When I first watched Amanda compete at the 2009 CrossFit Games, she quickly became one of my favorite athletes. She was beautiful, strong, and driven. Before I knew who she was, I referred to her as "the girl with the gun tattoos." She definitely stood out from the crowd of athletes with her red hair and tattoos of pistols on her waist.

Less than a year after competing at the CrossFit Games, Amanda went from being in the best shape of her life, to being entangled in a battle with an aggressive form of melanoma. Sadly, Amanda lost her battle with skin cancer in early 2010. Throughout her battle, Amanda kept a blog. I followed her blog and her progress closely, since at the same time, my Dad was also battling cancer. Reading her blog touched my heart in a major kind of way. I could relate to all the pain she was going through, and my heart went out to those close to her.

At the 2010 Games, the first workout was dedicated to her honor:

“Amanda”
9-7-5
Muscle-ups
Squat Snatches (60/45)

Scaling
A. C2B Pull-ups / Squat Snatches (50/35)

The workout is tough. Real tough. But Amanda deserved a tough WOD. Today at the Fort, we will be honoring this amazing CrossFitter with this WOD. It's going to be tough. It's going to be challenging. Amanda wouldn't have had it any other way.