Fredericksburg Rucking Group – Ruck Club Spotlight

Name: Fredericksburg Rucking Group

Ruck Club Size: Over two hundred on the FB page, but in actuality, we have about 20 local members.

When/How/Why did the Fredericksburg Rucking Group start?

We started as part of the local Fredericksburg RWB group back in early 2017. But later in the year we ended up breaking off from the local RWB chapter to start the Fredericksburg Rucking Group so that we had more autonomy to do what we wanted to do and when we wanted to do it.

What sort of activities does the Fredericksburg Rucking Group do?

In 2018 we were our most active with scheduled activities. We scheduled events to support group members that were completing Pathfinder training requirements and completing GORUCK events. We had weekly beer rucks, monthly ruck CrossFit workouts at the local Fredericksburg CrossFit box, and also provided weekly Thursday night group workout sessions at the local park during the spring, summer and fall.

Our biggest event last year was getting GORUCK to have a public custom Tough and Light events called the Battle of Fredericksburg in our own backyard. We asked for the events and we had to ensure ruckers came out to participate, which they did, by the hand full. It was an amazing event lead by Cadre Shredder and Cadre DS. This year we are still doing the weekly beer rucks, Thursday group ruck workouts and monthly ruck CrossFit sessions.

Most often we will partner up with the Culpeper Rucking Club and do community service projects, like laying of wreaths on service member graves. In a few weeks we are hosting, along with Culpeper, a mountain ruck to meet the upcoming GORUCK Elevation Ruck Club challenge. Sometime in May or June we are hosting a Scavenger Hunt and Food Collection Ruck Drive.

What do you think is the key to having a great Ruck Club?

In the beginning for our club we had a lot of people fired up. They were signed up for GORUCK events or other ruck related activities and they wanted to exercise. So it was great. We put in a lot of effort to schedule and lead ruck club events to accommodate every member and we were consistent it planning, timing and location. To us, that was the key, to make sure that when we scheduled an activity or event, we didn’t cancel.

But to get back to the question, the key is the people. If they are committed, it makes it easier for the club leadership to be committed. In 2019, we have seen our participation levels really take a hit. We are still organizing events, but most often it’s the same core group, but they also have other interests and that often conflicts with what we schedule for the group.

Anything else you want to share that would be of interest to readers?

If you are planning to start a ruck club, don’t feel you have to have something every week because that may not be sustainable. But definitely post pictures of every event that you host and post them on your FB and IG accounts. To be relevant, you have to show your club is out there and doing things. Even if it is one picture. And be consistent with your postings.

Awesome. Got any more pics?