2024 CrossFit Open 24.2 Recap
By David Newman | RXSG Founder/CEO
It’s funny that everyone expects double unders to automatically show up in the CrossFit Open every year only because they’ve appeared every year since the Open format started back in 2011. I’m the conspiracy theorist expecting the opposite.
I assume since it has shown up every year, HQ might switch it up on us and replace them with a different movement just to keep us guessing. But nope, here they are again in the 24.2 workout which featured a 20 minute AMRAP of 300 meter row, 10 deadlifts at 185/135lbs and 50 double unders. While I may be surprised that double unders appeared again I am equally pleased since it’s a wonderful opportunity for athletes around the world to show off their EVO Speed Ropes.
This workout didn’t look too bad on paper. A 300 meter row seems pretty straight forward. 10 deadlifts at 185/135 could start to smoke your posterior chain after 4-5 rounds. Then 50 double unders should be your recovery movement if you’ve trained them properly. But that’s a lot of transition between 3 pieces of equipment where things can get kind of squirrely.
Watching Justin Medeiros take on Colton Mertens in the Open announcement wasn’t without some excitement surrounding jump ropes.
For starters, none of these athletes were using Rx Smart Gear. That immediately puts them both at a disadvantage over every other athlete that was using Rx Smart Gear. I’m not saying that to be arrogant. I believe it to be true with all my heart. Case in point, a few rounds into the actual workout, Justin Medeiros’s coach could be seen picking up Justin’s rope and tightening his cable while Justin was on the rower.
Now some armchair referees called foul, stating that athletes could not receive any assistance with their equipment other than resetting their rower. Regardless, the point I’m trying to make is that they were concerned Justin’s rope might fail during the workout. That should never be an athlete’s concern during an important workout, foul, or any workout for that matter.
Athletes should have the utmost confidence that their equipment will perform in the most dire of circumstances. Such as in front of a global audience. If the athlete has any concerns that their jump rope might fail, that’s preventing them from putting 110% of their focus into executing their strategy in the workout. That is why Rx Smart Gear EVO speed ropes have fixed length cables built specifically for this reason. This allows athletes to duplicate their rope size down to the inch and relieves their minds from any worry of failure.
Later in the work out you could see Colton Mertens picks up his rope in a tangled mess and wastes precious time sorting it out so he could start his double unders.
This cost him valuable time and allowed Justin to pull into the lead that he would never relinquish. Colton could have easily avoided this mishap had he received any coaching of the Rx Method in which we teach athletes how to perform a toe catch. A toe catch is an intentional way of stopping the rope and placing the handles on the ground in a horseshoe shape keeping the rope organized and tangle free. Though both men put up tremendous scores compared to the average fitness enthusiast they didn’t fair too well among their peers with Colton just cracking the top 200 and Justin cracking the top 100 on this workout. Hopefully, Colton and Justin get themselves an Rx Smart Gear EVO and brush up on some Rx Method 101.
Now let’s talk about how a non-elite, masters athlete did on 24.2.
Let me first offer up all of my excuses for why I didn’t crack the top 10% in this workout (insert big belly laugh). First, I’m old. Second, I’m out of shape. Third, I had knee surgery 6 weeks prior to doing. 24.2. Is that enough excuses? That being said, I was very happy with my performance and result. I ended up completing 8 full rounds using the 55 year old deadlift weight of 135. I was quite surprised to only trip up once in all 8 rounds of 50 double unders. Especially since I haven’t really done any double under workouts in over a year. So, my plyometric stamina was suspect. I chose to use the EVO FRE handles with Elite 2.6 cable as I felt that would provide me the perfect tempo double unders for sets of 50 reps. Even though my bounding didn’t feel great I was able to hit a consistent pace of 50 double unders in 27-28 seconds. My goal was always to go unbroken and keep my transitions smooth. I hope you are happy with your performance and equipment on 24.2. If not, I know where you can get help to resolve both issues. Should we start taking bets now if double unders will show up for the 14th year in a row in 2025?
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