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After a week of hot, humid weather, the chill of the gloom was a welcome change. 10 PAX plus our four-legged buddy posted for run club this morning, some nursing the after-effects of what sounded like a fun 2nd F evening at T-Bone’s last night.

The Thang: Run
We headed north by northwest on the prairie path, starting all together and slowly splitting into 4 groups based on speed. At the halfway point (~5:55am) we turned around and headed back. The fast group ended up with 5mi, and the slowest group with 4.5mi.

NoR: Tortuga (respect), Dr. Phil, Cheeese (respect), Da Vinci, Whittler, Babysitter, T-Bone (respect), Jolly, Katniss, Crack, Dooley Dog (Q)

Backblast, 7/7/21, Wednesday, Tar Pit

Ten HIM posted on a sweet day for a beatdown.

WOR: motivators, cherry pickers, short mosey around the parking lot with some skipping and Michael Phelps, copperhead merkins

The Thang: Poison Pill

Partners hoisted their coupons, grabbed some chalk, and headed to the south side of the school to do battle on the legendary staircases of the Dump on the Hump (as my Wheaton North 2.0’s call it).

Teams lugged their coupons up a set of stairs. At the top they wrote an exercise. They then completed 10 of the first one written. If they were the second team there, they also did 20 of the second. Third team up: all that and 30 of the third. The third set, and only the third set, had to involve a coupon. All sets could be spit up. I might do all 20 of the first while my partner gets started on the 60 of the third.

If you arrived to find three sets already written, you had two choices: do them, cross them out and earn a point, or don’t do them, circle the whole thing and leave with no point scored. This is the poison pill. The next group up has to do double the reps and doesn’t score any points for their efforts.

If you arrive and the reps are crossed off, you restart with ten of the new exercise you write.

The time flew by, and the strategizing by Sparrow and I netted us just two points for the morning. This was enough to beat T-bone and Noodles who made themselves do Bonnie Hurleys (twice) while no one else did. They were always the bridesmaid, but never the bride. Zero points (but stronger legs!). Three of the five teams scored two. Two teams scored zero. With no time left for a tie breaker, the QIC was left to ponder future adjustments needed to the Poison Pill to speed up the scoring. Stay tuned.

NOR: Banks, Shiplap, DaVinci, BOGO, Milk Duds (respect), Noodles, T-bone (respect), Whittler, Sparrow, Tortuga (respect) (QIC)

COT: Praise for T-bone’s new job, Tortuga’s M is fully out of her deep depression and anxiety – the EMDR has been amazingly effective, Noodles has a nagging injury in a leg.

Moleskin: James 1:19 “Know this,my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger.”

This verse was helpful during our three week road trip out west.

Present: Jolly, Tortuga, Aloha, Archive, Sparrow, Panda Express, Noodles, Bogo, Speedo, Drumline (FNG), Crack, Achtung, Beaker, Shiplap, Ranger Rick (FNG), Bloomer, Banks, Whittler, TBone, Babysitter.

Warmorama: Motivators, Abe Vigodas, Arm Circles (all in cadence)

The Thang: AMRAPs with 4 stations, equalling 45 reps at each station:

20 merkens, 5 pullups, 20 BBSU

15 swerkens, 20 dips, 10 Bonnie Hurleys

10 picnic press, 35 LBCs (in retrospect, 2 should have been one)

Hillruns

COT: As we have passed the summer solstice, we contemplated that as the days get shorter, this converges with John the Baptist’s signature saying, “I must decrease, He must increase.” In the second half of life it is less about us and more about others and God.

Prayers for Chicago, Haiti, Noodle’s M, Traveling PAX, and others.

We have drone coverage today courtesy of Sauron/Big Brother.

2 PAX in attendance – Cookies, TBTF (QIC)

We started off with a quick warm up consisting of SSH, Abe Vegoda’s, Picking Daisies, and Arm Circles.

We then took turns alternating a Farmer’s Carry of 2 coupons from the flag to the basketball courts.

Once we made it to the basketball courts we built our routine based on whether we made or missed various shots:
– Shot/Make/Miss
– Layup/25 Merkins/50 curls
– Free Throw/25 Merkins/25 Curls
– 3-Pointer/Mosey/25 Skull Crushers
– Half Court/10 count Jolly/Suicides

We did 4 rounds or 2 shots each PAX. In total we did 50 merkins, 275 curls, 100 skull crushers, 3 rounds of suicides, and 1 mosey

We then carried our coupons back to the flag

COT – Prayers to Cookies as he continues to prepare and pursue his calling, traveling PAX, and general good health

7 PAX posted on a beautiful Saturday morning at AO Tar Pit. The “Arms Race” got YHC in the mood for a beach muscle workout. This prompted me to steam @banks Q from February of 2020.

The Thang:

We completed circuits having one person be the pacer and all other PAX completed the exercises until the pacer was completed. The whole time, music was playing and when special songs came on, we stopped and completed the required exercise.

Circuit #1: We completed 1 time

• 25 Merkins w/ Sandbag – This was the pacer
• Table squat to overhead press
• Abyss Merkins
• Hodor’s w/ coupon
• Squats w/Sandbag

Circuit #2: We completed 1 time

• 10 Burpees w/Sandbag – Named Sandy’s
• Derkins
• Reverse Lunges off the picnic table
• Curls
• Alternating sandbag lifts to shoulder

The Songs:

• Cupid Shuffle (Cupid) Complete a Merkin every time it says “Down” Plank all other times and move right left as directed
• Flower (Moby) Squat down and hold when it says”Bring Sally Down” stand when it says “Bring Sally Up”
• Tubthumping (Chumbawamba) Complete a Burpee when it says,”I get Knocked Down”, complete Side Straddle Hops all other times
• Thunderstruck (ACDC) Hold plank and complete merkins everytime you hear “Thunder”

NOR: Shiplap, Katniss, Draper, Archive, Beaker, Cheese, Cookies

13 PAX gathered at AO Mastodon on a warm and beautiful July morning for a leg themed beatdown. QIC Beaker.
WAR

Motivators (x7, ic)
Tappy taps (x8 ic)
Quad stretch (oyo)
Derricks (x5 each leg, ic)
Tie fighters (20, ic)

Thang 1
do-ah-diddy to Dan Taylor alley for ultimate frisbee. The front runner did two mucho leg-os while the PAX passed them.

Thang 2
Couldn’t find the frisbee, so we Dan Taylor-ed to the baseball diamond. Not sure how many Dan Taylor it was for everyone, but YHC finished an 8 count.

Thang 3
Still in search of the frisbee, we did a Dora. Partner 1 travelled via bear crawl from fence to fence on the grass just outside of the baseball diamond (to protect Jolly’s soft hands) while partner one performed an exercise. Then partners switched. Rinse, lather, repeat until all exercises were completed. Total reps: 100 Bonnie Blairs, 200 dips, 300 spiced rum squats.

Mosey back to the flags.

NOR: Babe, Babysitter, Banks, Beaker (QIC), Cheese, Crack, Heist, Jolly, Katniss, Panda Express, Sparrow, T-Bone, Tortuga

Moleskin: Being a gracious father is one way for use to be little Christs in this world. In the midst of all of the other roles of a father, remember to be gracious and love your kids with the freedom you have been granted through Christ’s love for you.

7 PAX (Banks, Shiplap, Cheese, Jolly, Beaker, TBone, Hotbox, Archive QIC) for a Run/Ruck club day. Runners took off for Seven Gables to see the flags. Ruckers (Hotbox, Archive) hit the parking garage and the college.

COT- Prayers for potential job transitions for Hotbox and safe returns from traveling PAX and runners.

15 Pax gathered to start the July Arms Race and then play some Ultimate Frisbee to recover from @Katniss’s Wednesday beatdown

WOR: Motivators (4), Goofballs (20), Tappy Taps (10), Quad Stretch

Thang 1: 4 rounds of 25 coupon curls

Thang 2: Split into teams and scout run to Dan Taylor alley – first team fully there receives to start the game.

Thang 3: Ultimate Frisbee – 6 on 7 (@hotbox and @saga did some non-running work). No injuries (except maybe to the pride of the larger team that lost 4-2). Mosey back to flags and coupon curl for the 6.

NOR: @achtung, @shiplap, @tbtf, @beaker, @crack, @cap’n crunch, @pandaexpress, @noodles, @saga, @jolly, @hotbox, @aloha, @katniss, @banks, @t-bone (Q)

Moleskin: Build little memories with your kids and spouse – it isn’t always about the big trips and big dollars – do little things together – they can still be meaningful – a little one on one time with a 2.0 or your M goes a long ways towards building great memories and having a healthy home life.

COT: Crack and T-bone have 2 newly minted 20yo 2.0’s, Travel blessings on Saga and Cap’n Crunch (and everyone else), Whittler job interview, House changes for Banks and a lot of job changes coming up for a number of pax.

Freewheelin’ frisbee field Wednesdays at Tar Pit came to a screeching halt with this morning’s beatdown, which found 7 PAX drenched in sweat by 6:15am.

NOR: Milk Duds (respect), T-bone (respect), Banks, Whittler, Noodles, TBTF, Katniss (Q)

WOR: 11x Abe Vigodas, 20x Slow Merkins, Michael Phelps, 5x Mucho Lego, Quad stretch

We moseyed with 2 sandbags (thanks Banks) and coupons over to the Southwest corner of the track where we settled in for our Thang

The Thang: Each PAX individually (OYO) completed “just 300 reps”.

• 100 Blockbees
• 100 Thrusters
• 100 Goblet squats

But a catch: three more rules applied:

• Completing 100 reps earned a lap around the track
• At least 1/4 of each 100-count set (aka 25) had to be completed with a sandbag
• Using WOD clock, 5 burpees every minute on the minute!!!

As the 6:15 deadline approached, Q modified rules to get 300 reps within reach. Eliminated burpees around 6:05am, eliminated laps around 6:08am, eliminated sandbags around 6:10am.

NOTE: This Q might have been realistic for a 1hr Saturday beatdown. With the modifications we had 1 PAX come within 10 reps of completing 300.

COT: Prayers for Whittler and T-bone’s new job prospects – give them strength and wisdom in interviews and decision-making. Prayers for Banks as he navigates sale and purchase of new home, inspection, etc. Praise for Noodles’ new hard-earned position in St. Charles and all the other blessings bestowed upon us all daily.