“Ah oh, smokestack lightnin’…shinin’, just like gold” – Chester Burnett
There is something about the Earl that has captured a special place in my heart since its launch. Perhaps it is the location, right in the heart of this idyllic, quaint little town, with that iconic roundabout that houses the Chatham Historical Museum. Or, maybe it is the fact that you have to maintain a vigilant, watchful eye to ensure you dodge traffic as you mosey from site to site. Perhaps it is the myriad options that are available, with all the classic, old buildings, structures, courtyards, parks, trails, and streets that branch out from the traffic circle. Perhaps it is the site Qs, who manage, and PAX, who frequent, the site, all of whom readily welcome you into the fold, and keep the spirit high and culture true. Whatever it is, I always seem to come away from a workout at the Earl feeling grounded and pure. As such, I wanted to give back, by making sure I bring the proper love and respect to this morning’s workout. Of course, I ended up botching things up right from the get go, but life does get messy, and sometimes, it is that messiness that makes things memorable and endearing (ha!).
On today’s menu, a classic track and stack. But first, a short –>
WARM UP
SSH, x10 IC
Plank Stretch Series (Dog, Wolf/Cobra, Left Over Right Calf, Right Over Left Calf), 10 Count
Quad Stretch (R/L), 10 Count
Knee Ups, x10 IC
Frankenstein, x10 SC
High Knees, x10 IC
then –> Mosey/Fellowship Jog to the Traffic Circle (do 1 loop CW and circle up at the main courtyard in front). Now, for the –>
MAIN EVENT
Plan is to run a loop around the Traffic Circle, alternating directions so as to give each leg its due, then meet back up at the main courtyard to perform exercises. With each loop (the “track”), we will stack exercises and go up by 5 reps per. Loops run at each PAX own pace; exercises performed as a group.
Round 1: 5 Burpees. Run CCW Loop (yeah, I screwed this up and led a bunch of PAX in the wrong direction. Several PAX got it right and as such, we ended up having two groups running each loop in opposite directions, which ended up being way cooler anyways).
Round 2: 10 Merkins, 5 Burpees. Run CW Loop (which was actually CCW loop…yeah, ya know)
Round 3: 15 LBCs, 10 Merkins, 5 Burpees. Run Loop.
Round 4: 20 Dry Docks, 15 LBCs, 10 Merkins, 5 Burpees. Run Loop.
Round 5: 25 Squats (first set was IC…but per Q discretion, went to SC for subsequent rounds), 20 Dry Docks, 15 LBCs, 10 Merkins, 5 Burpees. Run Loop.
Round 6: 30 Second Plank Hold (called IC, various holds per Q discretion), 25 Squats, 20 Dry Docks, 15 LBCs, 10 Merkins, 5 Burpees. Run Loop.
Round 7: 35 Am Hams, 30 Second Plank Hold, 25 Squats, 20 Dry Docks, 15 LBCs, 10 Merkins, 5 Burpees. Run Loop.
Round 8: 40 Mountain Climbers, 35 Am Hams, 30 Second Plank Hold, 25 Squats, 20 Dry Docks, 15 LBCs, 10 Merkins, 5 Burpees. Run Loop.
Round 9: 45 Air Press in People’s Chair, 40 Mountain Climbers, 35 Am Hams, 30 Second Plank Hold, 25 Squats, 20 Dry Docks, 15 LBCs, 10 Merkins, 5 Burpees. No Loop, coz –>
…the last round ended up being a bit rushed as my trusty time keeper (thank you, Horny Toad!!) stated we had 5 minutes left…as such, we could not get to the last round which was going to be 50 SSH. (My bad! Big time Q fail…Next time, brothers, I promise). Instead, we –>
Ran back to AO…well, except for Golden Pinky, Marky Mark, & Boyardee who decided to AYG sprint back (oh, the shade of not getting to Round 10…).
Made it back to Page Vernon for a short MARY sesh. Decided to unveil something cockamamie that popped into my head called the –>
Bear Crawl Mambo (Start in BC position, move right side hand and foot up a step, then back a step, then a quick up and back, which is 1. Repeato left side…you know, like a mambo…), x16 IC. Aaaaaaaaaannnnnddddd…that’s all I got. Cut the lights.
COT/BOM
Announcements:
- Goat Cheese: Fearrington Farmers Market back in action. Get some!
- Yanni asked about my guitar/band history, to which I went into an excessively long winded, exhaustive, egoistic historical account reaching far back into my childhood and moving in way too tiny time increments into the present day. I will save you all, dear readers, the bloody, horrific details.
Name-o-Rama
BOM
In preparing for today’s workout, I was inspired by Howling Wolf’s classic blues tune, Smokestack Lightning. In my circle back in the day, “Smokestack Lightning” was a bit of a colloquialism that meant injecting a little “sumthin-sumthin” to take the mundane, ordinary, and possibly make it extraordinary. It fits perfectly when you consider the song. Smokestack, in its basic form, is a very rudimentary, simple blues tune based on a single chord. It borrows elements whole cloth from many old classic blues tunes. When you consider the lyrics, again, it is pretty standard stuff…love, loss, cryin’, feeling down, getting on. Nothing too revolutionary. Howling Wolf performed the tune for decades before recording it in the 50’s. And yet, when you listen to the tune, it is anything but ordinary or mundane. There is an intensity, a passion, a brutal honesty that takes it to a transcendent level. You can feel it literally coming right out of the speakers…Hubert Sumlin on guitar, Willie Dixon on bass, Wolf on vocals…it is no surprise that the tune became one of the most influential in history, covered by some of the biggest acts like Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, CCR, Aerosmith, Yardbirds, The Who, Soundgarden, etc, etc.
IMO, this applies to today’s workout, and F3 as a whole. You put together a simple, straightforward set of exercises. Nothing inventive or out of the ordinary. And yet, when you stack up the ordinary, inject a bit of enthusiasm and passion, and get a bunch of badass HIM together…well, it takes the ordinary and makes it extraordinary. You get a great total body workout along with a good dose of fellowship and brotherhood in a beautiful setting. I think we owe it to ourselves to inject a bit of Smokestack into our daily lives. Put that little extra “sumthin-sumthin” into your marriage, your friendships, your career, your contributions, your goals, your hopes and dreams…make your ordinary, extraordinary. Take a passionate approach to everything you do in life and instead of just gettin’ on, strive to make your mark. Create a legacy. You only get one life, make it count. That’s all I got! Peace out, Aye!