After two days of gym owners nervously biting their nails thinking of the logistical nightmare assault bikes would present for 16.2, Dave Castro finally put them out of their misery last night during the 16.2 announcement.

Although the live announcement and subsequent face-off were sponsored by Assault AirBike, there are no devil’s tricycles in the Open…yet.

Instead, the workout is as follows:

Starting with a 4-minute clock…
25 toes-to-bars
50 double-unders
15 squat cleans, 135/85 pounds

If completed before 4 minutes, add 4 minutes to the clock and proceed to:
25 toes-to-bars
50 double-unders
13 squat cleans, 185/115 pounds

If completed before 8 minutes, add 4 minutes to the clock and proceed to:
25 toes-to-bars
50 double-unders
11 squat cleans, 225/145 pounds

If completed before 12 minutes, add 4 minutes to the clock and proceed to:
25 toes-to-bars
50 double-unders
9 squat cleans, 275/175 pounds

If completed before 16 minutes, add 4 minutes to the clock and proceed to:
25 toes-to-bars
50 double-unders
7 squat cleans, 315/205 pounds.

Stop at 20 minutes.

For more information on the tie-breaker and scaled and Master’s variations, click here.

 

Games athletes Björgvin Karl Guðmundsson and Dan Bailey went head-to-head in a North Carolina garage for the announcement. Guðmundsson took third place in his second Games appearance in 2015 whereas Bailey, a five-time Games athlete, followed closely in fourth. 

Beforehand, analyst Pat Sherwood, Tommy Marquez and Sean Woodland analyzed the two athletes and their past performances. Guðmundsson went from a modest finish in 2014 in 26th place to a stunning third place finish in 2015. However, his two worst performances involved moving heavy weight around — something that would come back to haunt him during his 16.2 performance.

Bailey on the other hand has been to the Games for the past five years. Although he’s never stood on the podium, he’s also never finished outside of the top ten. In the past, Bailey has been a solid, but hot and cold performer. When he’s good, he’s really good. When he’s bad, it’s enough to hurt him in the quest for the title of the Fittest Man on Earth.

During the announcement, Bailey quickly pulled ahead during the double unders and completing his first round in 2:24. Guðmundsson followed closely, trailing by one to two reps through the majority of the first and second round.

Bailey maintained his insane pace throughout the workout, making it through all five rounds of 16.2 in 19:49. Guðmundsson was caught by the 20-minute time-cap with two reps left to complete. Although everyone was blown away by Bailey’s performance, his score was unfortunately later withdrawn due to a judging error.

1. Hold on to the Bar

The trick to making it through each round is completing all reps in under four minutes, which means that the time it takes to drop off the bar and reset are precious second wasted. When possible, do not drop off the bar during your toes-to-bar.

If you get to the point where you cannot string them together, commit to a rep scheme — knock them out ten, ten, five or five at a time. Try to stay strategized so you have as much time as possible to perform your cleans.

2. Don’t String Cleans Together

 

Even Bailey and Guðmundsson, two of the strongest men in the world, did not string cleans together. During the first round, they were operating at less than 40 percent of their one-rep maxes and still, neither of them wasted effort trying to string cleans together.

The one exception to this piece of advice is if you’re running out of time — in that case, rep the squat cleans out however you can. Be aware that you’ll pay for that energy expenditure in the next round, but the Open is a test of fitness, a.k.a. it’s supposed to be hard and brutal.

3. Make Every Double Under Count

Same thing with the double unders as with the toes-to-bar — don’t waste any time. Swing your wrists with force and intention and make every single one count. With a four minute time cap, you simply don’t have time to mess up.

4. Keep Moving

Whatever you do, keep moving. With only four minutes to complete each round, you can afford to go all out. You can catch your breath later, but for the time being, push yourself to the red zone and rep 16.2 out.