What the Heck is the Open?

The Open Season is upon us!  If you are new to CrossFit, you might be asking questions like:

Is this a competition? (Yes)
Do I need to be experienced or competitive to participate? (No)
Do my scores matter? (Not to anyone but you)
Is this a community event? (Yes)
Is this hard? (Yes)
Is it fun? (Yes)
Will there be beer? (Yes)

Here's some REAL TALK from our members about what the Open is, why participating is special, and why we hope that all of you sign up!

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Gil Hughes- 3rd Open
"I'm most looking forward to the beer! The best part about last year was having my grandson cheer me on.  I wanted to quit but I heard him say  'Go pop pop!' and I knew I couldn't give up. My goal this year is just to be better than I was last year."

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Margaret Raymond- 1st Open
"I'm most nervous about ripping my hands. I signed up because all my gym buddies were doing it and I didn't want to be alone."

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Sheryl- 2nd Open
"I love the camaraderie: everyone getting together and cheering for each other! Last year, I learned I could do more than I thought.  My goal is to do better than last year, and I'm looking forward to seeing how far I have come.  And I would love a ring muscle up."

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Emine- 5th open (3rd at Pushin Weight)
"My favorite part is the community coming together and seeing people getting their first _______ (pull up, muscle up, double under, etc.) I do it because I want to see how I rank worldwide, in my division, compared to years past. I also want to find out just how far I can push myself."

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Taylor- 3rd open
"My favorite part is pushing myself and seeing others push themselves to achieve that RX score. Pushin Weight makes it special because you know where everyone started and how far they've come. It's awesome to be a part of that. I do it because I'm super competitive. I always want to be better and fitter than I was last year.  This year I want to see how I do each week as I grow a human :)  My goal is to do every workout RX, stay in the top 500, and keep myself and my baby safe. The open can be scary and make people really get on their heads. Just remember it's fun and everyone is nervous.  As long as you push yourself that's all you can do. Leave it all out there!"

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Mark Wolfram- 5th Open (1st at Pushin Weight)
"I signed up because I want to see how much better I rank in Virginia vs. NY State, because Virginians are  bunch of wimps.  JUST KIDDING!  I'm doing it because I like to take part and measure myself against others and against past versions of myself.  Although progress in CrossFit may feel slow, participating in the Open year after year is a great way to keep reminding yourself of how far you've come."

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Allison- 2nd Open
"Sometimes at the gym I get discouraged because I can't do what everyone else at our gym can do. I'm 41, and it's nice to look at the worldwide leaderboard and surprise myself with how well I've done against people my own age. You can be like 'Shit! I'm better than a LOT of people!' It's also great to hang out with people I don't normally get to see because I usually come to the night classes."

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Tyler- 7th Open
"Everyone should sign up because it's fun. The best part about doing it at Pushin Weight is the people.  It gives you a baseline for your fitness level, and allows you to compare yourself worldwide, and against your friends from other gyms."

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Evelyn- 1st Open
"I signed up for the Open for the challenge. I love when I am pushing to a point where it starts getting tough and then all of a sudden adrenaline kicks in and I become superwoman! Enter in that beast mode! It's an incredible feeling. I'm most nervous of failure. I hate when I don't complete a rep, or do it proper, but it's my first, so all I can do is do it my best and give it my all."

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Bradley- 2nd open (1st at Pushin Weight)
"My goal is to be in the top 20% for Rx men worldwide, and top 100 for 18-year-olds worldwide. I'm excited to do the Open here. People seem to be really excited about it and I think it will be really fun."

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Kristin- 4th open
"I'm signing up because Tyler is making me.  Also it makes me more competitive-- it makes me try a little harder. The best part is the Friday night lights atmosphere, and the booze that Ashley supplies."

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Jeff Edwards- 3rd Open
"My goal is just to survive. I enjoy the family aspect, the team, the encouragement, going from one year to the next and getting older but still seeing what you can do."

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Cathy-2nd Open
"My goal is to do better than last year! I did a lot of standing around staring at the bar last year, and I don't want to do that this year. It's great to see people you don't normally see. It's good family time."

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