CrossFit Athletic Group

The first time I wrote one of these Jennifer Banet was a freshman in high school. Now I'm writing it to her.

Last night I was watching some of our old videos to get an idea of how our form stacks up at the moment. The mid-2013/early-2014 is the Golden Era in my mind when it comes to Coaching, Movement, and Community so I always reference back to those videos and posts. But this time I got lost; the technique was thrown out the window in favor of that good ol' feeling of nostalgia. Remember those kids in the picture above? Some of them are about to graduate college! They were in Danielle Worden's shoes while I was writing to Aly Baringer, Ryan Richard, Jack Trastevere, Shannon Marchant, Jay Junkin, and Matt Morrow about coming home. Elizabeth Banet was doing cleans like a noob. Erika Banet's hand-me-down shorts looked like I gave her fashion advice. Ricky Carey was the chunk who was just starting to get coordinated. Alyssa Jabara thought rolling out of a handstand was a big deal. David Saporito could't do a muscle-up and got dunked on by Aaron Sexton, and yet Katie Bromm still Promposal'd him.

This generation was collectively known as The Freaks. Taken from King Julien of Madagascar, the first time I remember referring to them as such was my Calling Out the College Kids post. It's tough to say they were "better" than the OGs like Murley, Ryan, Emma, and Jack because what are we really comparing? But man this "new" group was absolutely electric, and they had advantages the old kids did not (better coaching, equipment, space, and session times.) The entire gym just vibed out for about a year.

Their technique was really, really good, even by today's standards. Jason, Elizabeth, Lauren, and Saporito were breaking all kinds of Champions Club records and the rest of the crew put up Beast Mode after Beast Mode. Amy Potter and Collin Skorupski, as fit as they were, found themselves in the middle of the pecking order for most workouts. But most of The Freaks' lore came from their before and after workout antics. Imagine like 15 teenage Josh Bennisses with no turf space to run around in. They used to sing Kelly Clarkson, invent a voodoo snapping language, had three shoe fights (there were like 12 snow days that winter), and birthed a legendary character named Master P. And they were always at the gym. They literally never left.

The Freaks used to be as fun as fun can be. Now they are boring, stale, and, in Katie Bromm's case, overwhelmingly basic, resorting to study hours, deskwork, and Starbucks beverages. Saporito is in accounting, Bromm is in pharmacy, and to this day I have never asked Ricky Carey what his major is, but it's probably nothing that involves racing foam squares. It's a shame, you guys. A darn shame.

Lucky for you, the Champions Club is not boring! Well, I am. But the rest of the gym is not. And maaaaaan is there some new things to get caught up on. The big news of the late-Summer/early fall was the turf; Dave's stuff is gone and we put down turf and hung nets so baseball, soccer, softball, and lacrosse teams can use it. We have quite a few new families that you should get familiar with - especially the Colussi and Bennis houses. You might see some of the Babies bouncing around the gym while you're working out. That's because I allow the Babies to bounce around the gym while everyone is working out.

Also, this Summer brought some great new College Kids around: Josie, Cecilia, and Ally all found themselves on the Dream Team, and Noah and Luke were right there as well. We saw some of you guys here and there over the fall, but this might be your first crack at consistent workouts since the Summer.

As usual, it's best not to take all my words and phrases literally. I slang a lot. Aly B, Ryan, Steven, Sydni, and the rest of the OG College Kids, you guys will always be College Kids and are welcome back just as much as any of The Freaks.

Lindsey, you can come too, I guess. Bring Kasey if you must.

Price breakdown. 20 bucks covers your entire Christmas break. I understand there could be some gray area for kids only back for a few days, so just talk to me and we'll figure it out. The Christmas Eve Workout is always free, so if you're just in for that day then definitely drop in.

As usual, I hope you guys finish up the semester strong with your finals and such, then find your way back to your second home here at the Champions Club. We're never quite the same as when you left it, but we're never the same without you.

Hope to see you guys soon!

Chris