Write a commentOn September 16th, Hercules Gym in Syracuse held Orange Elite III which saw Chrissy Mason, Rachelle Michelle, and LouAnn Daniels all compete in the strongwomen competition.
LouAnn Daniels, who is known as Momma D to those she trains with and competes against going strong at the age of 64. "I started working out last summer before being diagnosed with cancer," said Daniels. Daniels told her son Zach, who trains his Mother and he said, "Well now you have cancer and train in strongman."
LouAnn was diagnosed with type II breast cancer. Daniels admitted that being diagnosed with cancer can be a scary thing but it does not mean your life is over, "Never give up, I challenge myself every day," said Daniels. She also suggests that anyone with cancer should have a nutritionist as it has helped her tremendously, "I have Laurie Vashaw from River View Wellness as my nutritionist and I do everything she tells me." She also credits having a great support group from her husband Tom, her son's Russell and Zach (who is also her trainer), Chrissy Mason, Rachelle Michelle, and all the girls she trains and competes against.
LouAnn has been training while battling breast cancer simultaneously. "I had chemo two days before my first competition at CNY Strongest," stated Daniels. For Orange Elite III LouAnn Daniels placed sixth overall and won the deadlift competition for the Novice Divison. "I was the only one in Masters so they put me in Novice so they had people for me to compete against and were using the same weight," stated Daniels.
LouAnn Daniels plans to break the world record for deadlift at her age/weight. The current record is 240lbs and according to Daniels, she already can deadlift 315lbs. "I'm excited about it," she said. "I'm still going through cancer but I love to tell my story. It's been a wild ride."
Rachael Michelle competed in the 148/165lbs open class. Rachael has been training for two years in strongwomen and The Orange Elite III was her fifth competition. Her first competition was in January 2016. She placed second and qualified for Nationals. In April 2016, she competed in Revolution Strongman at Hercules in Syracuse and placed fourth. Michelle competed at Orange Elite II and Winter Wreckage in Pennsylvania.
"I placed 4th in The Orange Elite III. I competed in a higher weight class than I usually compete in," said Rachael. Rachael has since continued with her training. "I will compete again soon and I would like to place again for Arnolds/Nationals.
Chrissy Mason competed in the lightweight division in the Orange Elite III and took third place. "The competitors were really strong," stated Mason. She also said that she was disappointed taking third for how hard she trained but that she also knows what she needs to work on for future competitions.
Chrissy has been training a total of 15 years. She has been training in strongwomen for two and a half years now. During The Orange Elite III, Chrissy tied the log press record for her weight class at 135lbs. "I could tie the record at 135lbs but I couldn't break it at 140lbs," she stated.
One thing that LouAnn Daniels, Rachael Michelle, and Chrissy Mason love about competing is the atmosphere. "Everyone cheers for everyone and is supportive," stated Mason. LouAnn Daniels during The Orange Elite III would get into all competitors faces giving them motivation telling them "You got this, don't give up, dig deep!"
We here at iHeartOswego would like to wish Chrissy, Rachael and LouAnn all the best in all their future competitions.
