With Only 10 Weeks to Vacate They Saved Their Gym

November 11   |   POWERED BY

Happy veterans day here in the U.S. and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

• In case you missed it….these 14 women are making waves in CrossFit.
• Given only 10 weeks’ notice to vacate, CrossFit Roots found a way to save their gym.
• CrossFit Reykjavik’s elite teen coach writes an open letter to Dave Castro.
• How using a weighted scoring system would have changed the Rogue podium.

“No matter what we take on in life we are not victims we are warriors !! I know you have a lot on your heart this morning. The only thing I can say is that, for today, you have the power to choose what you want to do with that. And that is a great power.” - Lenny

Kicked Out, CrossFit Roots Community Steps Up to Help 13-Year Affiliate Find a New Home

All was going well for 13-year affiliate owners Nicole and Eric Christensen. In January 2020, after running CrossFit Roots in Boulder, CO since 2009, they decided the time had come to purchase their own building.

Then the global pandemic hit.

What happened Next

CrossFit Roots lost half their members, and the Christensen’s realized they wouldn’t be able to afford to run their gym in the new space, a facility that also needed major renovations. So they were forced to stay in their current space, even though their lease was about to expire and their rent was set to double.

In July 2021, a new curveball was thrown their way: Their building manager informed them that their lease wouldn’t be renewed again and wished them good luck finding a new space for their business.

So the challenging search began for a new space “in a market with limited available space and exploding commercial real estate prices,” explained Amy Smith, CrossFit Roots’ General Manager. Some spaces were too big, others had low ceilings, some didn’t have adequate parking, and one didn’t even have a drinking water line.

“On top of that, building materials were now triple the normal cost due to the pandemic shortages and time was against (us) with an extremely slow commercial real estate process,” Smith said, adding that they were given just 10 weeks to find and move into a new space.

“I definitely lost a lot of sleep over the past five months,” said Nicole, who is also a CrossFit Level 1 and 2 Seminar trainer and a senior content writer for CrossFit LLC. At one point, she was considering closing the gym, but something told her to keep fighting.

“The idea of not being at the shop, laughing in the back office with my coaches, taking classes with my members, and coaching people to see them improve over another decade: That’s what I live for…I built this thing because I believe in it for the people that come to workout every day,” she said.

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The 9th Fittest Man on Earth, Lazar Dukic, sits down with Morning Chalk Up to discuss his recent decision to compete under CrossFit Mayhem and his impressive rookie performance at the 2021 Games.

• 9th at the 2021 Games
• Won event 10
• Took second in events 2 and 11
• Five-time Fittest in Serbia

Wodapalooza Elite Team of 3 prize purse:

1. $25,000
2. $10,000
3. $5,000
4. $3,000
5. $1,500

Open Letter to Dave Castro — “How Committed is CrossFit to the Future of the Sport?”

• “Dear Dave Castro…There has been a lot of talk about the next generation of CrossFit athletes recently. Over the last few months, the CrossFit Games Instagram account has posted all about the young talent that emerged during the 2021 season.”
• “…But then you cut the teenage groups down from 20 athletes to 10.  Wanting more focus on the age groups and cutting the field in half doesn’t seem to match. Is this actually best for the sport?”
• Read the full letter.

Chris Spealler opens up about the emotional toll of competing year over year at the CrossFit Games:

• “I distanced myself from a whole lot of people when I was competing to win, or even just make it back to the CrossFit Games. I felt like I had to in order to keep my eyes on my work, my page, and my progress.”
• “It did cost me though. Sometimes the value of a close friendship. I’m not sure if it was the ‘right’ decision but it was part of the process. Maybe I wasn’t confident enough in myself or mature enough at the time. What I do know now is that I am so grateful to be on the other side and have that time far enough behind me that it’s no longer a thought.”

A Case for Changing the Scoring Table: Haley Adams and the Rogue Invitational

After this weekend’s competition in Round Rock, Texas, it’s hard to walk away critical. Rogue put on a fantastic show. Filled with characters old and new, tests of fitness and super strength, all with that family reunion feel. It was the off-season event we had all been waiting for. But… I’d be lying if I said I couldn’t nitpick. This is sports writing, after all.

So let me start here by defending Rogue; it’s not totally their fault. Nor is it any privately run fitness competition; they are simply following an example set forth by the big dog, the CrossFit Games. The problem is with the scoring system and how it has the potential to keep athletes away from prize money, the podium, and even the crown. As the title eludes, this story is about Haley Adams and what I think is her rightful place of 3rd.

The Setup:

Dave Castro’s famous tagline for the CrossFit Games is, “we are looking to find the fittest on earth.” But the CrossFit Games have become about more than that now hasn’t it? In a time when we want athletes to be paid for their hard work, all year and funds are hard to find, the order behind the fittest matters. When we are talking about $10,000, $40,000, $100,000 drops in pay per place, I think we can all appreciate how scoring matters and exactly how much fitter someone is compared to another. So now that we have clarified that the order of who is fittest is a priority, let’s look at what I have always believed to be the crux of the matter… measuring fitness.

Rogue used a 5 point differential per placementor the Invitational. 1st place gets 100 points, 2nd gets 95, 3rd gets 90, and so on down the line. So, to put in famous words, “it doesn’t matter if you win by an inch or a mile. Winning is winning.” WRONG!!!! I offer that it matters exactly how much more fit you are than the next person. Let’s look at an example, and then I will show you how this is figured out.

14 Women Making Waves in CrossFit

While the sport of CrossFit has been largely egalitarian since its inception, with female athletes getting as much notoriety, prize money, and fan following as their male counterparts since day 1, the same cannot be said of the staff in the greater fitness industry, which has long been dominated by men.

While high-profile businesswomen like Nicole Carroll, Juliet Starrett, Nicole Biscuiti, Michele Letendre, Adee Cazayoux and Sammy Moniz have received the majority of attention for their leading roles across the industry, here are fourteen women making waves in CrossFit that you absolutely need to know.

1. Ari Hurst
2. Mackenzie Bloom 
3. Kristen Chandler
4. Tefy Escudero
5. Kristen Fortin
6. EC Synkowski
7. Kandace Hudspeth
8. Mariah Moore
9. Christine Bald
10. Darina Dunne
11. Preslie Hirsch
12. Lindsey Locke
13. Arianna Sisto
14. Georgia Smith

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Celebrating a PR, hosting a fundraiser, this, that, or otherwise. Send us a tip.

• 🤯 Phil Toon hits 20 back squats at 405 pounds/184kg.
• Congratulations Paul Boucher from CrossFit Hyperion in Pleasant Grove, UT on the 325 pound/147kg deadlift PR.
• Congratulations Joseph Koehmstedt on the 245 pound/111kg snatch PR.
• Sophie Shaft hits a 250 pound/113kg clean PR…and she’s still in high school.
• Jani van Niekerk hits a 264 pound/120kg snatch + overhead squat complex barefoot.

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