YHC woke up on 9/11/2001 and rode the train into Manhattan for work just like every other morning for the 3 years prior to. It was bright and sunny and a perfect day in NYC. YHC worked across the street from the Empire State Building and was walking to the office at around the same time the first plane struck the North Tower. YHC walked into the office and heard that a plane had struck a building downtown. Like most, YHC thought it was probably a small plane, and while it sounded bad, YHC had no idea that this was about to be one of the worst days in American history. 9:03am – the second plane hits the South Tower. It was probably a few minutes after that when YHC heard about it. At this time, it became apparent that something wasn’t right. YHC went outside and looked down 5th Avenue to see the two towers burning. YHC can still remember thinking, how many people must have died or been trapped. Working next to the Empire State building, YHC thought, is this building next? Where should I go? 9:59am – The South Tower collapses. YHC was still outside looking downtown in shock at an image that I will never forget – the image of the tower collapsing and then only seeing one building still standing. Of course at that time, YHC wasn’t sure how many were dead and how many were still trapped. But one thing was for sure, YHC knew that there were probably hundreds of fire fighters in both of those towers. People were screaming in the streets both sad and angry. YHC had no cell phone to call home and with public transportation shut down, had no way out of the city. Panic started to set in with the unknown of what was going to happen next. We all know what happened next. YHC was able to stay at a friends until trains started running again. The days, the months, even the years went and go by and YHC can still remember the images and thoughts I had on that tragic day. YHC recently heard that there are only a few days in our lives that we remember where we were and what we were doing when something like this happens. This unfortunately, is one of those days for most of us. So, with all that being said, YHC wanted to pay tribute to those fallen hero’s. 13 other Pax joined YHC this morning to get better. We even had an FNG (welcome Fruit Loops) with us this morning. As usual, all Pax put in hard work and got better. Here’s what we did:
Conditions: Low 70’s, 100% humidity
The Thang:
Disclaimer
BOM
Mosey over to the front of the school and circle up near the flagpole.
COP
9 exercise, 11 reps each, all IC
SSH x 11
TTT x 11
Imperial Walkers x 11
Merkins x 11
Plankjacks x 11
Mountain Climbers x 11
Squat x 11
LBAC x 11 Forward
LBAC x 11 Backward
Mosey over to the large set of stairs in front of the gym.
The goal was to run 110 flights of stairs and complete 343 reps. The 110 represents the number of flights of stairs in the WTC, and 343 represents the number of firefighters and paramedics that died on 9/11.
Each pax ran up to the top of the stairs and down. That was one flight. Rinse and repeat x 10. After the 10th flight, complete 10 merkins, 10 squats, 10 lunges (5 each leg), and 10 burpees. We would rinse and repeat this until all 110 flights and 343 reps were completed. Unfortunately, we ran a little short on time. Most Pax completed 90 flights. Also, after 20 flights, burpees were changed to monkey humpers to save some time. With a few minutes left, we ran back to the shovel flag.
COT & BOM
FNG – Jacob Coleman. 23 years old, mentioned the only cereal you can eat is Luck Charms –> Fruit Loops
Prayer Requests:
- Marriages
- Jergens’ friends mom w/ lung cancer
- Unspoken
Announcements:
- The Hollow will meet at CAT this Saturday for Bootcamp. Plan is to complete Iron Pax Week 2 Challenge. 6am
- Ranger is seeking donations for relief mission to the Bahamas
- Looking for mentors. 30 minutes per week is all it takes.
- 9/21 – 9/11 Challenge hosted by Smokehouse
- 9/21 – Dam 10k. This will be the last year this event is held.
- 11/16 – John Flanagan Memorial 10k. https://lexingtonhalf.com/pages/race-10k.php
- 2/15/20 – Dam to Dam Relay. Register here: www.damtodamrelay.com
- 3/27 – 3/28/2020 – Palmetto 200