My first post was at Lion’s Den on a Wednesday the week before Thanksgiving 2020, so I’ve been at F3 for a little over 3 months…and with 3 Q school sessions under my belt (shout-outs to Ma Bell, Disco Duck, and Red Ryder), I guess it was about time I tried my hand at Qing.
Arrival and warmup
When your Nantan pre-blasts a VQ, I guess 19 guys (and 1 canine) show up to set a new site record, even on a 33-degree Monday morning with chance of rain. Lots of ECers, too, although YHC was not one of them.
No FNGs, but I restated the mission of F3 anyways. No late arrivals, so alas I shall save my carefully researched exicon Alarm clocks penalty for a later date. After the pledge, we did a VQ-with-no-EC-paced mosey to an emptier parking lot for warmup.
- Windmills. There was some mumbling that the pace was brisk, but when I tried to slow it down after the eleven-count for the next twelve, the PAX thought I was signalling a halt. But one adapts.
- Sir Fazio fwd & rev arm circles with Seal claps thrown in the middle since Wahoo was there. x12-24-12 counts IIRC.
- Plank jacks, which I mistook as mountain climbers for a hot second, x24.
- Calf stretch, about a minute.
Mosey to the track for Thang 1.
Thang 1 - The big hand of the clock
Very creatively, I took my inspiration for the VQ from my F3 name, so everything was a variation of running in circles and stopping for multiples of 12 exercises.
Round One
Had planned to do the rounds OYO, but after some took off running counterclockwise, we course-corrected this round to do the exercises together.
- 12 o’clock - 12 Merkins (on the down)
- 3 o’clock - 12 Merkins, 12 Bonnie Blairs (in cadence)
- 6 o’clock – 12 Merkins, 12 Bonnie Blairs, 12 Carolina Dry Docks (on the down)
- 9 o’clock – 12 Merkins, 12 Bonnie Blairs, 12 Carolina Dry Docks, 12 Squats (on the down) Backwards mosey to the 12 o’clock
Round Two
Reverse direction and OYO.
- 12 o’clock – 12 Squats,
- 9 o’clock – 12 Squats, 12 Carolina Dry Docks,
- 6 o’clock – 12 Squats, 12 Carolina Dry Docks, 12 Bonnie Blairs.
- 3 o’clock – 12 Squats, 12 Carolina Dry Docks, 12 Bonnie Blairs, 12 Merkins
Mosey back to the 12 o’clock and recover for a 12 count.
Thang 2 - The little hand of the clock
Mosey to the doublewide basketball court. The intent was to do another round of clockwork, this time with a partner. Things fell apart a little (and again some Pax were running counterclockwise like we’re in Australia or something). You’d think that since I’m a technical writer, I could give clear directions, but maybe it was just because I hadn’t brought my schematics playbook.
Round 1 - The idea
- Partner 1 sprints from 12 o’clock to 3 o’clock (the first two corners) and does shoulder taps AMRAP while waiting for Partner 2.
- Partner 2 bearcrawls from 12 o’clock to 3 o’clock
- Partners flip-flop their way around the clock back to 12
After having to wind back the clock a few rounds, we eventually got the gist of it enough to attempt Round 2.
Round 2
- Partner 1 sprints from 12 o’clock to 3 o’clock (the first two corners) and does American hammers AMRAP while waiting for Partner 2.
- Partner 2 crabwalks from 12 o’clock to 3 o’clock. There was some discussion on whether one should crabwalk forwards-facing, backwards-facing, or sideways. I had intended we’d have separate rounds for each of those ways but realized we didn’t have the time or the enthusiasm to complete such a crustacean undertaking.
- Partners flip-flop their way around the clock back to 12
Believe it or not, my original plan for Thang 2 was even more complicated.
Back to the flag
With about 10 extra minutes on the clock, we stopped for some Calf Raises along the fence, which was a move lifted from a Lookout Q from last week.
Then a Zombie Walk to burn out our quads the rest of the way to the flag. Track Star was asked by a Pax to sprint ahead and replant the flag closer, but he was too far ahead to hear by that point.
Mary
A request for Homer-to-Marge was approved since it was already in the plan. The Pax were very chatty during this exercise. x24
A 72-second plank hold for the finisher. Riley particularly appreciated this move.
COT
Announcements
- New Parking for next week’s Wild Wild West: At the far end of the lot, to accommodate returning students
- New AO - Piranha Park: Softlaunch this Saturday at the site of Dante’s Peak
- Reminder about BRR from Cataracts
- Speaking of mileage, put those miles to work ending human trafficking by joining the #end-it-challenge details in Slack
Prayers and praises
- Praise for safe delivery of Repeato’s daughter
- Prayer for Clockwork’s relative in hospice
YHC took us out.
I really enjoyed getting to plan and lead a workout with all of you. Your encouragement has pushed me out of my comfort zone and helped me grow in multiple ways, and I’ve only been here a few short months. I think that is a great testament that the Carpex region carries out the F3 mission, and am grateful to have found this unique community.
Postscripts
It was nice to see so many at coffeeteria afterwards.
Steaks shared on Slack some video footage of a deer that unfortunately fell victim to the bus tunnel at the AO. The tunnel had been part of my rain contingency plan, so I am glad the rain held off until COT. Rest assured that no animals were injured in the making of the workout, as Riley can attest. Also, I hear Mr. Safety has already received several proposals to help prevent this in the future. But lightheartedness aside, everyone stay safe in the gloom.