Author: Loose Goose

7 champions, none of which signed up to Q, arrived at Heartbreak Ridge in today’s gloom ready to tackle the day. YHC, fresh off

of ending the battle against the mouse in the attic, decided on the spot that everyone should have the opportunity to try for a victory lap. The Shovel Flag was planted, and the first 6 took off to begin the journey.

THE THANG

Mosey around the north half of the parking lot to get legs warmed up, and land back next to the shovel flag

Warmup COP:

• Hammer time x20 IC (Offshore style)
• Merkins x20 IC (form demo/practice)
• Storm Squats x10 OYO
• Scorpion Dry Docks x12 OYO
• WWII situps x20 IC
• In-place lunges 2-count x10 IC

Mosey to the track

The Lucky Horseshoe – Challenge extended to the PAX to do full motion/good form exercises. Do a lap of the track and do 20 of the marked exercises on laminated card corresponding to that lap number.
Lap 1 – Merkins
Lap 2 – Merkins, Storm Squats
Lap 3 – Merkins, Storm Squats, Scorpion Dry Docks
Lap 4 – Merkins, Storm Squats, Scorpion Dry Docks, WWII Situps
Lap 5 – Merkins, Storm Squats, Scorpion Dry Docks, WWII Situps, In-place Lunges
Lap 6 – Storm Squats, Scorpion Dry Docks, WWII Situps, In-place Lunges
Lap 7 – Scorpion Dry Docks, WWII Situps, In-place Lunges
Lap 8 – WWII Situps, In-place Lunges
Lap 9 – In-place Lunges
Lap 10 – Victory Lap!

MOLESKEEEEEIN

GREAT work this morning, fellas. YHC had been waiting to bring out the Lucky Horseshoe for way too long. This is a workout that indeed makes for a love/hate feeling towards it. But it really is a great you vs. you workout that gives objective proof of whether you’ve improved since the last time you did it.

As Offshore commented, the Heartbreak Ridge “true ¼ mile” track is clearly longer than the one at 45MoM. Couple that with the full motion & good form pushups and lunges, and the RVA Pax has its work cut out to find someone who can complete the Victory Lap of this newer & better Lucky Horseshoe. Consider this the gauntlet being thrown toward anyone who believes they are up for the challenge when we do this again on March 20.

And finally, the answer to the title question… Per Live Science “It was believed that the primitive goblins feared the metal weapons of their enemies, and were therefore afraid of iron. To ward off goblins and evil spirits from their homes, the people hung iron horseshoes over their front doors.”

4 RVA spuds appeared in the gloom this morning to take on Heartbreak Ridge. As of 5:14am today the Q sheet was empty so YHC took the chance to get worked up for 33 lucky minutes of true “you against you” pain – as long as there were a minimum of 5 PAX in attendance. When the requisite number wasn’t achieved, a hot potato audible was called. In it together, with no hesi-tating the PAX took off to start a true beatdown. Here’s how it went…

Figurative Potato Holder: Loose Goose
Mosey to the upper field for a table steaks (fries) COP. Lots of mumblechatter and common-tating along the way about the length of the grass in the field
– Invisible jump rope x20 IC
– IW x20 IC
– Russian Soldiers x20 IC
– WWII situps x20 OYO
– Imperial Squat walkers x15 IC
– Merkins x20 IC
– IP Lunges x20 IC
– Scorpion Dry Docks x20 OYO

Mosey to the tennis courts for a vichyssoise King of Hearts. Do the following down and back as Q calls it out. Plank when finished until Q calls start to next itertation.
– Sprint
– Backwards run
– Side shuffle facing school
– Bear Crawl down, sprint back
– Karaoke
– Suicide

After assessing who was ready to grab the potato by the eyes, pass to Mr. Holland.
Mosey across the entire AO to the Jerkin Gym. Partner up & do a Jerkin (aka small fry pull-up) Ladder from 6 down to 1
Mosey to the track. Partner up, do the following:
– Lap 1: Partner 1 run lap, Partner 2 does 30 Merkins, 50 LBCs, Squats until Partner 1 returns. Switch.
– Lap 2: Partner 1 run lap, Partner 2 does rotation of 10 Merkins, 10 LBCs, 10 Squats until Partner 1 returns. Switch.

Inquire who was ready to chip in… Gomer Pyle said, “I yam!” The goal? “I want the Pax’s arms tubern”
Mosey to the a-peeling pull up bars. Partner up & do 50 pull-ups
Mosey to the hill near the shovel flag. Partner up and do:
– Sets of 20, 20, and 10 partner-assisted plank-under-leg(ume)s dips
– 3 sets of partner-assisted merkins
Stand at the root of the hill… Proceed up and down a bunch of times – forward run, backward run, polar bear/bear polar, forward run, backward run, forward run
Back to shovel flag- quick Ring of Fries… er, Fire.

Announcements:
– Convergence 6-7am at 45MoM Thursday 11/23
– Circus Maximus 7:00am same day
– Normal workouts resume on Fryday

NMS
– YHC knows he ruffled some feathers by teasing the Lucky Horseshoe and then not delivering, but that 33 minutes is much better when you have enough PAX to have others around you most of the time. To be revisited soon.
– We have a lot to be thankful for, and today YHC is grateful for the privilege of being able to take part in the Q this morning, and to have fellow PAX with whom to enjoy the gloom. It’s good to be over the bronchitis and be back to posting regularly. Thanks to all of you for being an important part of my day today.

10 stalwart men gathered for some hard work in the gloom this morning at Heartbreak Ridge. Just as the last PAX arrived ON FOOT AND ON TIME, they proceeded to carry the flag around the AO in honor of Circle K’s father, who passed away yesterday. They left some shovel marks and maybe even a few trenches along the way as they sucked in the humidity on this fantastic July morning. Here’s how it went down:

THE THANG
— Mosey to northwest corner field outside of the track.
— Warmup: Invisible Jump Rope x20 IC, LBCs x20 IC, QUALITY Merkins x5 IC, Imperial Walkers x20 IC, Don Quixote x10 IC, Russian Soldiers IC

— Mosey to Jerkin Gym
— With partner, 10 QUALITY Jerkins, 10 QUALITY Merkins, 2 sets
— Plank-o-Rama
— Take a lap around the track, do another set of 10 QUALITY Jerkins, 10 QUALITY Merkins with your partner

— Mosey to upper field.
— Ark Loader:
. Lunge 1/2 of the field, sprint the rest. Lunges should touch knee to the ground as long as you’re able.
. Bear Crawl 1/3 of the field, sprint the rest
. Plank-o-Rama
. Bunny Hop 1/3 of the field, sprint the rest
. Army Crawl (aka “drag your pickle on the ground” per Gomer Pile) 1/3 of the field, sprint the rest

— Mosey to west school wall adjoining the parking lot
— Triple check: Wall Sits/Planks/Sprint to other side of parking lot & back. Any PAX who have not carried the flag get their opportunity here

— Mosey to start point with the flag
— COP: Ring of Fire (10 QUALITY Merkins), Freddie Mercurys x20 IC, APD (slow down & feel it in your back) x20 IC, Hello Dolly x20 IC

— COT

MOLESKIN
First things first – all PAX offer our condolences to Circle K and the Thurman family. Per Swirly, Mr. Thurman was a Marine, and thus in honor of him and in thanks for his service to our great country, we each took a turn carrying the flag during our workout this morning. Our prayer was and is for comfort in your grieving and for His grace in remembering & celebrating the life of your father. We are with you. You’re an important member of the F3RVA PAX, and we’re privileged to be able to support you during this time.

The emphasis of today’s exercises (YHC said it many times) was quality & maximum benefit over speed. The Q’s original options list included B.O.M.B.S. but with the volume of reps there it would have been much easier to let our focus falter. Maximum Benefit. Well done, PAX for rising to YHC’s challenge and executing.

Thanks Flipper and Pucker for stepping up to Q over the next two weeks. Take care of that shovel flag. The PAX is grateful that we’re not all still staring at each other wondering which non-HoneyDo/non-Loose Goose Q will take the reins.

ANNOUNCEMENTS
Arrangements for Circle K’s father: Visitation will be Wed 7/19 @ Blileys Funeral Home on Augusta 6-9pm. Funeral will be @ 3pm Thursday at Our Lady of Lordes.

ReeseStrong 5K on Sep 16 – sign up now to be part of the largest, BEST team in the race. Crab picking, good fellowship, and good beer at Circle K’s afterward (all of this is family-friendly) http://www.reesestrong.org/reesestrong-5k/

Honk.

5 regulars and 1 FNG busted out of the fartsack this morning to move in “V formation” and expand our claim of this great AO. Last night’s storm left a few temporary Mississippi-style swamps around the AO but these 6 were not deterred. Here’s how it went down.

THE THANG

Details and Audibles:

• Warmup COP: Jump Rope, LBCs, Russian Soldiers, Imperial Walkers
  No running with Pull-ups & Merkins
• Mosey route modified to ensure the AO was marked in all 4 corners. We own this b***h now! Corner 1 – 10 Burpees. Corner 2 – Dog leg raises, 10 each leg. Corner 3 – 10 WWII situps. Corner 4 – 10 IC Freddie Mercuries.
• 5 Minutes of Mary became ~7 Minutes of Mary due to time. Lots of exercises ending with Superman, of course.
• COT/naming of FNG

SOGGY MAN MOLESKIN
– Welcome FNG Volley to F3 and back to RVA! He walked up to the Q promptly at 5:18 and declared, “I’m Nate. My friend in North Carolina EH’ed me.” IS THIS GUY A NATURAL FIT FOR F3RVA OR WHAT??? Going with the tennis theme, the PAX just couldn’t bring ourselves to name a pastor “FNG Deuce,” especially since you acquitted yourself so well your first time out. We look forward to having you back at Heartbreak Ridge and other AOs in F3 RVA.
– When YHC scouted the new parts of the AO yesterday it was bone dry. Today, it didn’t take us too long to splash our way into the upper field, and it was tough to find a firm piece of ground (forget dry) from there on out. But like Chuck Norris, YHC (and I’m assuming everyone else) was pushing the earth down with Merkins, not himself up as hands sunk into the ground…
– Attila (and to a lesser extent FNG Volley) taunted the Q by wearing an extremely clean white shirt. Though YHC was definitely tempted to modify the plan and make an example of such a crime, seeing and having this gander fully take ownership of the AO was something that had been a priority for awhile now, and was not to be put off any longer. That Calvin Klein undershirt of Attila’s got away with only some H20 and maybe a little mulch stuck to it. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Won’t happen again.
– Regarding “marking the territory” it was good to check out parts of the AO we hadn’t seen or used before. Better Pull Up bars over at the elementary school, and maybe even more recently mowed grass??!?! Excellent. We left our marks F3 style — no fire hydrants or trees were watered and no golden eggs laid.
– Well wishes to Sabotage and his gimpy shoulder. Get well soon, and we’ll enjoy seeing you post at runs until then.
– As always, it’s an honor to lead, thanks for allowing me to do so this morning. This is one of those days that, due to constantly interrupted sleep last night, YHC likely would not have posted if “Loose Goose” hadn’t been on the Q sheet. Time to go sign up again. Sabotage was signed up for VQ week at 45MoM and needs a sub. Is anyone else feeling LUCKY????

Honk.

15 F3 faithful and 1 Rad FNG got out of the fartsack this morning to put in some real work before the day began. HoneyDo, apparently still recovering from a previous workout (or his nighttime side job), planted the shovel flag as the PAX assembled. Here’s what followed:

THE THANG

Mosey to the NW corner of the grounds to find… lots of basketball and tennis courts!
Plank while awaiting the rest of the PAX. Disclaimer

COP – Merkins IC x10, Russian Soldiers IC x15, Freddie Mercurys IC x15 (slowly), Imperial Walkers IC x15. Maybe another exercise?

Mosey to the large plateau/field on the North side of the school grounds

Ark Loader — do the allotted exercise 1/3 of the way across the field, run to the end and back. Plank and await instructions. Allotted exercises: Bear Crawls, Lunge Walk, Burpee Broad Jumps, Crab Walk forward (arms first), Bunny Hops, Army Crawl. Plank-o-Rama somewhere in the middle.

Mosey to the holler between football and baseball fields.

Lieutenant Dan’s Hill — one partner runs up the hill & does 10 Lieutenant Dans at the top (squat + forward lunge L + forward lunge R). Other partner stays at the bottom and does 5 Merkins, then plank. Each partner does 3x. Audible called to do WWII situps during 2nd & 3rd rounds.

Mosey to nearby flat ground on football side of the holler. Push-o-Rama with recovery exercises built in:
Merkins OYO x15, LBCs IC x20, Werkins OYO x15, Squats OYO x15, Diamond Merkins OYO x10, Freddie Mercurys IC x15, Stagger R/L OYO x10 each arm, P90X Karen Pot Stirs each arm, Chuck Norris Merkins (knuckles) OYO x15.

COT

MOLESKIN

– A great morning for a beatdown! It’s a pleasure and an honor to get some good work in with you men before most of the city is even awake. As mentioned in the COT at the end, it had been >1 year since YHC had Q’ed and it is great to be back in the saddle. I took some time off during a rough year last year from F3, and coming back to be a regular part of the F3RVA PAX has been an effective and essential part of my journey over the past 6 months.
– Welcome FNG Krü! Glad to have you, you did an admirable job this morning, both in coming to a group where you didn’t know anyone and in the work you did while there. We look forward to having you back. For those who don’t know the incredible 80’s movie from which his F3 name originates, here are a couple of additional clips that show what you have been missing from your life for the past 31 years. Plus, the bad guy in the movie was Bart Conner! How great is that?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQ6AUYa-29o

ANNOUNCEMENTS

– 5/19 – golf tourney, talk to Wilson
– 5/20 – F3 Charlottesville launch. Remember that F3 was a gift from a bunch of guys in NC to us, let’s do the same. Help needed in getting the word out in Hooville and in Q’ing and helping with the first weeks of Saturday workouts. Send email to F3Charlottesville@gmail.com
– The Q sheet now has Heartbreak Ridge on it. If you’d like to lead a workout at this great new AO, go sign up.

11 die-hards of F3RVA braved the rain to scout and break in a new AO in soggy style. HoneyDo planted the shovel flag and stood back to watch the PAX assemble. The single Quioccasin Alum present (Swirly) gave an overview of the grounds before a hot-potato Q delivered the inaugural beatdown at HEARTBREAK RIDGE. Here’s how it went down, including actual recorded thoughts of the Qs.

THE THANG

Loose Goose Q (Haven’t done this in awhile! 11 PAX at the first workout!?!? PUMPED! What is the disclaimer supposed to be again?)
Mosey to center field
Disclaimer
COP
– Invisible Jump Rope IC x20
– Merkins IC x20
– Russian Soldiers IC x20
– Imperial Walkers IC x20

Mosey to the holler between baseball field and track

Plank while Q gives instructions for Partner Lieutenant Dans:
– Partner 1 climb hill and do 10 Lieutenant Dans
– Partner 2 do 10 Merkins and Plank until Partner 1 returns
– Repeato 3x audible to 2x

Honey Do Q
Mosey around 1/2 of track to the pull up bars and other bars (WTF are these? 2 pull-up bars and a bunch of Romper Room crap. USELESS. Oh wait, Jerkins!) near the road. HoneyDo assesses the situation & develops the plan. With partner, do the following:
– 10 Dips
– 10 Jerkins
– 10 Pull-ups
– Repeato all 2x
– Plank when done
“Swirly, whatcha got for us?”

Swirly Q (Real time recall of a specific phys ed class sometime in the early 80’s. Oh yeah baby! Reliving the good ole’ days!)
Mosey around 1/4 of track to bleachers on the parking lot side. Bleacher madness:
– 20 dips & 20 incline merkins on bleachers
– Run around to other side of track
– do 20 dips & 20 incline merkins on bleachers
– Run back around to parking lot side of track

Toga Q
Mosey to game day snack shack (Quick check for prices on soft pretzels, chili dogs and slurpees. Refocus. MUST DELIVER BEAT DOWN.)
Rotation of pain:
– Plank with feet on wall, climb to Balls to the Wall
– American Hammers IC x20
– Burpees OYO x10
– Wall sits
– Repeato all

Garbage Plate Q (I do not care that we’ve done shoulder and pushing exercises almost the entire time. More, more, MORE!! Bwahahahaha!!)
Mosey around 1/3 of track past bleachers on parking lot side, stop at the hill. Q states: “This is the hill. This is the hill we will bear crawl up backwards”
– Bear crawl up hill backwards, SSH at top OYO x15
– Repeato hill climb and SSH
– LBCs OYO x20
“Malpractice, you’ve got 5 minutes!”

Malpractice Q (I can jump small buildings in a single bound. Fences are nothing.)
Unauthorized Access:
– Run down the hill, hop the fence, across the field, hop the other fence, and do 10 Merkins. Come back, do 10 Merkins
– Repeato until time expires.

COT

NMM

YHC was floored at the # of PAX that posted today for what was billed as an exploratory look at the new AO. 11 strong — WELL DONE!!! As the cars kept rolling in, it was obvious that this was not just a simple scouting, but a full-fledged launch.

HoneyDo did a quick check and found that “The Ridge” is already taken as an AO name. But to his disbelief, the clearly better “Heartbreak Ridge” was not claimed in F3 Nation. Schedule request submitted and awaiting Corporate approval, pending completion of said approver’s daydreaming about his 7th grade crush.

The sight of the shovel flag waving at the top of the hill in the rain and under the lights while we did American Hammers was breathtaking. I love moments like that when I’m reminded of our great country and in the same moment the camaraderie that we have with F3.

It’s an honor to work out & live life with you gents. I look forward to continuing to build the West End territory of F3RVA with all of you.