On the Subject of... Idols and Role Models

Growing up as a kid, I was always surrounded by friends and peers who were inspired and influenced by their Michael Jordans and Jackie Robinsons. Seemingly everyone had an idol they wanted to be like and eventually meet.

Save for a couple of friends who I look up to as role models, I've never had an idol I could really call a motivational or inspiring force; to be honest, I've always found it out-of-the-norm to not have an idol I could look up to and have long ceased the active search for one.

That is, until I began learning the stories of the Crossfit community's top athletes.

Jason Khalipa, Kristan Clever, Eric O'Conner, Heather Bergeron...

All of them are amazing... Kristan Clever is 5'2", weighs 130lbs, won this year's Crossfit games, and most amazingly, she's ASIAN! Don't mean to sound racist, but I've always had the preconceived notion that Asians lack the muscle-building (and subsequent fitness) prowess when compared against individuals of other races. She shatters so many boundaries; it's astounding.

But, however great Kristan is, at least to me, she'll never outshine the individual I now officially deem as my very first idol: Chris Spealler

Chris Spealler is 31, he's 5'5", weighs 140lbs, and placed 3rd in the 2010 CrossFit Games. What initially drew me towards this guy was the fact that he was smaller and lighter than me, yet had absolutely no problem beasting guys that were much taller and bigger. In this video, he takes on the champion of 2008's CrossFit games, Jason Khalipa in a WoD and finishes quicker by about two minutes. Khalipa explains what makes Chris so amazing in the video: his strength to weight ratio.

But there's more to Chris Spealler than just physical strength: his character, hardworking ethics, view on life, it's all oh-so-humbling...

It's all very difficult to explain, but I guess what it ultimately comes down to is the simple thought:

"I want to be like this guy."

Here's another inspiring video that further reveals his incredible personality: http://library.crossfit.com/free/video/CFJ_Spealler_QuestFor100Pullups.mov

If there was a poster of Chris Spealler with the line, "I want to be Chris Spealler strong," I'd snatch that up like a rabid fan girl.