Friction

Friction:

(From Webster’s Dictionary) noun \ a: the rubbing of one body against another b: the force that resists relative motion between two bodies in contact

Ex:

The friction of sandpaper on wood.

Oil in a car engine reduces friction.

(From Marine Corps Bulldog Challenge) noun \ a: sand bag that your crazy ass will carry during the Bulldog Challenge b: 15 obstacles your crazy ass will carry the above mentioned sand bag through during the Bulldog Challenge

Ex:

The Bulldog Challenge is a grueling six mile (10k) endurance course that will push you and your three team mates to the limit while sucking the energy right out of you. Your team will encounter 15 obstacles that will add “friction” to your 10k run; what you once thought of as easy will become seemingly impossible; all while running throughout the campus of The Citadel, part of the City of Charleston, and our life-draining marsh.

So with this definition in mind and with the BulldogChallenge less than two weeks away, my team (SAY SOMETHING!) has been training with friction to get ready.

Ninja Stunt Man and Sandy

Two of our teammates (CSR and NSM) ran stadiums a few weeks ago while passing off a 48 pound sand bag to each other.  They ran the entire Citadel Bulldog stadium!

One night we all ran the Cooper River Bridge and brought the sandbag (aka Sandy), but we made Ninja Stunt Man run with it the whole time. 

I did practice running up the Bridge carrying LA though.

Noah and LA

Last Wednesday we ran without the bags, but added one minute of exercise (push ups, crunches, Russian Twists, etc...) after each three minutes of running at tempo pace (followed by two minutes of running at recovery pace).  Much harder than you think (the exercises not carrying LA)!

This past Saturday the whole team ran a seven mile route that included the Bridge.  We ran with 20 pound bags of rice and stopped at the foot of the bridge to do squad push ups.  We then ran to the top and back and did ten pull ups each. 

The “friction” of carrying 20 pound bags of rice definitely slowed the group pace and added a whole new dimension to the long run.

We are still working on a trip to the Citadel O Course, but we all feel pretty comfortable with all the obstacles (additional friction).

The nice thing is that after running seven miles with friction (20 pound bags of rice), you totally feel like you are flying on your next run!

End of the BDC 2011