The selection of the February Athlete of the Month was strictly a No Brainer……Barbara Gorka!! For years, Babs has very quietly been producing a steady string of impressive results for the Wanderers. The trophy chest at Wanderers HQ is laden with all sorts of age category and gender category awards won by Babs. It was just more of the same when Barbara won the Masters Female division at the Ugly Mudder trail race on February 25. The 7.5 mile Ugly Mudder trail run was the first time the Wanderers competed as a team. The fact that the Wanderers came within a whisker of topping the elite Philadelphia Charities team, was largely due to Barbara’s performance. Despite truly treacherous conditions, Babs finished 94th overall in a field of almost 700 and won the Masters female division handily.
The selection of Babs as Athlete of the Month came not a moment too soon. The first recipient of this prestigious honor, who shall remain nameless, used her award as an excuse to rest on her laurels, shirk workouts, and generally take it easy. The nadir was when the January athlete of the month showed up for a fitness test at the Crossfit Gym and stated that she was not there as a performer, but as “an observer.”
Barbara is moving off to upstate New York in March, and this is a great loss for the Wanderers. But with family in the area, we can expect Babs back on a regular basis to bail the Wanderers out of trouble. Barbara will also be establishing a Wanderers outpost in upstate New York where there is some fabulous trail running. Babs, thanks for being such a pillar of strength for the Wanderers!!
Honorable mention for Athlete of the Month for the second time in a row goes to Irene, who was the second woman at the Ugly Mudder and the top scorer for the Wanderers. Keep up the good work, Irene, and we are sure you will eventually make it as Athlete of the Month!
