Q: What, exactly, is the Open?
A: The Open marks the start of the CrossFit Games Season! The primary goal of the CrossFit Games is to identify one male and one female as “The Fittest on Earth”- and the most inclusive, effective way to do that is to cast as wide of a net as possible during the first stage, via the internet. During the Open, one workout per week will be posted; the entire world will compete and post their scores at games.crossfit.com. By the end of five weeks, the cream will have risen to the top, and the top 48 men, women, and top 30 teams in each respective region will be invited to their Regional Qualifier, where they will vie for a spot at the big show: The CrossFit Games!
Equally important to the crowning of “The Fittest on Earth” is the second focus of the Open: participation! The workouts are designed to challenge the fittest in the world, while being accessible to everyone (it’s easier than you may think: try 7 minutes of unbroken burpees). So even if you are fresh from the Boot Camp, you can join in on the the fun! You can trust that we will make sure that you are ready for each and every workout.
Q: I’m not one of the top athletes at the gym, let alone the North West. Why should I sign up?
A: The Opens aren’t about winning the workout; it is about a shared experience! This is an opportunity to write your score up on the biggest whiteboard in the world- you will be able to filter your results by gender, age, and location- see how you stack up! Additionally, the Open provides something almost magical to participants: focus. For 5 weeks, it is even easier to make time for your fitness. PR’s are regularly set; expectations demolished. It is AMAZING what you can do when you have an entire gym pulling for you!
Q: What if I don’t do well, will my score hurt the team?
A: Nope. In fact, the more, the better. Our goal is to send a team to the North West Regional, and on to the CrossFit Games- each week, we’ll be scored on our top 3 male and top 3 female scores, so if you are not in the top 3, your score won’t hurt the team. In the past, “top 3″ has not necessarily meant the “Team” athletes- in fact, last year, CFCd’A showed incredible depth during the open: Though we could only send six athletes to the Regional, we had over a dozen different athletes score for us during the open!
Q: When is the Open?
A: The 2013 Open will be held from March 6, 2013 to April 7, 2013. Workouts will be released at 5pm PST every Wednesday; all results must be submitted by 5pm PST Sunday of the same week.
Q: When will the gym hold the Open workouts?
A: Our “official” Open workout of the week will be held every Saturday morning, from 8-10am. Prepare to have a blast- the energy is contagious! We will also run a smaller “Open Option” Wednesday evenings for those athletes wishing to take a crack at the WOD right away. And, as before, we will make the gym open to any athletes needing to set up special times- we just ask that you clear it with us, first. The facebook page (including the fun-loving CFCd’A Honey Badgers page) is a great place to find a WOD buddy.
Q: What if I can’t make it on Saturday?
A: See above! (TL;DR: we’ll make it work)
Q: Who writes the workouts?
A: The ephemeral entity known as “HQ”. Kinda nice for D and I to hear the athletes grump on someone else’s evil schemes for a change!
Q: I’m pretty new to all this. Should I sign up?
A: Oh hell yes. CrossFit Coeur d’Alene prides itself on the two C’s : Coaching and Community. Even if you feel that the Open is way beyond your ability level, you can rely on us to ready you for each and every Open workout. The workouts have traditionally been programmed such that every workout begins with a very accessible movement (even if it may end with a highly skilled one). In this way, every week, everyone can get a score. Your participation means strength in numbers for the community- there is a power in a large group of like-minded individuals, and we want YOU to be a part of it!
Q: I’m in! How do I sign up?
A: Go to games.crossfit.com, click “Compete Here”, and follow the instructions. Once you are registered, you can choose “CrossFit Coeur d’Alene” as your affiliate, as well as your team! We’ll be proud to have you!
Post any further questions to the comments below- we’ll answer them ASAP!
Derek Hutchison
A lot of people are wondering if they can do the Open even if they’ll be gone for a few weeks of the Open. The answer is, ABSOLUTELY! If you are in any major city, you can do the workout at a registered CF gym. If you are legitimately on an Island with no CF gym, you can miss 1, 2 or mor workouts and still do the rest of the Open.
Remember, the only way you hurt the team is if you don’t sign up!