Athletically speaking, Susan Hurrey did not get off to a fast start in January. Sunbathing and relaxing on the beach in the British Virgin Islands, Susan looked more like a candidate for Slacker of the Month rather than Athlete of the Month, especially since she was facing a fitness test at the Crossfit Philly gym on January 17. Her fitness test was to consist of six chin-ups and 300 burpees to be performed in 20 minutes.

The stakes were high. It was not just a question of passing the test. With a poor performance Susan also faced the prospect of being stripped of her running name “The Great One” and being given a new running name “Toast” or reverting to her old running name “Free Drinks.” When Susan was only able to muster three chin-ups (and suspect ones at that with a lot of squirming and without full arm extension), the situation looked dire, and the title Athlete of the Month out of the question.

However, Susan excelled at the burpees section of the test, exhibiting perfect form and great fitness (if you don’t know what a burpee is, it is impossible to explain but the exercise is demonstrated in Susan’s fitness test video in the upper right hand corner of the home page). What particularly impressed the panel of judges was that following the test, Susan very matter-of-factly completed a regularly-scheduled 45-minute Crossfit workout, with none of the customary Wanderer grandstanding and self-promotion. Then later in the week with quads still sore form the burpees and biceps totally compromised by the chin-ups, Susan ran in and completed the arduous seven-mile Chilly Cheeks trail race.

For this series of performances, the Wanderers Running Club has named Susan the first Athlete of the Month. Honorable mention goes to Irene for coming in 4th in the women’s division of the Chilly Cheeks race.