Why did I sign up for the Crossfit Open?
Because I am a Crossfitter.
I struggled more with this question than I thought I would. Every answer I wrote turned into a “Why do I CrossFit?” answer instead of relating to the Open itself.
When I was 15 years old I came home from a 10k road race and my dad asked me if I won. I told him no, and he looked disappointed and asked me why I even bother racing then. I was enraged. In that moment I stood up to my father for the first time. I told him that I do it to improve. To test myself. To be better than the person I was last week. He did not say a word. Just grinned, nodded, and went back to reading his newspaper.
The Open will show you how you rank compared to everyone else in the world who signed up. Thousands upon thousands of them. You will look and compare, and then you will realize that is not why you are doing it.
We started CrossFit three years ago, shortly before the 2011 Open. Everyone encouraged us to sign up for the Open, but we didn’t think we were ready yet after one month of CrossFit.
We watched from the sidelines while everyone at our gym competed, and we learned what CrossFit was about.
We witnessed the community getting closer together. We witnessed people doing things they thought impossible. We saw the look in their eyes and the energy radiating from their soul when they finished.
We saw athletes revitalized.
We saw new passion born.
We saw every single person get at least one rep on every WOD.
Each one of those people got one more rep than we did.
We were ready, we knew the movements, we probably could have even beaten a few people. We just did not understand what the Open was. Don’t let ignorance limit you too.
The Open will test you.
And it will teach you about yourself.
The Open will bring you closer to your gym family.
Closer to your coaches and your friends.
The Open is your chance to measure yourself.
Against others, and against the version of you who did the Open last year.
Are you Fitter, Faster, and Stronger than last year?
If you don’t sign up this year, next year how will you look back?
The Open is a perfect recurring reference point.
What are you afraid of?
Why are you standing on the sidelines watching?
Don’t just stand there watching life pass you by.
The Open is more than another workout. It is a celebration of every person’s achievements. What have you achieved? What are you going to achieve in the coming year before the next Open?
Jump in.
Do the WODs.
Then get in someone’s face and cheer them on.
They did not let you put down the bar, and you are not going to let them.
The Open is everything that makes CrossFit great, all rolled into a series of weekly WODs that feel more like a party. No way in hell I am missing that.
Do two things for me:
- Sign up, so I can cheer you on.
- If I get far enough into a WOD with muscle-ups, make sure all the pretty girls are watching – I always get more muscle-ups that way.