S02E55 RECAP 2022 CROSSFIT GRANITE GAMES WITH SPECIAL GUEST JOE PIERRO

HERDFITUSA welcomes back special guest NJ native, Joe Pierro @jersey_jp who competed in the CrossFit Semifinal Granite Games @thegranitegames June 3-5, 2022 at the TCO Stadium in Eagan, MN. What was it like competing with the likes of Brent Fikowski, Chandler Smith, Sam Kwant, Travis Mayer, Colton Mertens, and Phil Toon? We talk to Joe about his experience and performances, and his takeaways for the future.

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S02E55 2022 CROSSFIT GRANITE GAMES RECAP WITH JOE PIERRO

[00:35:54] David Syvertsen: All right. Welcome back to the HerdFit podcast. I am coach David Syvertsen here with Dr and coach Sam Rhee, and we have a repeat guest our athlete elite athlete, Joe Pierro who I think less than five days ago, just got done with the 2022 granite games.

And he was very nice enough to come on, not even a week after the competition, just give us some feedback, reflect on it a little bit. First thing. Thank you so much for coming on and proud of you for what you did last week.

[00:36:19] Joe Pierro: Thank you. Thank you. It was definitely a big learning experience out there.

Yep.

[00:36:22] David Syvertsen: First of all, how's the body

[00:36:23] Joe Pierro: feeling physically? Body's not feeling too bad. I feel pretty great. I'm just taking some time off. Yeah. Yeah. I

[00:36:29] David Syvertsen: mean, that's one of the first things I want to ask is how, how does someone like you start to view it? You still have a lot of reflecting to do and and we'll get into.

During this podcast, but when I, a lot of common question is when do you start training again? And what's the intensity like in a big,

[00:36:43] Joe Pierro: I came up with an outlook. Well, my coach yesterday, we talked on the phone just going to come back nice and easy starting next week. Nothing crazy. Just, just getting moving again, just because obviously, working out is a lifestyle, so I'm just not going to take too much time off.

What was

[00:36:55] Sam Rhee: it like, like, so give us your first overall, like gestalt, like how you felt being there as an elite athlete with these guys.

[00:37:04] Joe Pierro: Yeah. Just seeing everybody on through the years on TV or livestream, it was a kind of. Oh, wow. Like I'm in this, I'm in, it's like, I felt like a little fish in a big pond.

Yeah, it was, it was pretty, it was serious out there. Just seeing the athletes, obviously you see over the years and then you competing against them. You're almost like a little overwhelmed. And like I said, And the local competitions, able to get comfortable, I guess it's also one day, but being out there, I felt like I literally was a little fish in a big pond out there.

[00:37:32] Sam Rhee: Yeah. Big pond. The top five were bred for Koski Gil tune. Travis Mayer, Sam. Colton Martins. There was, those were the ones that made it. Those weren't even the ones that like, there are a whole bunch of elite athletes that didn't make it

[00:37:45] David Syvertsen: out of it. Yeah. You look Chandler Smith, Matt to Lugo's Timothy Paulson, Anthony Davis, mark wan Jones.

Like all these guys did not make the games. That's great. And, and those are guys that Joe and I both have watched on live streams on TV at the games. And it's. What was the gist of initial emotion when you saw these guys in person, like I know little fish, big pond, do you think that made it a little extra nervous or a little bit more difficult to get going on that first event?

Like what did you feel more nerves than you anticipated before that first event?

[00:38:14] Joe Pierro: A hundred percent, especially being in heat one on that first event and just knowing that they were following me up just no, I have to put my best time out there or, they're going to be right on my tail, which exactly what happened.

I I got a little overwhelmed moved a little too quick, too fast. Got out of my comfort zone. Did pretty much what I shouldn't have done. Just fell behind. And then. I said she went to panic mode and just let it out too quick. Yeah. So let's talk

[00:38:37] Sam Rhee: about the first workout. It was the heavy handstand reverse Fran, which I remember talking about with you the 9, 15 21 barbell thrusters at one 15, the handstand walks the top times were Paulson tune and Mertens at around two 20 to 2 36.

Amazing. And you finished at about four minutes

[00:38:56] Joe Pierro: flat. So how did.

[00:38:58] Sam Rhee: You had your plan, you stuck to it?

[00:39:01] Joe Pierro: No, no, I didn't. I nine round, I got I got to know reps in my thrusters and I fell behind the pack there. And I was like, do I, like I said to myself, like, do I belong to beat D do I deserve to be here?

So I, I picked up the handstand walk, went back right on the thrusters and just started ripping them. Just essentially getting on my breathing pattern out of my comfort zone, a little too fast, and then that 15 foot handstand walk. I walked right out of my lane. So I got hit there with nowhere up to, so I had to restart that.

It's just, yeah, it just a little overwhelming for the first event or just a learning experience.

[00:39:31] David Syvertsen: Yeah. That was probably the, I would say the highest skill work out of the weekend. Like I know we can look into the ring muscle ups, but again, that wasn't something that was that fast, like a really high skill movement, like hand wall.

Under fatigue and you have to go. Yeah, that, that, that takes a lot of like concentration and dare, I even say, just experience at that kind of level of competition where you it's really hard. Let's let's talk about that a little bit where you knew, we talked about this on the podcast two weeks ago, we, you knew that you had to stay within yourself on that workout.

You get a couple, no reps. What were the no reps for.

[00:40:04] Joe Pierro: Thrusters was locked out

[00:40:06] David Syvertsen: lockout yet again, you're trying to go so fast. Right? We talked about this so many times in this podcast. It's not always like you're trying to get by the judge. You're just trying to go super fast and. What hap, like, what is the actual thought process when you see the guys next to you left?

Because that's part of the, the the, the environment of being in a live competition is you're going in. You see guys in your peripheral starting to go on those handstand walks, and it's hard not to get nervous. It's hard to concentrate on the breathing. And that's where experience at that level comes in.

Is that one of the biggest takeaways that you're going to take forward from this?

[00:40:36] Joe Pierro: Yeah, definitely. I, I started taking away as the weekend, went on just. Don't even look left and right. You gotta play your own game trust you trust your fitness. Yeah. The trust fitness

[00:40:44] Sam Rhee: now. But now when you look at it, you weren't that far, like you can take some positives away from that you finished 20 seconds, even with the no reps, even on the thrusters and with the lane, moving out of it.

Like you have a lot of room that you could have really done a lot better on that. Right?

[00:41:00] Joe Pierro: Correct. Essentially in an all in all good world, w. Hopefully been around three minutes if all went to plan, which is what I did in

[00:41:07] David Syvertsen: training. Yeah. You were, yeah, that was your third best event of the weekend.

So it wasn't anything you walk away disappointed from. It's just like a learning experience of all right. Why did I not get close to three minutes? Three 15. And it's something that's very fixable, but it comes with experience like. I'm sure you and your coach have talked about this, where you can plan all this stuff out on paper, but you can't really simulate that environment of all this action going on around you.

Also the first event of the weekend, where, you know, from my experience, that's always the one that's the most nerve wracking and. That perspective. I think that's something that's going to help you in the future a lot.

[00:41:43] Joe Pierro: Yeah, I agree. Completely. I, especially going back watching film, um right. And just reliving it essentially, and just the thought process in the moment.

I remember being in that 15 round of thrusters, literally. I'm here like this is it smile for the kid. It was like, all right. If the guest alright. That's awesome,

[00:42:05] David Syvertsen: dude. Second event, the bar, the bar barbell complex that every again, for those that don't know every single semifinal, this is one of the events and it's a complex of three cleans that are essentially touching.

Two front squats and an overhead it's three attempts for max load. This is where Joe got a lot of camera time and like, oh yeah, Joe, I was on, I was on vacation last week with my, with my family, my wife and son. And I didn't, I, I watched every event. I wasn't able to watch every one live, but I made sure like at nighttime, when we settle things down, I was like, we're watching every single of those events.

And this was the one I was smiling ear to ear. Listen to and talk about you. You are a goddamn

[00:42:44] Sam Rhee: beast. Anthony Davis hit 3 55. Travis Mayer hit 3 35. Oh Zachary. Bon-Ton hit 3 45. You hit 3 25, which was good enough for eighth place. And you looked good doing it. Really good. Doing

[00:42:58] David Syvertsen: it now, did you hit 3 25? So we got to talk about this.

So what happened here?

[00:43:03] Joe Pierro: So what'd you do on the first list? 3 0 5 and then you went up to 3 25 and then three 15.

[00:43:10] David Syvertsen: What? Oh, you went backwards. It's backwards. So let's, the, the, the math on plates. Like we get, we joke about this at the gym all the time. It's not easy to do. And the plates that you're used to lifting at a gym, like 2 0 1, it's like the black rubber plates.

I think they have some complex there. Right? Blues and greens. And. You guys had reds and the reds are 55 pounds. Correct. And so I, I still, to this day, struggle with the math. Sometimes when I see reds on they're like you have to stop yourself for a second. Explain what happened

[00:43:38] Joe Pierro: there. I had to take plates off in order to put more weight on.

So at that 0.3 25 was the max load I could get with the plates that you went to, the plates that I had available. So I had it ripped the exterior out. Yes. Put essentially from the greens to the yellows, which are 30 fives. I had to go from a 25 to 30. But on top of those 30 fives, I should've added a 10.

But I did it right. And it was to the point where it was a second thought, because I do in a map, I said 3 35, 3 35, 3 35 sitting on the plates to the judges, 3 35, 3 35, take it off, put it on. I said 3 35, right. And then five. Oh,

[00:44:17] David Syvertsen: the judge also

[00:44:19] Joe Pierro: made the miscalculation. Yeah, it was, there was two judges in front of me.

It's a female and a male. Yeah.

[00:44:23] David Syvertsen: So three of you made the same mistake. Yeah, you're not going to blame anything on the judges, but

[00:44:27] Joe Pierro: the weight wasn't loaded. Right. So it

[00:44:31] Sam Rhee: was three cleans, two front squats and one jerk all in one motion. How did that? 3 0 5 feel? And then how did the 3

[00:44:37] Joe Pierro: 25 field? 3 0 5 fell, heavy coming out of warmups?

You just stand in there for 15 minutes looking at each other 15 minutes in the corral. Yeah. We're almost went great. Where I'm sort of hitting, I warmed up ended. 3, 0, 5 power clean front squat jerk. Markwan said looking solid and I just walked away after that though. Cause I was like, yeah, well this is the opener.

Yeah. Joe, the

[00:44:58] David Syvertsen: electrician from New Jersey. Did you

[00:44:59] Joe Pierro: have a goal? I have, the goal was 3 30, 5, 3 40. That was the goal. And

[00:45:04] David Syvertsen: so at the time before. Before the granite games, the record world records, quote, world record among the semi-finals was 3 45, right? Correct. And I remember watching you do 3 25 and I looked at Ash I'm like that dude's got 3 45.

Yeah. And I just, I was looking at that and I was like, I hope he goes for, because they, they, weren't getting a lot of screen time. They're talking about the mullet. It doesn't get more New Jersey than that. Crop top on and he's you were moving weight, bro. Like it looked so smooth and easy and I've been watching you live for so long and I'm like, dude, this guy's got it.

Was

[00:45:39] Joe Pierro: that adrenaline the. The 3 25? Yeah, it was definitely adrenaline. I would even say the 3 0 5. It's such a gentleman the whole time, because I'm just deep breath and holding it just it's going up. Yeah. We have a,

[00:45:49] Sam Rhee: A thought, like, what are you thinking? Like, are you thinking something like, keep your

[00:45:53] Joe Pierro: knuckles down or like lockout or whatever?

Like, my biggest thing was is, is today. Uh, Before I stepped on the platform, I just keep saying people, well, we're here to see you hit this lift. Right. I just keep repeating that. I said, they want to see you hit this shit. They want to see you hit this shit over and over again. And just trying to like, cause obviously you're like, what if I miss?

What if I miss? But I just keep repeating that before getting the platform. And then when I get there, I know the clean power plan is going to happen. I know the power things are gonna happen and if they don't, I probably shouldn't even continue with the amount of leg stress dropping into a squat clean.

So power clean was the only. Uh, The second front squat which I dig it airtime on was right into the jerks. So I locked the second front squat out, use the absorption of the barbell into the dip and right up into the splitter, you started celebrating

[00:46:39] David Syvertsen: your jerk before you even dealt with the lift.

[00:46:44] Joe Pierro: As soon as I caught it, I knew that was the hardest part I'm using the, like the stretch reflex off that front squat into the jerk. When I was locked out, I was just standing up. It looks so good, dude. It really did. It felt like 3 35. So,

[00:46:56] David Syvertsen: how did they notify you? How did they notify you like that? It was off.

Like, I wonder if someone else told, not told on you, but reported it to them. Like w what was that process sitting and

[00:47:08] Joe Pierro: briefing at 8:00 AM the next day. Okay. Briefing was ADM. Even our event was at 4:00 PM. So don't understand that. Briefing finishes up over the loudspeaker. Joe pro come see the lady in the white shirt walk over to lady and white church.

What's your first thought

[00:47:23] David Syvertsen: when they were like, what do they need me for

[00:47:24] Joe Pierro: drug test? I wasn't thinking drug tests. I was like, I was like, oh boy, they're not calling anybody else. So like, what did I do? Like, I I'm, like, I thought it was going to sign in because you had to be there. Cause a lot of people didn't want to go because it's hours, it's eight hours basically before your event.

So. I thought it was just for us to sign back to sign in. Like she just missed me. Yeah. So I get down there and there's two ladies. They stand out, they look at me, they go, you only hit three 15 or 3 25 total. Right. And I was like, They're like, yeah. Your last lift. Wasn't 3 35. You know that though, right?

I said, I said, well, that's news to me, I guess maybe that I went up so easy and I was like, really? I was like, I was like, you're serious. Right. And she's like, yeah, I thought you would have saw the comments. Comments, like she's like, yeah, people were talking about it. Oh God. So I guess people on the livestream caught it.

Yeah. But even I went back cause I was like, I didn't believe it. I didn't believe it. And I tried looking for like video proof, like to not believe it, but the video is so straight on that it looks like I did put the tens on. Right. So I was like, did I, did I, did I? Yeah. But I just, I found an angle where it just wasn't there.

And I was like, oh, it makes sense. Now why that 3 35 went up. So,

[00:48:33] David Syvertsen: so I remember after that first day with like, if you had hit 3 35, like, and again, Avoid as many ifs could was, but I think you woke up that morning in what 14th or something, right? Was it our 11, 11? Wow.

[00:48:45] Joe Pierro: Yeah. I was like,

[00:48:46] David Syvertsen: I almost got real there and it's not like, it's not like you went down that much.

You went from third place in that event to eighth place. So you were still, you were sitting in about, I think, was it 14th or 15th going into the second day after they made that. Or is it nice to say the 14th? Yeah. So you start day two and that the Minnesota mashup, how does that feel to be in

[00:49:08] Sam Rhee: 14th place after

[00:49:09] Joe Pierro: day one?

It feels real. It felt good. Yeah. It was like, all right. We're we're doing we're we're we made it, we belong here. Let's let's keep it going. You, the athletes

[00:49:17] Sam Rhee: talk amongst each other at

[00:49:18] Joe Pierro: all, or no. I was very not myself out there. There was definitely like the training camps talking to each other that I did realize a lot of the top athletes have their coaches and they were just dialing in, what worms and everything.

I was just basically looking around for the most part and not talking to anybody. Cause I was just like everybody's in game game mode. Yeah.

[00:49:35] Sam Rhee: Minnesota mashup, 10 wall ball shots. 50 GHD is 21. 40 single arm dumbbell, overhead squats at 70 pounds, 30 wall balls, 30 ring muscle ups. I guess that was the key.

The 30 room was looked 40 wall ball shots, 200 double unders 50 wall balls shots, 10 dumbbell, clean and jerks time cap, 20 Phil tune, Brent Makowsky and John Woodward, the top three at 1707 to 1746 on that one. And you did looks like. 2252.

[00:50:04] David Syvertsen: Yeah. Thoughts on that one? That one, I watched that one, I saw a lot of high-level athletes looked like they were crawling at the end of that.

Oh,

[00:50:12] Joe Pierro: yeah, I was, I was with him. Yeah.

[00:50:15] David Syvertsen: Was that, was that the hardest one of the weekend? It was a long, it was the longest one in terms of like all the mixed modal. Like I know the engine one at the end, it was a bit longer,

[00:50:22] Joe Pierro: but correct. Yeah, I D I did was, it was, I would say the. The last one was the hardest one.

The the sled one. Yeah. Okay. So the second, the last one, but yeah, definitely for mixed modal. A hundred percent. Yeah, because we got to those 30 ring muscle ups. And

[00:50:36] David Syvertsen: what did those feel like percentage

[00:50:38] Joe Pierro: wise? That was, I was almost tapped. I was almost tapped with just, I guess, the over exaggeration of lockout because the head judge kept coming over me, lock your reps out and then I'm.

Once I took a break was 30 seconds and it was crazy. It was like everybody was doing the same thing. So I wouldn't even pay attention to field. I just looked up at the clock rates on my left and the head judge could come over to me. And I ha I have a feeling it was because like, of yesterday, like the wrong weights.

So I'm gonna, gosh, she's probably like thinking like, yeah, this guy's trying to get one by. But I, it was just the overextension of the lockout. You just basically lost so much. I feel out of it. It was just such a smooth workout. It really was. It, it was, it, it really hit home. Like in the 50 GHD is how you, you come out flying, right?

You do the 10 wobbles. They're just there for nothing. Then you go right into 50 PhDs and I start trying to move fast. And then I looked to my left and right on my peripheral vision. Mark wants moving smooth, almost slow my cadence down. Yeah. So I immediately slowed my cadence down. I did plan a break.

So just to say, like I'm playing my own game. I did take that break just cause I, I plan on doing it. Yup. And it was just a mood. It was just a workout of smoothness, but deeper into the workout. Once you got through those 30 ring muscle ups, those 200 double unders. Like it was crazy how different that's

[00:51:46] 2022_0610_1532: a

[00:51:46] David Syvertsen: D that's a, it's a lot in one set.

Like I've done a workout where you had to do 300 straight. And again, like the first a hundred aren't bad, but that was not near the fatigue that you were in. Did you go into it trying to pay some like, Hey, try to get the 50, try to get to a hundred and you just do them until you trip up.

[00:52:01] Joe Pierro: The goal was, the goal was honestly like, just do thirties or something.

Just go bigger than 25. You're just jumping rope. Just out there. It just felt like very exerting. What was the, what was the weather like? Whether it's beautiful. Perfect, perfect. Heavy wind. The turf was a little hotter. So I saw

[00:52:18] David Syvertsen: that they gave you a lot of the, these rubber platforms to lift on workout on where I've seen granite games in the past.

I've seen the games, whether you are doing stuff on turf, what was the footing like? Where did you feel like you were prepped for that?

[00:52:30] Joe Pierro: They were, they were softer, more soft. No, no, nothing drastic. They were very fair. Yeah. You're not going like from a gym floor to a trampoline. It was just that, that moderate it's different, but you know, it's good enough that we're, we're prepared for this

[00:52:45] Sam Rhee: where you happy with their performance on the Minnesota mashup.

[00:52:48] Joe Pierro: I was. Except for the double unders falling apart. So sloppily and the ring muscle ups, I let God get out of hand, pass the 21 round. And that was basically because of the exaggeration of just locking out. So my triceps fatigue, and that caused me to take two more sets, more break than I wanted to. But over.

I did hit tens in the wall walls in training because I guess I came out too hot and I guess I did the same thing there that I didn't trading it's 10 on the walls in that 40 and 50 round. Okay. But the double unders definitely it's like, you gotta be able to jump rope, dude. You're at this level

[00:53:20] David Syvertsen: now.

Yup. After workout, that's really, really tough. Even here at bison. I liked. Really just like shut my mouth and just listen to people, talk, like, and it's some of it's funny people like bitching about the workout, how hard it was. But I really do like to just hear feedback on a really tough workout.

Was there anything, any dialogue after that workout buddies as a group that one looked like it was the heart, the one that beat you guys up the most as a whole group, was there any kind of feedback dialogue going on after that workout? Or was it like, Hey, let's get outta here.

[00:53:46] Joe Pierro: There was when we went over and we walked off the stage.

Uh, People were just shot like it, man. It was like a hammer, like a hammered the field. Just seeing people's reactions sitting on the bench on, on the football field, it's just like, yo, I'm not doing what hurting like this. So I guess, the, the playing fields even, but we're all feeling the same.

The hip flexors were shot. The legs were shot triceps, triceps. And I was doing my wall balls and I'm talking, I'm going. I'm going to ask the grass and I'm not trying to cheat standards at all. And the head judges like Joe, lower, serious, they're coming at you. Huh? Coming at me. And I'm like, how am I close to first in this word guy right now coming at me.

And then she walks away the head judge and my job. Yo you're good, dude. I don't know what you're talking. I'm like, I'm like, I'm not trying to like cheat depth at all. I'm I'm, I'm hammering

[00:54:34] David Syvertsen: depth right now. There's a lot of talk right now between Hillers Yvonne and just just judging in general. There it's just like a hot topic right now and, and rightfully so, Andrea I'm on that side and I want that.

If there's a lot of pressure on judges now and the head judge, they're like, it's, everything is on the internet now. So if you're, if you're letting things skate by, you're going to get called out. And I wonder if that, that whole lift, not, we all know you as a person, you would never try to sneak one by and go for 3 35.

Right. And not put the tenant.

[00:55:03] Joe Pierro: One, because you have two

[00:55:04] Sam Rhee: judges looking at what you're doing, how do you free and chew, like cheat

[00:55:07] David Syvertsen: on that misdemeanor. I wonder if it was just, it just put you on the radar a little bit. And they were just like, trying to make, not an example out of you, because it's not like anyone knows about this other than this podcast, but maybe it was just like you were on their radar and because I've seen you move, dude, I've never ever thought anything

[00:55:23] Joe Pierro: about,

[00:55:23] Sam Rhee: I think it's a favoritism.

Let's put it this way in the NBA, the big star. Get some slack. And if you're the rookie, they're going to be like, sort of harsh on you a little bit. And I feel like it's a good point. The head judge was like, okay, here's a rookie, you're on my radar. And I'm going to give you a hard time when it was undeserved.

And especially when your own judge.

[00:55:47] David Syvertsen: You're doing okay. Right. Exactly. I'm glad you're judged

[00:55:49] Joe Pierro: at that time. Yeah. I mean like the one thing about the head judge that I was like, I felt a new depth of my squat before. I mean, My quads were cranky because I was just smack, I was like, screw my joints. I'm smashing death.

Like bouncing. I was hitting depth that I never hit before because of that. That's funny.

[00:56:06] David Syvertsen: Oh, so you had the speed shipper next about how long did you have I asked about this one in particular? Because everyone was so mangled after it. About how long did. Before the speed chipper, which Sam will give you in a sec, PI four hours, four hours.

Okay, Sam, what was the workout? It was 120

[00:56:21] Sam Rhee: yard shuttle run 16 snatches at 1 75 36 chest toolbars, one 60 yard shuttle run 36 chest bars, 16 snatches 120 yard shuttle run, time cap, 10 minutes. Top three were Colton Mertens Travis mayor, Anthony Davis, 7 26 to 7 48. And you got. 9 28.

[00:56:46] David Syvertsen: 17th place. I remember, I remember us talking about this workout with you.

And I remember you saying, we were like, what's your plan? Snatches? Like Joe dominates the barbell. Like, are you going to try and go touch and go? And that I remember watching it and like, wow. Surprised how many guys are doing singles right away on the snatches. Do you think that was carry over from Minnesota mashup?

No. Okay. Do you think that was everyone's

[00:57:07] Joe Pierro: plan? I I'll tell you what the I'll tell you what happened. Okay. We're warming up. Everybody's touching and going. Cool. A couple of females come run in the back, singles singles. And I'm like, I'm like thinking I'm like, I put a goal on like 7,

[00:57:23] David Syvertsen: 9,

[00:57:24] Joe Pierro: 6. Yeah. I was like, I'm my, my legs are hurting, but when you're out there, you're out there, we're going to make it happen.

And they're like singles, the fastest girls are getting singles

[00:57:35] David Syvertsen: because they're

[00:57:36] Joe Pierro: dominating the chest war. Yeah. It was, it was such a chest of our workout. It really was. But it, again, it was like one of those workouts where you do the first 120 yard shelter run, you know, it wasn't fast wherever one, that didn't mean nothing.

But then the singles, I was just like, I'm just like pissed off in a workout. Like, am I really doing singles right now? When I, this was not my plan at all, but it was, I was just trying to learn, like, because they did it, they just did it and they come running back there. They said single singles, everybody's doing single saw.

I'm like, say no more. I'm just going to listen. And I hate singles personally. I like, I like the stretch reflex coming off the ground, just being big.

[00:58:11] David Syvertsen: If you time touch and go. Well, it literally makes the movies

[00:58:13] Joe Pierro: again. Does it have to do a bounce? It's just like you just come from a dead stop every time.

[00:58:17] David Syvertsen: Yeah, right. Yeah. That's, that's really interesting that, that, that happened. That happened to me at legends before where I was, there was a workout that started off with 50 double dumbbell squats, and I was like, Definitely going to break these up. And then I go out there and my coach was there and he goes, go, everyone went on broken last set.

It changes you in a moment and you have 10 seconds to think about it. And you're like, you know what I kind of have to do. Now, looking back on it, do you regret going singles or do you regret not trying to go touch and go, or do you think it was the smart move? I

[00:58:44] Joe Pierro: don't, but what I should've did was. You know, Singles was fine on the snatches in the first set on the back set of snatches, I would have liked to do probably twos.

Cause that's what Mallory did. Yep. Saw that. Yep. Uh, But what I did is I went to 12 on singles and on the back half of Snapchat. So the second set of snatches, I was at 12 and I took a, an extra, let's say five seconds of break. I saw the judges handle to my left. I saw the judges hand to my right. Uh, Mark wan and the guy that was next to me and I said, what we get to touch and go now.

So then I touch and go to the last four and it just puts me ahead of them.

[00:59:19] David Syvertsen: That's awesome. Nice. Just for those that don't know what, when the judge puts their hand up, that means there's five reps left. So that's something, again you could see in the peripheral. Like if you see your, someone else's judged, put their hands up, There, there are five reps left and that can cause you to also, you usually don't know how many reps people are on, unless you can hear the actual judge next to you, but that's the visual that there's, there's no leaderboard.

You can look at like, oh, I'm in fifth place now I'm in sixth place now. It's you get that visual cue of like, all right, someone's got five reps left and that's awesome that you were able to go for. I want to ask a question about that workout because this is like, one of my favorite memes of all time is a guy eating Cheetos and feels.

On a couch watching the CrossFit games and with a, with the voice saying should have went on broken up when I was watching that, and this is girls guys like first heat fourth. Yeah, it looks like you guys are running so slow in between. We were now w what's the F like, do you think that's like, Hey, we're just CrossFitters.

Especially that level. A lot of us don't run that, that level or a lot of you guys don't run that much. Do you think there was time to be had there if you ran a little quicker, the legs were so heavy. Yeah. Is that, was that it was it wasn't breathing. You guys think you were

[01:00:23] Joe Pierro: sucking the legs were, the legs just felt heavy.

So he couldn't open up the stride. Yeah, the Le it was weird because after the second set of Sanchez, like, like on the final run, the legs were especially heavy, but coming up the chest, the bar, you felt that like Walker that slight run to the bar and you're like, my legs were heavy. So even after the chest, the bar, you're like, well, I'm going to just gonna run.

And I don't want to blow it for the statutes, especially

[01:00:47] David Syvertsen: with legs. I want to be staring at the bar. That's like the number one thing in that workout. That's where, like, I like getting that feedback from him because. You need to hear that someone that actually did the work, right? Like someone sitting on a couch in Florida, probably having a drink.

Why aren't they running faster? All right. So that was the end of day two. And that was. Or close to

[01:01:09] Joe Pierro: nighttime for you that it was nighttime. Nighttime events were just beautiful weather. I was gonna say it was a pretty cool under the lights like that. Yeah, it was great. It was, it was perfect environment.

And my new Nazi, you're not feeling the heat from a turf. What was the crowd like? The crowd was, the crowd was packed Saturday night. Yeah, it was, it was a good one. Yeah, that was the ones I was looking for with the lift and that one. So ended up getting. The thing is, it was a chest. If I work out, I'm just the one last thing, Cole Mertens when I'm broken and both 36 and just smoke the field.

[01:01:32] David Syvertsen: Cause amazing. Now

[01:01:34] Sam Rhee: you mentioned that the women athletes were giving you guys some tips after they finished. Was there any interaction with the women athletes other than sort of like them giving you guys some feedback about the workouts or anything? Yeah.

[01:01:45] Joe Pierro: Vicki Crusoe from crosser, Roseland who also trains with Markwan.

Yep. I was just hanging with them pretty much close to home and we've seen each other and spoke before, so definitely talk to them. Anybody else? No, I didn't really see how the girls were communicating between each other, because usually when you go to these comps, the, on until the thing is, is right, the girls are so serious, right.

And the guys are just like joking around So really too much of that in because all like the high level girls or that essentially, the ones with the coaches, there were just so on point with their warmups. Okay.

[01:02:15] David Syvertsen: So now we go into day two and this one also looked pretty tough, indoor the sled.

And I remember talking to about this one prior to going. And just how much you were shocked, like the first combination of sled plus burpees, really Jack the heart up and you couldn't get it back down. That sled looked gross, like really hard. Did you know it was gonna be that tough?

[01:02:35] Joe Pierro: Yeah. Well, so they had a practice field inside the dome the Vikings.

So we warmed up in there and then we came out onto the field. Inside. It was so much harder to push. Oh, really? I'm talking resistance times 10. Just the, just because of the ground surface, the ground surface. It was turf, but the ground surface preference. Yeah. It was so different. Okay.

[01:02:55] David Syvertsen: That's good. Then you guys freaking out before.

Yeah,

[01:02:58] Joe Pierro: because we're like, oh man, what was the,

[01:03:00] David Syvertsen: what was the footwear for that one?

[01:03:02] Joe Pierro: Footwear. I w I wanted to wear high tops so I could try to flat high-top Nobles. Yep. Just like a flat foot, the ground, rather than try to go from my tippy toes. Yeah.

[01:03:10] David Syvertsen: Where you.

[01:03:12] Joe Pierro: I wasn't slipping so much because I got, I tried getting low and hugging it, but I was on my tippy toes so much that it just, just blew me up and the position I, I started pushing it in so low, just blew my back out.

Cool. Sam would go over that road, work out

[01:03:23] David Syvertsen: real quick. What was the sled

[01:03:24] Joe Pierro: weight by the way? It's a 2 42. Yeah, I think the sled is 200 and they threw a 45 pound on there. Okay. Okay.

[01:03:30] David Syvertsen: So it was

[01:03:31] Joe Pierro: a 50 yard sled, push 30 lane facing burpees, 50 yards sled push thousand meter run, a hundred Cal echo bike thousand meter run, 50 yards sled drag 30 lane facing burpees, 50 yards leg sled, drag time cap 27 minutes for Koski Woodring

[01:03:48] Sam Rhee: and Sam

[01:03:49] Joe Pierro: Kwan finished all about 2011 to 2051.

They were the top three and you did

[01:03:55] Sam Rhee: 26, 26.

[01:03:56] Joe Pierro: They they changed the poles to the push. Cause I think they realized there was no dragging. Yeah. There was no dragging. It was all pushed push. I think they realize how hard it's too hard. They'll pull actually. Was that near not doing a hundred yards of this?

[01:04:08] David Syvertsen: Yeah. That's a long distance to push the slide in one shot. And like even the top athletes, they were ha they had to break it up the second time through

[01:04:15] Joe Pierro: hitting it in training, coming out. I blew up and training just like the first page. So I was like, I'm going to slow it down. So I'm pushing it, like trying to push a slow out of the first 50 yards.

And I looked to my left and I guess there's four guys to my left there ahead of me. I looked to my right. Everybody's ahead of me and I lock eyes with Colt murders that were just that the batch for like the, just the beginning. And I'm like, I just, I just put my head down. I'm like, you got to keep going.

Yeah, it's uncomfortable though.

[01:04:39] David Syvertsen: But you got to keep going. That was one cool bath that's event. One cool thing. All the guys went at once. Oh, I loved that. I hope that some people saw that and Hey, it's logistics are part of this. How big the rig is. I think semifinals and just cross it. Competition will be so much more fun to watch.

If you can get everyone going at once, shout out the flip

[01:04:59] Joe Pierro: side for bringing 30 sleds up.

[01:05:01] David Syvertsen: Yeah. That was probably an 18 Wheeler full of those things. So. All right. So that's pretty cool. The, I wanted to ask you what your pace was on the bike, because I remember in training, you said you were around 63 to 65 RPM.

Were you able to hold that? Yeah. 65

[01:05:14] Joe Pierro: 67. Awesome man. I started, I felt behind, so I started pushing 70 from like 60 to 90 to back to 65, but I was just in such a hole there. All my running basic has been on an air runner because every weekend has been raining and I just, rather than let's not get wet, you got double session and just running.

I did lose ground because I just, people that were behind me became in front of me on the running. Right. And I just, I just felt heavy, tough lead up on my end. Yeah. That's part, that's part

[01:05:42] David Syvertsen: of the reflection we'll talk to you about after the events. Okay. Yeah, yeah. Do that, that one. So you thought that was harder than the Minnesota mashup?

[01:05:48] Joe Pierro: Yeah. That was that your body, our bodies were just taxed at that point and then day three. Yeah. And you're just crushing even more and just the position of the sled, just my lower back.

[01:05:57] David Syvertsen: Wasn't having it. Okay. What,

[01:06:00] Sam Rhee: what do you think about your performance? Were you okay with it? Did you feel like you should

[01:06:04] Joe Pierro: have.

No, no, but I found out if you, in last place, you get plenty of airtime on the like, nah. Yeah. Not definitely not happy, especially knowing where I'm at. I know that was a limited, obviously the cardio stuff, because I've been really focusing on strength and just like, we'll talk about more stuff later diving into my, you know, just health and Trish and leading into it.

Yeah.

[01:06:28] Sam Rhee: All right. And now the last event was the other one that was all the same for everyone. The 2014 regional event. Number five, 10 rounds for time. One legless rope climb, 170 foot run. 11 minute time cap Lugo's Travis Mayer and Sam Quan. 2 59, 3 0 3, 3 0 4. And you finished 5

[01:06:47] Joe Pierro: 0 4. I got to say, I PR my time out there, baby.

You're worried about if you were worried about that one. Yeah. Well rightfully so, because every time I practiced, I was, I started at, I did this workout four times. My, my slowest one was like six 40 because I started failing reps. One of my fastest one was five 20 and then. I hit five, but it's like, that's still a minute and a half off of everybody's pace.

Yeah.

[01:07:09] David Syvertsen: And it shows. Yeah. No, it's it's, it's funny how listening to some guys that did this at regionals in 2014. They like, Froning like the elite of the elite, right? He was saying, he doesn't think it's a good workout because it's, it's too easy for the elite of the elite. And every now and then you, you come across a certain type of workout where you see the gap between yourself and the, and it's good for you because it's going to make you hammer in on some things and got a year and you have to figure out like, what can you do?

Because a lot of people that did this in 2014 have gotten to three minutes faster than they were back then. And it's simple. Hard extensive. It's not. Complex work to get better at like let's throw climbs. There's a lot you can do with like pulling shrank, but you just got to do them more. Right. And develop it's a different kind of pulling strength than a pull up or a muscle up.

What were your immediate reflections after that

[01:08:00] Joe Pierro: workout? Miami reflection was I'm gonna wear a DJs and Belmont crop top because I know that this ain't going to be too hot of a workout going out for me because there's just time. Right. It's time. I know my times are off. So I'm just going to have some fun, take some heat off of it and just do what I can.

And Ray, from there right out the gate, everybody started spring. I ran, but as soon as I came down from that, I knew like I had to just play my own game because I would have been failing it. Just what

[01:08:23] David Syvertsen: rounds. So it's 10 rounds of one legless rope climb and 120 foot shuttle runs say 170, 170 foot shuttle run at what round, where you saying, all right.

I have to slow down my run so that I can recover the leg. It was just

[01:08:35] Joe Pierro: four, four. It was just like, I guess what all the volume it really was. Yeah. It was either it was that, or I, I, I failed because I pushed that point in training and I felt that coming. Yeah. Yup.

[01:08:44] David Syvertsen: You see this almost in every semifinal.

You don't want to be the person that's failing because when you fail a rep, it basically, you just have to stand there for a minute. That's really what it comes down to. And you want to avoid

[01:08:54] Joe Pierro: that state in the work done being that rep is essentially

[01:08:56] David Syvertsen: for nothing. You get credit for it. Yep. Been there. Yep.

So that's the end of the comp right there. And you're standing on the field, just got done with the granite games, 20, 22 among some of the best athletes in the world. Maybe even potential 20, 22 games, winners. Yup. What was like the immediate emotion of it being over?

[01:09:17] Joe Pierro: Relieved like, man, all that work's done.

Like, does it go fast? It went, it went obviously looking back, it goes fast, but in the moment it felt, it felt long because they started us off with the briefing so early in the morning, and then we. Go home. What'd you do all day, relax, chill. Try to take a nap.

[01:09:36] David Syvertsen: What was the

[01:09:37] Joe Pierro: nutrition like days of nutrition, nutrition leading up fine.

But as soon as you got out there, the nerves, man, appetite's down the drain. I couldn't, I couldn't even eat. And I went from, I was just yakking and just. I couldn't do anything solid. So I was lik I was liquidating everything and then it just would go, right. It would just come right out of me. So I was just, I was, I was just chasing the bottom.

I would be lucky if I had a thousand calories and before I even started the workouts. Wow. I really just ate dinner for the most part. I couldn't eat. Sleep was the greatest thing of all time. Yeah, I probably, my sleep is terrible. I probably sleep six hours to five hours a night, but there I was sleeping 10.

Awesome

[01:10:14] David Syvertsen: dude. Yeah.

[01:10:15] Sam Rhee: Did you feel injured at all after the

[01:10:17] Joe Pierro: whole thing? No. No. I felt just, just deep soreness in my legs and, just last being sore and that's really it. Soreness went away pretty quick. Hmm.

[01:10:25] David Syvertsen: Okay. That's good. Now when you. Have this talk with your coach and you start reflecting.

Are you, it takes me a long time to like really sit and think like, what do you want to do? What do you need to do? How are you going to get this? What are just, I know there's probably a laundry list of things, whatever it may be taught, your two or three things that you're really looking at and like, all right.

I have a really solid strong foundation now. And I have also objective results of the elite of the elite that where I stand with certain workouts. What are you looking at yourself from now? What do you need to coach looking at it in terms of what to get, what what to start working on and how are you going to go about

[01:10:59] Joe Pierro: it?

Moderate strength, strengths there. Definitely all percentages. Um, And obviously when the one rep max is there under the spotlight, I'll be able to hit it in comp. So if I just lift within reasonable percentages of that uh, strength will be maintained, but the bulk of the time has got, gotta be spent on cardio

[01:11:15] David Syvertsen: long

[01:11:16] Joe Pierro: work or long cardio.

I was joking around. I got to train for an iron man with you, man, in order, that'll be, I'll be great next year. Just let me train for an iron man

[01:11:24] David Syvertsen: all year. Yup. I know I was a new year's Eve. I believe I went out to Sean's gym and I did this crazy workout. I think it was 2022 cows on the ski row and C2 bike and a team of three, but it took, I forget, I think it was close to three hours.

I was with Matt Malone and Matt Nicole Malone and Hammond nails. They love that stuff. Yeah. I

[01:11:44] Joe Pierro: love it. I got to get on their

[01:11:46] David Syvertsen: level with that stuff, man. Now, are you looking at machine work or do you look at the running? Not even, just because of the results of the workout, but this thing about endurance in general, like I've always felt.

The best way to really truly enhance the engine is running. I agree

[01:11:59] Joe Pierro: completely. So I went out yesterday and bought a pair of running shoes. Yeah, baby,

[01:12:03] 2022_0610_1532: let's

[01:12:03] Sam Rhee: go. You're not running in flat top. No

[01:12:05] Joe Pierro: bulls or whatever. No, no, not my high tops. Nice. First, first pair, after six years old for the CrossFit. So that's going to be something

[01:12:12] David Syvertsen: you take on the summer.

Start running

[01:12:13] Joe Pierro: around a little bit. Yeah, it's going to be the goal is two times running two times a week. Obviously variated. And lifting's going to be more moderate and just, more, more consistent and just finding that smoothness in longer mixed modal pieces, because it really was about smoothness in those long chippers.

It wasn't about speed at all. Awesome.

[01:12:31] David Syvertsen: That's going to, that's going to be fun to see you take that on because that's, that takes a lot of work and it's time to you gotta

[01:12:37] Sam Rhee: feel confident that. You belong here and that you are an elite athlete based on your experiences and what you saw, do you not feel that way?

Yeah, it

[01:12:47] Joe Pierro: was on, so I was on the opposite side of the spectrum when I was able to move fast. Back in, like I would say three years ago, I didn't have the top end strength and the strength took so long to develop because if you're never lifting it, you're not going to lift it there really within.

So being able to hang with, some of the big dogs and strength, it's like, okay, now conditioning can happen. It just takes time. Within reason of the year, especially when that's my goal and it could easily happen. That's

[01:13:11] David Syvertsen: what you hear. A lot of elite coaches say it's like the strength can take, they they'd rather work with a really strong athlete and develop the engine just because the amount of time for you to get few your engine from, let's say your rate out of a four out of a one to 10 scale, let's say your engines, a five out of 10, you can get to a seven.

No doubt before this time, next year, where the strength, if it was afforded a 10, it would take three years to get seven to eight out of 10.

[01:13:33] Sam Rhee: Where's your confidence level now after completing the granite games, doing what you're doing, where are you sitting right now in terms

[01:13:39] Joe Pierro: of how you feel?

I feel like often levels, not 100. At at the peak yet. But you know, as I, as I start attacking more cardio stuff, it'll definitely get there knowing I have the top engineering,

[01:13:49] Sam Rhee: you know, You can get there, you know, like based on your performance that you can do better. First of all, and two, you can compete amongst the most elite of these elite athletes.

Don't you feel that way after.

[01:14:02] Joe Pierro: Yeah. I feel like, yeah, I deserve to be there. Obviously I had some flaws, but you know, we're going to try to fill some holes for next year. Yeah. It's

[01:14:09] David Syvertsen: due to my eyes. You made semifinals two years in a row last year with like the no reps off in the GHD like that had no, no, that was not a, a lack of fitness there.

Those kind of a weird standard that you got penalized a little too much for, in my eyes. You made semi finals two years in a row.

[01:14:24] Joe Pierro: Yeah. I wish I had that experience last year because it would have been. Different, obviously different time in life. And it would have been either some, something different over the, what the emotions a year earlier on just getting that whole experience a year earlier.

So that

[01:14:36] David Syvertsen: experience of being in person among the elite competition, is there any thought of you at potentially trying to let's use water Palooza, for example, trying to qualify for something else only, not for the sake of winning water Palooza, but for the sake of just getting in front of guys and next to guys at that level.

To enhance the experience level that you have at a semifinal.

[01:14:57] Joe Pierro: Yeah, definitely got to do some more individual comps just to test that. It, it may be water blues or something else. I'm not sure if I will do a lot of blues again, after the amount of struggles I've had since Waterloo. Just staying healthy and yeah, it's a tough time of year.

I would love to go individually there because that brings the prize pool brings money and everybody goes out there. But yeah, it's just, it's serious. It's serious out there. It really

[01:15:19] David Syvertsen: is. Yeah. Life changes coming up in the next few months. Are you trying to. Draw out routines yet plans yet? Or do you want us to stay in the zone where you're at right now with like when you train, what time, what days you train, what days you don't train w any thoughts on that,

[01:15:34] Joe Pierro: Life change coming up, it's going to have to do with balance.

Essentially probably eliminating some days at the gym. Getting some stuff at home. Yup. And essentially just trying to kill that commute time, because to go into work, it's like an hour probably in a car overall two and a half hours a day. And if I cut that down, it would be like, it'd be more balanced because it could be obviously home more.

Yeah. Wow.

[01:15:56] David Syvertsen: Yep. Yeah. I think a lot of athletes at your level, they do start to realize it's not always more than. Mm, it might just mean like if certain life changes come your way and you just have less time that doesn't necessarily mean you're going to lose your fitness. It probably will end up meaning that you just need to be very diligent.

And about what, like the time that you're spending at the gym, not wasting time getting off the phone, not hanging out with people, it's got a con almost, feel like, like a part-time job almost. Yeah. It's got

[01:16:21] Joe Pierro: flow. It's just got to flow. You can't, you can't have the fluff in the middle. It's gotta be a, B, C, D E.

[01:16:26] David Syvertsen: Yeah. So you said you wanted to reflect a little bit on just, your nutrition leading up to the granite games. You know what you did, you know where your body's at right now? Like you said before, like you're feeling like thick and strong. Do you want to change that at all? Or is, are just minor tweaks here and there.

[01:16:42] Joe Pierro: Yeah, go go competition. Wait, always been 1 90, 1 95. Okay. I'm sitting around two 10 when I competed. That's the heaviest I've been in my life solely on the fact of me, just not being a hundred percent strict and just pretty much I under eight on the weekends. And for some reason I would nail my macros Monday through Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, I would like to really go under eat whether, I'm not, I'm not eating or, and, or drink enough water money.

Gain a pound a week, essentially. And those last five weeks, I don't know why it was just sticking to me, but I went from 2 0 5 to just see in two 10. And I was like, I'm trying, but it's like, some of that stuff is

[01:17:16] David Syvertsen: stress-related dude early. It is. And like, if your mind, if your mind is not, if your mind is just stressed about in stress to me, it's not always about like on upset or angry.

It's like your mind is running all the time with like how you have to balance. You're not, you're not a pro athlete. You don't get to just train all that. You have to go to work, spend two hours out, two and a half hours in the car. You sleep five to six hours. And then obviously just the anxiety of an upcoming competition, like that alone could add 5, 5, 7 pounds, right?

[01:17:41] 2022_0610_1532: Yeah.

[01:17:42] Joe Pierro: I try to, I try not to think about that. I put it, like, I feel like having control over everything is like where it's at, you know, something like a stressor. It's like, I just don't want to accept it because I feel like when you're doing everything in your power and you're putting so much effort into something you don't want to let that get in the way, but it's just inevitable.

Yes. Yep. Did you see any athletes

[01:17:59] Sam Rhee: there that you said, wow, these guys. Perform the way I might want to perform or they act or conduct themselves in a way that I think is pretty cool. And that's, that's what I would want to do

[01:18:08] Joe Pierro: to, yeah. Being in the same heat as Chandler, you see him, you've seen him throughout the years and even it felt like the final hit to me just being to in the heat with him.

You know, Obviously, even though there was a heat after. Just seeing the way he moves. And obviously, you know, there's more, there's some mobility that can improve, but just the, just the heart and the grind and just the willing to be willing to just embrace it and just suffer in the moment. It's just, it's a skill to develop.

And honestly, what that, I feel like I did lose someone like that, that gritty, that grind with just so much pacing work and just so much repeated outputs being by yourself too. Yeah. Being by myself. You don't, you don't really have that push day in and day out. Especially with people in the gym doing different programs.

Right. Right.

[01:18:48] David Syvertsen: So, anything else, Sam? No. Or anything? Yeah.

[01:18:51] Sam Rhee: And I want to say, I am so impressed with your performance. I think you outdid yourself. I think you establish yourself as a legitimate elite athlete. The, the improvements that you see for yourself coming up are all things. Every elite athlete.

I think EV every, if you've ever seen their path in terms of how they got there is it's pretty much the same

[01:19:13] David Syvertsen: thing. Yeah. I was going to say they're hard guys that made it from this group that when they first started semi-finals water Palooza, they're 20, 25th, 30, 35th place. And our regionals back in the day.

And th it's the difference between the guys that kind of flame out from there, or end up being top 10, top five, they just kept the front of the gas. And,

[01:19:32] Sam Rhee: and the fact that you've been at this for three years now denied two times in a row shows you bill. You should have been there two years in a row already and mentally and physically you're there.

When I was thinking of the podcast, you said basically, what was the biggest bummer about those years? Where. I was robbed of experience and hearing you talk about the granite games, it was a wealth of experience in terms of just head to head competition with these elite guys. And in two years next year and the year after, I can't imagine how much better you're going to be.

Just because you got so much better. By this one, how?

[01:20:10] Joe Pierro: Yeah. Yeah. Th the, the scores speak for themselves. You see the 20th places you see where the top 10 finishes at and, the goal is the best average not to be strong. Yeah. It's great. I'm in the wrong sport. If I just want to be strong, it's completely, I got to build some more engineer and just probably come down a couple pounds.

Just move a

[01:20:25] David Syvertsen: lot smoother, but I'm telling you, you got it from a guy that's a, I've always been on the weaker side when it comes to competence. I'd much rather be in your position, have that lead level strength. And when I say elite, like you were there, you are the elite of the elite with strength on the bar belt and cross the competition, the stuff, the other stuff, it can come.

It really can.

[01:20:41] Joe Pierro: I'm I'm thankful for the strength and just all that time. I've learned it, dude. You learned that the hard way, right? Thank you. I honestly honestly I would say I'm happier to be on this side because. Growing up in the sport. And not being on the strong side, but being able to do a hundred burpees as fast as I can, but not having a top end strength you always want, I always want a top bench strength and you got it now it's progress.

It's progressing.

[01:21:02] David Syvertsen: And now it's time to get back to work at some point, like, but I say, I want to echo Sam proud of you, dude. I had a pleasure watching you feel like I'm like watching almost like a little brother grow up right now just because I've known him for so, so long in the cross, the competition.

And again, it was so cool to watch you next to those guys at the granite games and on better days or half for you, dude, I have no

[01:21:23] Joe Pierro: doubt about that. Yeah. Thank you. This is it's definitely earned, not given that's granite games slogan out there, and there's gotta be a lot of work to be done on my end too.

I definitely don't want to take the pats on the back too, too softly, because then it's gonna, soften up a little too much. Yeah. Yeah.

[01:21:34] David Syvertsen: I'll say this in a couple of weeks. This shit is last year, and it just doesn't matter anymore, but right now it matters. And I want you to be proud of it.

I, in a couple of weeks, I'm not even gonna talk about this anymore. I appreciate that. Yeah.

[01:21:44] Joe Pierro: But right now, congratulations,

[01:21:46] David Syvertsen: pat, on the back.

[01:21:48] Joe Pierro: Thanks guys. Thank you.