Respect! It’s not for me, it’s for you.

AO: The Patriot

QIC: Maj Payne

The PAX: Jenner, Apollo, Horsepunch, JAG, Sunshine, Cable Guy, Roadkill, Wedding Singer, Citrus, Bambino, Choo Choo, 3-Mile, Bone, Slapshot, Brown Bag, Grease Monkey, Mayberry, Infinity, Lucius, Spokes — and a surprise cameo from 2 Percent!

Age 50 is the point at which the collective PAX bestow “respect” upon those who reach the milestone of 50 laps around the sun. On this day, 50 years ago, YHC was given the hospital name “Jim Gregory.”  Today, my honor as Maj Payne is to lead this group of #HIM for a beatdown to celebrate that event with my F3 brothers.  Here’s how it went down…

WU: Simple — 50 x SSH.  Time to travel!

The Thang: PAX mosey to Knights of Columbus. One stop to tighten (yet keep socially distanced) the group with 3 x burpees. Once at the entrance, bearcrawl 50-ish yds halfway around the driveway circle. Al Gore or pick up the six as PAX complete the task.  Move to grassy area for 5 x 10 burpees EMOM, which equals, Respect! 50 Burpees.  Bearcrawl 50-ish yds to the exit (Crawlbear last 15 yds).

Mosey to Discovery/Williamsburg fields, count off by 2s to split the group onto the two fields. 50 yd turn (25 out, 25 back) with 5 x Merkin at each turn x 10 for 500 yds of running with 50 Merkins completed at the end.

Mosey the mile back to start, stopping to gather PAX first with 20 x mountain climber, bc YHC feels 20yo (on occasion), then a second pause for 21 x mountain climber, bc still sometimes YHC thinks he can enjoy some adult beverages the night before a beatdown like a 21yo (although its usually not a great idea), and finally one more set for 9 x mountain climber, bc it’s important to have the heart of and play like a 9yo whenever possible.

Mary: Time flies in life, and during beatdowns!  Time only for 50 x flutter kicks!  Boom.

COT: Some quotes have especially impacted YHC during the past 50 years. One comes from Theodore Roosevelt:  “It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

We all have put ourselves in the arena today as we endured another brotherly beatdown. We must look for opportunity to step into the arena every day, and strive valiantly in whatever we do and with whoever we are with – our wives, kids, friends, work colleagues. Know the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spend yourself in a worthy cause!

It’s not the years in your life, but the life in your years that counts.

Aye!