Author: Snuff

  • Cardinal Rule

    Yesterday, F3 Knoxville tragically lost Cardinal *during* his VQ. This morning, 11 men gathered at The Forge to pay their respects in the only way they knew how: running back the same workout. Sometimes you just gotta face your own mortality – that is the gift that Cardinal offered up to us.

    Warmorama: 15 SSHs, 10 tempo mirkins, 10 Flutter Kicks, 20 arm circles, 10 Hallelujahs, 10 cherry pickers, 20 sec Samson hold in helix position, 10 Willie Mays Hayes.

    Workout: ‘Card’s Run and Repeat’ burpee ladder. (Last Call asked ‘why we couldn’t just do an LBC ladder.’ As anyone at a Snuff workout knows, that’s just foreshadowing.)

    5x of burpees, big boy situps, heels to heaven. Run to the end of the lot and back, then repeat.

    10x of burpees, LBCs, mountain climbers. Run to the end of the lot and back, then repeat.

    15x of burpees, squats, Freddie Mercury. Run to the end of the lot and back, then repeat.

    20x of burpees. Run to the end of the lot and back, then repeat.

    Quite a brutal set of reps. In true RVA style we still had 15 minutes left so we kept it going.

    Mosey to the entrance of the HS and bear crawl all the way to the stairs and down the stairs. Mosey around the lot to the base of Mt Chaplain.

    Up Mt. Chaplain with the LBC ladder Last Call asked for – 10x and adding 5 at each platform all the way to the top.

    Mosey back to the flag.

    Please listen to your body. Listen to your heart. This is the form we have been given to walk through this life, and each person has only one. Cardinal’s passing is a somber yet fortifying reminder that what we do in the gloom matters. To ourselves, to F3 RVA, to the nation, to everyone whose lives we touch throughout each day, spidering outward in a web of strength and leadership. Rest in peace brother.

  • Echo Chamber with a CTD cameo

    Welcome to The Forge Underground, RVA’s most secretive club experience. Part endorphins, part Mission-district oxygen bar post-Google IPO, this wildly exclusive workout is the talk of the Southside glitterati. With all you eat mirkins, this unique venue is hidden deep in the bowels of Hugeunot High school and jamming all morning with the sounds of Snuff’s mind conveniently collected in his Spotify top songs of 2022. “What’s the name of this band?” “The name of this band is Robot Koch.” Incredulous looks. The tunes flowed, the bass echoed off the frozen concrete walls, and the gloom reverberated with the aural manifestations of a mind unhinged.

    After warmups, the tech elite performed a spontaneous addition from DTH: Cinco de checko. Timer runs the loop, monkey humpers, WW2s, wall-sit hoedowns, and hand-release mirkins. Times five rounds. With a nice cherry on top: 11s of donkey kicks and dirty hookups. The tech team monitoring my work computer is very confused.

    Thanks for the rainy morning – post workout rush reminded me of the days of clubbing until the sun comes up. I guess this is just how F3 likes to party. So happy to see Crash Test Dummy roll up. Good man.

  • GratiQ’d

    A cold morning to give thanks to the gloom with some throwback tunes.

    45 minute playlist:

    SSHs, DQs, Mirkins, LBCs, stretching, etc etc.

    4 corners lady of the night with mirkins, American Hammers, jump squats and LBCs.

    Triple set of wall sits, balls to the wall and donkey kicks, Pigskin-style.

    Indigenous bear crawl around the court.

    11s with mirkins and WW2s.

    Basketball court suicides with 5 mirkins. Then another with 10 mirkins.

    Circle up for some Mary, 25 mirkins, then 25 more, and then because we were just going for it, 25 more after that.

    Thanks for entertaining my playlist – music makes it easy to push harder.

    Peace.

  • Sunrise contemplation

    10 men, forged in the gloom fires. YHC was yet again informed that the Q was his.

    Mosey to the circle for warmups: SSHs, DQs, dead man hangs, Imperial Walkers, mirkins, LBCs, etc.

    Flagpole dora: 100 pole smokers, 200 mirkins, 300 jump squats with timer running the short loop.

    Bear crawl to the top of the stairs.

    Breath-slowing exercises.

    Indigenous rail crawl the entire length of the ramp.

    Starting from the bottom, 11s with burpees and WW2s. Halfway through, audible to hand-release mirkins.

    At the road, mosey up to the top of Mt Chaplain for a new exercise called ‘sunrise appreciation.’ 1 full minute of quiet contemplation.

    Another day to be alive and give thanks.

    Peace.

  • Heartburn returns

    Seven samurai gathered to do battle. Joining the fold after a long hiatus – Heartburn’s triumphant return. Alongside FNG Mudslide, we entered the fray.

    Mosey to the back lot for warmups: SSHs, DQs, copperhead squats, slow mirkins, LBCs, rosalita dips, plus some other stuff.

    Mosey to the baseball fields where we immediately rolled around in the wet grass for a triple check: timer box jumps up and around the stairs, plus flutterkicks plus hand-release mirkins.

    Mosey to the way back lot for some parking lot bear crawl ascending mirkins, then run it back with duck walk and ascending squats.

    Mosey to the dog park where sadly, we found that someone has taken the coupons. Out of spite, sprint the length of the dog park followed by 10 burpees, then slow breathing exercises.

    Mosey to the pickleball courts, which were locked, so we went to the tennis courts to do a four corners: 5 burpees, 25 carolina dry docks, 50 2-ct mountain climbers, 100 LBCs.

    Then a triple check with timer running the length of the 3 courts, balls to the wall, and air press wall-sits.

    The PAX asked about Doozy’s whereabouts which reminded YHC that mankillers are a thing. So we did those, which coincidentally happen to be OC’s least favorite exercise. Note to self.

    Mosey to the long wood bar where we did indigenous dips all the way down and around the corner.

    Shoutout to Heartburn for bringing the good vibes after all that he’s been through – great to have you back. And to Mudslide, 51 – welcome and RESPECT.

  • A day late and Nickel short

    Wednesday morning’s workout is now just a faint memory: 3 strong-willed gentlemen broke the quiet stillness of Dogwood Dell with warmups in cadence: DQs, helicopters, dead man hangs, imperial squat walkers, mirkins etc etc.

    Mosey to the Nickel bridge for a mumble-chatter friendly expedition: 20 reps of varying exercises at each light pole including decline mirkins with feet on the rail, WW2s, squats, sprints, and a bunch of other stuff all the way across.

    Burpee bridge on the way back with 2 per lightpole. We stopped to admire the sunrise coming up over the James. Truly a beautiful city.

    Back on land at the big parking lot rocks: alternating box jumps, breath-slowing exercises, 30 hand-release mirkins, breath slowing exercises.

    On the way back to the flag, mosey up the big hill with sprints at every other lightpost.

    Back at the flag, hold 2-minute elbow plank until time.

    Thanks for coming out and thanks to Hitch for the Korean coffee – nothing like dessert for breakfast.

    Peace.

  • Don Quixo-toll

    10 Men of La Mancha gathered in the gloom to tilt at windmills and attempt a new record for Don Quixotes. They thought YHC was joking.

    Mosey to the back lot making sure to NOT pay the toll. Warmups: arm circles and dead man’s hang. Line up on the curb and proceed to Don Quixote broad jump across the entire lot. At the other side, 25 more Don Quixotes.

    Mosey to the field where 2 lines of 5 men each, in tight formation, bear crawl to the opposite end. From there, a walking lunging arc ending up right back at the beginning. A giant D in the dew. What could it possible stand for?

    Mosey further down the field and proceed to walk again in tight formation in a giant circle, arm raises the entire time. Then from the corner of the circle, some other exercise. An enormous D.Q. in the wet grass – as seen from outer space.

    Mosey to the pavilion to find a lone Sancho Panza, sitting on the bench, pondering the fields. What was he thinking, watching the PAX do their Dora, timers running the field and back for 50 Don Quixotes, 100 LBCs and 150 plankjacks?

    Mosey back to the lot for some 50%/75%/100% sprints interspersed with slow-toll mirkins, mirkins and more Don Quixotes.

    Mosey over for a short Post-toll with 25 flutterkicks, 25 jump squats, 25 heels to heaven and 50 ball dippers.

    Heading back to the flag going Low-toll under the bar. At the bridge we do NOT pay the toll. From the bridge, a low-toll duck walk back to the flag where we finished with 5 back-breaking… you guessed it… Don Quixotes.

    A chivalrous COT and great mumble chatter to start the day.

    Shoutout to the PAX for indulging the insanity of a wandering knight, lost in the wilds of his own head.

    Peace.

  • The Cone Zone

    The SOJ takeover continues with the PAX placing bets on who would be the Q on this jungle-humid June morning. Kubota took the prize – it was YHC.

    Warmups – 25 Don Quixotes to go for the record. 20 Imperial squat walkers. Mirkins, LBCs, Rosalitas and some other nonsense. That’s the thing about First Watch, it’s early enough to pretend like we don’t remember exactly what happened.

    Bear crawl centipede with a very long route snaking up and down the stairs, through the hall and up the ramp, them down the stairs again.

    Mosey around back for a triple check with the timer running to the far end of the lot, WW2s and squat thrusters using 2 traffic cones we found. YHC told the story about how after years of taking pictures of his kids with cones on their heads, people continue to send him cone pictures every week. True story.

    Next up, harking back to the bottle flip craze of the late 20-oughts, we each took a try launching a cone into the air. If it landed right-side up, monkey humpers. If not, burpees. Needless to say we did a lot of burpees. The PAX was grumbling about the number of burpees so YHC took an audible and did 10 more burpees OYO.

    Triple check from the side of the church with the timing running up the hill to the front, wall sit toe touch arm raises (commonly called LaLannes), and flutter kicks.

    Up the hill to the front for 45 mirkins OYO. Back across the street to the parking lot for a long bar crawl with dips. Jump through the V tree and back to the flag.

    Thanks for having me out – as Splinter says, there’s nothing better than that 5am sense humor. It just has a different feeling.

    COT.

    2nd F at Starbucks to start the day off right.

    Peace.

  • Grabbin’ Asphalt

    7 men at 7 o’ clock sharp.

    Walking warmups: Ukranian soldiers, walking Imperial Walkers, arm circles, Quixote broad jumps.

    Improvised 11s: bear crawl up the embankment for incline mirkins, craw bear back down for jump squats.

    Indigenous bar crawl with plank jacks the length of the bar.

    Mosey to the under-construction tennis courts where we picked up where Chesterfield County left off. Grab a big piece of asphalt for some curls, some kettle bell swings, and thrusters. 50 pole smokers OYO. 45 mirkins OYO. Then we moved as many huge pieces of asphalt as we could from one end of the court to the other at a high rate of speed. Once the new pickleball courts are done, we can safely say we helped build them with our bare (gloved) hands.

    Mosey over the baseball field stairs for a triple check: timer runs up, around and down the stairs while partners dip and flutter kick.

    Over to the batting cage: first one to 100 donkey kicks calls it out. Last Call with the 100 by a hair.

    75 WW2s OYO. Mosey the long way back to the flag with a sprint thrown in, and 3 minutes of burpees to round things off to an even hour.

    COT.

    Tis the season of drinking extra fluids. YHC was completely smoked after his own workout and has no one else to blame but himself. Thanks again for coming out and going along with my improvised madness. One of these days I’ll plan something out.

    Peace.

  • 10 slices of Coping Cake

    A couple of days ago my wife was taking pictures for a woman who developed a cake recipe inspired by the grief she felt when she lost her infant son. Cashew cardamom coping cake. Then yesterday I was getting one of my own 2.0s ready for school and we talked about some of the things that happened in Texas; it was heavy. I gave him a huge hug before he got on the bus and I went inside and had a giant piece of the coping cake. A few minutes later my wife got a call from a dear friend in Sweden in the late stages of brain cancer. She said how happy she was to live every moment of this life. Afterwards I went back to the kitchen and had to get a second helping of cake.

    We all process our different kinds of grief in different ways. But the most clear to me this morning was that in times of tragedy (especially in times of tragedy) the fellowship we felt out there in the rain and the gloom and in the COT… that is own special recipe. A way through and forward. That’s the kind of energy we respond with, for each other and for our communities. Bad things happen but we have the 3 Fs. For that, I’m grateful. /end speech

    It went like this:

    Mosey down and around to the lower entrance. Warmups were SSHs, DxQs, imperial squat walkers, mirkins, LBCs plus a few other things.

    Dora: timer runs up the stairs, 5 burpees, then back down the grass. 100 WW2s, 200 dips, 300 jump squats. Ended with some slow breathing exercises.

    Mosey up the stairs to the wall for the Pigskin special: 10 people’s chair arm raises, 10 BttW toe taps, 15 donkey kicks OYO. Then 10 people’s chair milkers, 10 BttW Australian mountain climbers, 15 donkey kicks OYO. Then 10 people’s chair Lalannes, 10 BttW hip slaps, 15 donkey kicks OYO.

    Mosey to the amphitheater for a quick little triple check: timer goes up the big steps and around, hold elbow planks, SSHs.

    Mosey back to the flag for the COT and announcements.

    Shout out to Janeway and Comrade for passing through from the wilds of North Georgia. Great to you have you guys out and best of luck to Comrade on his college tour.

    Peace.