Brooke Trochesset appears to be quiet and shy. But, underneath those beautiful eyes and kind smile is the eye of a tiger. Brooke came to Bandit CrossFit early in 2014 as an inaugural member of our Teen Athlete class. She was a sophomore at d’Iberville High School at the time, and was a varsity cheerleader. She has also been dancing nearly all her life. She was looking for a change, and she found it at Bandit CrossFit. Now Brooke is a junior at DHS, and while she still takes dance, she has turned her attention to CrossFit as a way to develop her overall physical and mental strength and has seen great results.
Brooke is a natural, and has developed her strength and skill very quickly–quickly enough that she feels comfortable competing in the ladies scaled team division at the Beach Brawl. Brooke will be 17 years old next week. Unbelievably, she is the eldest of her team, which is composed of three other Bandit Teen Athletes, Casey Ferguson, (10th grade) Gracie Ferguson, (8th grade) and Kayli White (9th grade). I don’t know this for a fact, but I would be willing to bet that the Bandit Teens are amongst the youngest competitors at the Beach Brawl. More about Brooke:
How long have you been doing CrossFit?
I started CrossFit in January when the Teen Athlete Conditioning course began.
Is this your first CrossFit competition?
Yes, and I’m really excited!
Why did you choose the Beach Brawl?
Casey (another Bandit teen athlete) and I thought that it would be pretty cool to compete with a team of teens, and Mrs. Janice encouraged us that the Beach Brawl was a great first competition. It’s well-organized and close to home, and I have the opportunity to compete with some of my closest friends.
What makes you want to do CrossFit competitions?
I enjoyed the competitiveness of the Open, even though I came in nearly dead last in the region. But, hey, I got my first 6 double unders, my first toes to bar, and did pretty well overall considering I’d been in CrossFit for a whole two months. I gained confidence through that experience and the knowledge that it’s better to try and fail than to not try at all, and that the world will not end even if you aren’t capable of doing a single thing in a workout.
What are your goals for the Beach Brawl?
My goal as a newbie is to stay focused. I’m not going to let myself get aggravated with myself or my teammates. We’ve agreed that we’re all going to try our best and have fun doing it.
What do you hope to see at the Beach Brawl?
Olympic lifts- They are by far my favorite part of CrossFit.
Rowing- I haven’t been running during WODs because of shin splints, so I row in nearly every workout. I feel pretty comfortable on the rower and wouldn’t mind rowing- long or short distance- at the Beach Brawl.
What do you hope they leave out of the Beach Brawl events?
Running- Even if I didn’t have shin splints, I wouldn’t want to run. I hate running. Or running hates me. I’m not sure.
Burpees- Enough said.
What makes you want to do CrossFit?
Coach Ladner and Casey introduced me to CrossFit when I decided that I didn’t want to try out for cheerleading again. I needed a sport that offered more of a challenge and produced results in my everyday life. I started looking up videos, articles, anything and everything about CrossFit. It freaked me out a little bit, but since day one, I’ve been hooked. My favorite part of CrossFit is the confidence it has given me. I went from having panic attacks during WODs to checking Wodify at 5:30 every morning and looking forward to the workout all day. I’ve gone to counseling for anxiety for over a year, and at my most recent visit my counselor told me, “I don’t think you’ll need to come see me much longer because I think that CrossFit is doing my job for me.” It sure is.
Why do you choose Bandit CrossFit?
It’s so much fun. I love the environment. The second or third time I came to class, Coach Kim was telling me “Great job, Brooke” in between rounds of her workout. Coach Sam, Coach Emily, and Mrs. Janice push me to be better than I ever thought that I could be. They give advice on my diet, any injuries I have, and life, and they don’t mind me texting them just to say that I just did my first pistol while watching American Ninja Warrior. Everyone at Bandit is friendly and supportive. Bandits are the best!
Not only is Brooke a positive role model at our gym, but she is a star student, too. Brooke and Coach Josh Ladner were selected as d’Iberville High School Student and Teacher of the Month last school year.
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