4 PAX showed up for EC to give Binksy and Sweatpea a swing or two. Binksy is our new 70 lb. KB and Sweatpea is our new 100 lb. KB. Once you get these sweethearts moving, they aren”t so bad. The trouble, of course, is getting them moving. PAX were assigned 100 KB swings, 100 KB squats, and 10 Turkish get ups, with a weight and set/rep frequency of his choice. Please come out for KBs at The Big Dance! You will start to feel muscles you forgot or never knew you had, or your money back!
After a Doogie ladder warm up (the ladder that Doogie painted for the Dirty Dozen is still used at TBD for plyometric warm ups, FYI), and another primer in the dance circle to get the juices flowing, we hit the pavilion to dead hang for a minute to allow YHC to set up the programming. Here”s how it went:
To honor YHC”s 1-year anniversary, today was all about Blackjack with a few TBD twists and turns thrown in. We started with 20 diamond merkins, then would travel to the big oak tree to do 1 wide-grip merkin. Our method of travel changed each time, rotating through bear crawls, bunny hops, broad jumps, lunges, crawl-bears, and sprints. In the spirit of Elevens, we de-escalated/escalated at each end point (19 diamonds and 2 wide-grip, and so on). We had to cut it a bit short, but I believe we ended up with 250 total merkins performed (not counting warm up – 175 diamonds and 75 wide-grip). We added a few random burpees in the mix just to keep it interesting. This workout was really just an all-out blitz with very little rest. Judging by the PAX and YHC who were all ten-toes up at the workout”s conclusion, I would say it was a success.
We ended with 50 flutter-toes for Mary.
CoT:

• Prayers to Tuco”s new little girl, Merritt, and his family.
• Convergence with Cary/Apex this Saturday at TBL at 0700.
• PAX headed to “The Judge” this Thursday in Raleigh to post.
• Get out and experience a new AO! Mix it up a little bit.

Reflection: YHC shared a bit about the impact of F3 this past year. Reflecting back upon the year, there is plenty to be thankful for. On the most basic level, I will remember the icy, dark, peaceful stillness of the mornings. I will remember the silhouettes that line the horizon during the warm up. I will remember the feeling of getting in to my car after a workout, elated with having won the mental battles necessary to carry the morning successfully. I will remember the competitive push that I received in my best moments, and, during my worst moments, the encouraging words and helping hands.
I will remember my first post at Fetzer and having a hard time getting through the sprints at the end and numerous nameless PAX encouraging me to power through. I will remember showing up to TBL for the first time without gloves, feeling completely lost and unprepared, and a few smiling PAX volunteering to lend me a pair. I will remember the early-morning rucks and forgetting I had a pack on because I was having a great conversation. I will remember the footraces, the merkin contests, and hoisting logs and dragging them through the city during The Bull. I will remember the Tobacco Trail Ruck, the Mud Run (Nimble Panda Champions), and numerous Spartan Races with other PAX. I will remember traveling to Winston, Mooresville, and Wilmington on numerous occasions, warmly welcomed as a brother each time. Finally, I will remember the unrelenting support I received when we had our 2nd child in June, and more broadly, the community support and sacrifice that this group so willingly provides whenever others are in need.
It is quite a collection of memories. There are too many people to thank, because I would want to thank each of you personally and individually for making every morning a pleasure and making this year a memorable one. For those of you who were part of F3 before me (you know who you are), thank you for creating an environment that can challenge the toughest guy but also retain the newest guy. Thank you for fostering something that supports crazy CSAUP endeavors but also encourages the PAX who just needs F3 for the workout down the road each Tuesday. Thank you for creating something that is more than just a workout that our families can feel a part of as well. Thank you for creating something that teaches us to make ourselves better – better exemplars of leadership and purpose – so that we can help others find a better way.
It seems that people love F3 because it provides an opportunity for a rebirth or a renaissance, not just physically but also in many other valuable ways; it provides a tipping point opportunity whereupon you can create a ton of momentum for yourself and never look back; and/or it grants access to a community of trusted and virtuous people. It cannot be said enough, but belonging to a time and a place with aspirational people you can trust is rare. This group is not limited by occupation, by creed, or by age or place. It cuts across each swath of humanity and really the only insight I can muster here is that the best attitudes self-select to compose F3. The guys you see on a daily basis are the best representation of themselves, showing up to do the work and get it done, saying “I want to be better.” The bad attitudes stay home (or they work out later in the day, ha!). I am grateful for that. The spirit of this group is what keeps it alive and growing: the sense of humor, the kindness and compassion, and yes, the ambition. And I almost forgot, all the dumb ideas we come up with to challenge each other.
I cannot wait to see what 2017 brings. Yes, I am intrigued by all the runs, rucks, and races that we will do. But I”m also intrigued with the next FNG. Who is that guy and what is his story? How can we help him? I am intrigued with the next new AO, seeing as many AOs as possible, and meeting countless new PAX in the process. I am excited for the next amazing workout that one of our site Qs invents, and also for new PAX to take the Q mantle and dazzle us with a beatdown. These are all gifts, men.
With gratitude,
Sweats