Category: Richmond, VA

  • Heartbreak Horseshoe

    3 trusted stalwarts came out to conquer this morning. The rain beat us to the start line but didn’t keep us from our goal.

    THE THANG
    Mosey to the southeast corner of the parking lot to get legs warmed up.

    Disclaimer. Warmup COP (all in cadence):
    -16 jump shots
    -20 IW
    -16 DQ
    -20 LBCs
    -16 CDD

    Mosey to the south 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. Complete everything you can in 33 minutes.
    Lap 1 – Merkins
    Lap 2 – Merkins, Storm Squats (to clear up any ongoing confusion, each storm squat rep = [1st leg -> squat -> 2nd leg -> squat])
    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 (to clear up any ongoing confusion, 20 each leg)
    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

    Mosey back to the parking lot, 16 Freddie Mercuries IC + 20 APDs IC

    COT – Loose Goose uttered a short prayer of thanks for brothers to do this with and to our great God for giving us life.

    MOLESKIN
    Kudos to Attila and Offshore for posting this morning in the pleasant cold rain. YHC was appreciative of the text from Attila this morning at 5:08am that said “Will be there to support Q but this is stupid” and confirmed the Q would not be working alone this morning.

    Not much mumblechatter this morning, likely indicative of the hard work and hard rain.

    At the risk (certainty?) of sounding like a broken record, the Lucky Horseshoe is YHC’s favorite way to gauge on a regular basis the progress of the hard work we do in getting out of the fartsack, posting, and pushing ourselves to improve.

    And of course… the repetitive 16 reps/20 reps were in honor of the first ever 16 seed to lose in the 2nd round of the NCAA tournament and the 20 point spread of UMBC’s win in the first round. All in jest, my UVA brothers, that Hoos squad was a legit championship contender who had a horrible game, and was much better than my Hokies will ever have.

  • Blacktop Beast

    9 strong posted @ No Toll this morning in the pouring rain and here is how it went down.

    COP: Helicopters, Windmills, IW’s, SSH’s, AC’s

    Black top Beast : Beast in the parking lot to save the beautiful fields  of No Toll. Exercises 6 @ each stop 3 up 3 back – Hand release merkins, LBC’s Workins, V’ups, Merkins, Burpees.

    Bleachers : 20 dips – 15 incline merkins lap around the parking lot – repeat 3 times .

    10 decline merkins – 10 step ups 3 sets

    Tennis Courts : Lunge across court – 10 donkey kicks – Russian Solder across – 10 donkey kicks – Karaoke ( 2 times)  across courts 10 – donkey kicks – High Knees across court 10 donkey kicks –  Butt kickers across court – 10 donkey kicks.

    Burpee shuffle – 2 times

    Ring of Fire – 10 merkins/plank

    Mary – Cross leg Lifts, APD’s Flutter Kicks , 6 inches.

    Moleskin : Love it that 9 warriors posted this morning cause their mind set was Sunny and 70 baby ! We splashed around during the warm up and saw Tobit and Hardywood making their way toward us in the rain – and then Flange found us! The pax was all in during the beast – face first with hand release merkins – love the positive attitudes fellas ! YHC heard lot’s of grunts and moans during the 6 inches and luckily Tobit stayed injury free during the burpee shuffle – un like the last time…. Honeymoon was ready to roll Dogs and Kids – errr… freaken rain… So not much chatter at the end – Rosie took us out. Great to have Flange back out there – way to post on a rainy 40 degree day – atta baby  – corporate sees you!

    Excellent job fellas way to push !

    See y’all in the gloom..

  • Two Years of DaVille

    7 committed warriors jumped out of the fart sack into a soaking wet DaVille two-year birthday party that went something like this…

    Parking lot tracers (dedicated to Lab Rat)

    Mosey to the basketball court behind the school for the COP.

    COP All IC – 20 SSHs, 10 merkins, 20 LBCs, 10 merkins, 20 imperial walkers, 10 merkins, 20 copperhead squats, 10 merkins, 10 don quixotes, arm circles, 10 merkins.

    Suicides (dedicated to Circle K) – Suicide followed by 30 invisible jump ropes. Rinse & repeat

    Mosey to the school wall.

    Donkey kick party (dedicated to Opus) – 5 donkey kicks, touch a tree, increase by 5 up to 20 with touching a different tree in between, descend back down to 5 with touching a different tree in between.

    Mosey to the road to the nearest light post.

    4×4 trail (dedicated to Spit) – Partner up. One partner runs the road to the last light post at the end of the football field parking lot and back while the other partner does two 4x4s at each light post. Switch and repeat until the last light post.

    LBC trail (dedicated to Phonics) – Return on the road to the original light post while stopping to do 5 LBCs at each light post.

    Mosey to the flag. 20 flutter kicks IC to finish.

    Numberama, Namerama, Announcements, YHC took us out.

    Announcements: Let’s continue to pray for Lab Rat’s Dad and support our brother in this time.

    NMS:

    It is incredible to think that the first DaVille workout was on 3/22/16 and that almost two years has passed since the launch of F3 up north in Mechanicsville. YHC clearly remembers that first morning and Abacus’ challenge via text to show up. Circle K led a beat down that morning and YHC did not want to disappoint for this two year birthday party of DaVille! YHC included specific exercises to honor those who have made some significant contributions to the DaVille pain over the years.

    The rain was pounding the windows at 4:30 am and it woke up some of the PAX so some were ready to roll as soon as they arrived. The PAX stepped out of their cars around 5:26 am and waited for Phonics to arrive at his normal 5:29:57 time. He didn’t disappoint.

    The PAX launched into a set of parking lot tracers in honor of Lab Rat. The PAX attacked them at a lightning pace and it elicited comments from Lab Rat (big surprise?). The parking lot tracers seemed more like a sprint than a time to stretch and warm up.

    The move to the basketball court immediately brought up countless memories of Circle K and his dedication to suicides. The COP worked in YHC’s favorite COP set of merkins that added up to 50 IC (100 total) right out of the gate. The PAX groaned as expected and that was a sign of strong start.  The suicides were somewhat tricky with Lake Mechanicsville right in the middle of the court.  The PAX avoided swimming as part of the workout and nailed the suicides with reckless abandon. The invisible jump ropes also paid homage to Circle K.

    The move to the wall brought out comments about the missing Opus. Opus has been recovering from an injury so he had a valid reason for staying in the fart sack. The PAX didn’t know this during the workout however. The donkey kicks brought up memories of Opus starting us with them before doing anything else in some of his Q’s. Donkey kicks are a lot more difficult when the ground is muddy/slippery.

    The 4x4s on the road provided ample opportunity for muscle failure but the PAX steamrolled it. Spit introduced us to 4x4s. My first memory of them was at Dogpile during one of his Q’s. They have become one of YHC’s favorites because of the amount of pain that can be dished out in short order.

    The LBCs on the way back were dedicated to Phonics because of his memories of cold, wet workouts over the past two years at DaVille. The goal was to soak up AS MUCH WATER as possible. Goal achieved. Mission accomplished. The PAX was soaked!

    YHC could have included many more exercises to honor the DaVillians who have left it all on the fields and parking lots over the past two years. We could have sprinted around the bus loop for Spike. We could have done all kinds of crazy squats for Helix. We could have done lunges from Atlee High School to Washington D.C. and back for Emoji. We could have done some skull crushers for Yardsale. We could have sprinted across fields for Wheelie. We could have done some pole smokers for anyone else…

    DaVille is always a party! The last two years have provided countless memories and opportunities to engage in challenging workouts as a team. The truth of “the workouts do not get easier but you will get stronger” continues to ring true every F3 morning in the gloom!

    Happy 2 year Birthday, DaVille!

    The Carpenter

     

     

     

  • Cardinal Run

    A Lucky Seven wet race horses rose to run in the gloom and try the new route.  There was an immediate hesitation as the Pax braced for the directions that would be known the Cardinal Run.  The directions were solid and no one got lost.

    The Route:

    Head west along the lake, up the route past the baseball field to the Robbins Center.  Ascend the hill by the stadium and up Boatwright to Three Chopt.  Cross Three Chopt and take Honaker to Patterson.  Cross Patterson and head east one block.  Take a left on Roxbury.  Roxbury to West Franklin.  West on West Franklin to Charles.

    5s/6s take Charles north crossing Monument and go to Crestview Elementary.  Turn around and return to Charles/West Franklin.

    4s/5s/6s – Continue heading west on West Franklin to Register Parkway and take a left taking it to Patterson.  All groups should be at Patterson/Three Chopt.

    4s/5s head east on Three Chopt taking a right on Bandy Road until it turns into a bamboo trail and drop down the hill in the back.  Take the lit trail back to UR and come down and around the Robbins Center to the lake.

    6s head west on Patterson to Westham Parkway.  Westham Parkway to Lakewood and go left until it ends at the lake.  Take a left on College and come around the baseball fields back to the lake.

    YHC took us out.

    NMS:

    YHC was not certain of who would show up this morning as I arrived a little early.  The pull of the FS must have been strong for many, but Bleeder showed up and the rest quickly rolled in.

    YHC missed the turn for Register Parkway, prompting Saab’s comments about the navigation abilities of a cardinal.  That might explain why you see so many year round.  As evidence, let it be known that the map states otherwise and a turn should have been present:

    There you go!

    Not too much discussion afterwards as the rain was soaking through.  Welcome the first day of Spring!

    ABT,

    Lockjaw

  • Anniversary Kickoff

    The week started the right away for two runners who descended on Atlee High School parking lot in order to take off on a run that went something like this…

    Leave the parking lot and follow the road behind the high school around toward the entrance to the Honey Meadows neighborhood. Go through that neighborhood until the cut-through that leads to the Kings Charter neighborhood. Run on the main road until the first clubhouse and turn right. Head on that road, up the hill, turn and return the same way all the way back to the start for a total of roughly 5 miles.

    NMS

    YHC arrived with a sense of expectancy for the start of his anniversary week. YHC’s first post was to the opening day of DaVille on Tuesday, 3/22/16. Today’s run started from that same location. Tomorrow’s DaVille fun fest (aka. beat down) will start there as well.

    Spit stormed into the parking lot beeping his horn and driving in a massive circle around YHC’s car. He was wide awake and ready to smash the run. We took off running into the gloom with conversations about the NCAA tournament. Spit shared that he was ready with words about UVA’s historic loss but then UNC tanked… Only one team wins. All the others lose. March Madness is a fan-killer for sure!

    Spit demonstrated how his commitment to running is yielding clear fruit with his pace. He helped to push YHC and keep the challenge fresh throughout the run. YHC took Spit on a new road to give him a little hill. The hill is nothing like the ones at other running AO’s around the RVA but it gave a little taste to keep us honest. Spit broke from the PAX (me) and moved ahead in order to challenge himself on the way back. He made the right decision as YHC started to reveal his lack of long-distance running. YHC was looking for a “break” in the form of burpees, 4x4s or some other insane exercise but there was nothing but one foot in front of the other this morning. The rest of the week will provide an opportunity for that FUN!

    Spit recorded just over 5 miles for the run. He circled back a few times to meet up with YHC so the total for the run was somewhere around 5 miles.

    Numerama, Namerama, Announcements, YHC took us out.

  • Live Like No One Else, So You Can Live Like No One Else

    “If you will live like no one else, later you can live and give like no one else.” – Dave Ramsey

    Five warriors rose to greet the dawn of a new day.  The conditions were ripe for success.  The fee of admission today was to show up and being on the right side of the dirt.  According to legend, this rock filled hot potato Q went a little something like this.

    Swirly Q:

    COP: IC X 10, SSH, Don Quiote, Helicopter, Cherry Pickers

    Grab a rock and mosey up the hill.

    Cinco de Awesome:

    Round 1 – With rock 10 X curls, overhead press.  Run to tree and back.

    Round 2 – With rock 10 X curls, overhead press, squats.  Run to tree and back

    Round 3 -With rock 10 X curls, overhead press, squats, WWII situps.  Run to tree and back

    Round 4 -With rock 10 X curls, overhead press, squats, WWII situps, bench press.  Run to tree and back

    Pass the Q to Wheelbarrow:

    Mosey over to the playground.

    Trifecta – 3 Rounds of 5 pull-ups, 10 dips and a run to some random ass tree as long as it is green and has leaves, you know because we are in FOREST Hill Park in total darkness and vagaries here should do just fine.

    NA Run around the playground with a rock overhead or close to chest.

    Pass the Q to Hardywood:

    Super Four Corners – Snuggle up to the rock of success for a circumnavigation around the outside of all three tennis courts.  At each corner alternate 10 Hand Release Merkins or 10 WWII Strict Situps.

    Pass the Q to Goldberg:

    4 Rounds of bear crawl curb to curb in the cul-de-sac followed by an exercise.

    Round 1 &Round 2: YHC was in complete oxygen deprivation and forgot these.  So sue me.

    Round 3: 20 WWII situps

    Round 4: 10 burpees

    Down the hill to put up rocks and back to the flag.

    Numberama, namerama, YHC took us out.

    This was an absolute smokefest.  Way to crush it fellas.  Great to have Goldberg and Wheelbarrow in tow.

    The title comes from the great Dave Ramsey.  If there’s anything that that guy is, it is consistent.  The line “If you will live like no one else, later you can live and give like no one else.” is a testament to doing the hard work now, to make sacrifices today for the life you want to live.  As we’ve had a bunch of new guys over the last few weeks, this thought has kept coming up for YHC. How much would you intentionally sacrifice to have the life you want?  Would you be willing to “live like no one else” (get up early, go to be early, push yourself to the brink of vomit, not be good at something in front of your peers, get some random nickname, drink less, eat better, etc.) so that you can “live like no one else” (have a daily source of pride, clarity, focus and health in an environment whose only barrier to entry is that you show up, lose weight, have actual friends, etc.).

    It does not get easier, but it does get better.

    Be super,

    Hardywood

     

     

     

  • 1139

    code

    Nine steely eyed quants convened in the cool air this morning for a big data birthday celebration of sorts.  Mosey over to the church parking lot for a quick disclaimer and then COP.  We never left.

    COP
    SSH – x50
    Helicopters – x13
    Russian Soldiers – x13
    Knee Pulls – x13
    LBCx – x50

    The Thang
    Prisoner cell workout.  Everyone grab a parking spot and don’t leave until we complete 1000 exercises.  25 of each of the following exercises, some were in cadence, some OYO.  Repeat the entire sequence for a total of 2 times through.

    1-100 and 501-600
    Star Jacks
    Merkins
    Squats
    WWII

    101-200 and 601-700
    Imperial Walkers (4 count)
    Dips
    Box Jumps
    Flutter Kicks (2 count)

    201-300 and 701-800
    Mountain Climbers (4 count)
    Werkins
    Calf Raises
    Pole Smokers

    301-400 and 801-900
    Hillbillies (4 count)
    Windshield Wipers (4 count)
    Lunges (2 count)
    American Hammer (2 count)

    401-500 and 901-1000
    Tuck Jumps
    Diamond Merkins
    Jump Squats
    Reverse Crunches

    Mosey back to the flag 90 seconds late where YHC took us out.

    Moleskin
    YHC almost forgot he signed up to Q until checking the sign-up sheet just prior to bed.  A few weeks ago YHC had plans for a tribute to all sorts of data as on 3/19/2017 the machine started collecting workout stats on it’s own.  All YHC was able to muster on short notice was a quick tally of 1139.  That is how many workouts have occurred in the RVA region in the last year.  Kind of a mind boggling number when you look at it.  As a tribute, the hoes today did 1139 exercises.  Apologies to the PAX for bringing us in a little late.

    There were definitely some arbitrary exercises in there that were needed to catch our breath from some of the more difficult ones, including the Star Jumps, Windshield Wipers and Tuck Jumps.  The mountain climbers followed by werkins were no joke either.  A real diabolical Q could have turned this into a bloodbath.

    Enjoy the day fellas.  Thanks for tolerating another Splinter Q.

    Announcements
    Honeydo is recruiting for his CSAUP team.  Still time to taper.

    Splinter out.

  • In Search of the Negative Split in Tarrington…

    4 grizzled veterans, including one who has been losing more sleep than others these days, posted to River Run to log some miles.  YHC called out the plan – each PAX member would set off on their individual journey through (generally the traditional Tarrington route) in search of this thing that the great SPlinter spoke of on Friday…the NEGATIVE SPLIT — out for at least 23 minutes and then turn around and retrace your steps and try to get back to the flag before time ran out.

    From the beginning, Rosie was off to the races clearly with 6+ miles on his mind, and he crushed it.  YHC had 1 goal – make it to crest of the Ashwell hill.  It took 23 minutes and 45 seconds to get there, so I had to turn on the jets (relatively…so the speak) to get home before the bell rang, but I finished with seconds to spare and 5.34 miles logged.

    LugNut and Singer took varying routes but both crushed it.

    Great start to the week, gents.  Thanks for posting and pushing yourself this morning.

    Announcements:

    • CSAUP – if you’re not tapering, you’re not trying… get out there.
    • The Masters’ Team can thank SOJ for releasing Jville from his SOJ commitment so that he can blaze the trail for the Masters’ Team just like 100 year old Orville Rogers blazes the new UST&F Masters’ Division 60-meter http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=22815850  No doubt these guys would have dominated some F3 in their time!

    Have a great Monday men.  No More Gumbo For You!

  • OTB trio

    A group of 3 set out on the normal OTB route through the Grove, Midlothian Mines park and into the Village.  Honeymoon and Longhorn turned back at about 4 with some early morning obligations and YHC kept on to get a few more through Salisbury.

    No post run 2nd F this week but plenty of discussion about the upcoming CSAUP during the run.  Thanks to Honeymoon and Longhorn for meeting me out there.

  • A quintet

    A strong five posted on the day after St Patty’s day for a morning run.

    The Thang:

    Run across bridge to buttermilk.  Buttermilk to clockwise around Forrest Hill park and the back to the pump house.  7 miles in all.

    NMM

    You can just never tell how a run is going to go.  I was feeling pretty good this morning and I felt like I was pushing myself and moving pretty good.  The rest of the PAX also looked strong today and steadily pulled away from me.  Not an unusual occurrence, but like I said, I thought I was doing well.  Bad news, is the clock doesn’t lie.  Despite my best efforts, all I could muster was a mediocre pace.  it felt strong and I felt pretty good, but the clock said differently.  Oh well, the running gods will pay me back with a run that feels crappy and when I look down the watch will say I rocked through the miles.

    Great 2nd F at ET’s after the run.  The entire group posted to Ellwoods and had breakfast this am.  Varied conversation ranging from Upchuck’s previous nights’ conversation about the mating rituals of teens to the proper way to make a muffin so it has the perfect top, yet is easily removed from the paper lining.

     

    TYA OUT