July 30th, 2019 By The Nanny

31 of the best men I know set the alarms last night and showed up to see what their Q team had come up with.  @Chowder, @Ponyboy, and @Nanny all started their F3 journey 7 years ago on the same day and came together this morning to bring the pain.  Shout out to @Snare who is also a member of the class of July 31st 2012 – miss you brother.

The Thang:

@Ponyboy led the Warm-a-rama and because YHC was running back from Skyline due to a last minute venue modification, I have no idea what he did other than…

1. SSH
2. Hurpes (hand release burpees)

@Nanny then took the wheel and introduced the Pax to a new WIB inspired by @Chowder’s evil Skyline Grinder which back in the day was the Highlands’s signature WIB.  This WIB was also inspired by a workout a credit @Kato with; the Lucky Horseshoe.  Well, today we took the Skyline Escalator out for an inaugural test.  It went something like this…except that the muscle ups were replaced with dry docks.

@Chowder then took the wheel and led us back through the rabbit hole for Mary.

1. Pretzel crunch x 19
2. Rosalita x 19
3. The Squirm x 19
4. Homer to Marge w/ a little heels to heaven mixed in

The Naked Moleskin

1. I cannot believe it’s been 7 years.  In that time I’ve gone through three jobs, two cars, and had a 4th kid.  Through my time with F3 I achieved my potential as a runner and then got thrown off the mountain top due to injury.  I have had the absolute privilege of leading somewhere around a 100 of you through two Blue Ridge Relays, the first Time Laps that F3 showed up at, and close to a half decade of Dads & Kids camping trips.  I’ve worked shoulder to shoulder with many of you on the MeCa Advisory Board, talked about expansion, strategized how to plant new AOs, planned the best regional CSAUP I’ve been to (looking at you, Bear), visited dumps in the middle of the night to acquire heavy objects for workouts, and had a blast at many a late night HDHH.  And through this F3 ecosystem – which turns out is a test lab for life – I found out who I really was and more importantly, who I needed to be.  I learned that it was not good for me to stay isolated on my middle age island but instead to get out there with other men who both sharpen me and coax me into sharpening them.  Well, 7 years later HOW I work out has changed, but WHO I work out with has stayed the same.  Whether it is a veteran F3 guy who has led hundreds of beatdowns or one of our newer guys who has only been in the pax for 6 months, they all make me a better man each time I post.  Some guys have always had it in them, some guys lost it and have found it again, and some guys discover for the first time in their lives that there is a leader down in their core, and it just takes a little iron on iron to uncover it.  I am forever grateful for this band of brothers and the impact they have had on me.  Aye.

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