Congratulations, Bob! – CFS

Wow, where do we begin?! Last week, our very own Bob Caslin competed against the best of the best in his age division and walked away with a 3rd place victory at the 2016 CrossFit Games. It’s hard to do this accomplishment justice through a simple blog post. This is an unbelievable accomplishment and we could not be more happy for and proud of Bob. We are extremely lucky to have him training under our roof and as part of our community.

Here’s a little bit of backstory on Bob and his journey to the Games: Last year, Bob competed in the 60+ Masters division for the first time. It was his rookie debut and not many people knew what he was capable of – though we certainly did! He took the first workout by storm and walked away with a first place finish, leaving the announcers to actually ask, “Who is this Robert Caslin guy?’ Bob had an amazing showing all weekend long and ended up in third place. A podium finish for his first Games appearance!

But that wasn’t good enough for Bob. He was proud of his performance, but also knew he could do even better. Last year when muscle ups were announced in the final workout, we were all shocked. There had never been muscle ups for the 60+ masters division! Bob fought like hell but was unable to get his first muscle up that day (the grueling 3-days of competition before certainly didn’t help). Bob swore he would never let that happen again.

Bob kept his word. Not only were there ring muscle ups at the Games this year, there were also bar muscle ups! Bob cruised through both work outs, completing ring muscle ups and bar muscle ups with ease. It was very clear that Bob was back and even better than last year! It was amazing to watch him get total redemption on those rings this year.

After 2.5 days of competition, the field was narrowed from twenty to ten athletes. Bob was sitting in eighth place, so he moved on to the final unknown workout. The workout was eventually announced as: 27 pull ups, followed by 2 rounds of 12 deadlifts, 9 hang power cleans, 6 shoulder to overhead… all with an axle bar. While other competitors were probably dreading the axle bar, Bob was pumped. Can you say wheelhouse?!

Bob absolutely manhandled the axle bar and destroyed the workout, finishing in first place. When all was said and done, Bob finished in third place overall – the third fittest 60+ man IN THE WORLD!

The whole world sees Bob’s accomplishments, but not everyone gets to see the hard work and time that he has put in to achieve his success. Bob is one of the most committed athletes in this gym, spending hours on end working on weaknesses and fighting to get better. He is also one of the most friendly, kind-hearted people you will meet in the gym. If you’ve never met him before, be sure to introduce yourself and congratulate him on his amazing achievements.

Bob, we love you and are SO proud of you! Thank you for representing CrossFit Southie on the big stage in the best way possible – with poise, a never-quit attitude, and always with a smile. We can’t wait to see what is in store for next year!

If you missed the action last week or just want to relive the excitement, head to games.crossfit.com to watch the footage of all of Bob’s events. Click the Masters/Teens button at the top, and hover over the red M until you find the Masters Men 60+ division.

WOD (15 Min Hard Cap)
40 Squat Cleans for Time (135,95)
Every Minute on the Minute Complete:
20 Double Unders

Rest 10 Minutes

100 Calorie Row
Every Minute on The Minute
5 Clapping Push-ups

Level 2- Clapping in a band or from the knees; 80 calories
Level 1- Regular Push-ups; 60 calories