The 54 year old grandmother I convinced to sign up for the Open, stood and looked with disappointment at the pull-up bar during 15.2. We didn't think pull-ups would be part of the Scaled Division and were left trying to find the words to ease her frustrations. Then 15.3 appears and the veteran athletes who can do most of the WODs Rx'd, looked at it with disdain because the elusive muscle up starts off the WOD, and that is the one movement they haven't been able to master. It felt a little like betrayal having to perform single-unders when they worked so hard to master Double-unders.
I can't explain the thinking behind the programming/ scaling, and honestly I don't event want to try. But what I do know is that 15.3 is redemption for the 54 year old grandmother who couldn't do pull-ups in 15.2 when everyone else was celebrating their firsts. Open WOD #3 may seem a little "easy" for us who can do Double-unders but it gave a breath of fresh air to those who fought discouragement the week before.
If we were in charge, I am sure we would all find a better way to do it, but history dictates that you will never make everyone happy. The WOD that has made one person feel defeated has given another athlete hope. It is about community: coming together worldwide to celebrate those who get their firsts and those who haven't mastered every movement but still want to be part of this sport of fitness. We won't all be happy, but we can all be happy for one another and celebrate doing our best whether that is doing single-unders when we would rather be doing double unders or staring up at a pull-up bar watching the time tick away while our friends are savoring the first time their chin has passed over the bar without assistance. We are in this together through the disappointments and the celebrations!
