CF NorCal Qualifier: Sunday

From a judge's perspective, Sunday was much more low-key than Saturday. We got to show up a little bit later, there were not as many setup hiccups, and everyone had a better idea of what needed to happen. The workout was going to require a LOT of judges, so they press-ganged all the logistics volunteers to become judges. Rebecca and I got to be thruster judges, which (in my opinion) was the best slot. We didn't have to switch out weights in the mud like the deadlift team, and we weren't out in Siberia like the OHS judges. We got a great view of the field, and an easy movement to judge - just make sure they break parallel and reach full extension.



The organizers had the great idea to allow the general public to signup for practice runs at the workout before the official heats, which quite a few people did. This allowed us some trial runs in a low-stakes setting, which really helped work out any kinks in our setup. There weren't many, though - it's a straightforward job. There were six official heats total, spaced about 40 minutes apart. It was fun to watch from our spot up on the hill, though unfortunately it rained nearly all morning. The dirt there is really great, though - nice and sandy, so the mud wasn't slippery or dangerous.



Polly's heat was very exciting. After she went through our station, Rebecca and I ran up the other side to watch her at the OHS (damn that hill is steep!), and as she staggered away from the OHS I ran back down to watch her hit the finish line. It was a thrilling ending. When they came out of the trees, Candace was about 100 feet in front of Polly, and they were racing pell-mell down that incredibly steep slope. Polly - who is fearless at downhill - turned that 100 foot lead into about 10 feet by the time they hit bottom. Candace wasn't going to let her win, though, and they crossed the finish line a second apart. Polly squeaked into the top five, guaranteeing her a spot at the Games in June! Very exciting.

I got to try my own hand at the workout afterwards - though I scaled it down considerably.

"Catch 22"
22 deadlifts @ 225#
Farmers walk with 25# dumbbells to top of inner loop (hill)
22 thrusters with 25# dumbbells
Farmers walk with 25# dumbbells to bottom of inner loop (hill)
Run to pull-up bar and do 22 chest-to-bar pull-ups
Run to top of outer loop (hill)
22 overhead squats @ 65#
Run to bottom of inner loop (hill)

22:16

It was a fun workout. I had some trouble with the C2B pullups (really need to work on those more), but the killer was the OHS. When I came into the station, I was first in my heat and on the heels of the heat ahead of me. When I left, I was one of the last in my heat. And most of my OHS weren't even to true full depth! It was embarassing. Yet another thing to add to the list of shit I need to be better at.

It was a great weekend - a lot more work than I was anticipating, but definitely worth it. Met a lot of really cool folks and got to hang out with friends in a beautiful (albeit a bit soggy) location. And everyone was passionate about CrossFit, so I felt right at home. Can't wait until June! I will be an observer at the games. CFEB will be sending a team to the affiliate cup, and I'll be happy to cheer them on - I'm not quite strong enough yet to be on the team myself. Maybe next year.