Hell's Half Acre, Part Two - Connor Briggs (Individual Competition)
Although relatively new to the explosive Olympic lifts, Connor is very fast and strong. Right off the bat, the first event highlighted his immediate weakness - the max Snatch attempt. Connor shocked everyone (including himself) by setting a personal record of 20lbs! (a HUGE jump in weight on a PR btw). The second WOD, "Weighted Cindy" was right up Connor's alley due to his strength and speed and didn't seem too hard for him. Sunday morning's third event started with Connor's strongest point - 100 double unders - giving him a significant lead between himself and fellow competitors. He gritted his way through the rest of the WOD resulting in a respectable tie with Chad.
However, when it came time for the fourth and final event, Connor knew he was in trouble. The effects of the humidity and fatigue were taking it's toll on EVERYONE. The form standards were beyond strict. Experienced competitors were screaming in frustration and agony over not being able to finish the WOD within the allotted time. Knowing that the muscle-up and handstand pushup standards were beyond what he'd been practicing, Connor decided to quietly bow out and call it a day. No one blamed or even questioned him. Then the strangest thing happened. Within minutes before his heat, Ashley came up to me and said, "Connor's going to compete." The news spread among us like wildfire. Not only did he make it through the uber-strict muscle-ups and hspu's, but he tore his way through most of the 155lb Squat Cleans before the buzzer went off. Our NextGen crowd went completely nuts and rushed the field (totally against the rules) to envelop him with hearty hugs and slaps on the back! It was epic!!! Thank you Connor for stepping up and attacking all four events with everything you had. You are truly an inspiration.
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