Wodapalooza, Cape Town Partnership Signals Industry Shift on Qualifiers

Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up. Today’s edition was chalked up while enjoying our first peppermint mocha of the holiday season. 

“You know, my motto is ‘Excelsior.’ That’s an old word that means ‘upward and onward to greater glory.’ It’s on the seal of the state of New York. Keep moving forward, and if it’s time to go, it’s time. Nothing lasts forever.” — Stan Lee

How One Community Built Their Box From the Ground Up

Some background.

When Trevor and Bethany Exline, owners of BCF CrossFit in Banks, OR were faced with a rising rent but did not want to have to raise fees for their members, they took an alternate route. They bought their own land and built their own dang gym.

Well that’s one way to do it.

August 25th they took ownership of their new location and set to work right away. Trevor worked every day with members coming and going to help as they could.

The property needed to be leveled and there was plenty of clean up and landscaping to be done. Every day it was something, and every day a list was put up of what the next day’s construction tasks were; members that were able to help, did. Woodworkers, framers, plumbers, kids with hammers, people carrying lumber, there was a task for anyone.

Talk about community spirit.

“The new place is beautiful. What’s best is the true spirit of CrossFit community was shown,” said member Rachel Barters. Everything came from the community, even the wood used for baseboards and doors came from the owners home property. Trevor felled the trees and cut them to length himself. Members helped him cut them to size at the new gym and helped to install them.

Moving day was October 20th and, you guessed it, gym members all pitched in to move and install the gym equipment. Even members from CrossFit Cimmeria in Gresham, OR came to help. Yep, even other boxes pitched in.

That’s like, community building for time.

The first day of classes in the new gym was Monday, October 22nd. With all that help, the whole thing took only two months.

GAMES NEWS.

Wodapalooza, Cape Town Partnership Signals Industry Shift on Qualifiers

What happened?

On Saturday, Wodapalooza and Fittest in Cape Town announced a partnership between the two brands — the second and third place male and female finishers at Wodapalooza will automatically receive invites to compete at the Fittest in Cape Town in South Africa.

So what does that mean?

It means that on top of $15,000 and $10,000 for second and third place, those athletes will be rewarded with an automatic spot to compete in South Africa.

It also has much larger implications for sanctioned events and the Sport of Fitness.

Like?

Like creating a more professional sport for CrossFit.

A nearly universal criticism and complaint we’ve heard from top athletes, coaches and industry leaders is that professional CrossFit athletes will need to complete anywhere from six to 12 online qualifiers over the course of the year, not including the Open to have a serious shot at qualifying for the CrossFit Games.

One of the unique opportunities under this new system is having multiple chances to qualify, but also walk away with considerably more prize money at the end of the year. However, earning a top spot in a dozen online qualifiers year just isn’t realistic or smart from a training perspective.

Our take.

The current system isn’t sustainable.

Wodapalooza and Fittest in Cape Town’s partnership underscores just how much the industry recognizes this.

From our conversations with industry leaders, this partnership is just the first step. Discussions of more earned exemptions like this are already happening. And because each sanctioned event has the authority to run their event how they see fit, it’s only a matter of time before more jump on board and create a more unified qualification structure for Games-level athletes.

Coffee Break Conversations

What to tell your friend who is obsessed with Julie Foucher…

Hit her up! She just announced that she’s going to record another Q&A episode, and she wants to hear from you. So ask her anything and maybe you’ll hear it on her next episode of Pursuing Health. 

Things To…

WATCH: A Day Eating with Noah Ohlsen

Ever wonder what it takes to fuel CrossFit Games athlete Noah Ohlsen? Take a look into a day in the life of Noah as he eats and trains, from breakfast all the way to dessert. (Yes, there’s even dessert!)

ALL THE FOOD.

HEAR: Three Things You’re Doing That Aren’t Helping 

​Taylor from the She Thrives podcast breaks down three reasons you might not be meeting your goals, despite how hard you think you’re working towards them. There might just be a part of you that is subliminally working against you and your efforts. Find it and fix it.

FULL SEND, FOLKS. 

EAT: Vegan Slow Cooker Tofu Tikka Masala

This unbelievably nourishing vegan slow cooker tofu tikka masala has a hearty serving of veggies like carrots, bell pepper, cauliflower and potatoes. Makes a great recipe for crowds or to make for meal prep. Delicious with a side of naan bread for dipping.

MEATLESS MEALS.

BUY: 50% Off Olympic Weightlifting Programming

TrainingIQ is a fully customized training program that you can access right from your Android or iPhone. Now you can get the personal and detailed training plan you need to level up your Olympic lifts for only a fraction of the cost. If you sign-up by Friday at 5PM Pacific, you’ll get 50% off your first month + the 7-day free trial using code “CHALKUP” at checkout.

START LIFTING TODAY.

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

Chalk Up Community

• PRO-TIP: JUMP ROPE HANDLES — Former Olympian Buddy Lee, the subject matter expert for the CrossFit Jump Rope Course, shows how to gauge handle length and how to manage wrist rotation.
• CONSUMED BY FIRE — Custom Made CrossFit, which just celebrated their one year anniversary in September, lost their gym to the fires in California. There are more than 130,000 acres on fire in Northen California and Jenny LaBaw has started a Go Fund Me page for families affected in the area. 
• WOD FOR SARAH — Eighteen-year-old Sarah Vallejo suffered a sepsis attack in July that caused the amputation of both hands and feet. CrossFit Elviria is hosting a WOD on December first to help medical and rehabilitation costs.
• CROSSFIT FOR COPS — CrossFit Brigade in Chattanooga TN hosted CrossFit for the Fallen Saturday to raise funds for Team Chattanooga PD to ride the Road to Hope 200 mile bike ride from New Jersey to Washington D.C. and the Police Memorial in May. All proceeds go to Concerns for Police Survivors (COPS) which supports the families of slain police officers. 
• CROSSFIT ALLSTAR HOSTS ROUNDUP — CrossFit AllStar hosted their seventh annual competition, with this years theme being “Celebrate Together.” Owner KC Stallsmith said, “We wanted it to be much more about community than competition. I wanted to make sure everyone felt welcome and to celebrate they were here, healthy and doing it together.”

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

WOD on the Waves official cruise schedule is up • Cody Anderson got a 345 pound clean and jerk PR and then went on to get a 282 pound snatch PR • Behind the Lines CrossFit hosted a Process Training Camp last weekend • Shelley Bauder did seven
minutes of burpess for Chalk Up for Burpees • Roman Khrennikov did some sightseeing in Paris • Lauren Fisher shows how Team Invictus trains with the worm • RaGeana Davidson did seven minutes of burpees in honor of her father Buck.

…and Lindsey Valenzuela does a WOD we like to call Mom-ing for toddlers.

Black Friday Preview — NOBULL athletes Kristi Eramo and Brooke Wells have been teasing clips of their much anticipated Black Friday marketing campaign. The full length piece dropped yesterday and so did your shopping
list. 

Added to the Wodapalooza Line Up — Yesterday, Wodapalooza announced the addition of WZA Strong to January’s schedule of events. Set to take place Thursday, January 17th, WZA Strong will feature both Strongman tests of strength and CrossFit movements. You can register now and you probably should because this looks awesome. 

SNEAK PEAK: Wodapalooza Elite Teams — The Elite Team division at Wodapalooza is invite only and there will only be ten total. Here are the invited teams we know so far:

— Team Invictus: Rasmus Andersen, Tommy Vinas, Lauren Fisher, and Regan Huckaby.

— Invictus X: Sam and Jenn Dancer, Kaitlyn Kassis and Holden Rethwill.

— Invictus Boston: Craig Kenney, Tola Morakinyo, Ashleigh Wosny and Breezy Hamilton.

— Plus Ultra: Nick Uranker, Travis Williams, Camille Leblanc-Bazinet and Thuri Helgadottir.

— Team MisFits: Jordan Cook, Chyna Cho, Kenzie Riley and Chandler Smith.

— CrossFit Mayhem: Rich Froning, Dre Strohm, Tasia Percevecz and Kristin Miller. 

211 Athletes Accept Italian Invitation — Six individual CrossFit Games athletes accepted invitations to compete in the CrossFit Italian Showdown. Alessandra Pichelli, Scott Panchik, Roman Khrennikov, Eik Gylfadottir, Stephanie Chung, Thuri Helgadottir and Nick Paladino will be joined by 204 Regional and age group athletes who accepted invitations to
bypass the qualifier and compete at the Showdown in Milan, Italy from April 26 – 28, 2019.

— Where’s my invite? Athletes still hoping to qualify for the event can participate in one of five live selection events in cities throughout Italy. There will also be an online video submission from February 17 to 23 for international participants. There are still 1,289 spots still available for the CrossFit Italian Showdown.

“How to Fix Anything, Part Three: ‘I Know This,'” by Dr. Sean Pastuch, Morning Chalk Up 

I was sitting back, enjoying Dr. Ray’s lecture titled “How Injuries Occur” when I realized I was missing the simplest thing. My solution was right in front of my face and I had been prescribing it to dozens of my clients every day. About halfway through his lecture, Ray nonchalantly made the statement that turned this entire thing around for me.

“Pain is an emotion. We can’t depend on the pain experience of our clients as a reliable piece of data to determine what exercises they need to do and what exercises they need to avoid.” I’m paraphrasing Dr. Ray. “Soft tissues need load if they are going to change. The amount of load, the vector of load, and the duration for which load is experienced will all depend on the type of injury and the reaction to the load. The only way we are going to know what we need to do is to assess, act, and pivot based on the body’s response.”

Holy shit. How could I have forgotten the simplest principle we teach?

I was in it. I was too deep. I couldn’t see the forest because I was just staring at trees. I forgot my basics. And that’s where I found myself very much in your shoes.

11/15: Push Pull for Pancreatic Cancer @ Hybrid Athletics Bridgport (Bridgeport, CT)

11/16: Panhandle Strong Fundraiser (Santa Rosa Beach, FL)

11/16 – 11/17: Veterans Day Bash at CrossFit Wild West (Lubbock,TX)

11/17: MetCon Mashups CrossFit Lubbock (Lubbock,TX)

11/17: CrossFit TIG Turf Wars (Brighton, MI)

11/17: 2018 Energy Games (Houston, TX)

11/17: MetCon Mashups (Tulsa, OK) 

11/17: Green Valley Clash of the Fittest (Green Valley, AZ)

11/17: Push Pull for Pancreatic Cancer @ Invictus Boston (Boston, MA)

11/17: North County Fall Brawl (Watertown, NY)

11/17: BCF for Homeless Kids Kettlebells4Kids Fundraiser (Derry, NH)

11/17: Team SuperFit Charlotte (Charlotte, NC)

11/17: 2nd Annual Well Seasoned Masters Competition (Burlington, MA) 

11/17: Guardian Games National Championship (Ashland, VA)

11/17: Femme Royale (Raleigh, NC)

11/20: Ben Marconi Memorial WOD (San Antonio, TX)

11/25: Carpathian Games II (Kosice, Slovakia)

11/30 – 12/16: Naughty or Nice Toy Drive (Online)

11/30 – 12/2: Rogue Winter Classic (Cleveland, OH)

12/1: Rock It CrossFitMas Classic (Fort Worth, TX) 

12/1: Barbells For Bootstraps (Beverly, MA)

12/1: Bro Down Throw Down for Cancer Awareness (Bridgeport, PA)

12/1: Winter Throwdown 2018 (New York, NY)

12/8: Fittest Alive in the 845 (Poughkeepsie, NY)

12/8: The 2018 Reindeer Games Finale (Del Mar, CA)

12/8 – 12/9: WOD Godz (Shreveport, LA) 

12/8: Rampage Christmas Throwdown (Murfreesboro, TN)

12/8: A Very Krampus Kilofest (Hickory, NC)