Hybrid Horizons Interview w/ Matt Huff

On toadys show, Ari talks to Matt Huff, who represents the Sergeant Bruce Cogley Foundation. The organization honors Huff's late acquaintance, a Vietnam veteran, by raising awareness for veteran suicide and mental health. To fund fitness scholarships for veterans, the foundation organizes the "Bruce WOD," a high-intensity workout held annually around Veterans Day. These scholarships provide gym memberships to help veterans combat isolation through group-based functional fitness. Matt also highlights an upcoming partnership with the National Veterans Memorial Museum for a special outdoor event in June as well as discussing how community exercise can serve as a powerful tool for veteran recovery and connection.

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Transcript

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This one happened uh pretty quick turnaround, uh, as far as you know, from introduction to getting them on the on the podcast, and and uh very excited. It's something I've I've been interested in. I've heard kind of talks about, never have got to um actually participate in my myself. So really happy to um bring Matt, Matt Cuff, uh, who is representing um and Matt, please correct me if I'm wrong, is it is it the Bruce Wad? Is it the Bruce Foundation? What's the best way to categorize this, or is it both? Uh so the official name is the Sgt. Bruce Cogley Foundation. Gotcha, very cool. Also known as the Bruce, and then the Bruce Wad falls into that. Yeah. Gotcha. Very cool. Well, awesome. Thank you for for explaining that. And and again, thank you uh so much for joining the show. Yeah, thank you for having me. Yeah, of course. Um, so you know, just for the listeners, you know, um Matt and I got connected from a mutual friend Scott, who, you know, uh we've we've been in talks with. I I've talked to him a bunch, uh, have had the pleasure of of joining him at a DECA event. And, you know, when he mentioned your name and mentioned the Bruce, you know, like I said, I've I've I've heard of it. Um I think it's been a few years since I, you know, really got connected to it. And the last time I heard you, I think you guys were fairly small, um, because I don't think you had the event in Columbus yet. This was more, and again, please correct me if I'm wrong, it was more on the east side of Columbus or east side of yeah, Central Ohio. Is that fair to say? Uh well, yeah, this is our first big event coming up in June uh with the big well with a partnership, but we've grown it from one gym in Newark to last year. We had uh 16 locations in five states uh host the event for us. So yeah. Cool. Well, yeah, please uh you know jump in. Tell me tell us tell us a little bit more about um Sergeant Bruce and and the foundation and and everything about it. Yeah. So Sergeant Bruce Cogley um served in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division. Um he served um on Hamburger Hill, which is Hill 937, which represents how many meters tall the hill is, and that's how the military categorizes things then and now. Um so Bruce served on Hamburger Hill, uh was wounded on Hamburger Hill, um, and finished his service and upon returning home struggled with the issues and traumas of war, the asylum things, uh the post-traumatic stress um and everything that comes with that. Um and unfortunately, 25 years later, he took his own life, actually just south of Columbus in Hawking Hills. Oh wow. So he was a local person. And I I people always say, Well, how did you know him? I was like, Well, I didn't, but I know his brother, uh, his twin brother Gary, who was on our board, uh, and then a connection was made uh less than 10 years ago, uh, with Gary and I. And then long story I won't get into, but but the Bruce Wadd was my brainchild as a way to bring awareness to veteran suicide and raise money because what we do with the foundation is provide fitness scholarships to veterans to help them deal with the whether it's post-traumatic stress, mental health issues, or just general well-being. Uh so we provide that to them and we use the event, that's why we want it to grow. We use the event as that opportunity to for two things. One, spread the awareness, but also raise money so we can support veterans. Yeah, absolutely. And and I I'm not familiar with a fitness fitness scholarship. So what does that entail? So a fitness scholarship, the way it's set up right now is we offer or we provide three months to one of our partner gyms, three months of a membership. Um and it's really to eliminate that initial barrier of somebody starting in a in a gym. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. So currently we're set up with the CrossFit style gyms, the functional fitness gyms, whatever you want to call it, but it's it's those are our partner facilities, and we look to expand into other areas, but we want to keep it in a group setting environment because you can when you deal with post-traumatic stress or you deal with depression, you tend to isolate. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. So what we want to do is provide an atmosphere with our partners where that individual um can not only get a good workout, but maybe make some connections that I wouldn't have made before. So um that's why we like that idea rather than big box gym ABC for 15 bucks a month or 40 bucks a month, where you're still somewhat isolating yourself. So oh yeah, no, I I wholeheartedly uh uh agree. I mean, the the workout group I'm a part of, I mean that's that's like the big thing, is that you know, you work out together, it's right, you know, it's the fitness, it's the fellowship, and it's you know, getting those guys uh you know out of the out of their shell and you know, kind of out of their comfort zone and um you know having the support and everything. So I think that that's fantastic that you're you're able to do this. And you said you've been so you've been with the Bruce for about 10 years, is that fair to say? No, no, no. I didn't explain that well. So I've known Gary, Bruce's brother, for about 10, probably 10 plus years now, actually. Time flies when you're getting old. So um, but we I'll give you a little bit of the history because I think it's important. So pre-COVID, a group of us veterans, all 101st Airborne Division vets, were getting together to talk about creating a chapter of the 101st Airborne Division Association. So it wasn't a nonprofit, but it was it was a veteran, basically for lack of better terms, a fraternal veteran organization. Um so when we created that, eventually during and then in COVID, we came back together because I kind of went by the wayside. And then during COVID, when we had nothing to do, um we got back together, created the chapter of the 101st association. Um and we started, I that's where I came up with this idea with the Bruce and a CrossFit Hero workout. And we were doing it outside of a nonprofit, and then I I was educated that that wasn't proper. So I knew we were going to grow. I I I had the vision five, ten years down the road. So that's where we turned around and created a 501c3, the Sergeant Bruce Cogway Foundation. Um, so it was birthed out of the a group of veterans who wanted to do something for other veterans, but but now it's a mix, our board is a mix of veterans and non-veterans, um, male, female, and volunteers are of every mix of uh background. So that's kind of where we started. Uh but as a foundation, we're actually uh we were founded officially August 5th, I believe, of 2024. So the foundation itself is only not even two years old, but we've been doing the Bruce Wad since November of 23 was the first time it was done. Um then we obviously converted everything over into the foundation to make it legal and right. Right. And you said so just to kind of give a and you don't have to give the whole thing, but can you give just a quick uh rundown of what the the Bruce Wad entails? Yeah, so the original Bruce Wad, uh and let me separate this. So the event we have coming up in June is a special edition outdoor version of what I'm about to tell you. So the original Bruce Wad was built on to represent like any hero wad, there's a purpose in the numbers. So the workout itself starts off with a 937-meter row, and I like to explain it this way you're going into battle, you're starting up the hill, 937-meter row. The battle lasted 10 days. So there are 10 rounds, each round has three movements, each movement has 10 repetitions, so there's this the number 10. Each round consists of 10 wall balls, 10 kettlebell swings, and 10 burpees. Um so you do that, that's one round, do that 10 times, so you're doing a hundred repetitions of each of those. Um, and then you finish off, and I like to say you're the you're coming off the hill, coming off the battle, you're coming, or then you're finishing with another 937-meter row. And what I've witnessed in that is, and how I try to explain it, and our try to tell our partner Jims to explain it, is that look, don't quit. There is a 40-minute time cap on this, but the point of this is those men on that hill in 19 uh 69 didn't have an option to quit. Right. There was only a few ways that would end. Um so keep going. And it whether you hit whether you complete the workout in 40 minutes or or the record time of ridiculously fast 21 minutes and some seconds. Wow. Yeah, yeah, that's what we said. Um, you just don't quit, you go to the end, whether or not you get to the last row or not. I just encourage people, put yourself. This is supposed to hurt. It's it's not hurt bad, you know what I mean? But it's yeah, but it's it's not supposed to be not supposed to be easy. It's right, yeah. That's the point of any hero workout. So that's the workout. You row 10 rounds of movements, and then you finish with a row. And when people are get to the last row, I just say, look, just sit down and start moving. Doesn't matter how fast, just grab the handle and as little as much as you can. Cause it most people of even average fitness, it's a rough, it's a it's a tough workout. Um it is. So what we're doing in June at the National Veterans Memorial Museum, uh, they approached us to partner with them because they're a storytelling museum. We tell a story in our workout. We're actually modifying the workout. So one, it's more inclusive, but also it's it's doable outside. So it's there's three options, plus an adaptive option for adaptive athletes that we're working on with uh the adaptive sports connection. So there's a lot of entities coming together to put this on, uh, but it includes a run or walk. Uh, it includes air squats, sit-ups, and push-ups instead of the other three movements, and you finish with a run or walk. Uh, and I think you'll like this. There's also a rucking option. I do. And it's it's meant to be a little tougher. Uh, basically the same movements as the standard, uh, just with a ruck, uh, that option. So when they do it outside, is it going to be it's going to be either or or is it going to be outside is just the like you said, the air squats, sit-ups, and push-ups? Yeah, so regardless of what so the standard workout is uh 937-meter run, and then 10 rounds, each round consists of 10 air squats, 10 sit-ups, 10 push-ups. Um, and then you finish off with a run again. The scaled version is just half the reps. You're doing five of each, and you're still doing 10 rounds, and it's a 400-meter run or walk. So you're doing the scaled version 400 meters, uh, and then 10 rounds of five reps uh of each of the movements, and you finish off with another 400 meter run or walk. Gotcha. Yeah, and then the ruck is is the same as the standard, just with a rucksack on. Um and any specific weight? Uh well, I'm uh I like heavy weights, and the standard weight for the actual workout is a 70-pound kettlebell for men and 53 for women. Um and I love lifting heavy kettlebells and I love rowing. So we'll say it's kind of built to my advantages, but for the ruck option at the event in June, it's recommended 2030, uh, female male. Right. But with anything, any of these workouts, it's modifiable to whatever your abilities are. Because we don't want to leave anybody out, we want everybody to show up. And if if if you want to do a ruck and you just want to put 10 pounds in it, knock yourself out. Hey everybody, it's Ari with Hybrid Horizons. Just wanted to give a shout-out to today's partner, Finn Labs. They make energy drills in Canada with minimal ingredients. If you're running long and want to actually know what you're eating, hit them up at thnlabs.com. We don't we don't care. Right. No, that's awesome. Um, we just like to have a standard, this is a standard, and then adjust accordingly. So the what so and I apologize if you already said this. How many partner gyms do you have uh so far? Uh so that's kind of a uh trick question. We've had last year we had 16 gyms do the workout. That was the most we did, and we do that the Saturday before Veterans Day every year. Uh, but we have other gyms who haven't actually done, who haven't hosted the workout yet that we've still partner with them. We've referred veterans to them. Uh there's probably um I should know this number, probably 20 total gyms that are, I would say, are partners. Um, and this year I know we're gonna probably have 20 plus gyms doing the workout nationwide. Oh, that's awesome. And are they all gonna be doing it the same day, like you said, the the Saturday before Veterans Day? Yeah, they are. That's the standard day. They do have the option if they choose to do it a different day. We'll support that. Um last year somebody one of them needed to do it in April because that was work for them, and we're like, yeah, sure, we'll support that. Yeah. And what does what does support look like? Are you guys like sponsoring that? Are you going to it? Is it just more of they do the workout and send it back to you, the results? So um I'm always at my home gym. That's the way it's always been. This year, though, I plan on traveling somewhere to be present at a different gym. Um, but support for us, a host gym can go to our website, uh, and I'll explain this, but the website's uh the Bruce Wad W O D, the Bruce W O D.com, and you go to the events or you go to the host section and it list what we do, what we expect kind of deal. Uh but as a support, we actually have a relationship with Competition Corner. We create the workout for the gym, uh, or the registration page or landing page, I should say. Um we provide the shirts, we provide all the support needed. So all the gym has to do is basically have the doors open, have their insurance in line, and uh do what they always do on a Saturday. They they have people in to do a workout. Uh and we we like them to to do some uh publicity, media work, Facebook stuff, but that's up to the individual gym. But we're giving all the tools needed as well as hints and tricks to draw people in um to the gyms. So uh we we want them to be successful, whether they have 10 people do it or 40 or 50 people do it. Right. Yeah, no, that's that's fantastic. I think it's it's it's really cool. And um, you know, I think uh again, kind of correct me, I uh I've seen similar, you know, with like the Travis Manon workout. Um you know, and I'm assuming like it's not like a competition between you and the Travis Manon, right? Like you guys are kind of working together or just different supports, I guess, or different different specific supports. Yeah, we we when I when we started talking about this, obviously we we did we didn't want to go in May because that's when the Murph is and and there's other events throughout the year, but we wanted to align it or align it with a veterans obviously um holiday. So that's why we picked uh Veterans Day and we landed on this always the Saturday before Veterans Day. Um is when so and no, we're not competing against anybody else. Every every other organization has a mission and they they have a purpose. We have a mission and a purpose. Um, and we want to uh look at as a foundation, we're looking at ways, and we kind of have a 12 to 24 month plan to uh look at ways, look at things that maybe there's gaps for veterans and their families that aren't being uh that that are there that maybe we could fill the void, not just with fitness scholarships for veterans, possibly for the family. I mean, and or um counseling, uh not not doing the counseling, but providing funding for counseling for veterans and families. Um so we're looking at if money was no object, what are what's out there? Um what's not out there that's needed to be out there for to serve the veterans and their families, and that's really what we're looking at. Are you serving just veterans specifically in like the central Ohio area, or is it open to any and all veterans or or only veterans as part of the 101st Airborne? What's kind of is it is is there a criteria, I guess I would say? Uh if you're a veteran, we will serve you. And and something that I've realized we have to transition because obviously our base is here, that's where most of our veterans have been uh connected with with our partner gyms. But what we realize uh as an organization, we need to expand our minds and our thinking because if I have a veteran in Oklahoma City call me and I don't have a partner gym there, we don't want to turn them away, but we also we can't drive to Oklahoma City, right? Create a relationship with the gym. So we're working on ways to refine our application process and interview process. So when that veteran is approved, uh we they can take our document to that gym and say, hey, I'd like to join your gym, and this organization is willing to pay for three months uh if if you're willing to work with them. So we're transitioning into a broader cent outside of Central Ohio, knowing that with this new relationship and partnership with with the Memorial Museum and other things that have been coming, we need to realize there's it's a bigger world out there and we need to be prepared um for those things that as they trickle in. Definitely. Yeah, no, that I mean that that's awesome. I think that that's great to to hear. It sounds like you know, you guys are are on the verge of of you know huge expansion, which I think is is fantastic. I mean, you know, like I said, I I I put out Travis Mandon on there just because I think they're they've probably been around for a little bit longer, you know, so they have that reach. Um, but you know, there's no reason why you guys can't have that same reach and have you know the the similar success that they've had and and growth and everything. Yeah. There's a uh a gym out in California, uh Apex, and one of our ambassadors is a coach there, and she's she's huge in DECA as well, Terra Papilla. Uh and they they didn't do the workout last year, but they did a workout, and this is another way gyms have helped us. Uh they basically had like a cover charge and then they sent us the money as a donation. Oh, that's awesome. Didn't expect that at all. Um, we had another gym who um oh uh CrossFit 330 up in Wadsworth, and they did the event normal registration, they had 25 or so folks register. Um But they also had a special I I forget exactly what they did, but little fundraiser things day of and raise even more money and send us more money. I'm like, these are things that happen that you don't even expect, and it's just it just makes you feel so good that people are so on board that it just really feels great to have that type of passion out there. Uh so it's funny you say uh you mentioned DECA. I was actually just talking to uh a gentleman um for a different episode who who's very big in DECA and he's bringing um, you know, I think actually he's he's trying to get DECA into Columbus. Um, and I know we obviously know Scott as well. I I mean, do you see that as a growth avenue for you guys, like getting more involved in some sort of DECA event or some kind of like you know, the Bruce becomes a competition kind of thing? Like, you know, is that under radar at all? Uh competition, no, not so much. Uh, I don't even know what that looks like. Um, but uh the I've done the DECA events several times with Scott up at Cuyahoga Valley, um and really love it. I like the whole idea of it. Uh you just push yourself. Yeah. Um I'm 55, so I have more fun now than I did 30 years ago. So it's like uh I see the end, I see the light. Okay, let's make the most of this type of right. Yeah. Well, I think I think it's too. It's it's you know, I I'm kind of the same way. Like I've I've gone now that I'm 40, I feel like I've gone from this very uh almost competitive, I wouldn't say almost, but like a competitive mindset or a very like specific mindset of like, oh, I gotta hit, you know, X weight or X running time or whatever it is tomorrow. Kind of to your point, like just go enjoy it, just go and push yourself and and you know, feel it the next morning kind of thing. And it's it's been it's been a relief in all honesty, I think. You know, it makes just even the training so much more enjoyable. Yeah. And to find something that you love or like, um a few years ago for the first time, I there's a there's a uh we'll call it a mountain, a hike, a climb, rock scramble, whatever you want to call it, it's difficult. A place called Castle Dome, Mount Yuma. Um and I I did it once and I was and I was amazed of the rush that I got when I got to the top of this uh peak. I mean, there's a big view out there in the desert, and it's a 2,000 foot gain in the last mile. You're literally climbing rocks, and it's it's intense. And I found it I felt so good because I found it not so hard. I mean, there were there were points where yeah, you're breathing heavy because you're climbing and this and that. I've done it three times now, and I finally I got the ink on my leg to prove it that it's like it's such a rush, and I'm like of course when I was younger, raising four kids, you're taking them everywhere and you're doing this stuff, and that's its own uh responsibility. But now it's like, man, I'm having so much fun just getting out. I mean, I've done an event with Greenbury Fitness, a couple of them. Oh yeah, I know that. Yeah, there that's another great one, yeah. Yeah, I did their uh did an event out in Utah at a nine-hour time limit. And there was four of us, and it was 18 miles, and I we're all separated. I had severe medical cramping issues, I was a mess, and it took me 10 hours to get back, and I literally the last two miles had to ride on the back of the tailgate. Oh wow. I was so dehydrated and cramping. My fault, I didn't train properly, but find size being that was a freaking amazing experience. What's that? There's that old adage. Um it's old, it's new to me of the and and I'm I'm gonna butcher it, but there's it's like a Japanese, I believe, saying of like you do one super tough thing a year, right? Like it, and it's it doesn't have to be like super crazy, but or it doesn't have to be multiple things, but just like you focus on one thing every year because you don't want to take you don't want to waste or spend 365 days and not challenge yourself, kind of thing. And it's that kind of stuff, right? Like you might not complete that's really where I'm at. Yeah, yeah, I love it. Yeah. So um did the event down with Green Beret in North Carolina um back in March, fan dance and another great one. We I was with someone the whole time, we didn't hit the time limit, but my goodness, such a rush. Um, I went from that North Carolina one weekend to six days later or five days later, I was in Arizona with my family, um, and I climbed that mountain again for the third time. I'm like, Wow, this is pretty freaking awesome. Yeah, that's awesome that you can that you can do that, right? I mean, yeah, people can yeah, very fortunate. But there's there's you don't have to do that to get that feeling. You can just like on a kind of on a personal note, the last few days I've just been kind of blocked. I haven't been to the gym, aches and pains. And today I'm like, I had your call, and I'm like, I'm going out to my garage. It's 50-some degrees, nice enough. I just went out there and and lifted some weights and moved. And I felt like it works. Yeah. Oh yeah, it's it's it's so night and day, you know, the day, right? Even the days where it's like uh even like a light rock, you know, it's just that movement and getting out compared to, you know, and listen, I'm I'm a lover of sleeping in as much as I can, right? But there you can tell the difference of just the energy and everything that you have. Oh yeah, yeah. Yeah, I'm all about just move. I mean, I don't care if if you can walk a hundred feet and that's all, well, just start doing that. Uh just start. I mean, if you don't start, you never want to get anywhere else. So yeah, exactly. Well, awesome. Well, um, awesome. I you know, I I I don't want to cut this too short, and and I think, you know, obviously we can we can definitely reconnect um, you know, either before the the June date or after to see how it went or or in the in the future, but you know, definitely want to make sure um we plug you know everything for you. So um you said that the Saturday before uh Memorial or sorry, Veterans Day, um they can find some some local gyms uh depending on where they're at. But you know, if they're in in Ohio, there's some local gyms that they can go and and participate in. Um is there a list of those gyms that we can you know send to people or or send them to? Yeah, there will be. Once they start trickling in uh for this year, um, which will probably be starting probably mid-July is when we'll start posting the events on our website. Um so they'll all be listed on there every gym. And as they as we add a gym, we'll add another gym. Facebook page will always have everything updated. Um, but yeah, that's November. But the big one we would love to have your guys out and all your folks uh is June 27th. Um because that that's huge for us uh to have that relationship established um because that's a national reach that it could it could be huge for us as an organization, and and we're we're not taking it lightly. So we want a huge showing in June. Um to uh where and would that be on your website to side to register for it? Uh I'm trying to get it on our website. I'm having some difficulty for some reason, but on our Facebook page, um Sergeant Bruce Codley Foundation is a Facebook page. Uh actually uh it's on there. Uh the registration is live on that. They're handling the registration side of things. I'm not. Uh unlike our other events, we manage all that, um, which actually is kind of nice for me. Well, awesome. Okay. Um fantastic. So we'll put uh I'm sure a link um to both the Facebook page and the website um pretty much when this wraps up. And um, yeah, I I do look forward to seeing you then. I I don't see why. Um I know I for sure can go and and can usually wrangle a couple guys uh with me. So um, you know, let's definitely keep in touch and um you know again, thank you so much for your time. And um, you know, we look forward to uh to continue to work with you. Yeah, I thank you very much for the opportunity to share and look forward to talking with you. Hey, have a great one, Matt. Thank you. Bye.