Travis Raine is our spotlight athlete for the last part of August. Take a read below to find out a little bit more about this Behemoth!-Who are you Travis Raine? Tell us a little about yourself or something that would surprise people.I was born and raised in south Louisiana where I met my eventual wife. I went to Texas A&M to study engineering and join the university ROTC program, the Corps of Cadets and the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band. My last year in the Corps I was privileged to be selected as one of the Drum Majors leading 300 plus bands men and women during halftime performances in front of 85,000 people each week. I also had the opportunity to lead the band through a Presidential Inaugural parade in Washington DC. My last year at a Texas A&M I became a member of the collegiate paintball team, acting as the Maroon Team captain in murmurous tournaments including the national championship tournament competing against other university teams from around the country. After graduating, I married my high school sweetheart on a cruise in the Caribbean Sea. Since then I have become a family man enjoying every moment I spend with my lovely wife and two amazing children, Caden and Harper Jo. I love challenges and competing. I work hard and always want more... Crossfit has become a real passion for me and my family. I love where I am in life and can't wait to see where this journey goes. -How and when were you introduced to Behemoth?My lovely wife, Dani, and I started Crossfit with a personal trainer but we were ready to make a change to a group setting and experience the community that is Crossfit. I owe my involvement with Behemoth to my wife who did a tremendous amount of research looking into local boxes. We joined February ’14 (almost 7 months now).-What are you most proud of, physically, mentally or both since beginning with us?I have seen tremendous change over the last few months. I now know I have the strength to sprint after my kids if they get themselves in a dangerous or harmful situation. I have the mental toughness to push through a workout I would have once thought completely impossible for me to even start. The same confidence in my workouts has transferred to my work and home life completing tasks with a new found inner strength. Physically, I’ve become stronger and leaner. At 32, I’m in the best shape of my life.I have so many things I am proud of since joining Behemoth from learning about nutrition to support a healthy lifestyle and fuel my workouts to gaining 22 pounds while dropping two pant sizes. Growing up I never lifted weights, and to see myself doing Olympic style lifts now is such an exciting achievement. To have the strength to not only do one strict pull up, but 10 unbroken is just awesome. The coordination to finally string 10 unbroken double unders together is such a rewarding personal achievement.-Why Behemoth?Dani and I did not want to go blindly joining any box, so we educated ourselves on what to look for. We looked into two boxes, the first was okay but we just didn’t have that feeling of belonging… just felt like a dollar sign to the coaches. The second box was Behemoth, and after the intro class we both got in the car and said this was the place for us. We felt right then and there the coaches not only knew what they were talking about, but they were able to articulate that knowledge into easy to understand instructions and most importantly, it was obvious the coaches cared about us. We got all of this in the hour long intro class… just an amazing first impression that has not changed.-What next? What are you excited about pursuing here in the future?I am looking forward to continuing to build on my accomplishments, lifting more and improving my endurance. I would like to consistently be able to perform workouts at the prescribed weight. I’m also really looking forward to learning more gymnastic movements. I’d also love to challenge myself to participate in local competitions.3, 2, 1, GO...My favorite lift is...The snatchMy most frequent class I come to is the...5 PM classI have always wanted to...do a muscle up When I’m not crushing weights, my favorite thing to do is...spend time with my wife and two amazing kidsFavorite “application of fitness” outside of the gym is...wrangling the kids and throwing them into the airFavorite Pandora station is...EDM (Electronic) RadioBeast mode engaged when this song comes on...“The Way It Was” by Wolfgang Gartner
