Cover Q

QIC: Chappie

Date: 2/27/19

YHC had the honor of taking a cover Q since Leatherman’s work schedule was taking him upstate and preventing him from bringing the beatdown. He put it out there early…apologies from all the PAX for taking so long to respond. But, you know we got you covered. Summit had to be elbowed out of the way to get in the front of the line (thanks Summit!), but YHC was honored to step in and cover for Leatherman! YHC had been planning some ideas for the Primis AO for awhile, which prompted the step up. The hospital parking garage was centered in his sights for a serious ab beatdown (its been a long time since we had one), but a modified Weinke was in order to allow Ruxpin (on IR) to participate. The plan: lay off the heels (so, no mosey) and limit the foot action (abs are par for the course, then).

Warm-O-Rama:

• SSH – 20 IC
• Calf Raises – 30 in, 30 out OYO
• Cherry Picker (bc cherries fall on the ground) – 20 IC
• Merkin – 18 IC
• LBC’s – 50 IC (lot’s of ’em)
• Imperial Walkers – 18 IC
• Mosey park path toward public restrooms, up the steps and back around to AO tennis courts.

The Thang:

1 round of “Ferkins” (so named by Chairman) – instead of ring of fire, exercise was executed on a fire line — lined up, feet on top of tennis net, 10 reps each PAX.

Routine: YHC lifted the Ab Deck from home, and it all went down like this:

• Draw a card (each card marked with specific Ab exercises), do the ab exercise. Several of the ab sets (lower numbered cards) were followed by “20 seconds of insanity” – extending the time, doing LBC’s as fast and as furious as possible for 20 secs.
• Transition around the tennis courts between each deal – Karaoke, Nur, Fiddler Crab (halfway), Dragon Crawl (halfway). Never made it to the Paver Squats, Lindsey Vonn’s, and Apollo Ono’s.
• RUCK Modifier designed for Ruxpin (instead of transitioning around the tennis courts): Overhead Hold/OH Press/1-arm Squats/Crab Plank/Ruck Swing/Alternating Ruck Merkin). Look what you missed Ruxpin!!

Took the 3rd F Breather here:

We talk about leadership, especially in men’s circles and in circles where we speak of “iron sharpening iron” (Prov. 27:17), we often borrow ideas, thoughts, & principles that express values which are prevalent in the military, where leadership is developed around potentially life/death situations.

After having served nearly 12 yrs in the ARNG I’ve seen some of the best leaders–men I’d follow anywhere. But I’ve also seen some of the absolute worst (those familiar with Band of Brothers, think of LT Sobel). Personally, I’ve been both—a good leader and a failed leader. I can say that even those failed experiences sharpened my ability to lead. It’s crucial that we continually learn from those experiences, from those who failed to lead well, and most importantly from those who did lead us well. We should not only borrow from their examples and teaching, but strive to live out the good examples.

Some of greatest military leaders come from the special operations realm. They have the most grueling assessments, evaluations, and training just to be picked to join their ranks. Then the real training begins. There’s alot of leadership training, and it’s the mental toughness that seems to count the most. When my nephew was going through Ranger School I told him a few times to “never give up what he wanted most (becoming a Ranger) for what he wanted in the moment (rest, relief, relaxation, food, etc.). We ALL do that too easily, too often! In fact, it’s the easy road!

Here’s four of the most important and valuable lessons one operator shared from his training and experiences in special ops that I think all leaders should adopt/develop:

1) ADAPTABILITY: Readiness for change. That’s why we’re “disrupters” as F3 HIM. We’ve declared in varied ways that we’ll not settle for the status quo. We’re following the lead of others who’ve brought about change, we’re following after an amazing servant-leader Savior who disrupted the religious status quo and brought about change in our understanding of how to have a relationship with Sky-Q (Soul Q, I say). And we’re each striving to be leaders who do the same. In order to do that, we must first train ourselves to be adaptable. Status quo kills! Jesus spoke of this when He said you can’t put new wine into old wineskins (Mt. 9:14-17)

2) EMOTIONAL STABILITY: This involves being able to make good decisions under pressure. Proverbs is chocked full of wisdom to help us develop the capacity to stay objective and deliver the same level of performance regardless of what we’re feeling. Important to us? Yes! But crucial to gaining, earning, keeping, and honoring the respect of those we lead! Proverbs 16:32 says, “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city.”

3) PERSPECTIVE: Leaders have to be able to carry on when the world seems to have turned against them. We have to keep our troubles in PROPER perspective so that we do not lose sight of what needs to be accomplished. In a world full of lone rangers, keep in mind that “in an abundance of counselors there is victory” (Prov. 11:14b). And “Without consultation, plans are frustrated” (Prov. 15:22). We’ve got to train our perspective, and often other eyes/wisdom/counsel is crucial to helping us see properly.

4) TENACITY: This goes well with the acronym we’ve heard a lot lately – DFQ! What defines tenacity is never giving up! ILLUST.: In the 1912 Olympics, Jim Thorpe, an American Indian from OK represented the U.S. in track & field. On the morning of his competitions, his shoes were stolen. Jim ended up finding two shoes in the garbage. Those are the shoes he wore — one was too big, so he had to wear an extra pair of socks (different shoes and different socks!). Wearing those shoes Jim won 2 Gold Medals that day. A perfect reminder of tenacity and that you don’t have to resign to the excuses that have held you back.

So, these are 4 valuable tools every leader should develop consistently they lend to being HIM:

• ADAPTABILITY.
• EMOTIONAL STABILITY.
• PERSPECTIVE.
• TENACITY.

Let’s be the HIM we’re called to and develop these valuable & powerful tools in our own lives.

YHC hade more for the workout but how in the world did it get to be 05:59? While YHC’s Weinke was blowing away and being promptly rescued by Wildwing, the 18 Burpees Joker card was pulled from the deck for a finale: 18 Burpees OYO. Time ran out so we circled up.

COT & BOM:

• Announcements: It’s still FebNG, bring your FNG’s. Burpees are due next Tuesday 3/5. Don’t Fartsack because you’ll still owe them anyway!
• Prayers: Denny & Branda Hughes (Chairman’s parents); Bob Cate member of Chappie’s church at Beebe); Leo (Chattahoochee’s brother)

As always, honored to lead. Appreciate the 6 PAX who overcame the Fartsack and won that first battle to post at “O-Gawd-Thirty” in the Gloom. Its a tough battle for many, but no one’s ever regretted posting. Aye?

Chappie, out!