First on the Board

March 10, 2014

Josh Bunch

"I like the anticipation of not knowing and then Castro saying 'Here it is, have fun.' It brings me back to those game day memories of football and walking through the tunnel ... it's game time."

Photos courtesy of Scott Theede
 

Kameron Theede doesn’t procrastinate. 

Immediately following each Open workout announcement, he and a group of athletes from 810 CrossFit in Grand Blanc, Mich., get on the Leaderboard.
 
This is Theede’s second Open season and he said it’s great for the nerves. If you screw up, there’s always time for a re-do.
 
“Last week, I ended up re-doing 14.1,” he said. “I plan on re-doing this one, as well.”
 
A few moments after Camille Leblanc-Bazinet (272) and Talayna Fortunato (320) finished, Theede and crew started a 15-minute countdown and began warming-up. When the clock hit zero, they started up the ladder of overhead squats and chest-to-bar pull-ups.
 
At 1:31, Theede completed his first two rounds.
 
“The first round felt like butter,” he said. “It almost felt like a warm-up round.”
 
After an 89-second break, the 23-year-old snatched his bar and focused on a black mark on the wall across from him. He tightened his grip and worked his way through 12 unbroken overhead squats at 95 lb. He says the two additional reps weren’t really noticeable and that the chest-to-bar pull-ups were manageable.
 
“Overhead squats are my go-to movement,” he said. “I enjoyed it more than 14.1.”
 
Then, at six minutes in with 44 overhead squats and 44 pull-ups already in the bag, he started his fifth round.
 
After five overhead squats, the brick house CrossFit Games Director Dave Castro spoke of during 14.2’s release, fell. 
 
"Coming off the second round of the 12 chest-to-bar, I finished with about five seconds before the six-minute mark,” he said. “I rushed back to the bar and I shouldn’t have. I should have shook it out.”
 
After a few deep breaths, Theede power snatched the barbell choosing to position it rather than squat snatch the first rep. He finished the 14 overhead squats and moved to the rig.
 
Reminiscent of CrossFit Games athlete Talayna Fortunato, he started to chip away at his pull-ups in sets of two until the clock expired. Next week, he says, moments after 14.3’s release, he’ll do it all over again.
 
“Everybody comes and watches,” he said. “The atmosphere is electric.”
 
Not only that, but the former college tailback said throwing down with your box minutes after Open workout announcements takes him back to the pride of the pads and smell of the turf.
 
“I like the anticipation of not knowing and then Castro saying 'Here it is, have fun,'” he said. “It brings me back to those game day memories of football and walking through the tunnel … it’s game time.”
 
When the nine-minute third-round buzzer sounded, he collapsed and signed his scorecard for 108 reps completed—14 overhead squats and six pull-ups into his fifth round. He said the exhausted feeling after each workout is worth the effort.
 
“A lot of people take it for granted, but I give my all,” he said. “That might be the last workout I ever get to do."
 
For Theede, it’s not about the Games. It’s about the experience.
 
“My long term goal is to compete on the regional team, but for right now, it’s just to have fun."