CrossFit Horsepower just got dealt a death blow

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“Do not tame the wolf inside of you just because you’ve met someone that doesn’t have the courage to handle you.” — Belle Estreller

Real Life and CrossFit

With so much focus being put on changes to the CrossFit Games, we wanted to take a moment to get back to the heart and soul of what we’re about — bringing CrossFit athletes together to talk about and share the impact CrossFit is having in the lives and communities all around us.

Which is why we’re turning to Roddie Shanley, a 55-year-old from Pasco, WA, who does CrossFit with her daughters at Aegis Team CrossFit. The thing that makes Roddie really special is she considers that time with her daughters “a sacred weekly event.”

Here are a few words Roddie wanted to share.

I am constantly asked, “why do I do CrossFit” and “why do I always talk about it”?

My reasons are much the same as most people who choose this sport. Competition, community and camaraderie, just to name a few. Pushing myself beyond what I think I can do, challenging myself to be the best I can be, just for that day is always my goal and it starts at the gym.

Often times, I’m close to the oldest person in the room and I try really hard not to let that intimidate me. I remind myself that the workout is between me and me. I am so grateful for my fellow athletes who always motivate and encourage me to keep showing up and giving every workout, everything I have. The coaches, even when they aren’t coaching, inspire us endlessly.

When I was younger and raising a family, keeping up with my kids was just part of being a parent. That has not changed just because I am older and they are grown up with families of their own. I am still a parent and now a grandparent. Keeping up with my “people” and complacency do not play well together in the sandbox. Contentment, peace and joy are the direct result of being strong, able to play, run and participate fully in life. This sport simply makes me better.

God blessed me with this one body, for this one life and I choose to keep crashing head on into it for as long as I can. I will never be the athlete that goes to the Games but I will CrossFit with my daughters, hike with my sons and play endlessly with my grandkids for as long as I can. I do what I have to so I can continue to do what I love to do. May you find and embrace your “why”!

My “Why” is my tribe and why I will always talk about CrossFit. 

CrossFit Horsepower Levied with Door Closing Regulations

Remind me. 

Back in late June, the city council of Hermosa Beach held a public hearing to determine whether CrossFit Horsepower was deemed a public nuisance due to noise complaints from neighbors. The council was unable to hold a vote so they pressed paused and picked it back up on Tuesday night where they voted and it didn’t turn out well for CrossFit Horsepower. 

The ruling.

The city council voted 3-0 to deem Horsepower a public nuissance, saying that neighbors and residents had been “greatly and adversely affected” by music, use of sidewalks for exercise and dropping of weights. 

So what does all this mean?

It means Horsepower has to abide by some pretty harsh regulations, which appears to serve a not to subtle motive of getting the business shut down altogether.

“Music or any audio must not be audible outside the business; no public streets or sidewalks can be used as part of class or routine; they cannot be open on Sundays; windows and doors must be closed at all hours of operation; and the use of free weights must be confined to the east side of the business with additional padding or measures installed to minimize vibrations until permanent soundproofing is installed.”

Walking on egg shells…

More like broken glass. Horsepower has only 90 days to remedy the situation otherwise “the gym will be forced permanently to cut their business hours [to 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.] and to eliminate free weights, including dumbbells, barbells and kettle bells.”

Essentially a death sentence by regulatory fiat.

Why this matters.

Affiliate owners beware. Precedent setting actions like this can affect your city and your business so don’t just roll your eyes the next time a noise complaint comes your way. 

Things To…

WATCH: Following in Mom’s Footsteps 

Andrea LeClair attended her fourth CrossFit Games this year and brought her daughter, Katherine who just discovered CrossFit, along for the first time. Andrea says she loves that she can lead by example and show her daughters the importance of health and fitness.

MOMS SET THE BAR. 

HEAR: Stance, Grip, and Position 

Legendary weightlifting coach Mike Burgener joins the USA Weightlifting Podcast to share his passion for the great sport of weightlifting as well as what it’s like working with CrossFitters and weightlifters, tips for coaches looking to improve their craft, and a few of the biggest lessons he’s learned as a coach along the way.

HEY COACH B.

EAT: Angel Hair Pasta with Summer Zucchini and Tomatoes

Angel hair tossed with summer zucchini and tomatoes fresh from the garden. Throw some protein on top of this bad boy, or switch out the angel hair for zucchini noodles for a lower carb alternative.

DINNER’S AT SIX. 

Today’s edition of the Morning Chalk Up is powered by

Chalk Up Community

CHALK UP IN 2 MINUTES (a highlight reel around social media of CrossFit pros and average joes)

Alyssa Ritchey gets a 187 pound snatch PR • Alexis Johnson gets a 135 pound three rep max strict press PR • Stefi Cohen hits a 10 rep back squat PR at 330 pounds • Kathleen Winters iced her hubby at their wedding • Take a look back at Travis Williams starting CrossFit seven years ago. 

…and you might be mobile but are you this mobile?

Jenny Lutkins On the Reality of Appearance in Sport — “It definitely helped that I found a sport that is so inclusive. They actually scale [the lifts] based on your size and weight classes. I find that comforting, because I can compete across the board with bigger women and smaller women, and we all are doing the same two lifts, and we all know how hard they are. It puts us all on the same playing field, and nobody in this community is like, Oh, there’s this little girl, she’s so tiny, she’s prettier and better. It’s just, Wow, look at all of us who can do this. So, it’s a really cool place to
be. Even the men treat the women like we’re all weight lifters, we’re not necessarily skinny or fat. It helps me focus on what I can do with my body rather than how it looks.”

“These 10 Simple Truths CrossFit Revealed to Me,” by Chelsea Dischinger, Morning Chalk Up 

One thing about CrossFit is- it doesn’t lie. It tells the truth completely. You will only ever get out of it what you put in to it. There are no free rides, you can’t buy your way to being stronger or make excuses and still see results. CrossFit also tells us the truth about ourselves. It takes time, dedication, courage, sacrifice, hard work, mental focus, follow through, goal setting and consistency to improve. If you lack in any of these traits CrossFit will reveal it to you.

CrossFit isn’t your friend you can go complain and whine to that will sympathize and make you feel better. CrossFit will test your limits, push you and challenge you. You can respond to the truth CrossFit reveals to you about yourself with excuses, indifference and lack of effort like I did and see little results. But if you are willing to be honest in return and face the truth about yourself that CrossFit reveals to you, then you will become the best version of you that you could ever be.

I sat down and wrote in my journal the “truth”. The truth about how I am feeling, what my mind is thinking and why I am failing at CrossFit.  My journal entry basically came down to 10 Truths that CrossFit has taught me that I need to live by. Not everyone of these truths are necessarily new to me, but the reason that I say CrossFit has taught them to me is because it has only been through not giving up and consistently attending CrossFit that I am finally truly “learning” these truths and applying them to my life.

​8/31: Greece with VoyEdge RX

9/1: Tampa Bay Games (Tampa, FL)

9/1: Battle At The Base 3 (Oklahoma City, OK)

9/6 – 9/9: Kill Cliff Granite Games (St. Cloud, MN) 

9/7: Koski Training Camp (Lloret de Mar, Spain) 

​9/8: Midwest Fall Classic (Tulsa, OK)

​9/8: The Sugar Skull Showdown (Agawam, MA)

9/8: I Can CrossFit Competition (Georgetown, TX)

9/8: Global Aftermath 2018 (Online)

9/8: The Catalyst Games (Bastrop, TX) 

9/8: BoxLife Games @ CrossFit Bear Cat (Bunnell, FL)

9/8: BoxLife Games @ CrossFit Wynwood (Miami, FL)

9/8: Booties in Action (Wilsonville, OR)9/8: Hookd2Hops 2018 (Newtown, CT)

9/8: Rumble in the Jungle 2018 (LaVista, NE)

9/8: 2018 Battle of the Bluegrass (Louisville, KY) 

9/8: Decima Throwdown (Littleton, CO)

9/8: First Timers Fitness Festival 2 (Burlington, MA) 

9/8: Girls Gone RX (Bridgeville, PA) 

9/8: BoxLife Games at CrossFit James Island (Charleston, SC) 

9/8: Femme Royale (Denver, CO) 

9/8: Double Trouble Throw Down (Twinsburg, OH)

9/8: Power Output Challenge (San Antonio, TX)

9/9: Reps for Recovery (Annapolis, MD)

9/8: WV CrossFit Championship (Fairmont, WV)

9/8: Raging Games (Lafayette, LA) 

9/8 – 9/9: Beach Cities Battle 2018 (Gardena, CA)

9/8 – 9/9: The Vermonster Team Challenge (Berlin, VT)

9/15: Warrior Affiliate League Three Amigos (Pomona,CA)

9/15: No Mans Land 4 (Painesville, OH)

9/15: Average Joes (Troy, MI) 

9/15: Stateline Throwdown 2018 (McHenry, IL)

9/15: Project Uplift (Fort Collins, CO)

9/15: Barbells for Bullies (Lexington, SC)

9/15: Barbell Brawl IV (Kennett Square, PA)

9/15: Double Date Got Twisted (Bowling Green, KY)

9/15: Doomsday CrossFit Team Competition (Beachwood, OH)

9/15: Flex on the Beach (Long Beach, NY)

9/16: 2018 Battle at the Rock (Castle Rock, CO)

​9/16: 5th Annual North East Masters Classic (Plainville, MA)

9/16: The Brazen Cup 2018 (Fairfield, NJ) 

9/22: Shatter the Stigma III (Boyertown, PA)

9/22: New Kids on the 321 Block 2018 (Topsham, ME)

9/22: Femme Royale at Eagle Wing CrossFit (Orange, CA)9/22: 2nd Annual CrossFit TUFF Charity Row-A-Thon (Nashua, NH) 

9/22: Girls Gone RX Denver (Denver, CO) 

9/22: Legends of the WOD (Grapevine, TX)

9/23 – 9/23: Field of Teams (Cedar Falls, IA)

9/22 – 9/23:The D-Town Throwdown (Decatur, Illinois)

9/22 – 9/23: The Cascade Classic (Seattle, WA)

9/23: Games of the Ages Masters Team Competition (Hanson, MA)

9/23: Cadre Crucible Team Competition (Hudson, OH)

9/23: Detroit Red Wings WOD (Detroit, MI) 

9/23: IronWorkz Gauntlet (Medina, OH)

9/24: CrossFit New England 3rd Annual Fundraising Golf Tournament (Hudson, MA)

9/28 – 9/29: Pensacola Beach Brawl (Pensacola Beach, FL)9/28 – 9/29: The Primal Games (Savannah, GA)

9/29: Kilo Crush Fest (Hampton, VA) 

9/29: Barcode Team Competition (Leander, TX)

9/29: Long Island Masters Team Competition (Hauppauge, NY)

9/29: Fallout Powered by Battleground Events (Long Beach, CA)

9/29: Battle for Boise (Meridian, ID))

9/29: 5th Annual WOD for a Cause (Murrietta, CA) 

9/29: K-9 Pursuit (Bristol, CT)

9/29: Swolemates (Cincinnati, OH)

​9/9: CrossFit Be Someone Charity WODathon (Houston, TX)