Take two. Make two.
Congratulations to all competitors who completed the 2012 Reebok CrossFit Games Open!
Now, we reflect. Athletes and spectators: what did you think? What did you enjoy about competing or watching the competition? What were your favorite moments? Take a moment today to talk about your experience.
Rest today.
Coach:
Thank you for hosting us, and for a ton of hard work in getting us ready. The three of you prepared me far better than my scores might suggest. It was good fun and I learned something every week 1. Burpees, getting up is relatively easy, the challenge, and key to moving fast is diving to the ground repeatedly even after your brain says, enough already – I can still hear Mel yelling ‘get down’ 2. Heavy overhead, staying in the fight for a even an extra split second or two makes all the difference – John’s been telling me this for too long 3. Long mixed workout, pick one thing to focus on – John said get the bar off your chest, fast; I didn’t, struggled, let it get in my head and the fight was over before it started 4. Wallball, get control of your breathing quickly, relax – BK was on it at rep three, I’m still pondering ‘it’s just airsquats’ 5. Push and pull, ‘we do it every day, just hang onto the bar’.
Dive in, stay in the fight, focus, breathe, hang-on!!!!
We hear these things everyday….I’m starting to think John, Mel, and BK might be on to something. In all seriousness, thank you; you’ve got a great thing going!
Thanks to everyone who came out and cheered. Christy, you kick ass!
Looking forward to working hard to improve for next year.
Cheers,
BT
I had such an amazing experience participating in the Open. I remember watching everyone compete in last year’s Open–at that point I was about 4 months into CrossFit, and was still just getting to know the community at the gym. Watching the Open and cheering everyone on really made me feel like a part of the MPH community. It also helped me set my goal for the next year–get to the point where I could do the next Open.
This year I took away the same lessons from the Open, only I was on the other side, competing rather than watching. It was so much fun to compete alongside with all of the other competitors, and to challenge myself to see what I am capable of. Other than realizing that burpees are apparently my best movement, every week was an incredible learning experience. I came out of the Open realizing how lucky I am to be a part of the MPH community. I mean, where else do people come and cheer others on while they do 7 minutes of burpees? It’s not exactly the most thrilling thing to watch.
Personally, I came out of the Open with a much better sense of exactly of what my strengths and weaknesses are, as well as what my goals are over the next year as far as improving my strength and overall fitness.
Thank you so much to John, Mel and Rebekka for running the Open–and more generally for making our community as wonderful as it is!
This too was my first time doing the games. It was incredible. The first week I did the WOD in Phoenix, it was a great experience and I had the butterflies for the first time in a long time. Then I did the rest of the WODs at MPH – that was home! Thank you John, Mel, and BK. Especially John, for pushing me through all the WODs. I learned a lot about CrossFit, more on that later.
At once you feel more comfortable and more pressure to do well, do right by your team, and earn the respect of your fellow athletes. It is hard to pick just one. But if I I had to pick the most memorable it would have to be Rob’s overall performance. Having a newborn – which I am familiar with – and coming every Saturday and competing despite the lack of sleep. However, his most memorable performance was the double-header performance (on the same day) of 12.2! A lesser man would have walked away, a smarter man would have stopped after the near decapitation, but Rob kept after it and that was awesome, most importantly he did it.
To all the athletes, I enjoyed every minute of your performances.
To all the supporters I don’t think we can thank you enough! You created an environment that was second to none all the clapping, cheering, yelling and coaching was awesome. I can still hear Ralph yelling “breathe, stay tight, let’s go!”
Now, back to what I learned about CrossFit during the Games. It rewards effort, commitment, and the athlete that doesn’t quit. It is a personal journey enveloped by a community of athletes and coaches encouraging and expecting your best.
During his coaching speech before 12.4, John asked us to find our reason; “Why did you sign up for this?” That was the defining moment of the 2012 Open, for me. I was finally, after three years, able to put my finger directly on my reason for participating in the Open. I am making up for lost time. I am taking every possible opportunity to compete because I did not know I was either athletically inclined or competitive of spirit until I found CrossFit. I am so grateful for this knowledge and the freedom to explore it that MPH has provided.
Thank you coaches, competitors, and friends.