Sometimes, it's nice to let someone else tell the story from their point of view. Here's the play by play on my 2012 regional competition as written by the president of my informal fan club - Miss Jackson Reedy~~~~
"I was given the bird, reprimanded in Church, and learned the importance of men in tights …… that’s right folks….. The SoCal Regional 2012 arrived!
Ahhh California….
First of all, to all of the CrossFitting men who choose to wear tights, I would just like to say thank you! Thank you thank you thank you for accentuating all your hard work! I needed some Icy Hot rubbed on my whiplashed neck from rapid the head turning! Also, thank you for bringing to light the fact that I really need more spiritual direction and the sacraments more frequently. But really, is it sinful to admire the male form in tights? A discussion for another blog post I’m afraid! The second thing that I am grateful for is unlimited coconut water…. Due to the fact that I was the official coach of athlete #221, I received a magical pass that gained me all access to the athlete’s tent! The only think I like more than coconut water, is free coconut water, and I was making it my personal mission to drink VitaCoco into bankruptcy.
Workout 1: “Diane” Don’t be fooled Diane is a bitch! 21-15-9 of HSPU’s and Deadlifts (155lbs) Going into the competition, I think this was the one workout that Kathy was hoping not to see… but our Lord has a way of making her stronger, and He did! She performed fantastic; finishing more rep’s then in any of her previous attempts! I also learned a valuable lesson, cheer silently for Kathy while she attempts HSPU’s otherwise….
But what I loved most about this picture is the passion! Look at that ‘bird’! The form is perfect!!! She got her point across, I shut my mouth J
Workout 2: For time: Row 2000 meters, 50 one-legged squats, 30 hang cleans (135lbs) Kathy did awesome! This workout was definitely right in the comfort zone! Her rowing pace was unreal! Those super legs really come in handy in events like this! By the end of the row there were only two women in the hunt, Kathy Carey and Katie Hogan! Honestly it was so unreal watching the two of them fight it out. I was so freaking happy! It was one of the moments that I will never forget. The evil one had been jacking with Kathy telling lies that she was not an elite athlete and BEHOLD, there she was battling with one of the top 5 crossfitters in SoCal, and probably the second most popular woman in the sport! She is elite, she has been for some time, and there she was displaying it for all to witness. It was so amazing to watch Christ’s truth unfold right in front of me in the form of a sweaty, chalked up friend of mine.
Workout 3: The Gut Check! 4 rounds of 10 dumbbell snatches (70 lbs), and sprints. Just to emphasize the magnitude of this… the dumbbell was ½ Kathy’s body weight. She had to repeatedly take it from the ground to full extension overhead in one motion with one hand. Superhero stuff! Workout 3 was defiantly a brutal test that showed a whole lot about her beautiful character. Kathy has the heart of a lion (insert thoughts of Aslan here). When the workout began it was clear that she was struggling with taped up hands and the fear of not being able to lift the weight. I could literally feel the anger and anxiety pouring out of her. It was the most helpless feeling knowing that the only thing I could do was tear up and literally plea with St. Michael to help her lift. Then in a move that takes some serious balls, she completely stopped! She ran over to her coach (the real one, not the one after free coconut water) had him tear that restrictive tape off, she reset, and started ripping that weight overhead! It was so beautiful seeing her drive to finish, and her determination to not let the workout define her. It was such a moment of growth for not only her, but also for those watching. When things are not going your way, when you're getting your @ss handed to you, sometimes the best thing you can do is just calm yourself, strip life down, reset, and start again stronger than when you first began. Kathy powered through! She may tell you differently, but don’t listen to her she did a great job! Honestly, I would venture to say that was the most defining moment in her CrossFit career. Afterward, it was muscle ache, most of which came from the heart, but Jesus is like the great ice bath, sit in Him for a few minutes and He will make all things new. Her muscles became refreshed and it was onto work out 4.
Workout 4: Lift a lot of heavy crap, squat it, perform a bunch of pull-ups and repeat. If ever in life there was a perfect workout for Kathy, this may have been it….sadly I missed half of it! That’s right! The president of the Calves Carey Fan Club was walking around looking at men in tights while Kathy was competing. How could this happen? There was a mix up in information. Kathy was told she was going to be in heat 2 which started at 4:30…. In reality she was in heat 3 which started at 3:50! This also came as a great surprise to her. She had no time to warm up, no time to think, no time to second guess… only time to run out there and put on one of the greatest athletic performances to date! I was in the restroom ‘giving back’ some coconut water when I heard on the intercom “Kathy Carey is in the lead with 30 pull-ups”… After staring blankly at the stall trying to decipher if I heard that correctly, I ran as fast as I could to witness this for myself. Sure enough, there she was dominating her competition!!! I’m not trying to brag, but I will, she was killing everyone else!!! Killing them!!! I could not even speak, I could only scream at the top of my lungs in joy! All you heard from the announcers were “can anyone catch Kathy?” “Crossfit 760’s Kathy Carey is in the lead” It was bananas! In the course of only a few hours I witnessed Kathy go from heartbreak to triumph, I am just so thankful I was there to witness it. She had the top time through the first 2 heats and ended up finishing 10th overall! Kathy “Calves” Carey is an elite athlete!
After the “killer calves’ workout, it was only proper that we go to Mass to thank Him for all of His blessings. We joined this cute little community for mass and it was there that Kathy got us in trouble! This was an all Spanish mass and seeing as how the words "margarita", "taco" and "Nuevo Mexico" were not in the liturgy, I was in lala land dreaming up impossible scenarios that were never going to happen. Kathy on the other hand took the initiative to learn the message of the gospel and borrowed my phone for use of the Magnificat. Right about the time I was figuring out an escape route for evading snipers there was a tap on Kathy’s shoulder from an usher telling her to put the phone away immediately! She tried showing him what she was reading, but he could care less! “NO PHONES IN CHURCH!!” Busted! Poor Calves, she got in trouble for reading the gospel in Mass. But, praise God for holy and reverent communities!
Workout 5: Snatch ladder and double-unders. As a fan of the sport and only a spectator, this workout was kind of bland to me. I think looking back it was the waiting that killed me. All of the women filed in one by one to begin this workout. I was so nervous that it felt like 200 people began before the person that I cared to see. In the individual category all of the women pretty much went out at the same marks, which was pretty expected I think. Kathy ended up snatching 105 and finished that workout in 24th place. The most beautiful part of this workout was an event that happened following its completion. Kathy noticed that they scored her incorrectly; they made a mistake and gave her credit for a lift that she did not complete. Only wanting to do what glorifies God, she went to the scoring table and gave them truth. Kathy’s honesty was the difference between some women making the final cut or packing their things and going home. In a perfect world everyone would do the right thing, but lets just face it, many times that’s not what happens. Never a missed opportunity to lead Crossfitters closer to Christ.
The 2012 SoCal regionals was an experience that I will never forget. I think I speak on behalf of everyone when I express how happy and proud I am of you, Kathy. I look forward to sharing in the journey to the 2013 SoCal regionals. I have so much confidence in your ability and I know that God has huge blessings in store for you. Thank you for inspiring me to be better, not only in fitness but also in life. However, I do have a word of warning, you inspired me try and beat you so just know that I am coming! I love you!
2012 SoCal Regionals… That’s a wrap!"
To my dear friend, Thank you so much for believing in me! The journey is just beginning, still! but I could not have even embarked upon it with out so many voices of encouragement to fight for me through the times I didn't have faith in myself.
First of all, to all of the CrossFitting men who choose to wear tights, I would just like to say thank you! Thank you thank you thank you for accentuating all your hard work! I needed some Icy Hot rubbed on my whiplashed neck from rapid the head turning! Also, thank you for bringing to light the fact that I really need more spiritual direction and the sacraments more frequently. But really, is it sinful to admire the male form in tights? A discussion for another blog post I’m afraid! The second thing that I am grateful for is unlimited coconut water…. Due to the fact that I was the official coach of athlete #221, I received a magical pass that gained me all access to the athlete’s tent! The only think I like more than coconut water, is free coconut water, and I was making it my personal mission to drink VitaCoco into bankruptcy. 
