11/3 - Birthday 'Grace' Off

Saturday was Grace off.  It was also my birthday.  I figured what better way to start my birthday then with 30 clean and jerks for time – though being a fundraiser there were no winners just everyone giving their all and wearing pink.  Lots and lots of pink.

There was no set heats just everyone jumping in when they were ready so when they asked for people to jump in for the first and second heats I was there.  I just wanted to get it done so I could drink coffee and cheer people on.  I loved that it was a relaxed atmosphere though at the same time a little bit ‘competition’ like for those who haven’t crossfitted outside the box (yay Nat!!).

This is Nat...

WOD ‘Grace’

30 Clean and Jerks (42.5/60kg)

6:15 Rx

Note that the Rx weight for the women was only 42.5kg whereas on Tuesday at Cooee Rx was 45kg (which is typical when men’s Rx is 60kg).  Though the weight was lighter my time was almost 25 seconds slower than Tuesday and it is not at all surprising.  The bar felt heavier than earlier in the week either because we had done heavy CJ’s the day before Grace (round one) or because I smashed my legs with walking lunges/ 100 burpees.  Either way the cleans weren’t pretty (wide legs rather than getting low) and the jerks were also quite tiring.  Once again I split jerked them from the beginning.  Also, there was a rule that you couldn’t drop the bar so the extra strength required to slowly lower took its toll on my.

It was pretty cool being in the first heat with Lhaini and Jen from SXF – they were both in front of me so I could see them pushing through which made me work harder and when they finished they were right there cheering me on.  Given that I want to be as strong and badass as these girls some day it was really cool to realize that we are all in this together.  Thanks girls for the inspiration and for the encouragement.

One other note that made me laugh a little mid-WOD was Coach Match who was cheering/coaching/encouraging me on – at one point he said ‘Come on chick’ which is a term that Coach Kirst is more known for calling me – it was actually odd to hear it come from Match but I found it just as inspiring.  Thanks to both of you for being great coaches that always go above and beyond our sessions in the box at Cooee.

It was a ton of fun to be finished and drinking coffee which cheering on the other Cooee crew – Nat and Nigel and Match who all put up solid efforts.  Great morning everyone.  Also, big thanks to SF Gym for hosting an amazing event.

Photos from the day taken from Tracey Incau Design & Photography who took a ton of awesome photos on the day.

7/7 - Inaugural SUP 3000

The inaugural SUP 3000 took place on Saturday - it was technically the SUP 5000 for the men and 3000 for the women.  It should be noted that this was the first time this format was run anywhere in the world - SUPWA is already making a name for themselves.  It was fantastic.

The morning started early... too early.  I was tempted to stay in my warm bed as the darkness still loomed outside but I knew that if I could just get out there I'd be greeted with magnificent views as the morning sun broke on the calm waters as we stood out there on our boards - and it was true.

Race registration and briefing and we were all quickly on the water - almost a little too quickly for us girls - and we paddled to the start line.  It was a mass start for the boys and then for the girls - we however had to wait 15 minutes and most of this time was spent chatting and floating around on our boards trying to get some feeling in our frozen feet.

Suddenly we were off for the first of three races. 

The format was as follows:
1500m race
paddle back easily to start
1000m race
paddle back easily to start
500m race
coffee time!

The boys did the same however they started with a 2000m race and then followed that up with the other three.  It was great - logistics were simple, there was ample time to get back to the start without feeling rushed and best of all we got to chat with each other and meet fellow paddlers - I knew Nat from Crossfit so it was good to catch up and also to learn a bit more about Michelle and Loraine besides the fact that they're fast.

For each race you got points corresponding to your position and at the end of the three races the person with the lowest score came first, etc.  That hardly mattered for the four of us as the order was the same each race and though it was a race the best part of it all was being out there.  And as Nat and I agreed... it was our 'rest' day afterall and nice to just be playing - and we still managed to cover about 6km all in.  I loved it!

Can't wait for the next one in October (this format) and they've already promised that it will have an afternoon start time thankfully.

Some pictures from the day borrowed from seabreeze.com.au