Represent

“We are excited to represent—represent ourselves, represent Boise CrossFit, represent the state of Idaho and represent the North West Region.” ~Caleb Cazier

How does it feel to prepare for your first trip to the CrossFit Games? Just ask the affiliate team from Boise CrossFit.

The six-member team includes a gymnastics specialist, a professional firefighter, a badass mom disguised as a vet technician, a physical therapist, a pre-med student, an outdoor-loving youth counselor, plus a dedicated coach.

They are a diverse group with one common goal: to represent.

Coaching by Example

Having returned from a military deployment in late May, Boise CrossFit affiliate owner and team coach Chazz Rudolph had to direct the team virtually during the North West Regional.

“I was following their progress over the weekend while deployed in Iraq,” he said. “Their accomplishment was surreal and mind-blowing. Being here to help prepare them for the Games is far better than being in the desert.”

The basics are drilled daily, and the team’s flaws are fixed during workouts.

“The team workouts are unique opportunities for all of them to work together,” Chazz said. “Often team or individual weaknesses are integrated into a component of the workouts.”

They are together doing laps in the pool, sprinting with sandbags in the foothills, hitting heavy cleans and working in the hot sun.

“They are all very hardworking, competitive athletes,” Chazz said. “They push each other on every workout and they will be prepared.”

Since returning from deployment, Chazz is an ever-present and constructive component of the team. Caleb Cazier, team captain, sums up the importance of the team’s coach.

“Chazz has not missed a training session,” Cazier said. “He gets there with the 5-a.m. crew and hangs on till the final group is done well past 8 p.m. He writes all our programming and puts himself through it just to show us it’s possible.”

Veterans’ Perspective

Bart Carrico and Cazier are team veterans, having competed on the Boise CrossFit team that took ninth at the 2013 North West Regional.

Carrico, a 29-year-old Idaho native, leans on his wife, Kristen Carrico, and their 2-year-old son for support leading up to the Games.

“The training regimen means sacrificing time with my family,” he said. “Having their support is so important to doing this right.”

Born and raised in north Idaho, Cazier, 28, spent quality time after physical therapy school at Ute CrossFit, home of two-time affiliate cup champions Hack’s Pack. He has seen firsthand what a top affiliate team looks like.

“We are excited to represent—represent ourselves, represent Boise CrossFit, represent the state of Idaho and represent the North West Region,” he said.

In his spare time, Cazier and fiancé, Alia Loan, are putting the finishing touches on their wedding plans. They’ll say their vows two weeks after the Games.

“Spending quality time with my fiancé is important, but it’s a challenge with the training demands,” he said.

Making the best of the situation, the pair is often at the gym working out side by side and encouraging each other.

Mommy Strength

At just 5-foot-1, Amber Gregg might be the smallest team member, but the 33-year-old wife and mother of a 9-month-old is an impressive athlete.

“Being smaller might be a challenge but I intend to hold my own,” she said. “And the mommy strength might be helping.”

Gregg’s biggest asset is her work ethic, which was born on the family farm in Oregon and sharpened through six years as an elite wild land firefighter and smokejumper.

The team doesn’t have longevity like many of this year’s Affiliate Cup contenders, but they are able to improvise and grow on the fly.

“I look forward to our team putting the long training hours to work and competing against such high caliber athletes,” Gregg said. “Our girls are bad asses and the whole team is really consistent. We can all handle the gamut of what CrossFit will throw at us.”

Living in the Moment

Stephanie Miller gets her strength from her family, her boyfriend Justin and her faith.

“I might not be the strongest or fastest but I contribute emotional encouragement,” said the 28-year-old youth counselor. “Each of us on the team has a role that makes it all work. It took six of us to get where we are.”

A former pole vault athlete from Michigan State University, Miller looks forward to competing in CrossFit much more than she did during her collegiate experiences. She has new perspectives, which focus on the person as a whole as opposed what others expect or think. Miller now eats, sleeps and breathes CrossFit.

“It’s a conversation in your brain that never ends,” she said. “It makes me so excited to live in this moment.”

A Worthwhile Sacrifice

The youngest and strongest team member is Cameron Pernich. At just 20 years old, Pernich is a just beginning his CrossFit career.

“I’ve been doing CrossFit for two years,” he said. “At first, I wanted to get a muscle-up. Now my goals are to compete at the highest levels.”

Though he intended to spend the summer with his family, Pernich quickly rescheduled his plans to stay in Boise and train with the team.

“I’ll miss having the summer in Gresham with my family,” he said. “But sharing this experience with my teammates is more than worth it.”

When asked what made him most nervous about competing at the CrossFit Games, Pernich chuckled a little and responded with a question: “Maybe getting to meet Lauren Fisher?”

Knowing how supportive the CrossFit community is, it’s likely Pernich will get that chance.

Team Gymnast

Originally from Northern California, Amy Glass, 25, is also no stranger to hard work. With 19 years of gymnastics experience, Glass was unknowingly laying important CrossFit building blocks while competing at Boise State University.

After a low back surgery in February last year, the highly competitive Glass was determined going into the 2014 Games season. In her first year competing in the sport, she qualified for regionals as an individual, but she decided to go team instead.

“Regionals played to my strengths, but I didn’t want to go as an individual just because I happened to qualify,” she said. “I want to be sure I’m truly ready. Competing as a team is fun, and it’s a better experience for my first year competing in CrossFit.”

Glass is realistic as she and her team prepare for Carson, California.  

“Having competed at regionals with powerhouse teams like Marysville and Fort Vancouver makes us feel like we have to work twice as hard to be half as good as them,” she said.

Don’t Discount the Underdog

Boise CrossFit might be considered the underdog, but it won two events at the North West Regional, showing it can hang with the top teams.

Glass looks forward to being a small fish in a big pond. For the other teams vying for the Affiliate Cup at the Games, the unknown and unknowable includes going up against teams like Boise CrossFit.

“We’ve never been to the Games,” Glass said. “We don’t know what to expect so we are preparing for anything and everything. Likewise, others don’t know what to expect from us. All those variables make it really fun.”