Raining Cats and Dogs and Sandbags

15 Badlanders who like getting down and dirty posted for a sandbagapalooza in the rain.  Your Humble Correspondent is nothing if not a history buff (though he’s not buff), so this being the 30th anniversary of Black Monday, we tied this tale of secular loss to the need to focus on the big picture in our spiritual lives. More on that in a bit.

The Thang

• Toy Soldiers IC x 8
• Michael Phelps IC x 8
• Hillbilly IC x 8
• Side Straddle Hops IC x 15

Grab a sandbag and partner up.

• Jessica Quarter Mile: Start at the flag pole. Partner 1 takes off walking down the road at a brisk pace, carrying his sandbag and his partner’s sandbag.  Partner 2 does 7 burpees, 7 LBCs, then sprints to catch his partner.  He grabs the sandbags and takes off walking while is partner drops for 7 burps and 7 LBCs, and then runs to his partner.  Switch and repeat until we arrive at Jessica Field.
• The Kitchen Sink: Line up under flag pole. Still in pairs. P1 grabs a sandbag and in one smooth motion does a squat into a shoulder thrust into a tricep extension, with a calf raise while doing the tricep extension.  P1 keeps repeating this while P2 runs to a nearby tennis practice wall (squash wall? whatever) and does Balls to the Wall for a count of 15 Mississippi.  When done, he runs back, takes the sandbag from his partner, and starts doing the reps, while he partner runs off to the wall for more Balls to the Wall.  Keep doing until each partnership reaches 100 reps with the bag.
• Crabs and curls:  P1 crab walks from goal post line to cones, about 20 yards away.  While he’s crabbing it, P2 is walking beside him, doing curls with two bags.  At cones, switch positions and return. Repeat.
• The Bagkin. Bagkin = merkin with sandbag on your back. P1 positions sandbag on P2’s upper back and then runs to the bleachers, does 15 dips there while P2 is doing bagkins . Dips done with hands on the ground, feet on bleachers.  P1 runs back from bleachers and switches positions. 100 bagkin reps per partnership.
• Hamstring curls:  P1 kneels, sandbag under his ankles.  P2 holds ankles while P1 lowers himself as slowly as possible to ground, then springs back up.  10 reps each.  Only one cycle, as time is running tight, and YHC always overestimates what can be squeezed into a mere 45 minutes. Plus, YHC wants to make sure we have time for the best that’s yet to come.  That being…
• Wheelbarrow bag toss.  Two partners do a wheelbarrow from goal line to cone.  The one in contact with the ground is grabbing / dragging / tossing a sandbag along as they progress down the field.  At the cones, switch positions and come back.  Repeat.

Leave the bags and run at a pace between a mosey and an all-you-got-back to the flagpole.  (Thanks to McD for helping with the bags and providing the cones!)

COT / BOM

Countererama. Namerama (sans phone, YHC’s iPhone lacks a rain-proof — thanks to McD for help on remembering the Pax).

McD reminds us that we NFQ.  Some dismay in the Pax that NFQ does NOT refer to Dairy Freakin’ Queen (sorry FM).

YHC noted that 10/19/17 marks the 30th anniversary of Black Monday, when the US stock market crashed, losing nearly one-quarter of its value.  What were all the headlines about? The loss.  The 23% decline was just the Dow Jones Industrial Average; people in more aggressive stocks suffered losses far, far greater. People had savings wiped out, retirement, college, it was terrible.  But amidst this pain, some people had faith. The sellers far outnumbered the buyers, but the buyers had a different perspective; they had faith in the US economy, and they made a commitment, they bought stock.  And history shows they were richly rewarded. This is very much a secular tale, but there are parallels to our spiritual lives.  We must remember that when things go terribly wrong, we need to have THE FAITH that ultimately, everything will turn out right.

No prayer requests — life is good.

Conclude with a passage from Corinthians: SO WE FIX OUR EYES NOT ON WHAT IS SEEN, BUT UNSEEN, SINCE WHAT IS SEEN IS TEMPORARY, BUT WHAT IS UNSEEN IS ETERNAL.