At Kennewick CrossFit gym, a tribute to a hero

Michael Patrick “Murph” Murphy was a tough man — the epitome of tough.

A Navy SEAL, he sacrificed his life for his teammates in a withering firefight in the mountains of Afghanistan.

A Memorial Day tradition in Kennewick and around the country aims to honors that toughness while raising money for important causes.

The tradition involves completing a difficult workout — called “The Murph”— that includes a one-mile run, 100 pull-ups, 200 pushups, 300 squats and another one-mile run, all while wearing a 20-pound vest or body armor.

“It’s reminding people” of the sacrifice of service members, said Leo Barillas, owner of Natural Selection CrossFit in Kennewick, which is holding the Memorial Day Murph on Monday.

It’s a painful workout, but “the pain that you feel in here is nothing to the pain that they feel” in the field, Barillas said.

Barillas is a Marine Corps veteran. He joined up after graduating from Kennewick High School in 2003, serving for eight years as an engineer and combat instructor.

His time in the Marines included a deployment to Iraq.

Barillas took over Natural Selection CrossFit after returning home from the military. He owns the gym with his wife, Mary.

The two heats of the Memorial Day Murph take place at 9 and 10 a.m. The gym will collect donations for the Wounded Warrior Project. A barbecue also is planned.

People don’t have to be Natural Selection members to take part. They also don’t have to be as fit as Murphy was; they’re welcome to modify the workout.

They also can go even harder. When Barillas does the workout, he often carries 45 pounds of weight.

The workout is one of dozens of CrossFit workouts — called Hero WODs, or workouts of the day — dedicated to fallen military members, police officers and others.

Lt. Murphy died in 2005. He was part of a four-man SEAL team scouting the terrorist Ahmad Shah.

His heroism earned him a Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest decoration for valor.

Two other SEALs, Danny Dietz and Matthew Axelson, also were killed. The fourth SEAL, Marcus Luttrell, was the only survivor.

Luttrell told his harrowing story in the best-selling book Lone Survivor, later a film starring Mark Wahlberg.

Barillas said the event is hard, but worth it.

“Donate some money if you can,” he said. “It’s a great cause.”

Natural Selection Crossfit is at 309 N. Belfair Court. The Wounded Warrior Project is at woundedwarriorproject.org

This story was originally published May 28, 2017 at 3:50 PM with the headline "At Kennewick CrossFit gym, a tribute to a hero."