DRP at the Horse

27 degrees at the Horse this morning. Whoopee ventured over to Belmont for a Q at Members Only, Stroganoff was out of town and Roscoe’s 2.0 was not feeling well. We had EH’ed yesterday’s FNG Cholula to make it two in a row but no such luck this morning. At 0630, Flintstone, JJ, and I talked a bit waiting to see if anyone was coming in hot – not uncommon at the Horse, but we new Sargento was on the retreat. After a minute, Flintstone said he’d hang a bit more in case anyone posted late. JJ and I took off for the loop. Even after the 10 mile CSAUP from yesterday, JJ could have pushed the pace but was kind enough to stick w/ me and pull me along, especially the gut check where Strava said I turned one of my better times. Around 7:15 we reconvened in the parking lot for the COT. Same announcements and prayer requests as yesterday. I took us out. We forgot the pledge. JJ had to leave for church. Flintstone and I ventured into the Teeter for Q-Source.

I asked Flintstone if he wanted to postpone a week but he said “no way – this is a great topic.” So we pressed on to have a conversation about what it takes to pursue “Getting Right.” I say “pursue” because getting right is a daily practice to continually sharpen. As we’ve learned, there is not plateau, you’re either accelerating or decelerating. I compared this effort to my running. I’d love to be better at it – to run along in the low 8’s at a conversational pace. Running with JJ this morning at a little more than 9 minutes, we talked the entire route, but there were times I had to catch my breath to complete the sentence. Even when training for relays or half marathons, I’m amazed at how quickly any comfortable running pace or stamina I earn during “training” can dissipate. For me to put in more running in the off time comes at the cost of missing bootcamps. Some wise person among our brotherhood may say that is what EC is for and I should give that a try. The point is I need to bite the Daily Red Pill to move from an amateur toward a professional.

I wish Cholula would have posted this morning. After yesterday’s workout, some of his thoughts about needing F3 are the definitions DREDD uses to describe being a Sad Clown or a Mascot. Going through the motions,  putting on a good show but being miserable on the inside. This year’s theme to “always be EH’ing” has multi-tenants. Sure we want to grow but there are men in our community that are dying on the inside. An aging male traveling through life with family and work needs an outlet. All of us that have grabbed hold of the F3 principals know this to be true.

The Christian faith offers the hope for those that choose to follow Jesus can reach the kingdom. This can happen at any point of a person’s life as Jesus offered grace to the men he shared the cross. So to is the ability of a man to Get Right. We can find the prescription of the Red Pill bottle but if it sits in the medicine cabinet unopened, we can slowly slink back to the Sad Clown couch. Each day we face the task to take the DRP. DREDD shares the first one is the toughest to swallow because the Disruption that can occur in the form of Movement. A man now has the decision to continue taking the pill. However, DREDD also points out the second dose can be as challenging as the 100th or the 500th. The way things become easier is to continue pushing to Get Right. The more fit you become, the faster you can go because you build guardrails to keep you on the road.

College and Pro Football begin training camps in the late summer to prepare for the upcoming season. I often hear Head Coaches talk about the installation of their plays and philosophies and the reason they drill over and over is to get the players to “play fast” or “play downhill.” Ideally the coaches want the players to know their assignments so well they react and execute without thinking. Yet another visual to think about as you pursue Getting Right.

Here is to keeping the Daily Red Pill bottle close by and take it as often as you can.