Remember the 13

Today at the Armory, we spent 45 minutes in an attempt to remember and honor the 13 Service Members who paid the ultimate sacrifice last Thursday, August 26, 2021 in Kabul Afghanistan. While they are not the only ones lost or affected by this last 20 years of service, they are the most recent.
We had 25 PAX (1 FNG) in attendance and a number of shovel flags.

Operation Freedom’s Sentinel: This is the operation involving U.S. forces serving in Afghanistan in/around Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan in an effort to evacuate U.S. citizens and those that have supported U.S. forces over the last 20 years.

Around 6pm local time, on Thursday, August 26, 2021, a suicide bomber walked into a crowd and detonated the vest.

13: U.S. Service Members were killed in the blast

170: Estimated number of Afghan civilians killed in the blast

15: U.S. Service Members injured

200: Estimated number of Afghan civilians injured in the blast

Regardless of your opinion of the events leading up to and surrounding this attack, our U.S. Military is a volunteer force aware of the risks they face.

Today, we will honor and remember those 13 U.S. Service Members who paid the ultimate price last Thursday.

Marine Corps
Sgt Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, assigned to the 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Naval Support Activity Bahrain.
Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, 23, of Sacramento, California, assigned to the Combat Logistics Battalion 24, 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, II Marine Expeditionary Force out of Camp Lejeune, NC.
Staff Sgt. Darin T. Hoover, 31, of Salt Lake City, Utah. He was 0369, an Infantry Unit Leader assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
Corporal Hunter Lopez, 22, of Indio California. He was a Rifleman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
Corporal Daegan W. Page, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska. He was an Infantry Rifleman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
Corporal Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, of Logansport, Indiana. He was a Rifleman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
Lance Corporal David L. Espinoza, 20, of Rio Bravo, Texas. He was a Infantry Rifleman, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
Lance Corporal Jared M. Schmitz, 20, of St. Charles, Missouri. He was a Rifleman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
Lance Corporal Rylee J. McCollum, 20, of Jackson, Wyoming. He was a Rifleman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
Lance Corporal Dylan R. Merola, 20, of Rancho Cucamonga, California. He was a Rifleman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.
Lance Corporal Kareem M. Nikoui, 20, of Norco, California was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment.

Navy
Navy Corpsman Maxton W. Soviak, 22, of Berlin Heights, Ohio. He was a medic assigned to the 1st Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, California.

Army
Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss, 23, of Corryton, Tennessee. He was assigned to the 9th Psychological Operations Battalion in Ft. Bragg, NC.

Source: Military Times & Taskandpurpose.com

The Thang:
Plank while we listened to the list of names, ranks, assignments of the fallen.

13 Burpees
13 SSH

Mosey the estimated .1mi that we’d do before each of the 13 exercises
13 Upright Rows

Mosey
13 Lunges (ea leg)

Mosey
13 Staggered Merkins (13 with the right hand on the bell then flapjack)

Mosey
13 KB Swings

Mosey
13 Squats

Mosey
13 Leg Lifts

Mosey
13 Lawnmower Pulls

Mosey
13 Curls each arm or 26 two-handed curls

Mosey
13 Box Cutters

Mosey
13 Flutters w/ Press

Mosey
13 Overhead, single-arm press

Mosey
13 Side Lunges (ea leg)

Mosey
13 Merkins

We had a few minutes at the end:

Flutter Kicks w/ Press
American Hammers
We then reread the names.

SYITG
Maximus

TClap |
3

Taming the Tongue (and the PAX)

YHC led off with a quick Bible verse.

James 3:3-5

When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.

He do we talk to those around us? Our peers? Colleagues? M’s? 2.0’s? Do we treat those closest to us differently than say a total stranger?

Warm Up

Mosey/High Knees/Butt Kickers/Karaoke/Toy Soldiers

Al Gore hold while performing:

Moroccan Night Clubs

Lil Baby Arm Circles both directions

Squat Pulses to finish with a burn

 

The Thang

7 minutes of Chelsea to start

EMOM 5-10-15 Pull Ups – Merkins – Squats

 

Mosey to the track

Our thoughts ultimately come out via our tongue. If we think bitterly and assume the worst out of everybody in our lives, our tongue will be a strong

Burpee Chase – 

Sprint the straights, jog the curves. At each corner perform five burpees

Bear Crawl 100 yards in between each lap

Completed two laps

Back to the pull up bars

6 minutes of Chelsea

Jail Break to COT

Mary in Cadence

20 LBCs

15 American Hammers

10 Gas Pumpers

NMM

The tongue is something we cannot control – no matter how hard we try. The only true way to tame the tongue is by living in the Spirit. I have trouble with this myself. It is something that I just need to realize isn’t within my power to control. Once I relinquish said control to the Spirit, my speech ultimately improves.

How do we relinquish our tongues to the Holy Spirit? Well… there is no formula. But finding yourself in proximity to God more often tends to help. The more we approach the Lord via the Word, prayer, fellowship, and witnessing, the higher the odds are that our speech will be Spirit led.

Prayers/Praises

Kaiser’s 10 year anniversary

Splinter/Point Break Home Schooling

YHC – the Holy Spirit helped me to let go of bitterness I was keeping toward my M – big praise!

 

Thanks for the tap, Kaiser. Always happy to serve.

 

Punch List out.

TClap |
1

Varsity Peer Pressure

I thought I had it timed where I’d roll up at 5:02 and miss the pre-run that Splinter had slacked out the night before.  However, I must have been driving a little to fast and got there at 5:01.  So what did I do…Yup a pre-run.  Wasn’t much of a headlock though he asked and I didn’t have a good excuse lined up so there ya go.  Enjoyed it though having a little convo with Splinter solving world problems.  We were so into it we had to kick it up a knotch speed wise as we rolled up right at 5:15.  Wouldn’t ya know Backdraft was there waiting so I had to kick it in with a brief disclaimer and full out mosey to keep it on time.

Out into the gloom we went for our first stop and the warm up.  SSH, Mtn. Climbers, Windmills, Moroccan night clubs, Imperial walkers and hill billy walkers.  Now on to the meat & potatoes portion of the workout.

We did 5 rounds of HIIT 3 minute exercises (10,15,20) with a Rebel favorite Burpee stack.  Ask him about it.  Followed by lap round the playground in between rounds.  Started out with shoulders, merkins, mtn. climbers and shoulder taps for 3 minutes.  Lap around the playground.  Second round was abs with Big Boys, American hammers and flutters.  I tried to forego the burpee stack but gave into peer pressure again.  Next round was legs, squats, monkey humpers, and calf raises.  Round 4 was SSH,  overhead claps,  and Moroccan night clubs.  Pax choice was round 5 and we ended up with abs.  Mosey back to COT and 10 burpees to finish up the workout.

Thanks Splinter for the opportunity.

TClap |
2

March 11 at The Coop

Super creative? Absolutely not?
Wordy? Definitely not?
Recap of the work done? Absolutely

GQ on warm up for his first ever crack at Qing. He ran us to a spot, performed some warm up exercises, adapted to the feedback and received the AAR in true fashion. That’s how we all get better; if we could all get an AAR after completing objectives.

YHC now on Q and we rant to the football field.

.5mi around the track at a good/heavy-breathing pace.
36 Mak Tar Jah’s
.25mi at a “get after it” pace
35 Mak Tar Jah’s

Planks & abs & stuff

Line up on the goal line
71 Carolina Dry Docks
Bear crawl to the 50yd line
71 Merkins
Crawl bear to the goal line

Mosey to the pull-up bars

20 Pull-Ups
Run down the hill to the stop sign
Nur back up the hill

COT

SYITG

GQ & Maximus

TClap |
6

Honor CMPD’s Fallen

Police Officer Clark and Police Officer Jeffrey Shelton were shot and killed after responding to a disturbance call.

At approximately 11:30 pm, the two officers responded to a disturbance call in an east Charlotte housing complex on Barrington Drive. They had resolved the disturbance and were walking away when they engaged in a conversation with a man who had nothing to do with the call. As they turned to walk away from the man, he produced a gun and shot both officers in the back.

Both officers were transported to the Carolinas Medical Center where they died from their injuries.

The shooter fled the scene, but was later arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder. The suspect has five prior convictions for resisting arrest and assaulting a government official. On September 30, 2010, he was convicted of two counts of first degree murder and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.

 

Police Officer Sean Robert Clark

Officer Clark was a U.S Air Force veteran and had served with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department for one year and was assigned to the North Tryon Division. He is survived by his expectant wife and 2-year-old son.

DOB:  11/22/1972 (run to the bottom of the hill after each exercise)

11 pull ups
22 burpees
19 hand release merkins
72 single count flutters


Badge #:  3769

37 pull ups
69 shoulder taps

Police Officer Jeff Shelton

Officer Shelton had served with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department for six years and was assigned to the North Tryon Division. He is survived by his wife.

DOB:  9/9/1971 (football field)

Jacob’s Ladder:  9 wide arm merkins, run across field 1 Bobby Hurley
19 – Diamond Merkins
71 – Mountain Climbers

 

Badge #:  2884

28Big Boy Sit-ups
84 – Heel touches

 

4/1/2007

4 laps for 1 mile
20 reps – 7 exercises
o Bomb jacks
o CDD
o Donkey Kicks
o Mak Tar Jai
o Dying Cockroach
o Lunge
o 8ct Body Builder

Sean Clark – age = 34 Yard Bear Crawl

Jeff Shelton – age = 35 Yard Crawl Bear

 

Strong work by everyone that attended today. Thank you Dirty Harry for the opportunity.

Heavy encouragement to attend the Mike Doty run this Saturday!!

TClap |
3

Guinea Pigs in The Swamp

What does that title even mean? Well, it means that I stole a workout plan from the boys in F3 Lexington as we put a twist on the customary deck of cards. And since I wasn’t sure how much time this would take or how difficult it would be, we’d test this, Round 1, on 10 of The Fort’s faithful this Friday morning at The Swamp.

After the disclaimer, we took a mosey over to the Depot lot for some SSH & Windmills & a few stretches. We then moseyed over to the water fountain to read through the exercises and attempt to explain how this would be different from previous versions. And this is what it looked like:

We made it through about 85% of the deck and I think there is room to modify these exercises next time, too. Soooo, until that next time…

Read ya d*mn Newsletter.

Maximus

TClap |
5

Varsity Valentine

Four PAX in total arrived. Cool but dry conditions.

Warm Up
Mosey run
SSH (IC 10x)
Windmill (IC 10x)
Imperial Walker (IC 10x)
Moroccan Nightclub (IC 12X)
Low Slow Squats (IC10x)
Mountain Climbers (IC 12X)
Plank stretches, up dog, down dog
Headed towards the benches area under the awning in front of the school.

Thang 1: HIIT Routine
Celebrating the women in our lives on this Valentine’s Day with a music playlist of female artists.
Set A: Do the below 32 seconds on, 10 sec standing rest in between
Merkins
Cherry Pickers
Squats
Dips
Bobby Hurley’s (former NBA player and collegiate basketball coach)
Set B: Do the below 40 seconds on, 20 sec rest in between (rest is a Low Plank)
Mountain Climbers
LBC
Derkins
Amer Hammers
plank jacks
Set C: Do the below 45 seconds on, 15 sec standing rest in between
Flying Squirrels
Imp Walkers
Squat Jumps
step ups
SSH

Rinse/Repeat sets one more time

Run to COT
Five mins of Mary
Fini, COT

Prayers for those travelling and the Dam-to-Dam relay. Cold and flu season is in full swing, prayers for those sick.

Playlist:
1-Janis Joplin-Piece of my heart
2-Garbage (Shirley Mason)-only happy when it rains
3-Lorde-Royals
4-Amy Winehouse-Rehab
5-Lady Gaga-Poker Face
6-Adele-Rolling in the deep
7-Tina Turner (with Ike)-River Deep and Mountain High (Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound)
8-Blondie-Heart of Glass
9-Nancy Sinatra-These boot were made for walking

TClap |
0

AR-7 at Varsity

Well YHC watched Aquaman the night before and as customary, I looked up the workout Jason Momoa did to get in shape for this role. Low and behold, it could work with body weight exercises.

All familiar faces were present so the disclaimer was brief. A brief mosey followed by some warmup exercises. Nothing out of the ordinary.

The Thang:

AR-7. Accelerated Results. First was dips. Followed by jump squats and finally Merkins.
Format was as follows:

7 sets of 7 reps with 7 seconds of rest between sets. We did all 7 sets and did a short mosey as our rest.

Next was 6 sets of 6 reps with 6 seconds of rest. Short mosey.
Last up was 5 sets of 5 reps

After we finished up the dips, we moseyed to a grassy area to preserve the old joints. Same format just Jump Squats this time. Since the legs were jello-like, no mosey, just recovery.

Finally we moseyed near the pull up bars for the Merkins portion. Same format.

And then… we headed back for some Mary and COT.

thanks to Harry Carry for the opportunity!

 

Wegmans

TClap |
0

Primetime at Block Party

14 PAX gathered in the warm early February gloom. Unbeknownst to them, Cheddah had laid a hurting on YHC a few Saturdays ago…. once YHC has found a weakness, he addresses it. Meaning we were in for the Deion “Primetime” Sanders inspired circuit.

Quite a few PAX I didn’t know, so after some introductions we started a little mosey:

Warmup:
SSH circa 55 (went till PAX started to stop. Still haven’t made it to 100 as Chicken Hawk did at #TheHive in the rain around January 2019….maybe one day…)
IW x10
HW x10
Peter Parker x10
Parker Peter x10
Updog –> Honeymooner
–Mosey–
Bulgarian Split Squats x6ish
–Mosey–
Dirty Hookups x11
–Mosey–
Monkey Humpers x15
–Mosey to FBC parking lot–

Thang

Primetime

Leg Sequence:
100yrd sprint w/ Neon-Deion worthy high step at the end
Reps
2 – Deck Squat
21 – Gorilla Squat
24 – Monkey Humper
37 – Bear Squat

Repeat

Cardio Sequence:
100yrd sprint w/ Neon-Deion worthy high step at the end
Reps
2 – Burpee
21 – SSH
24 – Mountain Climbers
37 – High Knees

Repeat

Upper Body Sequence:
100yrd sprint w/ Neon-Deion worthy high step at the end
Reps
2 – Hand Clap Merkin
21 – Merkin
24 – Ankle Touch Merkin
37 – Carolina Dry Dock

No time to repeat –> Mosey back to COT

Some stops along the way to catch the 6
Dips, Erkins, Box Jump
WWII Situps, Flutters

NMM
Thinking a lot about about my “Input” (word of the year). Can’t expect different results without putting something different into the system.

Grateful to lead, and grateful for another day. Big thanks to Geronimo for pushing the tempo of the Mosey (seriously, I love the push).

Lots of prayers for those suffering illness and loss.

–Band Camp dismissed

TClap |
4

Long Duck at The Coop

It was a brisk morning at The Coop. As Site Q I feel led to write a quick Backblast for LD.

COP
30 SSH
20 Wind Mills
20 Tappy Taps
Mosey to Pull Up Bars

Partner up. Partner 1 runs down and up hill once while other partner chips away at the board of pain.

100 Pull Ups
100 toes/knees to bar
200 Merkins
200 Big Boy Sit Ups

Mosey to parking lot – 2×50 yard sprints

Back for COT.

Great lead by Long Duck!

TClap |
0