“I find I compete and perform better under no stress. Making jokes before the workouts and events helps me to unwind and find a sense of calm.”
Photo courtesy of Jennifer Grass
The last few months have been hectic for 24-year-old Jacob Heppner of Iron Major CrossFit in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
The second fittest man in the North Central Region is not only gearing up for his rookie appearance at the Games, but he’s preparing to get married the day before he leaves.
He and fiancée, Kelli Shepard, will be married on July 19 in Weston, Missouri, before the newlyweds fly to Los Angeles, California, the next day to report for athlete check-in.
Before he kicks back on the beach and spends time with his bride on their honeymoon after the Games, Heppner has work to do in Carson.
One of his goals is to “beat Rich Froning at one workout so I can tell my kids, ‘Kids, when I was much younger and stronger, I beat Rich Froning in an event.’”
Heppner said he looks forward to meeting as many of the individual competitors as possible and maybe even learning “a couple cool words in another language like ‘I hate burpees.’”
He said he also hopes to chat with Lucas Parker and get some tips on avoiding sunburns.
While beating Froning in an event is a pretty lofty goal for a CrossFit Games newbie, Heppner’s “anything is possible” attitude is what got him on the regional podium in the first place.
“Honestly, my plan was to get top 10,” he said of his regional aspirations. “I got 18th last year so I figured top 10 would be a good goal.”
His fiancée had higher hopes, though, and even bet Heppner would qualify for the Games.
“I guess I owe her a pony,” Heppner laughed.
During regionals when the stress was high, Heppner could be seen dancing and goofing around just before a tough event. North Central Regional champion Kyle Kasperbauer called Heppner “a joker.” When a picture surfaced on social media of Heppner rubbing his butt on a round marker at regionals, Kasperbauer couldn’t help but laugh.
“(He’s) a great kid with an even better personality,” Kasperbauer said. “He’s always messing around.”
But there’s a method to Heppner’s madness.
“I find I compete and perform better under no stress,” he said. “Making jokes before the workouts and events helps me to unwind and find a sense of calm.”
Heppner said he got a kick out of Kasperbauer telling him he had the maturity of a 14-year-old boy.
“He asked me if my mom had to sign paperwork to drop me off at regionals and leave me there,” Heppner said. “Funny, Kyle. Very funny.”
One thing Heppner has been serious about is his training and preparation for the CrossFit Games. Since he started CrossFit in May 2012, he has been programming his own workouts. Leading up to regionals, he followed regional programming from CrossFit Invictus.
Since qualifying for the Games, he’s moved to full-time coaching through CrossFit Invictus, picked up an Olympic lifting coach in Kansas City and a swimming coach.
Mike Manchew, Heppner’s soon-to-be best man and roommate, is a swim coach and has been helping Heppner work on his technique in the water.
“He has the motor to keep himself moving, but it’s not the prettiest freestyle you’re going to see,” Manchew said. “He is without a doubt a land animal and not meant for the water, but I think he will do fairly decent if a swimming event comes up.”
Heppner works a full-time civilian job as a defense analyst at Fort Leavenworth and is working on his master’s degree in operations research at Kansas State University.
“I have to find the time to train,” he said.
Adding a few coaches isn’t Heppner’s only secret to success.
“He drinks a gallon of chocolate whole milk every day,” Shepard said. “It’s a really expensive habit, but he thinks it makes him stronger and he loves it.”
Arriving in Carson in July will be sort of a homecoming for Heppner, who is a Merced, California native. He relocated to Kansas with his family when he was a junior in high school. After graduating, Heppner accepted a football scholarship at Central Methodist University, in Fayette, Missouri, to play defensive back.
It was there Heppner started to learn about training and realized his fitness level was a cut above the others around him.
“I was always the best-conditioned on the team and enjoyed that almost as much as football,” he said. “Running hills, sprints and conditioning always excited me.”
Heppner admitted he’s nervous about the Games events. Luckily for him, he knows how to handle those jitters.
“I'm probably going to fail my first rep of the first workout just to let myself know that if and when I fail, the world doesn't come crashing down,” he said. “You better believe due to my nerves I'll be making so many lame jokes in the back—‘Hey Ben Smith, why did the chicken cross the road?’”
