Despite the early hour of 4am… two PAX in the predawn gloom in search of a few hours of miles for Big Rig, and 24 for YHC. We got a few laps in on some Brandermill paths. Some false starts and pit stops with bathroom trips and forgotten water bottles. Unfortunately YHC started feeling lightheaded and really out of it about 9 miles in. Pushed through and got in about 12. Decided to call it quits there and live to fight another day. Big thanks to Big Rig for continuing to stay with this broken down PAX. Also a TCLAPS to him for going out for one more mile to make sure he got in a half marathon.
Lesson of the day was to take it easy during the week next time I have a long run planned for the weekend. That’s been difficult during ironPAX season. Thankfully that season is over just in time to taper.
Two eastend OGs linked up to kick off October the right way with an OTB. Plenty of chatter during Warmarama, but it tapered off once we started that mosey…..
The Thang:
11s on the hill
Hand release merkins at the top, Ukrainian soldier squats at the bottom?Transportation of a Bernie back up the hill.
Pull-up bar work
5 pull ups, 10 squats, 15 merkins. Complete 10 rounds, with a mosey after round 5.
4 guys launched for 9+ miles running and 4 walkers (+ 1 four-legged friend) took off for some easy miles and conspiracy theories.
half-mile into the run, YHC commented how much nicer it felt than Friday’s RAMM, but by the time we descended to the bottom of Otterdale and into Founders Bridge, we were questioning where the oxygen went. The long uphill slog began in Founders Bridge and continued up Winterfield – an aggressive route to be sure from a traffic perspective, but we made it back to the top and enjoyed 4 flat miles back to the VSF.
There seemed to be an unusually high number of vehicles out early this morning, including one on Old Otterdale – wait WHAT? YHC and Draper wagered on the number of cars we would see on our Winterfield climb – we surrounded the number – we will call it a draw.
Regardless of the lack of oxygen and the climbs, it was a great morning for some miles. Thanks boys!
The Pax: Scram, L Woods, Machismo, Machine Head, Spencer (“W”)
FNGs: 1 (Spencer, named “W”)
The Q: Machismo
The Thang: 4 Corners Prostitute-Style, Curb-Work 11s, and a Glorious Wall Detour
The gloom welcomed five men to Bon Iron this morning, including FNG Spencer, who arrived just in time to catch the final disclaimers—a perfect start to the F3 trial by fire. YHC (Machismo) was quickly reminded that for a new guy, the mental hurdle of seeing a humble water spot and deciding “this is where we execute the LBCs” is part of the beautiful misery we cherish.
After the mission was stated, we moseyed to the Cancha de Riverside for a proper re-calibration.
WARMARAMA: Court-Side Calisthenics
The Pax worked through the non-negotiables to prepare the soft tissue for the abuse to come:
SSH (Standard F3 count)
Imperial Squat Walkers
Mericans (Standard Push-ups)
The ever-blessed Don Quixote (Arm circles, forward and back)
THE THANG: The Road to the Wall
We stayed on the court to kick things off with a brutal 4 Corners Prostitute-Style beatdown:
Corner 1: 10 Merkins
Corner 2: 20 Squats
Corner 3: 30 LBCs (Making excellent use of the court’s puddles, indeed!)
Corner 4: 40 SSH
After sufficiently draining the gas tanks and, perhaps, Spencer’s remaining inhibitions, we moseyed across campus to the curbs near the pavilion for classic 11s (descending one side, ascending the other).
Dips (Starting at 10)
Step Ups (Double count, starting at 1)
With the clock burning, YHC decided the standard route back was too dull. The final leg was an adventure: a Crawl Bear down the ball field hill and through the woods in search of the border. What did we find waiting for us? A great, beautiful, tremendous Wall (and yes, impersonations ensued). We honored the discovery with 20 Hoe Downs before the final, hard mosey back to the Shovel Flag.
COT/BOM (Circle of Trust / Ball of Man)
The FNG, Spencer, stood at attention, ready to receive his permanent name. Given his background in political campaigning and his initiation into the gloom both by men bearing W’s, he was christened: “W”. Win for the second FNG coming to the ranks through Bon Iron. Welcome to the fold, brother! Nice recruiting L Woods.
Mumble Chatter & Announcements:
The haul to Riverside is a clock burner, and the baseball fields and parking areas near Bon Air offer plenty of future punishment potential. L Woods offered to take the Q on future occasions, but noted he’ll be Grow Rucking this coming weekend.
Praises & Prayers:
Prayers up for Machine Head desire to have a baby.
Prayers for W and L Woods’ friend battling cancer.
Continued prayers and congratulations to L Woods and Erica on the pregnancy.
Kudos to Scram for outrunning his kids and getting out to keep up the intensity.
Prayers for a successful and challenging time for L Woods rucking next weekend.
2 New Kent fellows met up in Downtown Richmond on lunch break to get some 1st & 2nd F time in with a walk around Browns Island and then some. Thanks for showing me the area Choo Choo! I know we celebrated Memorial Day Convergence there but it’d be really cool to have a regular AO there.
YHC posted the 8 mile route and Cavity Search and Don Draper ran to the AO anyway. They came in hot – no walkers in sight, so the three of us took off headed toward Midlo High School and Manders and through Queensgate to the trail through the mines and ultimately down the dirt road into Salisbury at that point Cavity Search and Draper headed for home and YHC headed up Elmstead and back to the Starbucks. Each of us had a pit stop along the way for various reasons but 8 (or 8+) miles were enjoyed and the day was started off right.
Looking to crack 10 miles next weekend if any others training for the half want to join.
1 soon to be Ultramarathoner, and another running enthusiast met up at Dogpile, each with a specific number of miles in mind. Boberry, in the peak of training for his 8 hour race, was looking at a daunting 20 miles for the day. While YHC, decided on the way to the AO, that he was going to try and get in Eleven miles, in honor of F3RVA’s Eleven Year Anniversary.
Boberry set the route for two 5 mile loops, mixing a little trail and some laps around Maymont and Byrd Parks. YHC added an out and back to Carytown to get in the eleventh mile.
As always, great to catch up with Boberry and get some miles in with him. YHC went on to the convergence and Boberry marched on for his miles, though he had to get several in closer to home. Great determination to get those miles done!
YHC was grateful for F3 this morning. Wish he would have thought of doing the eleven miles sooner. Maybe some other PAX would have joined in. Maybe next year we can go for Twelve!
3 runners got in 7.65 – well Cavity Search probably got in 11 – BEAST. 5 walkers did something but there was no sign of them at 7:11 when the runners returned. Poof – gone. One theory was that coffee was not enough for Dumar’s birthday so they went for breakfast…who knows.
Rosie and YHC stayed for coffee.
In any event, miles were conquered, fellowship was had, the start to the day was good.
The Bon Air soft launch was a perfect opportunity to celebrate what it means to start a new AO, and to honor the legacy of the Richmond Flying Squirrels’ old baseball diamond. We rededicated ourselves to the F3 mission to plant, grow, and serve small workout groups for the invigoration of male community leadership.
Machismo led the workout, beginning with a mosey to the grassy baseball diamond. With introductions and the F3 disclaimer complete, we kicked off with warm-ups including SSH, merkins, LBCs, Imperial Squat Walkers, and UKs.
The Thang:
We started with a tribute to the last games at the old Diamond with Thang 1: The 7 of Diamonds. We hit each base for a round of exercises, climbing the rep count with each trip: 7 burpees, 14 merkins, 21 squats, and 28 pickle pounders. Then, we ran it back down the ladder with 21 LBCs, 14 of something, and 7 Lt Dans.
Next up was Thang 2: Triple Check. The PAX worked in groups of three. One partner did chain smokers, another did hand release merkins, and the third ran to the playground for 5 chinups before returning.
Finally, we wrapped it up with a diamond classic in Thang 3: Run the Bases. We bear crawled to first base for 10 squats, crab-walked to second for 10 WWII sit-ups, and either Bernie-sanded or ran backwards to third base for 10 lunges, with a final sprint to home.
COT (Circle of Trust)
After the sweat and the struggle, we circled up for names and numbers. The inspiration for this new AO became clear as we heard from FNG, LFG. He hasn’t worked out in years, recovering from a viral infection that required the removal of fascia from his leg. As a father of two growing sons with special needs, his desire for a close, neighborhood-based F3 community spoke to the very core of our mission. This AO, a right fit for Bon Air with its strong ties to F3RVA through No Toll and The Forge, is a reminder of why we’re here: to serve and encourage our fellow men and build communities.
zombies met up at Swift Creek Middle to go on the road for some easy miles. This week’s IPC was already a speed workout, so no speed work this week, and no need to double up on Thursday. Always great to catch up with Boberry!
