For those that took part in the Open, congratulations to you on starting and completing the journey, for having the guts to post your scores and compete, to find the courage to shut your eyes and go to your dark place and get through some really tough workouts. There were some absolutely magical moments that happened in the last month, and everyone that cheered, participated, supported, and pushed themselves has something to be proud of.
Although we wanted to send a team to Regionals this year, we missed the cutoff. Our team was 41st of 173 teams, and the top 30 earned a spot. I honestly believe that had we made regionals, our team would have done amazing, even been top 10 caliber. I know this is my goal for next year- to get a team there- and I know we can do it. All of you that were working towards this goal this year should be ridiculously proud of yourselves. We posted some seriously great scores, and we always have great showings at team competitions. There is no doubt in my mind that we are just as good as the majority of the teams that will be at regionals, and I would LOVE to do the regionals team workouts with ANY of you that have the guts to.
While I'm sure I'm going to forget some stellar moments, I'd like to recognize a few people for their inspirational performances over the past few weeks:
-Marie Hirsch- Last year, she placed 178th in the Open in Southern California. This year she placed 58th. That's absolutely AMAZING. She got 11 more snatches than last year (WITH burpees thrown in there), 11 more muscle ups than she got last year, and 22 more reps of thrusters/chest to bar in 3 less minutes. If there's anyone at Synapse that can demonstrate the amount of improvement you can show within a year with hard work, it's this girl.
-Bonnie Lynn- She straight up WON the Open for Masters women ages 50-54. SHE WON. Bonnie Lynn is ranked #1 in the WORLD. Do any of you know how crazy amazing that is? What an accomplishment.
-Claudia Ragsdale- In her first Open, she placed 15th in SoCal in Masters division ages 40-44 (one of the toughest divisions) and 119th in the WORLD. This woman is constantly improving, and is going to be destroying competitions over the next year.
-Marisol Perez- Marisol has been RXing every workout she can for the past couple months, even when it takes her longer than she'd like. She's pushed herself so hard, and it really showed in the Open. She even got her first muscle up, a feat not many girls have accomplished. We are SO SO proud of you Marisol!!
-Vitaliy/Jimmy- Both of them contributed top male scores towards the team competition for every single workout. These guys turned up the competition HEAT including a vomit-inducing performance by Jimmy on the final workout that had the whole gym screaming. Thanks for turning it up, fellas!
-Kim Lake- She didn't sign up for the Open, but she came almost every Saturday on her own to complete the workout, just to put herself through the torture with everyone else and see how she could do. And she DOMINATED. I'm pretty sure she was about 10 reps away from beating Kris Clever on that deadlift/push press workout.
Everyone that pushed and went through these workouts inspired me. Justin, Steve, Gene, Ben, Kai, Shannon, Vardan, Nick...you guys were complete rocks during this whole thing, and I would never have done so well without you. Liz, Nicole, Linda, Rae, Tania... you guys showed tremendous heart, amazing support, and provided everything from yelling to counting, to score cards ;) Your daily efforts in the gym are not unnoticed and are very much appreciated. By the way, has anyone checked out Nick Flacco's Games profile picture? :)
I am REALLY excited to throw down at Regionals. I will be heading out to Del Mar May 17-19 to compete against some of the best athletes in SoCal. I can't wait. While last year this idea was stressful and made me fearful, this year I feel prepared, supported, and energized, and it's because of YOU. Everyone at this gym has given me so much on a daily basis that all I want to do is be GREAT for you all. Thank you for everything you all have given me, from encouragement to water bottles, to the complete silence in the gym for that last wod :) I love you guys from the very bottom of my heart!!!!!!!!