Back to the Basics

Two weeks ago, the Q lost his $h!t when we got sloppy with some of the things that make me proud to Ruck with ENC. Today was a day to see if YHC could put his money where his mouth was. It was bitterly cold, so cold that when Mellow Johnny licked the #50 Kettlebell, his tongue stuck to it. 14 men braved the cold, bundled up, and got back to the basics. After circling up for the disclaimer and one Burpee for Moses, we completed the following exercises with the intent to move dynamically and warm us up:

• 5 Merkins
• 10 Squats
• 10 Merkins
• 20 Squats
• 5 Burpees
• Rucks overhead;10 Overhead Press

Next, we tested the cognitive abilities of the pax by counting off Merkins to then divide into squads. Luckily, Pied was first and others were able to follow suit and we ended up with 3 squads, each with a Squad Leader. The intent was to pick a squad leader with Goldilocks experiences. Not a rookie, and not a wanna-be-pro. Patch, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Bench were our squad leaders and all three were impressive in their role and in the leadership they showed. Jock Itch led Silent PT, while the squad leaders were getting briefed. (Merkins, Squats; Overhead Press) What was cool is that tall Sasquatch had everyone in unison, with a hand sign for which exercise, and even a sign for the last rep. It was silent and enabled the team to begin the lesson of watching out for each other – paying attention to the non-verbals.

The Squad Leader were briefed on the following with the intent of the Q using a 3-4 person span of control and having the squad leaders lead the workout. Here is their charge:

• 1) You are in charge and your goal is to make sure we become one cohesive unit. Make sure your squad knows that. But don’t be a b!tc#.
• 2) Squads will be Orderly and Organized; that could be 2×2, able to touch a ruck in 2 steps at any notice or otherwise depending on the coupons. Keep the squads as a unit.
• 3) Choose 1 coupon per person; always keep them orderly and organized; a) Don’t let them touch the ground without direction from the Q; b) Shift them among the members of the squad as you see fit.
• Originally, the plan was to make the squad do overhead presses when it took longer than 60 seconds, but these jokers had us ready to move out fast.

Ruck March – 1st stop was Wintergreen Primary Parking lot. To be honest, this was an audible, with the first location originally being the very back soccer field, but that place is known to be wet and with the extreme weather, the Q figured that asphalt sucks just as much, with a slightly less risk of hypothermia. We were able to double time and use crossing guards at the road and moved at a brisk pace. When we lined up in the middle of the parking lot, that is when the Q found our long lost Rucking King – Mellow Johnny. You see he snuck up some time and was able to make a few anonymous comments at the Q, but the cold kept him from his normal mumble chatter persona at first. This next series of exercises was designed to figure out a few tricks with regards to the animal crawls. 1st was the bear crawl with no hip nor sternum strap. The trick was stated out loud by one of the squad leaders – keep your 6 low and head high. We made it to the cones at the end of the lot as a team with guys, like Tonka going back for the 6, even the last 3 feet. We moseyed back to the beginning to make a lesson for the Q. The crab walk is a hated exercise, especially when you forget to loosen the shoulder straps and that ruck starts choking you like you are 49 Shades of Grey too far in. We practiced loosing straps and crab walking as a team. This is when one of the Qs GrowRuck 02 lessons came into play. We couldn’t crab walk as a unified team at first. It was like trying to get a bunch of blind chickens to line up for Thanksgiving dinner – we were all over the farm. It got better when Lynyrd stepped up to lead. What really changed was when the Q told Lynyrd that the final goal was 3 lines further if we did it as a unfied team. The pax could have one a gold in synchronized rucking those last 40 feet. We took back off with a quick lesson in communication. When the squad leaders were asked how their guys were doing, they replied good. When the Q asked how they knew that, they paused, stopped to ask the guys, and then more confidently stated that they were good to go. That lesson was needed in the last 20 minutes. Adjustments were made and we were rucking again.

We were able to double time it back to the cross-walk and make it across the road. Things began to be going smoothly until, they weren’t. At 45 min in, the wheels came off the bus. Squad 3 stopped to get reorganized, the others stopped as well. It took too long to figure out how to transfer the coupons, because we were not figuring it out in a proactive way. Once the pax is beat and tired, then things come to a halt. That’s a lesson for another Q. Be proactive with shifting the coupons. That way everyone gets the pain and everyone gets a less sucky one. If we made the switch on a pace count, then it’s fair and tends to pass the time when the cold suck drags you down. We made it back to the flag with about 3.2 seconds to spare. The pax was beat, the coupons were grounded with care. It was a great morning.

COT/BOM – Prayers for Mellow and his job promotion and house transitions. Prayers for protection against the cold weather and safety.

Announcements – Ruck Ready is now an HOUR long – New start time at 5:15 gives us an hour of Good Livin’. Farmville Launch is Sat 1/6 and Adopt-a-Highway is the week after. Make sure we promote safety with regards to the clothing we are wearing, esp as the temps dip into the single digits. Jan 12th will be another 4 hr Rucking event led by Pied Piper and See Thru starting at the Commons at 9:00.

Moleskin – Today felt good. It was crisp – actually it was cold enough for Joker to cut glass with his nipples if he had gone shirtless. It was also a day where we learned from falling apart. It was neat to step back and watch the guys interact when periods of limited visibility and extreme exhaustion set in. We pushed it hard, AND there was so much we left on the table. The point of everyman having a coupon was a memory of hour 22 in the JWFB Heavy last year. Some of the photos of that Ruck March were posted in the preview to this workout. It was the lowest point in my Rucking time. Exhausted, full of mud, gusting wind, freezing wet and cold – it was easy to crawl into that pit of sorry and self-pity. That was also the point of greatest comfort and efficacy. At the end of the march when the pax was calling for relief on the damn ammo cans; what makes this Rucking Community strong came through. YHC traded off his mock M16s to get in line for the ammo can. I didn’t know why I went back there to pick up that cold metal piece of dredd, but there I stood. Then, Bush walks up next to me. Just knowing that my brother was beside me lifted the spirits and allowed that ammo can to be moved with a little more vigor. It still was just as heavy. It still cut into cold, tired hands. But what was different is that doing it with a buddy meant that it was not done alone. It was done with as a unified team. That was the mission the squad leaders were given at the beginning of the workout. By the end, we had made enough progress to go home smiling. Thank you, my brothers.