This week’s “Beyond the Athlete” features one of our newest members, Maria Bruno. As soon as I met Maria, I knew that she would be an awesome addition to 717 and an awesome interview for “Beyond the Athlete”. I am always amazed at how she pushes so hard in every WOD but still manages to keep a smile on her face before, during and after the punishment. Aside from her CrossFit acumen, Maria is also very accomplished academically as she has a Ph.D in Archaeology from Washington University in St. Louis and currently teaches course at Dickinson College. Selfishly, my favorite thing about her is that she will always indulge my nerdy anthropology topics and actually seems as interested as I am about them. We (OK, maybe just I) even decided that Coach Aldo most closely resembles Homo ergaster! Alright, enough out of me. Lets meet Maria:
1. Where did you grow up?
South Lake Tahoe, Nevada/California
2. What is your athletic background?
I grew up running around outside and played various sports in middle/high school. But, by far, my favorite sport was snowboarding. I competed in high school and college but decided I needed to do something more practical – archaeology. That eventually took me to St. Louis, about as far away from mountains as possible. I was relegated to boring, useless gym workouts until I discovered CrossFit. (I hear there are a few snowy slopes around here, would love suggestions! CrossFit717 ski trip?!)
3. How did you get started with CrossFit?
I was living in DC in the first part of 2010 and joined the local, generic gym. They had a special deal on personal trainers. The one I got “Manny” just happened to also be doing CF. He had me doing burpees, mountain climbers, and cleans. As soon as I could, I joined a CF box.
4. How long have you been at CrossFit 717?
About 2 months!
5. What are your favorite exercises/WODs?
Overhead squats, snatches, pull-ups. WODs that combine a bunch of stuff.
6. What exercises/WODs do you hate?
I hate rowing and presses.
7. What are you goals with regards to CrossFit?
Be able to do the WODs Rxd! I would love to do a muscle up and be able to do more than 2 pull-ups at a time in longer workouts.
8. In your perfect world, what would you be doing in 10 years?
I would have tenure at a cool college or university, a family, and have visited Africa.
9. Where did you go to high school/college?
George Whittell High School in Zephyr Cove, Nevada
Undergrad – University of Nevada, Reno
Grad school – Washington University in St. Louis
10. If you could eat dinner with 3 people past or present (besides Jesus who is overused and not that interesting), who would you choose and why? Furthermore, what would you order for dinner?
My top-three female heroines:
Amy Poehler
Emma Goldman
Queen Elizabeth I
Lobster, yum.
11. Who is your celebrity crush?
Edward Norton
12. What is your favorite movie and why?
That’s hard. I love movies and have many favorites, but I’ll have to go with:
Rushmore: Hilarious, Bill Murray.
13. What is your favorite thing about CrossFit 717?
The people! I’m a newbie to the area and it’s nice to have place outside of work where you feel so welcome.
14. If you could have any car, what would you choose?
An old Porsche, 550 Spyder or 912, in a lively color, probably orange or blue.
15. Tell us something interesting about yourself that we would be surprised to know.
So, my one claim to CrossFit fame is that I was a Pop Warner cheerleader with Annie Sakamoto in middle school! We went to different schools and lost touch after high school. I had no idea she was “Annie” until I saw her on the Regional Games videos this summer. Small world!
16. What kind of shampoo do you use and why?
Bed Head Self Absorbed. It’s orange, smells good, and leaves my hair shiny.
17. Have you ever been out of the country? If so, where and what was your favorite place?
I’ve been to Western Europe and South America. I have been going to Bolivia almost every year since 1998 (in fact I may be there as you read this, or have just returned). It’s where I do my research. I pretty much lived there from 2003 through 2010, with short stints in the US. It’s an amazing place on many levels. I highly recommend it.
18. What were your best and worst subjects in school?
Best: Biology/History. Worst: Math
19. What would you say is your worst personality trait and why?
I’m very stubborn, maybe a little long-winded?!
20. When you go out downtown, where is your favorite place to go and why?
Downtown Carlisle?! Market Cross Pub, great food and beer selection; Carlisle Theater, great movies. Someday I’ll go to Downtown Harrisburg, haven’t been there yet. I may have to go dancing with Jason.
21. You are banished to a deserted island for a month and can only bring one person (fictional or real) and one album with you. Who do you bring and what album do you choose (keep in mind I said album, not song)?
David Grohl (with a guitar)
Stevie Wonder’s Greatest Hits
22. Does coach Aldo have a soft side or is he perpetually angry?
He’s a teddy bear.
23. What do you feel is the most important invention in your lifetime and why?
The computer and the Internet. I spent most of my day using both.
24. What are your favorite sports teams (you can list all teams for all sports you are a fan of)
San Francisco Giants (2010 World Champions)
San Francisco 49ers (making a comeback?)
I’ve always had a soft spot for the Steelers, the Packers, and the Saints.
Uruguay Soccer
Bolivia Soccer (although they suck)
All University of Nevada teams
25. What are your hobbies and interests outside of the box?
I love movies, music, and travel.
Station 717 
This is a great feature on the blog…always interesting info.
C.Daily
Thanks Chris. I was really excited to see Maria’s answers because I knew there was so much more beyond crossfit.
Maria, this is great! You’re really funny, which is something I didn’t know from just seeing you in the box. Question, what are you researching the Bolivia?
Hi Jamie 🙂 You made me realize another cool things about this blog. Being relatively new, I’m still a little shy around the box. It’s neat that other aspects of our personalities come out in these interviews. When do we get to see yours?! Also, there are a lot of funny people at the box (another reason I like it!), so it’s definitely hard to keep up with them.
I study indigenous agriculture in the Andes, near Lake Titicaca and, recently, in the Amazon. I look at plants from archaeological sites and try to understand how ancient farmers changed their strategies through time. Sort of ironic given that CF has gotten me hooked on the Paleodiet! But if you ever have a question about quinoa, I can probably answer it, probably better than Sean’s questions about ancient hominids.
By the way, Sean, I think YOU need to complete this interview… it could be entitled: “Behind the Station 717”.
See, I told you Maria is smart. And I love me some hominids. Maria, as for me completing my own interview questions, I have actually given this some thought and have decided that if I do answer these, it will be after everyone else has participated. Plus, I am not that interesting anyway. You guys all blow me away with your answers. Mine would look hum drum in comparison.
how did you became a athlete?