Photo courtesy of CrossFit Inc.
Team OC3 Black from the 2017 CrossFit Games Central Regional doing a pairs deadlift of 440 pounds.
After playing football at McFarland High School and the UW-Whitewater, Bryan Welker thought he was in pretty good shape. Then he gave CrossFit a try in 2013 and realized he was capable of so much more.
Two years later, Welker purchased CrossFit Connex, 6900 Mangrove Lane, and he’s now one of Madison’s strongest advocates for the sport, which incorporates elements of high-intensity interval training, Olympic weightlifting, gymnastics and other exercises.
Originally viewed as a sport for elite and fittest-of-the-fit athletes, CrossFit is becoming more appealing to a broader population, Welker, 30, says. “The whole point of CrossFit is to do something you didn’t think you could do before.”
He predicts the activity is on its way to becoming a “big thing” in Madison, which already boasts about a dozen CrossFit facilities or “boxes”: “Our focus is on people who need to be moving more. This is probably one of the most contagious and healthiest things you can do.”
Hundreds of the world’s top CrossFit athletes will converge on the Alliant Energy Center for the 2018 Reebok CrossFit Games from Aug. 1-5. More than 416,000 competitors vied for one of 560 spots at the games, where they will participate in a series of functional movement competitions — such as transporting large loads long distances in short periods of time — to earn the ultimate title of “Fittest on Earth.”
Last summer, the first time Madison hosted the event, a record 70,000-plus people attended. Officials are hoping for more this year, especially in light of the June announcement that the games will stay in Madison through 2021.
Tickets for events in the Coliseum are sold out, but tickets to competitions at a 10,000-seat outdoor stadium (about double the size from last year) are available via Ticketmaster. Some tickets also will be available on site.
Festival tickets include access to daily events and activities, plus individual and team events held outside; large screens will display action inside the coliseum. Other highlights will include a vendor pavilion, beer garden, food court, demonstrations from CrossFit experts and plenty of space for spectators — yes, that means you! — to work out.
And Welker’s Crossfit Connex is one of several CrossFit boxes in the Madison area hosting special seminars on July 28-29 to coincide with the games. n
