It was a great morning with the boys, I appreciate Alf allowing me the opportunity to lead! Note to anyone that isn’t a regular at Cerberus, there is an area that was utilized today that people allow their dogs on to do unsavory things that would lead you to therefore not want to allow anything other than the bottom of your shoes come in contact with. I apologize, I did not know anything about this, and I hope none of you ate your Chick-fil-a biscuits afterwards until you washed your hands!
There are a number of charity runs coming up, Susan Komen, Heather’s Heroes, and Need for Speed will be a part of each of those. Check out Mancave following every Friday morning workout at the Panera in the Arboretum. See below for what took place while we were together. I hope you all had a great day and enjoy the weekend!
-Busch
The Workout:
Merkin psych to start with because I knew Alf was expecting it…
Mosey to the bottom of the parking garage for 30 SSHs and 30 IWs
30 Merkins in Cadence
Run up all four decks with stopping at the second for 30 Dry docks in cadence
Run to far side of complex to the large broken asphalt pile and jump into groups of 3 for choose your own adventure in regards to the size of broken asphalt for alternating shoulder push presses and curls to failure while partner two runs 150 yards to partner three who is doing merkins, dry docks, and jump squats to failure. Once partner two gets there, switch for 3 rounds.
Run to middle of AO for some Mary until everyone is caught up.
Run to round about circle for 20 dips and 20 decline merkins X 2
Switch to 20 dips and 20 step ups X2
Run to the turf for some partner work with partner one doing squats, partner two doing lunges, while partner three is the timer bear crawling in-between and swapping positions upon arrival.
Not until we were about to do some Mary was I informed that people allow their dogs to drop things upon the turf that may not be very sanitary…almost all of the Pax moved off onto the concrete for their Mary even though they had just bear crawled through the unseen mess woven into the turf. Thanks for the late heads up Alf! Ha!
Mary
Run to raised wall for 20 dips and 20 decline Merkins X 2
20 Dips and 2o step ups X 2
Run back to starting point for Partner one doing jump squat, partner two doing Sister Mary Catherines, and partner three being the sprint timer over 30 yards.
Finish with some Mary.
For some reason when YHC Q’s Rebel Yell it seems to want to rain. But every time the skies part just in time and it ends up being great weather. That was the case today as well so at about 5:28 the rain stopped and the cars rolled in, including what looked to be a 5 Pax clown car. 20 Pax were kicked off with a proper disclaimer since we had one semi-FNG (more on that later) and off we went. Here’s what went down.
The Ting
Warm up:
SSH x 12
IW x 12
5 burpees OYO
Peter Parkers x 10
Parker Peters x 10
Head down the Murderhorn stopping at every street light for 5 merkins. Stopping at the rock pile everyone grabbed a rock somewhere between a lifting rock and a running rock because we were not going to run nor lift them. Carry said rocks to the Thornhill park and place them down where YHC had placed cones beforehand. 3 stations were set up for some circuit work and the Pax counted off in 3’s. The 1’s hit station 1 which consisted of 4×4’s. This is where you plank on a parking spot line and hop side to side over the line 4 times then go into 4 squats. Continue until time called. The 2’s hit station 2 which consisted of Larry Bird’s (not an official name but rather one that YHC came up with because he is an old school basketball soul and it really was not a Jordan type move). Grab a rock and squat letting the rock touch the ground then up with a jumpshot using the rock. Continue until time called. Station 3 with the 3’s were our time keepers. Up to the picnic area for 10 derkins, run to the park entrance and then back for 10 derkins. Once the 3’s finished they called switch and everyone rotated stations. We rotated so that every group did every station.
The Pax were (editor’s note: Was or were? Is Pax singular or plural?) very quick on the circuit work. We wrapped up one round, did some Mary to catch our breaths and then did another round of the stations. Back to the rock pile to put our rocks back gently and then back up the Murderhorn stopping for 20 LBC’s at each street light.
Once back at Stonecrest we moseyed over behind the theater for some wall work. People’s Chair with 50 overhead presses which apparently I called something else the first time and Wingman in a not sarcastic way whatsoever let me know I used the wrong term. After People’s Chair up on the wall for some balls to the wall. The Pax were reminded to try and get their B as close as possible to the W. This seemed to be a crowd favorite with some groaning and a lot of clomping of feet back to the ground when time was called. Thus YHC called for a 2nd round of People’s Chair/overhead presses and B2theW. Deciding the shoulders and arms needed more attention we circled up for a round of bearcrawl banjo. YHC learned this delight posting at an out of town AO and has made it his mission to bring it into SOB land. The Pax circle up in plank facing outward. First guy bearcrawls out and around the circle. Once the first guy starts the next guy to the right does 3 merkins then bearcrawls around trying to catch the other guy, continuing down the line. If you get caught it is down for a merkin. So on and so on until everyone has bearcrawled around the circle. Oh and while planking you drop for a merkin ever time someone bearcrawls in front of you. A couple of minutes left for some Mary and then TIME.
Moleskin:
Great work by all on this fine morning. A good showing of 20 guys despite the questionable weather. The Pax was really quick through everything today as evidenced by the fact that YHC makes sure to have more planned than ever needed but we were getting to some of my last planned exercises on this day. Thanks to guys like Chunder, Bucky and Transporter for calling Mary and plank while we regrouped and brought the 6 in. We do need a brush up on rule following as YHC made it clear that Station 3 could not call switch until everyone from the group was done and in, but we had guys finishing up all over the place and heading to the next stations. “Leave no man behind” (said in my Dad voice). Thanks to everyone that led a Mary exercise when YHC called on them. Mental note, don’t call on Transporter to lead a Mary exercise unless you want to do 857 American Hammers…ouch. T-claps to Gramatica for the strong showing on the bearcrawl banjo. He went from coughing up a lung like he had just smoked a pack of Marlboro Reds before the warmup to chasing people down on bearcrawl like a greyhound. Admittedly the bearcrawl banjo kicked YHC’s tail. I had to go knees down a couple of times on my own exercise (don’t Q it if you can’t do it, right?). The last couple of times I have done it there has been like 8-9 guys but 20 makes it fun and challenging. Thanks to FNG Flounder for coming out to post. YHC was confused how he was at his first post but already had a nickname. Apparently he skipped the F3 warmup altogether and went straight to running BRR with some of F3’s finest. So instead of being the only guy being called by his hospital name they dubbed him Flounder. Be sure to ask him the origins of the name as it is pretty funny.
Announcements:
Thanks to Billy Goat and Mary Kay for the opportunity to lead.
YHC pulling into the AO is always a familiar sight, but never on a Thursday. Ed and Bean were the welcoming committee as the rest of the PAX pulled in. Was hoping the humidity would have died down, but to no avail. A few more days of summer it is.
A disclaimer was given, and off we went.
COP
Mosey around the field for some butt kicks and high knees to the parking lot behind the field for COP.
IW x 15
Low Slow Squat x 15 (all were low, some were even slow)
Merkin x 10
Mountain Climber x 10
The Thang:
We stayed in the lot and plankwalked down the long side of the lot. At every other parking space line 5 merkins, at the other one lunge walk to the end and back.
Round 2 we crab walked down the lot and at every other line did 5 dips and squat walked on the other line.
Mosey to the rock pile across the street and grab a lifting and moving rock. Mosey back to the bottom of staircase 3 of Tartarus deck.
Starting at the bottom with your rock, do 10 overhead press, 10 tricep extensions and 10 curls, drop the rock and take the stairs to the top. At the top, 10 donkey kicks, 10 air press on the wall and 10 (changed to 5 in round 3) burpees. Run over and back down the middle staircase to your rock. Take the rock to level 2 and perform rock exercises there. Each time running to the top, exercise, and back to your rock (exercise) and taking it up 1 level to the top.
Mosey back to launch.
Mary
Heels to Heaven x 15
Flutter x 15
Rosalita x 15
American Hammer x 18 (final predicted US Ryder Cup score)
COT/Announcements
Isabella Santos this Saturday.
YHC with the take-out prayer
Moleskin:
Strong group of men out today, while I have never been to the Fishing Hole before today, I have a feeling was mostly a group of regulars. I posted Centurion today (Friday) and no repeat PAX, so was good for me to get out of my regular and meet some new guys. Alas my attempt at War Baby was throttled when 21 year old Marco showed up. Marco and Polo didn’t just show up on time, they navigated blindly through the gloom and were lost, and found us, can’t make this stuff up. The refuseniks came out strong with the plank and crab walk sets. Chelms told me to make sure I kept the running low, so what do the refuseniks do, run. I tried. Bean hazed them quite well and it was noted Commish did return for the other half of the set. For those that stuck with the plan, final mileage was 1.47, definitely the lowest Q I’ve had. The rock pile doesn’t have the best selection, but didn’t hear much complaining there and a lot of the PAX ended up with small boulders. Enjoyed the group, and thanks for the opportunity.
10 Men are have a little wobble to their walk thanks to some hairburners and a “recovery hill”. No Site Qs were harmed during the production of this workout. According to Strava, Orange Whip is hanging out with Richard Bachman in Maine. I think he taped his iPhone to the back of of a Muskrat while he scarfed down some lobster and waffles, but we may need the FBI to investigate that.
Thang:
Warmup near the tennis courts where the lonely port-a-john lives. Nobody was home. Harley eagerly asked about the graveyard, so we got out of there.
Main event was a hairburner rally with teams of three. Move your plate across the lot and back as a team while the partners do an exercise, or roll over and play dead. As long at the plate gets there, the rulez were pretty loose.
“Recovery ” was three hill sprints with some exercises at the base after each down and back.
Move the plates down a level and repeat this several times, keeping the hill sprints after each set. As we moved farther away, the sprints got more unpleasant as did the Pax.
Final move was to slide the plates all the way back up, nonstop. Near mutiny, but we pulled it together and got er done. Bulldogs knee exploded and I think somebody’s spleen shot out of their eye socket, so I’ll call it a win.
As if that wasn’t enough, we then headed back over to the graveyard to kill the last bit of time. Partners run, one does LBCs in dead end and the other does derkins on the bench. meet in the middle for 15 team burpees. Each man does exactly 7.5 burpees, or split em up however you can work it out emotionally with your partner.
Finally, we ran back to the start while I pretended to so some Mary for a couple of mins.
Shoutouts:
– HH
9 Meathead vets ignored the lingering rain and make the hard right choice to post at ELE, only to find a growing pile of sand bags, ruck sacks, and kettle bells. Uncertainty filled the air as YHC led the disclaimer.
Warm Up:
11’s with descending swings and ascending merkins
Transition/Instruction:
Grab 2 kettle bells each plus all the sand bags and rucks and move over to the bus lot. Divide into 4 groups. Each group of 2 or 3 will start at a different corer. Sand bag and Ruck exercises demonstrated. Each pax will carry 2 kettle bells around the AO from station to station in between each set of exercises. Modify exercise or rep count as needed.
AMRAP till 6:13. Go!
Four Corners of Pain:
Station 1: Sand Bags (40,60, 75, 80 pound options) – 10 reps each
Ground to shoulder (alternate L,R)
4 count military press (L to R to L, repeat)
Clean and toss (5 out and 5 back)
Station 2: Ruck Sacks (30-50 lbs) – 10 reps each
Ruck thrusters
Ruck overhead squats
4 count flutter kicks with ruck up
Station 3: Kettle Bells (large variety)
Upright rows – 10
Squats – 20
Swings – 30
Station 4: Body Weight (large variety of shapes and sizes)
Merkins – 10
Squats – 20
LBC’s 30 (you are welcome)
Transition back to launch – carry as much as you can, leaving YHCs gear for later pick up
COT and Namerama. YHC with take out.
The Skinny:
YHC has wanted to explore the other side of the ELE parking lot for quite some time now. The idea to have 4 corners with pain stations at each corner led itself well to this location. Part of the fun work was carrying all the gear to and from the bus lot. T-Claps to the pax whom I asked to bring gear! They all showed up with car/truck fulls. We had more sand bags than pax. We had enough kettle bells for an Area 51 convergence.
The idea was do offer some simple exercises with sand bags, rucks, kettle bells, and body weight and allow the pax to both modify down/slow down as needed but also modify up/speed up if desired. Hopefully those not too familiar with sand bags and rucks enjoyed the introduction and those experienced pax were given a chance to push themselves. The AMRAP idea is nothing new but YHC was inspired by Alf and McGee and others down at Wednesday’s WAMRAP.
The exercises seemed too easy at first, but YHC quickly tired from the grind of doing them over and over (and carrying those damn kettle bells) . Most pax got in 3-4 rounds. The sand bag exercises seemed the hardest, or at least the slowest. YHC realized that most would have uneven weights for the farmer carries but this simulates life well. How often do you lug your M’s suit case and your own suitcase up some stairs? Isn’t one heavier than the other? Life around us is not always balanced. It’s how we deal with the imbalances that defines us. Letting go of the need to always be right and to always be in control takes intention, humility, and courage. F3 allows us to fellowship with other men, be inspired by high impact men, and realize there are things bigger than ourselves worth fighting for. All while getting in better shape. #worthevery penny
Everyone put out great effort today. Didn’t hear much mumble chatter. The 11’s at the launch were in honor of Roster 011, who was the sole finisher of GORUCK selection class 020 this past weekend. If you missed it there is plenty of video footage available. Quite inspiring.
At the launch there was no music and no instruction and there were some questioning stares as to what the plan was and why we had a huge pile of gear. Took a few minutes to settle into our new location with the tunes and the rotation schedule but then everyone just went to work. Dora and Geraldo ended up pacing together. Just another day of ruck PT for those GORUCK vets. Everyone seemed to embrace mixing up the kettle bells with the sand bags and rucks. Even those pax better known for running were killing out there this am. I know I returned home dripping wet from sweat. Glad the rain stopped just in time for launch.
And the title of the BB comes from this social media post last night: “
Thanks to site Q’s Voodoo and Witch Doctor for the chance to lead today.
Thanks to those who brought sand bags, rucks, and extra kettle bells – Hoover, Geraldo, Voodoo, Dora.
Thanks to those who provided music for us today – Green Day, The Clash, Steppenwolf, The Cars, R.E.M., KISS, CCR, Tom Petty, Wilson Pickett, Herbie Hancock, Weezer, Led Zeppelin, Buffalo Tom, Gaslight Anthem, Etta James.
Announcements:
Q’s needed for Rock Zero – Saturdays @ Calvary, still at 0700, see Hoover.
GORUCK Ruck Club Battle in Charlotte 10/20
A faux Gazelle wearing a Super Heavy weighted vest had stampeding Clydesdales running him down all morning. Details below:
Warm Up:
Little time for small talk as YHC needed to take one confirmation lap regarding today’s festivities. Rolled into the lot at o’Jingles 30 and off we went…Oh, did I mention the Super Heavy weighted vest? Super Heavy.
Long mosey down #KJH towards insurance office across the street from Providence.
SSH – 15
Dugans, Calf Stretch, Quads…let’s go
The Thang:
Head over to North Providence Street for a little Paula Abdul (2 Steps Forward, 1 Step Back)
Run 2 Light Poles and do 5 Jump Squats, Back 1 Light Pole and 10 Speed Skaters
Do this all the way up North Providence Street to Dreamwreckers Brewery. Double back for six. Then hold Al Gore until all complete
Head over to mini-wall for a little single leg squats all together
10 Single Leg Squats all together on each leg. Walk to short wall by bridge. 1 Minute People’s chair hold.
Over the bridge, continue on South Providence Street towards Bad Idea. Hold Deep Squat while waiting for 6.
At the base of Bad Idea, Pax instructed AYG all the way to the top of Bad Idea with 10 Jump Squats at the top, at the bottom, 10 squats
Rinse and half repeat. Deep squats until 6 concluded.
Head back up South Providence Street. At big hill approaching Main Street, AYG to the top 5 burpees upon arrival. Mosey back towards COT.
At COT, I extricated myself from the Super Heavy weighted vest. Pax thought we were done, but 2 minutes remained. “Thou Shalt Not Be Cheated” is the motto of Floater. Actually, just made that up, but it’s bound to stick!
2 minute fast mosey. At the 1 minute mark, stop running down #KJH and return to COT. That’s it.
14 Pax, 3.2-ish miles covered and approximately 250 leg movements. Leg Day concluded. Hopefully, Leg Day a success.
I had a grand sense of accomplishment having posted in the Super Heavy weighted vest. Fuse Box thought it looked light. Confirmation of that sad reality occurred when the M weighed it for me…10lbs. 10 lousy lbs is all that thing weighed! It felt like I’d been strangled by a weak midget for 43 minutes. I gotta toughen up a bit. On the bright side, I now know how good it felt to shed that 10lbs. Maybe I should lose 10 more of my own! You boys dropping weight in the weight loss challenge have to feel so much better.
Moleskin:
Here’s the obligatory, “it’s such a privilege to lead such a great group of men” section. Here’s my take:
It’s such a privilege to be surrounded by such fun-loving, caring, kindhearted men who, if/when asked, will go out of their way to help anyone in need. This week alone I’m reminded of Rubbermaid fixing Big 10’s M’s toilet, Dancing Bear’s Shampoo initiative with his daughter, Zinfandel exploring the opportunity to dine with orphans, COTS, the outpouring of support for flood victims, and the tributes to the young girl who tragically passed this past weekend. All of the above speak volumes to the caliber of the individuals in our midst.
Selfishly, the inquiries, prayers, and offers of support for our adoption effort have blown me away. Just some of the things you all have done include, but are not limited to: prayers, watching our children while we transport him back and forth, offers of support as needed, helping search for (and offering bikes), clothing donated, a bunk bed purchased so my girls could move in together and free up a room for our new son- outside of the bike none of which was solicited. Thank you. Sincerely thank you. You guys make me a better man. I hope someday in the future I’ll be afforded the opportunity to repay you in some way for your kindness.
I’ll leave it there as the pollen count in my office has gone up quite a bit!
Announcements:
Shampoo Crew – Donations Needed
3rd F Opportunities:
Open Door- Sunday @ 7 @ Five Stones
Sanctuary- Monday @ 7:30 @ Brooklyn Pizza
COTS (Church on the Streets) – Next Sunday
Children’s Outreach Effort Alexander ——- Network (children’s center)- Opportunity to have lunch with children who have lost their parents. On Mondays. Hook up with Zinfandel for more details
Late GroupMe Announcement- Tomorrow’s AMRAP Zinfandel has put his money where your legs are for Hurricane Relief. See how much we can squeeze out of him. Hopefully others will contribute as well
Thanks Mad Dog for taking us out.
YHC got to the AO in time to see the four die-hard runners set off for #F3Sparta. Guessing Madison was the Q, since he was lit up like a Christmas tree. Maybe that was his way of dealing with the fact that it’s just as hot at the end of September as it was in late July. Where is that ******* cooler weather, anyway?
Rant over.
By the time I got back from a quick AO check, the gang was all in and ready to go. Oh, wait, not quite. Seems like Slim Fast forgot to bring his dry shirt, so after tossing the soaked pre-run shirt aside, he boldly stepped forward as the sole player on the “skins” team.
Disclaimer given, we got going. Here’s the play-by-play for those keeping score at home:
Mosey around front of church to back of track for COP
COP:
SSH-15
IW-15
Merkins-15
LSS-15 (low slow squat)
Time for the Main Thang:
Find a pull-up or supine pull-up bar to call your own.
Up & hold 5 count then 5-count descent, YHC bellowing the count.
10 recovery Merkins OYO
REPEATO minus 1 Merkin each round.
Mosey to parking lot and partner up.
Partner 1: SSH while P2 lunge walk to opposite side, mosey back. Flapjack
P1: SSH while P2 bear crawls across, mosey back. Flapjack
P1: Sumo Jack while P2 bunny hop across, mosey back. Flapjack
P1: Sumo Jack while P2 “speed skates” across, mosey back. Flap jack
P1: Sumo Jack while P2 sprints across, mosey back. Flapjack
Mosey to benches:
15 dips, 15 decline Merkins, 15 step-ups OYO;
Repeato 2 X
Mosey to wall for people’s chair and air presses – 20IC
Repeato
Mosey to center of basketball court and circle up for ring-around-the-Mary.
Pax #1 calls ab exercise and lunge walks around ring. Remaining Pax perform called exercise IC until runner returns.
Repeato until time runs out.
Mosey through school to parking lot for COT.
Announcements
Isabella Santos Run, 9/29/18: https://isabellasantosfoundation.org/annual-5k-for-kids-cancer/
F3 Dads at Kinetic Heights – see #F3Dads channel on Slack
Crane Relay, 10/26
Let Them Soar, 5K 11/10/18: https://letthemsoar5k.racesonline.com/
Moleskin
Welcome to FNG Cruller. He came with Bernanke and survived not only the workout but also the naming process. I’m not sure which was worse. Actually, the naming could have gone FAR worse, but we cut Horse Head off before he could reach the bottom of the barrel. Here’s what we avoided:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FSvNhxKJJyU
Thanks for trying the Sumo Squat – Japanese style. I couldn’t find a nice short clip on YouTube, but if you’ve got one, drop it in the comments. Like I said, I was trying to describe what I remembered from an old James Bond movie. At least it was better than those Side Straddle Hops. Maybe before I Q next time, I’ll find the clip and get the movements right. #notaprofessional
Thanks for the chance to lead.
Remember, be the light and the salt, gentlemen.
Swiss Miss
Here come the hot stepper, murderer
I’m the lyrical gangster, murderer
Pick up the crew in-a de area, murderer
Still love you like that
Sorry, but when I think of a small group of middle-aged white guys running around downtown Matthews with blinkie lights and headlamps, this type of lyrical hardness pops right to the top.
Thang:
4 dudes on a mission, cover some ground without dropping the Q or getting run over. Mission Accomplished.
Cruise the Matthews back alleys through the secret trail near the Building Supply that spits you out at a sketchy Hwy51 crossing with no stoplight. Roll that dice and hit the Crews Road business park for some exercisin’ in the Charlotte Eagles parking lot. Next, head over to Crestdale Middle for a giant burpee starfish. After this, head back down to the Jekyll and Hyde for some suicides and merkins. Finishing Blow, AYG wind sprints back at Matthews Elementary. I’m sure that there was more, but nobody really cares about this stuff anyway. I think it was 5 miles or so.
Skin:
Nothing like jamming some Kidz Bop to get your head right for a big Q. If you like to hear songs that you already hate taken to the next level, I suggest you give it a whirl.
Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, and Starship are a musical Bermuda triangle with a Venn Diagram on top. I couldn’t find the Kidz Bop version of any of their songs this morning, so I went with the Hot Stepper in my opening monologue, but I’m still searching. I think this is where I got the inspiration for the Giant Starfish, but it’s hard to really pinpoint this complex kind of emotion.
So we’re coming back to home base and I get this big loogie stuck in my throat. Seriously, I almost harfed right on the sidewalk. I figured that some wind sprints would either dislodge it, or my head, and decided to give it a whirl. It was an interesting call, but it did set us up to check out the P51 crew who were also out in the back. Turns out, they were taking turns beating Slim Fast with a bar of soap in a sock for telling them that the BRR was a “nice little jog in the mountains”. I think the gig is up. He’s playing chess while we play checkers out here though, so I’m probably way off base.
Those sprints got me fired up all right. It was like when the Axl blows the whistle in Paradise City and you are at the skating rink. You’re out of quarters for Street Fighter, so it’s go time on the hardwoods. Panama Jack has been giving you the business and it’s time to show everybody that you can still dominate, even with the orange rental skates. At least, that’s how I felt at the moment.
As a side note, just because they offer corn dogs as a side item at Cook Out doesn’t mean that it’s a good call. I had some trouble keeping up with Tony Stark and the two kids this morning and I fully attribute it to this. They dropped me like Brian Dunkleman on the 2nd season of American Idol. BTW, Clay > Ruben. Don’t @ me.
I will note that there was a failed attempt at naming one of the P51 FNGs as “VanillaNutTaps”. Cruller was the substitute. Maybe VNT would have been a better call. It came from this Bushwood documentary video.
Gotta roll. Working on my TJ Hooker costume for Scarowinds. Come and check it out.
P.S. Somehow, I’m on Q for Kevlar tomorrow. If you made it this far, you need to come on out and see Part 2 in person.
– HH