F3 New Orleans

Category: New Orleans

  • I Hate Trains

    I left 15 minutes early for F3 at the Birdcage this morning, so I could check out the route for the workout. I was only a few minutes from my destination when suddenly – There was a big train in the road Jock! I hate trains Jock! I hate em! Instead of arriving early to check out our route and get my head ready to Q, I rushed in one minute late to see Yankee running the Pax to the WWI memorial and Jingle Vader getting out of his car. I sprinted down the path to the memorial, flying past Vader, who used the dark side to run in the wrong direction, and I arrived just in time to start the warmup.

    SSH – 25

    Hillbillies – 20

    Peter Parkers – 25

    Windmills – 20

    Shoulder taps – 25

    We moseyed back down the path and across Magazine St to East Dr (ensuring that Vader would never find us) and down to the Labyrinth for some park bench work.

    Right leg lifts – 20

    Dips – 20

    Left leg lifts – 20

    We moseyed from the Labyrinth to the Tree of Life where I informed everyone that our workout today was planned at a wedding I officiated under the tree on April 6th.

    Dora needed to make her way to the Tree of Life, and the map told her that she needed to do 100 merkins, 200 jump lunges, and 300 Russian twits to make it to the Tree of Life. We partnered up to complete our journey. One partner ran down the field to the oak at the opposite end while the other knocked out the exercises.

    Arriving at the Tree of Life, I discovered that the tree looked lonely, so we gave it a big hug.  We circled up for a little Global Warming. Everyone started in Al Gore and we did 5 burpees each in a wave. Once that was finished we started over and did 10 burpees this time in honor of absent Q, Hawgcycle.

    We moseyed back toward the flag but stopped just before we got to magazine for a little Mary.

    Flutterkicks – 15

    Penguins – 15

    Big Boy Situps – 15

    Dying Cockroach – 15

    LBCs – 15

    We moseyed back to the flag for the names and the count. I hate that I was a minute late, but the Yankee and the Rev Sox worked together to get us all in the full 45 minute beat down. Thanks for the opportunity to Q. – Rev Sox

  • Two for Tuesday

    Grandmothers house produced (2) F3 brothers on this Gloom. YHC and the Pelican arrived at the AO ready for a beatdown. Both had posted the previous day at the Marsh with a record setting number and the YHC thinking Grandmas House would possibly replicate the previous days showing Pelican and I lingered and chattered for a few, but with no hot wheels rolling in it was time to get started.. After all we must “respect the time” as some F3 brothers would say..

    warmup

    20IC SJ, 20IC WM, 20IC BK, 20IC Total AC (10 forward/reverse), 20 IC SSH

    Thang

    Moseyed to the tunnel for a series of 75/150/225. Pelican started with the Burpees while the YHC journeyed down and backup picking up the count. Upon completion we jumped into the next count being Merkins 150 and finishing up with leg lunges 225. When finished we Moseyed over to the bus stop  which at this point the YHC heard the map my run of Pelican state 2 miles, so the tunnel gave the PAX an extra mile on the day. At the benches we did 15IC. Jump overs, 15 IC MC, 15IC Leg raises, 15IC FK and completed the ISI 1 min pulses. With 5 min to spare moseyed back to the flag for 15IC Left/Right Nolan Ryan’s and finished with 1 min plank hold..

    2 count (that was tough😬), announcements, COT (not sure about this one 🤔 with two)

    Q prayed us out into the day!

    Appreciate the post Pelican and the opportunity to lead, two is better than one any day my brother!!

  • Monday, Monday, but where’s Marlin?

    YHC checked the schedule late Sunday night, worried that he might have forgotten about a Q.  Instead, YHC saw that Marlin was listed for the Q.  Lets Get It, Baby!  YHC cuddled up under the covers, looking forward to a Rock City morning of inspiration and encouragement from our resident coffee-drinking-bike-riding PAX.

    But alas, it was not meant to be.

    The morning 55 degree chill must’ve been enough to keep Marlin home in bed.  Brrrr….  He might not have had enough clothes to keep warm in this bone-chilling weather.  So at 5:30, YHC tried to do his best impression, and with a “Lets Get It, Baby” the PAX took off into the morning gloom.

    Warm Up

    • Peter Parker x25
    • Shoulder Taps x25
    • Plank Jacks x25
    • Parker Peter x25
    • LSS x25
    • IW x25
    • 10 Burpees OYO

    Grab a rock, and lets head to the track, for….

    Dirty MacDeuce

    • All IC: 12 Shoulder Press, 12 Squats, 12 Box Cutter
    • Run a lap
    • 12 Curl, 12 Lunge, 12 Cockroaches
    • Run a lap
    • 12 Shoulder Press, 12 Squats, 12 Box Cutter
    • Run a lap
    • 12 Curl, 12 Lunge, 12 Cockroaches
    • Run a lap

    Mosey over to the playground, and partner up for a circuit

    • 15 Burpees (the timer)
    • Pull Ups
    • Merkins
    • Big Boy situps (in the mud)
    • Under-dogs (Rev-Sox claims this is a real thing – “Its in the lexicon!”)
    • Throw-the-rocks-over-the-fence

    Mosey back to the rock pile to deposit our friends, and then back to the flag – 6:15 on the dot.

    Count-off, Name-o-rama (welcome back, Mambi!!!  Glad to see Frac didn’t permanently scar you with that name choice!), and finish with our morning prayers.  Remember those who are sick, those who are travelling, those in the middle of war zones.

    NMM: YHC really wanted to hit the snooze button this morning.  At 5:00 am, I just didn’t think I had it in me to get out and do this.  But words from Dredd – If you hit snooze, you’ve lost your first battle of the day – made me drag my lazy butt out of bed; I did not want to start the week with a defeat.  The surprise opportunity to Q was a welcome start to the week: it allowed me to begin with a full U-Turn from where it could have been – instead of fartsacking alone, I was blessed with a chance to step up and lead.  Thank you all for letting me run with the Q.  And may you all have an inspired and successful week.

  • Clear Eyes, Cold Hands

    Great morning in the Gloom with a visitor from NC and two FNGs.  After a thorough disclaimer and explanation of the 3 Fs, we were off to the Magazine/river corner of the park where we circled up for a quick warmup:

    • SSHx25
    • IWx25
    • LSSx20
    • Mountain Climber x20 / Plank Jack x20

    Mosey from there to the Fly entrance for Merkin slalom.   We ran up the levee, did 11 merks at the top, ran down the levee and around the light pole, then repeated increasing the merk reps in increments of 1 until we got to 15.

    Jog along the levee and re-convene at the base of monkey hill.  After some whining from the Pax about their delicate little hands, we did the following:

    • 5 burpees, run over the hill
    • 10 plank jacks, run over the hill
    • Repeat 4x

    We made our way back to the levee by partnering up and alternating bear crawls and sprints.  Then indian run back to the Fly entrance for:

    • Dying cockroach (1 min. OYO)
    • Hello Dolly (1 min. OYO)
    • Russian Twists x25 (IC)
    • Real Freddy Mercs x25 (IC)
    • Elbow Mountain Climbers x25 (IC)
    • LBC x25 (IC)

    Run to the Audubon statue and grab some bench (all IC):

    • Dips x20
    • Incline merks x20
    • L Power ups x15
    • R Power ups x15
    • Dips x15

    After a long jog back to the flag, we wrapped up with a mini-Plank-o-rama and the COT.

    Welcome to FNGs Peppa and the Ponz!

    -Mulligan

  • Northshore at The NOLA Mothership

    With the Northshore convergence taking place, YHC wasn’t sure how many Pax would post to the Mothership.  Expecting a large presence on the NS, YHC was surprised to find 25 Pax gathered around the 4 shovel flags.  YHC was very happy to see 3 FNG’s post, keep up the EH’ing!

    YHC decided it would be a good idea to dedicate the Mothership beat down to the Northshore in honor of their 2 year convergence.  Since the NS was planning a beat down that would visit each AO, YHC created one as well, with more of a virtual visit to each AO.  0630, so time for the disclaimer, then….

    Mosey to the Great Lawn for the Warmup.  The Pax will begin and end at the Mothership….

    SSH IC x 31
    Imp Sq Walkers IC x 10
    10 Burpees OYO

    With the warmup complete, the Pax took a virtual bike ride to the first AO…

    Milestone Marsh

    YHC read a BB that had Waterpik doing suicides on the basketball court, so cones were set up to resemble a court for:

    Burpee Suicides
    Start at base line, sprint to first line, then back to base line for 5 Burpees
    Sprint to half court and back to baseline for 5 Burpees
    Sprint to 3rd line and back for 5 burpees
    Sprint full court and back for 5 Burpees

    The Pax mount their virtual bikes for a ride to the next AO….

    Grandmothers House

    YHC read a BB where Pelican, Shooter, and Ocho did some 11’s. Using the first and last row of cones…
    10 merkins first row, 1 Bobby Hurley last row
    9 merkins first row, 2 Bobby Hurley last row
    Continue until 1 merkin and 10 Bobby Hurleys.

    The Pax mount their virtual bikes for a ride to the next AO…

    The Gipper

    Turbo seems to like sprints, based upon his BB. Using the cones again….
    Sprint from first row to last row, and complete 5 burpees, then slow mosey back.
    Sprint from first row to third row, then some exercise, 5 merkins maybe…slow mosey back
    Sprint from first row to second row, then maybe 5 squats, slow mosey back….
    Sprint to last row again, and collect cones on the way back.

    The Pax mount their virtual bikes for a quick ride to the next AO…

    City Hall Scramble

    Apparently Bushwacker likes to do a 5k run with Burpees and merkins, according to the BB…..
    The Pax did a modified 5k run, stopping near Morning Call for 10 Burpees OYO. The Pax continued to the open lawn
    near NOMA where they enjoyed a round of:
    Catalina Wine Mixers IC x 10 (YHC had to fit them in)
    Continue on to the NOMA fountain for:
    Freak Nasties IC x 20

    The Pax mount their virtual bikes for a short ride to the next AO…

    Captains Cove

    Captain Sparkles really likes to run…..seriously, he has a running AO named after him….that’s cool!

    This AO is a 10k run, which the Pax did a modified version…
    Line up in two columns on the path that goes around Lagoon Number 7 for:
    Bataan Death March!
    An Indian Run where the last Pax drops for 5 Burpees, then sprints to the front. Each Pax got to do a set, which took us one lap around the lagoon.

    The Pax mount their virtual bikes to ride to the final NS AO…

    The Lakefront

    Steve had a BB where there was some bearcrawls and 8 Count Body Builders…nice
    8 Count Body Builders IC x 10
    line up at first tree, bear crawl to third tree for 5 Burpees OYO
    Bear Crawl to 5th tree
    Merkins IC x 10 (4 count)

    Mary

    Flutter Kicks IC x 20
    Hello Dolly IC x 20
    Rosalitas IC x 20
    Tins Snips aka Egg Beaters IC x 20
    American Hammer IC x 20
    LBC’s IC x 20

    The Pax mount their virtual bikes and head back to the Mothership Flags, but with a 6:29 arrival, the Pax had time for a quick mosey to the Great Lawn for:
    10 Burpees OYO

    Mosey to the Flags

    COT
    Count Off, Name-O-Rama.
    3 FNG’s joined us this day and were brought into the F3 Brotherhood. Welcome Mambi (He’s a hunter, said he harvested Bambi’s brother), Wolverine, an Ohio State alumni, and Recall, who does something with food and beverage.
    Intentions, and closed with a prayer.

    Great coffeteria was enjoyed by all that stayed.

    YHC hopes you enjoyed this tribute to our NS brethren. YHC will make it back up there before long.

    Thanks for posting with me today, and for pushing me.

    NMM
    It’s the little things that matter. After the 8 Count Body Builders at the Lakefront AO, YHC was about wiped out. Walleye apparently noticed, and he gave YHC some words of encouragement that proved enough to take it to the finish line. We push each other to improve and to succeed, taking our bodies farther than we thought they could go. That’s F3.
    Remember, F3 is an organization of leaders, not an organization with leaders. If you haven’t signed up to Q yet, get your name on the signup sheet.

  • Carpe Diem Convergence

    The F3 Nation knew about YHC before YHC knew about the F3 Nation.  You see, YHC’s brother-in-law, Lynchpin, lives in Charlotte.  In the early days, before the F3 Nation planted its flag in NOLA, Lynchpin routinely and enthusiastically regaled YHC with stories of legendary beatdowns and CSAUPs, tongue in cheek nicknames, funny exercise names and other F3 lore.  Then, when F3 decided to expand to NOLA, Lynchpin tried to EH YHC, but YHC begged off.  It all sounded, well to be honest, like a cult and how could YHC trust Lynchpin anyway?  After all, he married YHC’s sister.  Ugh.  But resistance was futile.  The NOLA PAX crossed Lake Pontchartrain in its Durham boat, Reluctant Yankee at the helm like George Washington crossing the Delaware. Nacho and Chewy fell in upon the PAX’s arrival and, together, they planted the shovel flag in the Gloom on April 9, 2016.  F3 Northshore was born.  How could YHC resist a free workout in his own backyard?

    A few weeks later, the NOLA PAX boarded their Durham boat and retreated back across the Lake, leaving the Northshore PAX to make the most of their gift of F3.  We stumbled about, we made mistakes, we created a new AO only to abandon it a few weeks later, and we had more than a few beatdowns with one or two PAX.  Somehow, however, we made it and two years later look forward to seeing one another regularly to suffer and have fun together.

    As this morning’s two year anniversary convergence approached and YHC learned that the weather more likely than not would be awful, there was no concern.  Two years of meeting rain or shine, hot or cold, left no doubt in YHC’s mind that the PAX would post.  And post they did.  And you know what?  The weather held off just long enough for us to celebrate our birthday with a 3 hour beatdown, visiting 5 of 6 Northshore AOs by the mechanical device known as the bicycle.

    Mandeville Lakefront:  4 burpees OYO, 19 SSHs IC, 20 IWs IC, and 16 Seal Jacks IC.

    Captain’s Cove:  4 vertical jumps OYO, 19 Copperhead Squats IC, 20 Sumo Squats IC, and 16 Regular Squats IC.

    Milestone Marsh: 4 plyo Merkins OYO, 19 Merkins IC, 20 Shoulder Taps IC, 16 slow seconds Mission Impossible.

    At this point, Chewy politely pointed out that he had figured out what YHC was up to with the count but that our birthday is April 9, 2016, not April 19, 2016.  Point well taken.

    Grandmother’s House:  4 Sister Mary Katherine’s OYO, 9 front to back lunges IC, 20 45 degree lunges IC, and 16 later lunges IC.

    And then, after a 10 mile mosey on the Tammany Trace to Covington:

    The Gipper:  4 Freddy Mercury’s IC, 9 Freddy Flutters IC, 20 Hello Dolly’s IC, and 16 Flutter Kicks IC.

    Then we mounted our bikes for the 10 mile ride back to the shovel flag for the countorama, nameorama, Shooter’s prayer and a coffeeteria, arriving about an hour later than anticipated.  No one will confuse YHC for a Swiss train conductor after this morning’s logistics, that’s for sure.

    Thanks for letting me lead, guys, and thanks for your willingness to try something different and new and for posting despite the threatening weather and actually being disappointed it didn’t pour on us.

    Some parting thoughts:

    We’ve come a long way on the Northshore.  Things have become almost comfortable and, while there’s a lot of positive to that sentiment, there are dangers too.  We could stop growing.

    So here’s a call to action.  Commit to EH’ing more FNGs and supporting them through their virgin post so that they return.  Commit to Q’ing more workouts, putting time into planning your Qs, and posting timely BackBlasts.  Commit to a CSAUP.  Commit to making yourself better and leading by example, always keeping your eyes open for growth and leadership in all three of the Fs.  If we want F3 Northshore to grow, then we are the ones that need to make it happen.

    Carpe Diem.

     

     

     

     

  • The Passover

    On a Friday morning with perfect temps and dry conditions, we started on what I hoped would be the greatest, most spiritual F3 workout of all time. It was time for Rev Sox to emphasize the Rev in his name and throw imprecatory curses on the Sox.

    To give this exercise greater spiritual significance we warmed up with:

    SSH x24

    IW x 24

    PlankJacks x 12

    Hillbillies x 24

    I am preaching on the First Communion this Sunday at Grace Community Bible Church in River Ridge (gcbcrr.org) at 10am. Since I was meditating on Communion and the Passover, I themed our workout around the Passover story in Exodus. The story begins with 400 years of slavery in Egypt as the children of Israel made bricks for generations, so we grabbed our rocks and made bricks.

    Making Bricks

    While carrying our precious rocks, we slowly made our way across one of the Pontiff fields by dropping down to our knees and rising back up followed by one lunge on each leg and repeated until we crossed the field.

    The Ten Plagues

    We did a series of 10 exercises. 10 reps each time and we never put down our rocks between sets to picture the 10 plagues that God sent on Egypt to rescue the Israelites.

    10 Shoulder presses

    10 Curls

    10 rows

    10 low slow squats

    Repeat all 4

    10 bench presses

    For the 10th and final plague, we painted the doorposts of our homes to protect our families from the angel of the death. The rock was the paintbrush. Starting position was holding the rock by your right foot, the rock was lifted straight up above the right shoulder, moved over the head to above the left shoulder, and slowly brought down to the left foot. The rock was brought back to the right foot for one rep. We painted 10 doorposts (we are friendly Israelites).

    Wandering to the Red Sea

    Following the plagues, Pharaoh sent us out of Egypt. Like the Israelites, we wandered around the desert on our way to the Red Sea. We walked around the bases of two baseball fields while holding our rocks. A few times everyone was instructed to lift their rocks above their heads as Abacus and Hawg serenaded us with In Your Eyes.

    Waiting for the Water to Part

    We went to the fence and took a seat on the fence to remember how God parted the Red Sea as the Israelites watched in awe. We did two sets of 10 curls while seated against the fence as we gathered our belongings to go across the Red Sea.

    Mary to Freedom

    This is where I ran into trouble. I thought the 10 plagues was going to take longer than it did, so we had a little extra time. My story got kind of forgotten as I struggled to think of Marys to finish the workout.

    Penguins x 20

    Big Boy Situps x 20

    10 Burpees

    10 Burpees

    LBCs x 20

    Here I was planning on sharing that the Egyptians ran in after the Red Sea but the water came in top of them. They tried to flutter kick their way to the other side, but their armor weighed them down and they became dying cockroaches. (I forgot this part of the story in my panic to think of things to get everyone to 6:15)

    FlutterKicks x 16

    Dying Cockroaches x 20

    Russian Twists x 20

    Oh Dolly x 20

    We counted off, shared our names, and named an FNG (Max) Mani-Pedi. Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to fly my Bible nerd flag. It was awesome.

  • Detours come in many ways at the Scramble

    The Scramble produced a multitude of Detours on this Gloom. Two of these Detours would be produced by a single PAX member named Bushwacker. Upon his arrival the QIC and Waterpik were welcomed by him exiting is vehicle in what seemed to be LIME green Yoga pants or may be better explained as Leotards. Either choice would lead one to think he reached into the Ms wardrobe without proper lighting, but truth be told the QIC later learned they were closely monitored from shelf to clearance awaiting to be purchased. With close consideration one could only associate the seen with safety for the PAX as we make our journey down dark roads and the iridescence glow would prove as a reflective protection along our path.

    to be continued…

    warmup

    15 IC GM, 15 IC TT and a simple stretch of palms to the ground.

     

    the thang

    Began our journey down the standard route with chatter of the upcoming Convergence on Saturday. Quickly into the Mosey we see heavy equipment across the roadway to Sunset point. The Q is tasked with considering a different route? Or should we proceed as trespassers of a construction site? Well of course we know nothing is out of the question with this crew. So we proceed our entry toward a massive excavator with decisions of choosing left or right. Q hears chatter from Pik about going left but instead YHC  decided otherwise and thankfully so because left would have been reminiscent of a recent Tough Mudder event through drainage pipe.. We get across on a narrow piece of earth to continue our journey. We get to the pier and proceed back when yet another Detour would be presented to the Q. Bushwacker has to make a pit stop at a plastic disposal site better known as a Porta Jon. With keeping with no man left behind YHC and Waterpik interrupt the run by knocking out 30 IC SSH, 20 IC Slow Merkins and wrapping up with 15 IC WM. Rejoined by our Leprechaun we continue to the finish line with 5 to spare. We hit our 6 for the ISI of  2 min hundreds and complete the beatdown..

    Countarama, annoucarama, COD

    Thanks to Waterpik for praying us out!!

    Enjoyed the journey and fellowship with you fine men no matter what the attire may be!!

    Appreciate the lead

  • No arms… kinda

    From the Tough Mudder almost a month ago, YHC banged up his right arm good and sore.  Although it’s no longer lovely shades of green, brown and yellow, it’s still nowhere near 100%.  So today YHC attempted an armless BeatDown.  He was successful…mostly.

    After a disclaimed, the PAX was off to a new field past the Mardi Gras fountain–with Rudy’s mumblechatter in high pitch.

    • SSHs 30xIC
    • Hill Billies 30xIC
    • Low Slow Squats 20xIC
    • Squatting Pulses 20xIC

    Mosey to the waterfront from box jump reverse-suicides: mosey to the first planter for 10 box jumps, mosey back and then to the second for 9 box jumps, etc., to the tenth planter for 1 box jump.  A nice gasser to finish up the warm up.  Then mosey to the tenth planter for some static pain:

    • Dips 20xIC (here’s where the kinda came in; these don’t hurt YHC’s arm, so there it was)
    • Right Leg Power Ups 20xIC
    • Irkins (same kind of kinda)
    • Left Leg Power Ups 20xIC
    • Dips 20xIC (last of the kinda)

    Then circle up for a Cowbell special: the Hurricane Ho Down.  Seven flutter kicks in a V position with arms in the arm, then seven more with arms extended on the ground, then seven more while leaning on elbows, and then more with a flat back.  Rinse and repeat with six of each, then five, four, three, two and finally one of each.

    Mosey on over to the levee for some Elevens.  At the toe of the levee, ten Big Boy Sit Ups, then mosey up the levee for one squat, then mosey down for nine Big Boy Sit Ups, then up for two squats, etc., until one Big Boy Sit Up at the bottom and ten squats at the top.

    No time left for Mary.  So everyone’s favorite close out: 12 burpees.

    Then Countoff, Name-O-Rama, Intentions and a COT.  Thanks  for letting me Q twice this week.  Birthdays are great.  Everyone should have one at least once a year.  Jingle Vader

  • Why six was afraid of seven

    So several years ago, YHC’s 2.0 asked him why six was afraid of seven? Because seven eight (ate) nine.  I still laugh at the thought of this seven-year old’s joke, which I suspect to be Sacred Heart lore that perhaps originated from Hawg’s days there many moons ago.  Anyway, with nine PAX and YHC turning 56 (7×8) today, the joke seems apropos.  [Hint, Amnesty: QHC needs some more F2 events!]

    After a terse disclaimer, the PAX was off to the rock pile for the first COP:

    • SSHs 56xIC (with much mumblechatter, and Rudy’s poor attempt to imitate YHC at counting)
    • Low Slow Squats 20xIC
    • Squat Pulses 20xIC (where are ya, Shorty?  They were for you!)
    • Peter Parkers 20xIC
    • Mount Climbers 20xIC
    • Parker Peters 20xIC
    • Merkins 20xIC

    Time to get some rocks to mosey to the open field for COT2, namely, some Elevens.  At the row of trees on the far side of the field, bench presses from 1 to 10 and at the row of trees on the near side of the field, squats with rock from 10 to 1; moseying with rocks in between.  That’s 55 bench presses, and 55 squats.  In honor of YHC and Marlin, he commanded one additional of each for the magical 7×8=56.

    After a mosey to the benches under the pavilion, time for COT3 (a modified, as in very modified, Sparticus: where were you this morning, Amnesty?  This one was for you!):

    • Right Leg Step Ups with rocks 20xIC
    • Dips 20xIC
    • Left Leg Step Ups with rocks 20xIC
    • Irkins 20xIC

    Mosey to the wall for a one-minute sit with your rocks.  Then mosey back to the rock pill for a closing Circle of Mary after ten burpees:

    • Russian Twists with rocks 20xIC
    • Dying Cockroach 20xIC
    • Flutter kicks with rocks 20xIC
    • Penguins 20xIC
    • Hello Dolly with rocks 20xIC

    Another ten burpees, then return rocks, mosey to the flag (TClaps to Rudy for bringing one) to close out with ten more burpees.

    Name-O-Rama, Announcement and a closing COT with thanks for a great Birthday Q.  Jingle Vader