Team CrossFit Oakdale spent Sunday cheering on Hannah W. as she took on TJ’s Gym NorCal Teen event. Hannah competed in 5 WODs on a much hotter day than expected. Hannah PR’ed her clean (100 for a 5RM!) and her mile run (with a gnarly hill thrown in for good measure). Hannah rolled with the punches on a tough, pharmacy competitive day that would challenge our fittest Athletes.
Hannah competed in the 13-15 year old category as a 13 year old and just missed a spot on the podium. The girls in Hannah’s age group were fit and ready to compete.
TJ’s Gym put on a great event. It was well run from beginning to end. The WODs were well thought out and judged. The day stayed on schedule which is always tougher than it sounds.
The energy at TJ’s Gym was very high. There were a lot of people packed into small spaces. It was hot. The judges held the teens to a very high standard. I think the best thing Hannah did was keep her composure all day long. For the most part, Hannah stuck to her plan and hung with really good athletes. Her best performance was on a row/thruster couplet where the girls had to row 500m then complete as many thrusters as possible under a 4 minute cap. As all the girls blazed out on the row early Hannah paced it, finishing around 2:15. Hannah then banged out 37 unbroken thrusters as the others girls need to break sets into 3s and 5s.
A few thoughts
If you were planning on raising the next Rich Froning or Annie Thorisdottir, you better get in line. The kids at TJ’s Gym were strong, smart and moved well. They were raw and made mistakes but as they gain experience, they will only get better. They are learning this stuff AT 15 YEARS OLD!!! As a training system, I can’t fathom the advantages of CrossFit for a high school athlete. I would be curious to see these kids on the field, the mat or the pool. As a sport, CrossFit is a real thing now with kids competing and parents cheering them on.
The parents were pretty well behaved at TJ’s Gym…BUT…there is huge possibility for all the ugliness of youth sports to push it’s way into CrossFit. There’s really no governing body, it’s all on the gym owners. If we allow parents to scream at kids, that will be accepted behavior. I can’t imagine anything worse than a parent screaming at their kid during Fran. I know we yell, encourage and coach at the gym, but you can see there is a fine line. Sometimes we hold grownups accountable during WODs. But yelling at a kid over and over to “pick it up” as they enter the pain cave may not be the most effective way to motivate…or leave a positive impression.
Workout of the Day
3 RFT
30 Box Jumps 24/20
30 Air Squats
30 Kettlebell Swings 53/35