F3 Knoxville

Best Naturday Ever!

AO: asylum-daybreak
Q: Natty
PAX: FixerUpper, Lilydipper, Brick, Natty, Crawdad (Robbi Dickens), Kung Blue, Casey Kasem, Doubtfire (Nick Bond), Crash Dummy, Waffle House (Brady Greene), Swimmies (Nathan Chesney), Dain Bramage, High Heels
FNGs: None
COUNT: 13
WARMUP: SSH, Toy Soldiers, Thai Fighters, Grady Corns, Shoulder Press, Chinooks (B), Moroccan night clubs, Army Cherry Pickers, seal claps, tempo mkns

THE THANG: Mosey to the Restroom walls to perform some Australian Nut Knockers, then 20 Bobby Hurleys, all out run up the grassy knoll to the level spot for 20 mkns then continue on up to top of hill, squats until 6 was up. Next were three rounds of 10 BBS followed by 5 mucho leggos running down the strip and back in between rounds. Dips until the 6 was up. ID a partner then mosey down to the level field High Heels mentioned was the wettest part of the park. All good for some wheelbarrows to tackle the length of the field with your partna. Mosey / Jog to the bowl performing some (B) side shuffles and Bernie’s along the way and hold a low plank til 6 up at base of bowl. Proceed with 3 laps fast as ya can around the bowl and doing 5 burpees at base and 5 at top each lap. Flutters and Big Boys until 6 was up. Indian run to the back beast hill, rear man performs 5 HR mkns and sprints to front of line. Quick pace up the hill to level spot to perform Apollo Ohno’s and Bonnie Blair’s. Quick pace mosey and return to AO

MARY: crab reachers, hello Dollie’s, Freddie mercuries Superman’s and gas pumps

ANNOUNCEMENTS: convergence starfish here 1/31

COT:Best Day Ever

Last year I travelled to Steamboat Springs, CO 3x, as many of you know to visit my sister Beverly, and brother-in-law Gary who is facing Stage IV Lymphoma. As an added bonus, Steamboat is quite a paradise all year long. Each time while on these trips I’d see stickers that said, “Best Day Ever.” I heard it was coined by a local guy revered by others for his positivity and efforts to get youth active in their community and enjoying all the activities Steamboat has to offer.

I didn’t really investigate it more, but still liked the phrase, so it always sat in the back of my mind. On this last visit I spent almost 2 weeks in CO and always when I go in the winter, I’m eager to hit the slopes. Unfortunately, there was very little snow when I arrived and so for more than a week, I just looked up at the mountain, hoping for some big dump to arrive and let me miraculously ski all the runs I could. Well, that did not happen, but we did get some snow for a few days in a row after Thanksgiving, enough to take a chance and hit the slopes. They basically had one run open the 1st day I went (they called it 2) and the 2nd day they had 2.5 runs (they called 5). For reference, when fully open, they have 184 runs, not to mention the ones you can make on your own through the trees or going out of bounds.

I generally try to strike up a conversation with folks when I ride up the chair lift. One guy asked me where I was from and when I said Knoxville, TN, he lit up & said he owes Knoxville and the 82’ World’s Fair for his career choice b/c it was when and where the Apple McIntosh was introduced and he spent his earnings from working the fair that year on purchasing one which launched his path into IT. But on another run up the lift I sat with an old man and a young lady who had never been there before. She asked about the conditions, and I said, well, considering there were basically two runs, we had very little snow and the visibility sucked, it could be better. But the old man said, “Best Day Ever!” I immediately responded, ya know, you are totally right. Without knowing all the back story on the phrase, I knew right then what it meant to that community. Savor every moment you have in nature, savor the days, months, years you have left to enjoy God’s creation and all the possibilities that lie in it. Just because there was only a couple runs open, it was still awesome, still wonderful, and I luckily had not paid the standard $289.00 lift ticket price, because I learned last season how to save. Point being, no matter what the conditions are, or what your favorite activity is, cherish the ability to do it, to live it, to share it with others and if you have a crazy or unfortunate event or story to tell, it at least makes you interesting at parties.

My trip home gave me that story…I booked a Lyft ride the night before for a 5 AM p/u and flight at 7 AM. Woke up, got ready, carried luggage downstairs and looked at my phone…no driver. Scrambled, freaked a bit because I wanted home bad. Then finally got an Uber p/u at 5:40 for what’s normally a 30 min ride to the airport, was much longer due to the blizzard that arrived for my departure. A nice Jamaican guy in an SUV picked me up and we got going only to get in a convoy of cars behind the snowplow which we followed slowly all the way to the airport. I arrived with no time to spare, got lectured by airport staff, but allowed to load my luggage, get through security and right on board only to wait 2 hrs. to leave (after watching an entire movie on the tarmac). De-icer broke and so once finally off, I knew I was going to miss my connection. I booked another flight while in the air (direct from Denver to Knox). I arrived thinking I had plenty of time, but taxiing was almost 30 min which left me 5 min to go 0.7 miles from gate B8-B58. In my skill set, ok I got this…but with wearing all the winter clothes, jacket, and backpack, it was not easy…I felt my chest pounding and eventually was out of breath. I even had to stop once to take a breather. Made it to the gate, the attendant cheered me on as she was about to close the door. Last one on the plane…I coughed for over an hour. But I made it home 4 hrs. early and grateful to be there. As many of you know, I went through a lot last year, but each day I wake up now I’ve thought about the term, “Best Day Ever.” Stay positive, even through the rut. It’s infectious. Make each day better than the one before it. It’s a state of mind in many ways, but who and what you surround yourself with makes the opportunity for an even better day possible. God has given us all this gift of life, use it wisely.

SURPRISE CD Q

AO: asylum-pm
Q: Crash Dummy
PAX: Lilydipper, Pele (Jon Lindberg), Switchhitter (Tony), Brick, Natty, MD Hammer, Sparkler, Curveball, Rooney(Carl Whipple), Recoil (Blake Conley), Doubtfire (Nick Bond), Franzia
FNGs: None
COUNT: 13
WARMUP: Run aprox ¼ mile around pavilion/playground back to AO. SSH – 20ea. Windmills – 10, Cherry Pickers – 5, Mountain Climbers – 20. Monkey Humpers – 10. Stretching. Run the parking lot.

THE THANG: Run to the Bros Bowl. 11’s – Bottom – Plank Jacks. Top – Incline Merks.

Run to Caribbean. Lunge walks to next island. Bear Crawl to next island. Lilydipper ordered us test our sobriety walking a straight line to next island. Brick gave us something new with 20 reps of Cow not Bull.

Run to Pavilion. Pele (Jon Lindberg) demanded we do Bulgarian split squats – 10 reps each leg. Rooney(Carl Whipple) begged us do Bench Reverse Rows – 20reps.
Back to AO.

MARY: American Hammers – 20ea. Low Plank.

ANNOUNCEMENTS: Convergence at Asylum 1/31.

COT: We’re so lucky to have this place to do our workouts. We’re so lucky to have all these amazing men come out and work out and spend this time to fellowship. This is a reminder to be respectful to your fellow F3 brothers. You don’t have to like everyone, but you must at least respect them.

1st Annual Asylum PM Gift Exchange

AO: asylum-pm
Q: Drum Major
PAX: Curveball, Pele (Jon Lindberg), Lilydipper, Lizzy, Switchhitter (Tony), Doubtfire (Nick Bond), Rooney(Carl Whipple), Mr Jinxy, Crash Dummy, Gridiron
FNGs: None
COUNT: 11
WARMUP:

🔥 Warm-Up (5 minutes)

All exercises IC (In Cadence), 10–15 reps each:

Side Straddle Hops
Imperial Walkers
Windmills
Arm Circles (forward/backward)
Toy Soldiers

THE THANG:

🏋️ Main Workout (30 minutes total)

🔁 Round 1: 10 Minutes – “Santa’s Sleigh Push”

AMRAP (As Many Rounds As Possible):

Run and get rocks and return

10 Merkins
15 Curls
20 LBCs
15 Goblet squats
10 Overhead presses
Stay in place or use a small loop if available. Push hard!

🎁 Gift Exchange Break #1 (5 minutes)

*5 Burpees if gift gets stolen

🔁 Round 2: 10 Minutes – “12 Days of Christmas”

Perform like the song:

1. 1 Burpee

2. 2 Squats

3. 3 Merkins

4. 4 LBCs

5. 5 Side Straddle Hops

6. 6 Lunges (each leg)

7. 7 Mountain Climbers

8. 8 Big Boy Sit-ups

9. 9 Plank Jacks

10. 10 SSHs

11. 11 Shoulder Taps

12. 12 Star Jumps

Go up the ladder cumulatively (1, then 2+1, then 3+2+1, etc.)

🎁 Gift Exchange Break #1 (5 minutes)

*5 Burpees if gift gets stolen

🔁 Round 3: 10 Minutes – “Reindeer Games”

Lineup at end of parking lot.

High knees to other end and jog back
Karaoke looking one way all the way down and then back
Buttkickers down and jog back
Bernie down and sprint back
Rinse and repeat as needed for time, mix in last gift exchange, if needed

MARY:

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Polar Bear Plunge – 1/1

COT:

🎄 1. The Gift of Presence Over Presents
Theme: Rediscovering the value of time and attention in a season of materialism.
Quote: “The best present is being present.”
Story Idea: These gifts tonight are good and all, but the companionship, laughs and hanging out with you all was the best part. Remember that as you head into spending more time among family and friends.

Longest Mile – Thanksgiving ’25 edition

AO: bigball
Q: Swanson
PAX: Magic Mic (Jarrett Woodall), Passport (Ryan Matthews), Abort (Jeremy Loftis), Drive-thru (Mikel Towe), G-6 (Rick Kuhlman), Doubtfire (Nick Bond), Butt Buster, Red Card, Guardrail, _________
FNGs: None
COUNT: 11
WARMUP:
SSH – 15
Baby arm circles – 10
Hill Billies – 10
Rockettes – 10
Squat & reach – 10

THE THANG:
Longest mile

Inchworm merkins or Peter Parker Merkins/25
– 100m run
Bobby Hurly’s or Bonnie Blair’s/25
– 100m run
LCRC or Triple V-Up/25
– 100m run
8 Ct Body Builder or Deconstructed Burpee/25
– 100m run

Rinse & Repeat x3

Wild Card – Flip or Keep, if you flip, the new exercise stays unless all agree and pay a penalty:
– 1 – 100 SSH
– 2 – 100 LBC
– 3 – 100 Squats
– 4 – 100 OH Claps
– 5 – 100 Plank Jacks
– 6 – 100 Plank Shoulder Taps

MARY: no time

ANNOUNCEMENTS: none

COT:
Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of – throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

The Benefits of Being Thanksful

AO: asylum-pm
Q: Lilydipper
PAX: Mr Jinxy, Dain Bramage, MD Hammer, CRISPR, Pele (Jon Lindberg), Code Brown, Pusher, Doubtfire (Nick Bond), Lizzy, Franzia, Joshua Foster, Rooney(Carl Whipple), Drum Major
FNGs: None
COUNT: 14
WARMUP: 20 Side Straddle Hops, 10 Windmills, Curly Stomps,10 Tennessee Rocking Chairs, 7 Twistees, 10 Imperial Walkers, 5 Pterodactyls Forward and Five Backwards, Turkey Gobble Run around the parking lot, Little of This and That.

THE THANG: Mosey past the pavilion and to the eastern end of the Caribbean parking lot. We will bear crawl the length of the island on the eastern side.

Mosey to the Bros Bowl. We will stop to do 25 Flutter Kicks.
Next, we will run counterclockwise up and then down the Bros Bowl. About halfway to the Benches up top, stop to do 20 Merkins. At the benches, stop to do 20 Bench Dips. About halfway down to the bottom, stop to do 20 Hello Dollies. Those rabbits getting to the bottom first will alternate between 20 Side Straddle Hops and 20 Baby Crunches until the six arrives. Then we will rinse and repeat.
Mosey to the parking lot by the soccer fields. We will run on the left side of the parking lot, stopping at every crosswalk to do 10 Carolina Drydocks, until we get to the area past the playground.
We will next bear crawl up the hill, run to the small amphitheater, go up the theatre stopping to do 10 Bench Step-ups at every bench, then run back to the bottom of the hill and rinse and repeat.

Mosey to the baseball fields area and to the Flags. We will stop to do 20 American Hammers. Mosey to the pavilion. We will stop to do 20 Picnic Table Pull-ups and 20 Decline Merkins.

Mosey onto the baseball field with the artificial surface. We will circle the bases, then circle the outfield area, and then run up the hill. Stop to do 20 Squats at top.

Mosey to the “Rocky Balboa Circle” We will stop to do 20 Rocky Balboas.

Mosey to the parking lot that is below and south of the Coliseum. We will split into teams of two for Doras. While one partner runs to the stop sign, does one burpee, and runs back, the other will do the exercises listed below. Then partners switch. Here are the exercises partners do as a team:
– 100 Bobby Hurleys
– 100 Merkins
– 100 Big Boy Situps.

Mosey across the Pickett’s Charge area to the south end of the parking lot with the nice restrooms. We will Bernie Sanders to the north end of the parking lot.

Mosey back to the AO. We will go to west end of the parking lot and sprint to the east end. Then, we will sprint back.

MARY: No time, baby!

ANNOUNCEMENTS: Polar Bear Plunge on News Years Day!

COT:

Message: Gents, it is Thanksgiving, and we certainly have things to be thankful about. I think it is important to focus on those things. In fact, as a psychologist, I know there are mental health benefits to being thankful. Here are a few:
– Enhances mood leading to emotions of joy, optimism and affection.
– Reduction in symptoms of depression and anxiety.
– Improved relationships with others.
– Increased resilience in that thankful people are better able to cope with setbacks.
– Greater life satisfaction due to a greater awareness of the positive aspects in one’s life.
So, at this time of Thanksgiving I encourage each of us to begin to make a habit of thinking thankful thoughts. That can come through thanking friends and loved ones, writing down thankful thoughts, or just thanking God for blessings you have received each time you pray to Him.

Prayers: Prayers for Franzia’s coworker, Jeff. Prayers of thanks on this Thanksgiving Day.