Recover for real this time
Round 5 – Alternating 10 1H swings with 10 rack walking squats lunges
3.5MOM
DONE!
Molskine:
Boy was it cold today! PAX put in tremendous work doing some different exercises. The rack squats and walking lunges were a crowd pleaser. I added some unilateral training to work on balance under load and get the core working for longer. Time under tension. The cold induced my asthma which is usually a sign that either the workout is beasty or it’s cold as a steel jockstrap. I think both, particularly the latter.
It was great to have Hoover back out after his families COVID encounter. All immediate family are negative so he’s back at it. He was dressed in all black. Some PAX (Ickey?) commented that he looked like every Disney movie burglar. YHC was a bit O2 dep and asthma’y this morning so he miscalled a few of the exercises. Much laughter and levity was had when I called for rack walking squats (meant lunges). Hoover said I get to add that to the Lexicon. Thanks Voodoo for the playlist assist. One of these days I’ll have a weinke and a playlist and a speaker.
Thanks for letting me lead.
Unplugged Out!
Fin!
Hey PAX, we’re halfway through the 2020 Passport Challenge and I figured it was time for an update on the standings. But first, a reminder of what I’m talking about. The 1st F Q’s of A51, SOB, and Waxhaw put together a challenge designed to get PAX outside their normal routines/regions/comfort zones. Why? Because there’s a whole wide world of AOs and PAX you’ve likely never seen and you’re cheating yourself if you don’t at least try to get a taste. So here are the rules:
The 2020 Passport Challenge:
So what are things looking like at the moment? Check out the link for sure to see some fancy-pants bar charts that show which PAX, which AO, and which Region is currently in the lead, but if you want the quick and dirty:
Leading PAX: Das Boot with 24 unique sites!
Leading AO: 3 way tie with Firestarter, Flash, and Bushwood at 14
Leading Region: Not even close guys; Waxhaw at 184
So here’s the deal: We’re at the halfway point and maybe you’re just finding out about the Challenge. Not to worry, we accept back-dated additions to the spreadsheet, so if you know you attended a certain site or event back in November then go ahead and drop your name on the spreadsheet and put that date next to your name.
The year is nearly at an end. Let’s finish it out with a strong push! #SYITG
~Chastain, Cooter2, Madame Tussauds, Orange Whip, & Tuck
The Warmup:
Mosey to entrance and gather around mysterious parked car
SSH (bad count); Imperial Walkers, Moroccan night clubs, Downward dog transition to upward dog. Move to calf stretch then Jimmy Dugans
The Thang
Return to COT to get coupon
Partner up and rifle carry to Mt. Chiseled. Partner serves as timer and runs around Mt. Chiseled or Bear crawl up Mt. Chiseled (no one choose this adventure)
Mt of pain workouts
Return to COT with coupon and time for a Chastain favorite “Make it Stop”—Turnbuckle started with curls,
Moleskin:
This was my VQ and appreciate the push by Posse , Fuse Box and Chastain to lead. What I lacked in originality I made up for in excitement. It was fun experience not being in the back of the pack for the opening mosey, not sure if it was Q adrenalin or others struggling in the cold or me not giving clear instructions on where to go. I did not fully appreciate how challenging it can be to call the cadence while working out and recovering from the run.
Everyone worked their butt off and some said they were exhausted which is very full filling.
Appreciate the crew that braved the cold to support me today. It was so cold my speaker did not work properly. This has been an incredible journey and everyone needs a push to get out of their comfort zone. While running through my Q in my head yesterday I came to the discovery that most of the frequent Q’s have a signature move that they incorporate into every workout. Example Fuse box workouts almost always has a bear crawl involved and Chastain has the donkey kick / monkey humper double punch. I need some time on what will be my signature move for my next Q.
Announcements:
– Five stones wood clearing next weekend bring shovels, chainsaws and other implements
– Christ Closet is now moving to virtual- Please contact them to schedule a drop off or pick up clothes
– TB and Shopdog are working on helping a family pain the rented house they just moved into. If you are available to help please reach out to TB or Shop dog for additional details. Christmas list for this family was also posted on group me
As I was still preparing for my Q last night, Brexit hit me up and asked if anyone preruns SACS…well we start at 0515 and anything before then is crazy, so no. Upon my arrival today, 1 lonely car in the lot. At 5:14 another car pulled in and I greeted Geraldo…however that was Dora. Apparently his other family cruiser is the same as Geraldo. So at 0516 no disclaimer was provided, but we sacked up (2 sandbag and a ruck) and headed into the darkness.
The warmup
Usually this involves a trip or 2 around the track, however 3/4 around the track my phone rang. No it was not Fockers girl this time (another mid workout call to him during his Q), rather Geraldo was looking for us in the gloom. After a bit of coordination we were eventually 4 strong.
The Thang
I honestly struggled to create this workout (mental block), but here are the details:
Perform 1 full round of exercises that started with 5 reps, some sort of “creative mosey” to mid track, 10 reps / creative mosey and then 15 reps…followed by 10 burpess and then advance to the other side of the track with yet another “creative mosey” (single arm, overhead, back, chest)
1st round
Bicep curl, front squat, Russian twist
2nd round
Tricep extension, back squat, LBC
3rd round
Shouldering (from ground put bag on left shoulder, then down / repto on right side), upright row, lung
4th round
Pull through, dolly / thruster
50 Cadence count LBC and walk back to the parking lot
DONE
Take out: Geraldo- thanks
Announcements: Dora on Q next week
Ye Olde Mole Skinny
The temperature gauge read 24 degrees.
The clock read 5:23.
The parking lot at Dromedary was empty but for my own sorry self wondering if anyone else would post. Going back to bed DID sound nice as I looked at the frost covered mulch in the median next to my parking space. Then again, I already drove a million miles to the BFE that is Dromedary.
“Does anyone even live out here?”
“Who decided to put an AO out here anyways?”
“How did I agree to Q way out here on the coldest day of the year so far?”
“Why didn’t I make Premature agree to Q Diesel in exchange?”
These are the thoughts that made their way through my still half asleep brain.
The clock now read 5:24.
Headlights come into view. Aha! A reason to stay. A reason to justify my being here. A reason to…dammit it’s Ice9. There had better be some other PAX showing up…
A few more cars roll in but by the time everyone forced themselves out into the cold it was time for DiCCS. Too late to escape the cold and retreat to the warmth of the fartsack.
The clock read 5:30. Let’s mosey.
Warmup
A long mosey around the lot with a smattering of SSHs, Imperial Squalkers (a portmanteau of Walker and Squat; NOT Squawker as Ice9 griped wasn’t manly enough of a name), Moroccan Night Clubs, Calf Stretches, and Mountain Climbers.
Centerfold got there early (for him) and we picked him up along the way. Made a slight detour and grabbed Shake N Bake to round out the group to an even 8 idiots suckers PAX. Too bad I had no partner work planned. I always seem to get odd numbers when I do that…
The Thang
Jailbreak from the end of the lot towards the crest of the hill, crossing the median at the break, then alternate 5 Merkins, 5 Bomb Jacks, and 5 Big Bois at each tree for a total of 15 of each exercise on the way back down the hill. Repeato.
Mosey our way over to the lot next to the school for a little 4 Corners action where we deconstructed a Burpee. Or maybe it was 10 Burpees. 10 Squats, 10 In and Outs, 10 Merkins, and 10 Bobby Hurleys, but we do them all in cadence.
Another little mosey around the west side of the school to the first alcove. I’ve been on a bit of a Donkey Kick kick (c wut i did ther) recently, so we did some 7s. Donkey Kicks at the first alcove, a quick jaunt to the second alcove, and Speed Skaters (always 2=1) over thataway.
Back to the front lot for more 4 Corners of togetherness, only this time we did 10 Dry Docks, 10 Jump Squats, 10 Diamond Merkins, and 10 Walking Lunges (always, always 2=1). Again, in cadence because I said so.
Now we move over to the big lot and find your own little happy place along the curb.
This group is fast. Faster than I thought (hoped) so we have more time left than I thought (hoped) so we did a little repeato on the tree Merkins/Bomb Jacks/Big Bois from earlier.
A few minutes remaining so 5 Bobby Hurleys at every other tree back to COT. Audible at the top of the hill! 10 Dry Docks on the way down.
Grab some curb for some Dips IC and then some Mike Tysons IC.
The clock read 6:15.
Moleskin
I like to Q. According to Deflated’s fancy-pants website I’ve done so 36 (this’ll be 37) times this year. Some are easier. Some are tougher. Some are inventive. Some are boring. People (me included) have ribbed Zinfandel about advertising “for my xth Q” but honestly I think it’s great he’s talking about it. It’s great to have goals. It’s great to push yourself and get out of your comfort zone. It’s great to LEAD. After all, that’s a core principle of F3. It’s peer led. Recently we’ve had several vQs and that’s awesome. I missed one today at Chiseled where I’m sure Ex-LAX did a killer job. Sugar Daddy and Schnitzel were in attendance at Dromedary today and just had their vQs; both of which I attended and both of which were excellent. I guarantee it won’t be their last Qs either. If you’re reading this and you’ve never led a workout then it’s time you did. You’re ready. Talk to a Site Q. Talk to me. You won’t be on your own. We’ll help you build it, help you through it, and help you improve it for the next time.
Announcements
Rice and Beans – Helping serve meals on Wednesdays uptown – Today’s filled up, but there are openings for 12/9 and 12/16. Talk to Centerfold to sign up. M and 2.0 friendly
Painting project – You may recall the mother and kids who’s husband/father recently left and took all their things (furniture, food, everything). We’re showing them that people care and have a painting day this Saturday following morning workouts to get their house looking nice. Only a couple guys signed up right now and could use a few more. See Shop Dawg for details and to sign up.
YHC took us out
Buddy the Elf, I mean YHC showed up shortly before 0500 for prerun with Alpaca-onesie to boot. Cooter greeted me with a smirk, Black Beard emerged from the minivan, Kirby from the Camry and we were off into the gloom with the wind in our hair. Pretty sure we ran 3 miles but the watch only said 2. Those were some long miles.
Wardrobe change for the main event. Cooter kicked us off with the reminder to social distance. I modified the disclaimer with a pronouncement of wealth upon all gathered and off we went. As @Rousey would say “we got shit to do”
The Thang
Warmup: SSH’s, Peter Parker, Mtn Climbers, Hillbilly Squats, Merkins, Shoulder Taps
Mosey to parking lot in front of Sara’s Y for 12 DAYS OF F3 CHRISTMAS
Introduce new called exercise for each island in the parking lot
Each day introduce a new exercise and repeat prior called exercises
1: Sprint to Sara’s Y and back (12 total = 1 mile)
2: Diamond Merkins (22 total)
3: Sumo Squats (30 total)
4: Supermans (36 total)
5: Burpees (40 total) ALWAYS A CROWD FAVORITE!
6. Squats a-jumping (42 total)
7. Mike Tysons: (42 total)
8. Pax-a-Merkin’g (40 total)
9. ‘Merican hammers (36 total)
10. Planks-a-jacking (30 total) *Insert @Frehley’s dirty joke*
11. Low slow squats (22 total)
12. Carolina dry docks (12 total)
Mosey back to launch and meetup with runners
The Moleskine