👑 Dallin Pepper Won Rogue. Is the CrossFit Games Next?

November 3rd, 2026

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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

  • 👀 Dallin Pepper conquered Rogue. Are the CrossFit Games next? After finishing just 27 points behind James Sprague at the 2026 Games, Pepper finally claimed a major individual title in Aberdeen.

  • 🏃 Do you really need a special shoe for HYROX? We asked endurance expert Chris Hinshaw whether these shoes make a difference — his answer was a resounding yes.

Don’t forget: each week through the end of the year, we're hosting giveaways for premium subscribers featuring favorite brands like O2, Podium, INOV8, LSKD, and more.

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QUOTE OF THE DAY
❝

HYROX feels a lot like running a 10k, and I don’t know anybody who is going to go run a 10k in a training shoe.”

Chris Hinshaw, longtime aerobic capacity and endurance coach, 10-time Ironman finisher
Article 1 - CATEGORY

Is Dallin Pepper Ready to Take Over?

Credit: Seth Morrison

Dallin Pepper won the 2026 Rogue Invitational. Some might ask: how did he get here? The answer isn’t always linear, and for Pepper it meant starting as a teen in his family’s garage.

Remind me: The 2026 Rogue Invitational wrapped up last month in Aberdeen, Scotland, where the best of the best competed over three days. Pepper stayed consistent for most of the weekend, with eight top-five finishes. He held the lead over fellow competitor and friend James Sprague and was crowned champion of the 2026 Rogue Invitational. 

  • “The last event was great movements for me, and I had the cushion I wanted going into the final event, so it wasn't until then that I felt pretty confident I was going to take it home,” Pepper said in a video on his YouTube page recapping the event. “Before that, it was still the mindset of fighting for every single point you can.”

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SPEED READS

👟⏰ Still Sleeping on INOV8? It's Time to Wake Up: INOV8 found its way into the CrossFit Space accidentally in 2009. Almost two decades later, if you're still sleeping on their F-Lite and F-Lite Max training shoes, we think it's time to rise and shine! They're versatile, durable, cushioned yet stable, with a wide toe box and a grippy outsole — the complete package training shoe.

🏖️💰 The Road to Gymreapers WZA Miami Beach Starts Now: This year’s Online Challenge & Qualifier features one two-week window for Individual, Pairs, and Team of Three competition. MCU readers get 15% off registration with code MCU15 — but hurry, the offer expires November 9 at 8 PM ET. (Adaptive athletes use this link.)

📅🔥 The Countdown Is On: CrossFit has announced the dates for the 2027 Open, giving athletes a target as the road to next season begins.

🏀 💪 LeBron James is Officially on Team WHOOP: After more than a decade of using the fitness wearable to track his performance and recovery, the NBA superstar is taking his relationship with the brand to the next level.

⌚ 📊 What If You Could Track Every Second of Your WOD? CrossFit puts WurQ's wearable technology to the test during the classic benchmark Helen, tracking two athletes' effort, rest, pacing, and efficiency in real time. With Spencer Panchik following the data live, the experiment reveals exactly where athletes push, slow down, and lose precious seconds.

ICYMI: Strike Mvmnt: Quietly Doing Their Thing, Since 2010 (Rx article) 

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

Do You Really Need a Hybrid Shoe for HYROX?

HYROX has done a lot for fitness. It's also changed the footwear game entirely.

Before HYROX, there were training and running shoes, but now there's a third option: the hybrid shoe.

  • Designed to handle the demands of both running and functional fitness, the big players are jumping in. From industry giants like Puma and Adidas to smaller, specialist brands like RAD, NOBULL, and Strike Mvmnt, everyone is putting out their version of a HYROX shoe. 

With new iterations hitting the market seemingly every month, choosing the best shoe for your HYROX race has become borderline overwhelming. 

The real question, though, is whether you really need a hybrid shoe for a HYROX race. And is there really such a thing as a shoe that can do it all?

We asked aerobic capacity expert and longtime endurance coach Chris Hinshaw — who has completed 10 Ironman races.

HIGHLIGHTS

Celebrating a PR, hosting a fundraiser, this, that, or otherwise? Send us a tip.

  • 🔥 Congratulations to Alessandro of CrossFit DTA in Alhambra, CA on this 164-kilo/362-pound high hang clean PR.

  • Well done to Kevin and Mike from CrossFit 401 in Smithfield, RI on these ring muscle-ups.

  • 👟 Congratulations to Sean Noble and Joanna Wietrzyk, who won HYROX Hamburg on Friday and earned their spot at the 2026 HYROX World Championships.

  • Congratulations to Chris Harris, who ran in the NYC Marathon over the weekend, finishing in 3:27.32 - a 3-minute and 6-second PR!

  • 🤣 If you've ever wondered where Bulgarian split squats came from, check this out.