ao_ground_zero Run, Ruck, Scholar Walk

Date: 2025-12-03
AO: ao_ground_zero
Q: LouGee ,
PAX: Audible, Mr. Bean, Ankles, Dumpster, Too Big To Fail (TBTF), Manhole, LouGee FNGs: None
COUNT: 7
WOR:
Arm Circles (f-b) 12x/13x, SSH x 25, Squats x 11, Plank – 60 sec The Thang:
Walked and talked (some with vests) through downtown Wheaton Moleskine:
Show up! Be present, it’s 90% of participation.
COT:
60 seconds of silence.
Announcements – Christmas Party (Panhandle), Poker night (Banks), Feed the Need (Dumpster) – check the 2nd-f & 3rd-f channels for details/RSVPs

Tags: ao_ground_zero, Audible, Mr. Bean, Ankles, Dumpster, Too Big To Fail (TBTF), Manhole, LouGee

ao_flat_earth Ultimate Frisbee

Date: 2025-12-02
AO: ao_flat_earth
Q: Cheese , Jack
PAX: Cheese, Tortuga, Jolly, White Noise, Banks, Hypotenuse, Jack, Katniss FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
WOR: SSH & Down & Back

The Thang: Ultimate Frisbee

Moleskine: For families to be close and healthy

COT:

Tags: ao_flat_earth, Cheese, Tortuga, Jolly, White Noise, Banks, Hypotenuse, Jack, Katniss

ao_tar_pit 1X4 & a Spittoon Roundup

Date: 2025-12-03
AO: ao_tar_pit
Q: Panhandle ,
PAX: Big Mac, DQ, Jolly, Tortuga, Crack, Brainfog
FNGs: None
COUNT: 7
WOR: SSHs, goofballs, Abe vigodas, arm circles, good mornings

The Thang:

At the track, PAX did a series of 1×4 pairs of exercises. Starting 1 of one exercise and 4 of a second, they would work up to 8 of the first and 32 of the second. They did one set on the first straightaway and then a second of the same exercise on the second. They then finished up with a spittoon of ab excercises. The exercises were:

Lunges/squats/500 BBSs
Merkins/bear crawls/500 LBCs
burpees/side lunges/400 leg lifts
squats/lunges/500 American Hammers (did not finish this)

Moleskine: courage sometimes looks like perseverance

COT: Jolly’s M’s client, thanks for Crack’s 2.0 getting a job

Tags: ao_tar_pit, Big Mac, DQ, Jolly, Tortuga, Crack, Brainfog

ao_dark_room Let the PAX Co-Q

Date: 2025-12-02
AO: ao_dark_room
Q: Manhole ,
PAX: Framed, Crack, Toto, Beaker, Lakers, Brainfog, Manhole
FNGs:
COUNT: 7
WOR: yep

The Thang: lap the lot, exercise, rinse and repeat. Light pole to light pole PAX call exercise

Moleskine: hug your loved ones, tell them you love them

COT: IYKYK

Tags: ao_dark_room, Framed, Crack, Toto, Beaker, Lakers, Brainfog, Manhole

ao_tar_pit Happy Self-Governing Day!

Date: 2025-12-01
AO: ao_tar_pit
Q: Lakers ,
PAX: Manhole, Big Mac, Tortuga
FNGs: None
COUNT: 4
WOR:
SSH
High knees
Arm circles in various directions
Runner stretch

The Thang:
1/2 mile mosey to the Civic Center

Working our way up the parking garage, we did bear crawls, mosey, backwards mosey, karaoke, lunge walk up and down the ramp.

At each landing we did various exercises:
– Merkins
– Plank hold
– Caroline Dry Docks
– Squats
– Squats while facing the wall (surprisingly intimidating)
– Manhole Meatballs
– America Hammers

1/2 mosey back to the flag

Moleskine:
On the day we celebrate the Self-governance of Iceland, we must remember this quote from Plato, “The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself.” God has given us free will and it is ours to do with as we see fit. May we govern ourselves well, first and foremost, orienting our lives towards that which is good.

COT: Iykyk

Tags: ao_tar_pit, Manhole, Big Mac, Tortuga

ao_ground_zero Run/Ruck – Snow Edition

Date: 2025-12-01
AO: ao_ground_zero
Q: Too Big To Fail (TBTF) ,
PAX: Mr. Bean, Mr Roboto, SAGA, Sparrow, Crack, LouGee, Samsonite, reboot FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
WOR:
SSH, Abe Vegodas, Runners Stretch

The Thang:
We attempted to run east on the Prairie Path but once we got pas the downtown area the trail was too difficult so we took it to the streets and made a loop back to the AO.

Moleskine:
Embrace doing things that are hard and uncomfortable (such as F3 in the winter). You will be better for it and (come on) it’s really not that bad

COT:
Dan (colleague to the Wheaton College PAX) who received bad news related to health, Crack’s daughter who is pursuing a job in her field

Tags: ao_ground_zero, Mr. Bean, Mr Roboto, SAGA, Sparrow, Crack, LouGee, Samsonite, reboot

ao_mastodon Thankful for 1/2 mile loops

Date: 2025-11-27
AO: ao_mastodon
Q: Beaker ,
PAX: Brainfog, Framed, Manhole, Dumpster, The wet burrito, Panhandle, Too Big To Fail (TBTF), Falsetto, Lakers, LeMond, Beaker FNGs: None
COUNT: 11
WOR: Motivators, windmills, copperhead merkins

The Thang:
Burpee 1/2 mile
Ran the 1/2 mile loop doing 12 burpees at three different stops along the way and at the end.

1/2 mile loops
Partner up. Complete 100 reps of first exercise as a pair in the grass by the parking lot. Run opposite directions around the loop. Where ever the PAX meet, complete 100 reps of second exercise as a pair and then run back the way you came. The second PAX to make it back owes 5 burpees, the first planks during these burpees. Move on to the next round.

Round 1
CPRs
Bonnie Blairs

Round 2
Coupon swings
No cheat merkins

Round 3
100 Grip, rip, rolls
100 dips

Round 4
100 Coupon sit up-get ups
100 bbsus

Round 5
100 Blockees
100 Burpees

Rounds 4 and 5 were “aspirational”, one pair made it partway through round 3.

Moleskine: PAX shared something that seemed bad at the time, but they are know thankful for something good that came out of it.

COT: iykyk

Tags: ao_mastodon, Brainfog, Framed, Manhole, Dumpster, The wet burrito, Panhandle, Too Big To Fail (TBTF), Falsetto, Lakers, LeMond, Beaker

ao_tar_pit Drake Equation Beatdown

Date: 2025-11-01
AO: ao_tar_pit
Q: Ankles ,
PAX: Sparrow, Panhandle, Portage, LeMond, Da Vinci, Tortuga, Spinal Tap FNGs: None
COUNT: 8
WOR: Drake Equation Beatdown

In November 1961 for an early meeting of what was to become SETI (Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence), astrophysicist Frank Drake developed an equation (mostly as just a thought experiment) to determine the number of currently existing intelligent species in the Milky Way Galaxy with which we could communicate (N). A simplified version is:

N = Ns x fP x Ne x fL x fI x fC x L

Where:

Ns = No. of stars suitable for life to evolve in the galaxy

fP= % of those stars that have planets

Ne = No. of planets or moons per planetary system capable of harboring life

fL = % of those on which life (even simple single cell organisms) occurs

fI = % of those on which life evolves into an intelligent species

fC = % of those that develop radio or similar communications capable of being detected by humans

L = % of time for which that communicative alien civilization exists compared to the age of its planet

The Thang:

Additive series of exercises representing each variable of the equation, with reps being roughly representative of the best estimates according to current science. Between each variable, the PAX moseyed 1 lap around the track before adding another variable to the equation.

Ns = 45 Billion = 45 Merkins

Lap

45 Merkins + fP = 90% = 90 squats

Lap

45 Merkins + 90 squats + Ne = 1 = 1 min plank

Lap

45 Merkins + 90 squats + 1 min plank + fL = 50% = 50 one armed coupon rows (25 each arm)

Lap

45 Merkins + 90 squats + 1 min plank + 50 one armed coupon rows (25 each arm) + fI = .02% = 2 tbone burpees

Lap

45 Merkins + 90 squats + 1 min plank + 50 one armed coupon rows (25 each arm) + 2 tbone burpees + fC = 10% = 10 coupon thrusters

Lap

45 Merkins + 90 squats + 1 min plank + 50 one armed coupon rows (25 each arm) + 2 tbone burpees + 10 coupon thrusters + L = .006% = 6 coupon ketttle bell swings

PAX stayed together for each round by stronger PAX doing extra reps for remaining PAX. Towards the end, some laps were skipped & reps were done spittoon style due to time limitations.

Using the numbers provided, the anticipated number of alien civilizations currently in the Milky Way humans should be capable of communicating with is 24.3. (I’ll post a link in the comments for an interactive version of the Drake Equation so PAX can change different variables to see how much it changes the final outcome.)

Moleskine:

Arthur C Clarke once said, “There’s only two possibilities: Either humans are the only intelligent species in the Milky Way, or we are not. Both scenarios are equally terrifying, but for different reasons.”

Ask yourself this: Regardless of which scenario is true, do you think mankind is comporting itself well, given the situation?

COT: Various prayers for health & employment. Wrapped up w a moment of silence & the Serenity Prayer

Tags: ao_tar_pit, Sparrow, Panhandle, Portage, LeMond, Da Vinci, Tortuga, Spinal Tap

ao_ground_zero Sun’s Out, Run South

Date: 2025-11-07
AO: ao_ground_zero
Q: Flower Boy
PAX: Pool Boy, Mr Roboto, T-bone, LeMond, Stock boy, Panhandle, Da Vinci, Brainfog, Tortuga, SAGA, LouGee, Sparrow, Mr. Bean FNGs: None
COUNT: 18
WOR:
Probably SSHs

The Thang:
Run/ruck (may not have been south, but needed a rhyming title.)

Moleskine:
It was good.

COT:
Had to be there.

Tags: ao_ground_zero, Pool Boy, Mr Roboto, T-bone, LeMond, Stock boy, Panhandle, Da Vinci, Brainfog, Tortuga, SAGA, LouGee, Sparrow, Mr. Bean

ao_tar_pit VQ in the snow!

Date: 2025-11-29
AO: ao_tar_pit
Q: Homie
PAX: Panhandle, LeMond, Da Vinci, T-bone, Beaker, Portage
FNGs: None
COUNT: 7
WOR: SSH, arm circles, claps, slow squats

The Thang 1: run around the lake, with a few snowy burpees along the way
The Thang 2: hamster wheel at the ramp/sauna, teams of 2/3, curls, BBS, OH press, Freddie mercury’s, OH press, skull crushers, +merkins

Moleskine: in this season of family/friend gathering, don’t forget to take even just a few minutes of 1:1 time with the people who really matter

COT: Panhandle friend with a late diagnosis of illness

Tags: ao_tar_pit, Panhandle, LeMond, Da Vinci, T-bone, Beaker, Portage