I’m sure a lot of Qs wing it on their workouts. After all, if you’ve been in F3 long enough, you probably know most of the corny names for the typical exercises we do and you can just toss out their names as you run around the AO. If in doubt, plank it out (or do burpees OYO).
But not me. I know that my mind tends to blank out when I am in charge. Especially if I am in charge of a workout where I am leading men more fit than me. Plus I am a perfectionist. And OCD. And I don’t want to be typecast as a guy who does the same thing every time I Q. You know the ones — we’re running (even if it’s supposed to be a core workout); workouts based on B-rated movies; and the always dreaded merkins every 5 minutes. *grin*
I like to keep the pax guessing when I step up to Q. With me, hopefully you’re never quite sure if you’re going to get running, burpees, pull-ups or pigeons. Heck, sometimes I’ll even throw in a little swimming just to keep it fresh!
I knew what I wanted to do for the final workout of #WOTP 2018 even before I scheduled the event. I knew that after 5 consecutive days of leading finer men than me, I would need a break from “leading from the front”. Although I was going to be recycling an old workout, it was one I hadn’t done in almost 2 years. This time I would remember what didn’t work last time and make some modifications. This time, Monopoly would be fun.
But then it came to Friday. I realized there were a lot of solid options for the pax on Saturday morning and began to worry that they might not show. What if there were just a couple guys to celebrate my birthday workout? I tried to keep a positive attitude. “Build it and they will come” I told myself. I tried to keep a positive mindset as I purposely pre-blasted all the fine options for Saturday and told myself that whatever happened, it would be for the best.
I showed up 45 minuntes early to being setting up the “board”. I thought that would be plenty of time, but I was just wrapping up placement of the spaces (pieces of paper with “real estate” names and exercises) minutes before the start time of 0700. I turned around to ask for a little help and saw a dozen or more guys! All the great opportunities to enjoy a workout and fellowship and these guys chose to spend their morning with me. That is a great feeling.
And getting help was no problem at all. While there was certainly some playful jesting, everyone offered a hand in getting the various “coupons” set up at specific stations. The guys were (mostly) patient as I ran through some SSH prior to splitting up teams, stumbling through instructions, and releasing teams in batches (in hopes of keeping separation on the board.
Play consisted of one team member rolling a die (located in center of parking lot) and the rest of team moving clockwise the appropriate number of indicated spots, then performing the exercise(s) listed on the sheet. For our team, the first one done would run off to roll die so we could move to the next spot (this was usually Kosar). If you landed on a space where another team was already doing the activity, you would move to the next open space. There were 22 spaces in all with a “board” that was roughly a quarter mile in circumference. I would guess most teams circled the board at least 5 times. Hopefully all four teams had an opportunity to complete most of the stations at least once.
With about 10 minutes left to go, everyone helped in cleaning up the game board so that we could get to #coffeeteria on time. We ended in prayer, chatted for a short time and then most of us headed to Waterbean to meet up with the guys from BRP and enjoy some fellowship time. I was successful in passing out all 50 of the #WOTP patches and received many wishes for a Happy Birthday. Omega even bought me coffee without knowing that I was joking about going to Starbucks for a free birthday cup.
This is what F3 is all about: men coming out to make their peers stronger. “It’s not about you.” “Iron sharpens iron.” “Watch the six.” Whichever slogan you hear in F3, it’s all about being there for the other guy. The 16 guys that were kind enough to share their morning with me did that in spades (or maybe hearts, diamonds or clubs depending on the card they drew on the Community Chest space). I truly appreciate the friendship I have gotten from this group of men and hope to return the favor several times over as I enjoy life at 48. Aye!
CREDITS
- Twister earned a patch by attending 5 workouts this week. Although there were a handful of others that made it to 4, only he did all 5 (and he still made a monetary donation to OST)!
- We are debating changing our #coffeeteria location post Saturday workouts. Sound off if you have an opinion on where were should frequent instead.
- Look for a separate back blast for #WOTP’s final collection for Operation Sweet Tooth.
- Speaking of patches, I have (4) for guys who have already paid me: Deep Dish, Red Cedar, Snake Eyes and Stapler. Did I miss anyone? #cobains if I did.
- Omaha is the Q next week at MightyJungle where Huntersville AOs will converge due to F3 Dad’s Camp.
- As MQ of the Jungle, I am speaking with the St Mark landscaper about offering our services to help spread mulch this fall. If you are interested in helping (especially if you have a truck with a hitch!) please send me a message.
- Speaking of the landscaper, he is offering a specific location for our coupons and asks in return we use only that space (3 pallets) and throw away broke or unused items. And the best news of the day: WE STILL HAVE OUR TIRE! (It was just hidden all these months)