BREAKING: Brent Fikowski to Retire Following Rogue Invitational

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Good morning and welcome to the Morning Chalk Up.

In today’s edition:

• After nine CrossFit Games appearances, three podium finishes, and six top-fives, “The Professor,” Brent Fikowski plans to take the competition floor one final time at the 2024 Rogue Invitational. Get the details below.

• Buying an already-established CrossFit affiliate can be a big risk. Learn about the crucial steps you need to take before signing on the dotted line.

• Rare Breed CrossFit in Kansas City, MO, is our affiliate of the month for November. Learn about the Rare Breed owners and community below.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“It just feels like the right time.” - Nine-time CrossFit Games veteran and current Third Fittest Man on Earth, Brent Fikowski, on his retirement following the 2024 Rogue Invitational.

CROSSFIT GAMES

BREAKING: Brent Fikowski to Retire After 2024 Rogue Invitational

After nine CrossFit Games appearances, three podium finishes, and six top-fives, one of the sport's most decorated athletes, Brent Fikowski, will take the competition floor for the final time at the 2024 Rogue Invitational next weekend in Aberdeen, Scotland.

In an exclusive interview with the Morning Chalk Up, Fikowski explained that, at 33 years old and after a decade at the top of the sport, “it just feels like the right time to retire,” he said. 

This became clear to Fikowski after the recent TYR Cup exhibition in Huntington Beach, CA, at TYR WZA SoCal when he had the chance to meet one of his idols, Joshua Medcalf, the author of Chop Wood Carry Water: How to Fall in Love with the Process of Becoming Great. 

• Medcalf told Fikowski: “Be relentless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire.”

Fikowski took Medcalf’s words to heart and realized what is really exciting him these days is his work with the Professional Fitness Athletes’ Association (PFAA). 

Ultimately, Fikowski’s commitment to professionalizing the sport has reached a point where it is “overpowering my level of excitement to continue just focusing on competing,” he explained.

• “For months, I have been splitting my time between being an athlete and PFAA initiatives, and I have decided to make the PFAA into the success I know it can be for the next group of athletes that come after me. This is how I need to spend all of my efforts,” Fikowski added. 

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SPEED READS

💛💙 Haley Adams Opens Up: Recently, CrossFit Games vet and fan favorite Haley Adams sat down for an “Athlete Stories” episode on the CrossFit Mayhem YouTube channel. She talked about the struggles in 2022 that led her to sit out the 2023 CrossFit season. Listen to the full episode here.

😎🌴 2024TYR WZA Miami Team OCQ Is On! Check out the details below for the TYR WZA Miami Team Online Challenge & Qualifier (OCQ), which has been taking place over the past two weeks for individuals. The Team OCQ runs October 31-November 6. Get registered here. Check out the Team OCQ schedule here.

• TYR WZA OCQ Team Divisions

  • Teams of Three (MMM or FFF)

    • Elite | Rx

    • Intermediate | Open

    • Masters Rx | Masters Open

🎖️❤️ Chad 1000X: On November 11, 2024, join the CrossFit community, Rogue Fitness, and The Step Up Foundation in support of “Chad 1000X.” Take on the challenge to bring awareness to the causes and prevention of veteran suicide.

• Learn more and register today.

📺👂Hear Their Stories: CrossFit’s new video series, Hear Their Stories, brings viewers into the heart of the CrossFit community. Episode six focuses on Brock Yost, Owner of CrossFit Triple River in Three Rivers, MI, and 2024 Teenage CrossFit Games Director. Watch now.

ICYMI: Squatting to depth and locking out overhead matters in the Open and in competition, especially to avoid the dreaded “no-rep." Moving through a full range of motion (ROM) is also crucial for health, longevity, and lifelong fitness. Learn more here.

MEMBER EXCLUSIVE

3 Essential Steps to Take Before Buying a CrossFit Affiliate

Buying a CrossFit affiliate can be an exciting opportunity, but it's crucial to approach the process with open eyes.

One of the most critical steps is conducting thorough due diligence before signing on the dotted line. 

• Skipping this step can lead to a host of unpleasant surprises and costly mistakes.

We broke this down in full for an episode of the Best Hour of Their Day podcast recently, but here are three big things you need to make sure you get right:

Uncover the Affiliate’s True Culture

When evaluating a potential affiliate purchase, looking beyond the equipment and membership numbers is essential.

Perhaps the most critical factor to consider is the culture you’ll be buying into. 

AFFILIATE COMMUNITY

Affiliate of the Month: Rare Breed CrossFit Offers Fitness Home for LGBTQ+ Community in Kansas City

After finishing her college basketball career, Ryann Bowser became the general manager of a CrossFit gym.

• The members knew she was a lesbian, but when she spoke up about it or supported LGBTQ+ community causes, “it wasn’t OK,” she said.

During Pride Month, Bowser pitched an idea to do one workout each week for Pride to support the gay and lesbian community. Fifteen members quit the gym.

• “I got a lot of emails [saying things like], ‘My name is Tanya, and I’m a Christian, and I don’t believe blah blah blah.’ Just really f$%&ed up stuff,” Bowser, who came out as gay when she finished high school, said.

After that, Bowser found herself feeling increasingly unsafe and less happy at the gym, but she didn’t want to abandon fitness altogether. 

Instead, Bowser — who grew up in Holton, a small town in Kansas where she experienced discrimination for being a lesbian — found a new mission.

• “A mission to create a space where I, and obviously my athletes, could feel comfortable, where I can be myself, where I can be out, where I can be visible, and where I can hang a pride flag in my gym and have people actually support that,” she said. 

One year ago, Bowser made this dream a reality when she opened Rare Breed CrossFit in Kansas City, MO.

HIGHLIGHTS

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

• 🎂Happy birthday to Jeremy Austin.

• Happy affiliate anniversary to CrossFit HSP in Holly Springs, NC.

• Happy anniversary (11/3) to Tommy and Missy Vinas.

• Happy birthday (11/3) to Ava Kitzi.

• 🙌 Congratulations to Candice of CrossFit Iron Horse in Fort Worth, TX, on her 5-year affiliate ownership anniversary.