Heartland HavOC3: A First Time Competitor

At the time of the first annual Heartland HavOC3 (OC3’s competition), Ryan Brophy had only been CrossFitting for about six months. When another team found themselves short a fourth teammate, Brophy ended up being the man for the job. But not without some hesitation!

A CrossFit-style Competition: You mean, people compete to see who’s the best at working out?

Traditionally, most athletes utilize workouts to get better at their sport. CrossFit is relatively new and, for many, this IS their sport. To a minor league football player, competing to be the best at working out wasn’t something that was very appealing. Instead, Brophy was content with participating in competitive sports and mostly wanted to utilize CrossFit to get in his best shape for those sports.

Brophy grew up playing football and is now the team captain for the Quad City Raiders football team (his competitive spirit really showed when he made the league all-star team in 2015). He’s been doing kendo (a modern Japanese martial art) for a little over a year and a half, where he has participated in a couple tournaments with more on the horizon. He’s also in his second year of competing in the Celtic Highland Games. Rugby and tug of war are next on his LIVE-IT list (forget bucket lists)!

We’ve got to give it to him, Brophy has some unique interests! His inspiration? A show called Dhani Tackles the Globe, starring NFL linebacker Dhani Jones. On the show, Jones traveled the world and would take on whatever sport each visited country was known for while learning the culture – the ultimate dream for Brophy.

Even to someone with such a diverse, athletic background, CrossFit sounded a little crazy! But this old soul clearly enjoys trying new things, and turning down a challenge just isn’t in his nature. Instead, he’d rather be a full life participant!

Challenge Accepted

Ryan had just a week or two to prepare himself for the Heartland HavOC3. He had already been working hard in the gym with measurable results to show for, but would he be mentally prepared by competition day? “As a first-time [CrossFit] competitor, I felt very comfortable. The nerves were gone right away. I got to meet three other people who don’t go at the same time I do everyday. It was fun trying to keep up with them, and push them. I worked harder just because of the accountability they provided and not wanting to let them down,” said Brophy.

He was thankful for the scaled division; as a bigger guy who grew up playing football, the gymnastics movements tend to be more challenging for him! He commented, “The scaled division allowed me to have fun and have competitive push and a competitive experience without being an elite CrossFitter.”

We also got to hear from Brophy about how he felt the competition was run. He commented on the Heartland HavOC3 being well-organized with top-notch judging! (We feel the same about our athletes, btw.)

Try Something New and Maybe You’ll Be Surprised, Too

Brophy encourages anyone on the fence to give CrossFit-style competitions a try. His mind was changed the moment he stepped on the competition floor. You might surprise yourself, too. And now, rather than CrossFit being just a complement to his other activities, he has one more sport to add to his list of challenges!

The Heartland HavOC3 is suitable for and welcomes all athlete types. It is a great way to test your fitness and meet new people. Follow us on Facebook to stay up-to-date on what we have in store for 2017!

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