Senior women powerlift to gold

MORRISVILLE – The parking lot was full when I pulled in at Snap Fitness, a full-service gym in Morrisville. I’d driven an hour from South Burlington to be in the audience of a contest I knew nothing about, Amateur Powerlifting.

I was there to cheer on my cousin and Stannard resident, Durrelle Morey, competing for the first time in the senior women’s dead-lifting category. I was surprised by how many supporters had turned out for the event. I had no idea that powerlifting was a popular sport in Vermont, but the packed parking lot proved I was wrong.

It was April 18. I struggled through the crowd to find my cousin and the three women I knew were part of her team.

My group, the HERcules Team, were waiting in an improvised holding area. It was partitioned off from the powerlifting area with canvas walls sporting the slogan of the national organization sponsoring the event, The US Powerlifting Association. (USPA).

I could tell there was a little nervousness shared by Morey and the rest of the team, Jan Ward, Linda Johnson and Marie LaPre Grabon. That wasn’t a surprise. What was a surprise was seeing four women, who had never competed before, looking totally prepared and ready to go.

Contestants take turns in various categories that have to do with age and personal weight as well as the weight lifted.

The actual lifting takes seconds.

Like a horse race, the audience is watching the results of lengthy preparation with a very quick pay-off. It looks easy, even effortless unless you notice the grim determination of the faces of the competitors and the attentive quiet that falls over the audience.

Later, after the competition was over, I was surprised to discover that Morey knew only one of her teammates, Grabon. They’d taught Tai Chi classes together. She met the other two women at the only team gathering a week before the meet though they’d been training individually for months.

From different towns: Stannard, Wolcott, Hardwick and Morrisville, with different reasons for joining the gym, what they had in common was their trainer Jeff Rutlege. Each had worked out separately with Rutledge at Snap Fitness strength training.

All four had a history of competitive exercise and a fierce desire to beat the odds of reduced muscle strength that comes with aging.

Each was persuaded power lifting was something they could do.

All had Rutledge’s confidence in their abilities and considered it to be the most important part of the preparation.

When I asked Rutledge why he’d thought of putting together a senior women’s team, his said he’d seen a set of barbells at a sporting goods store labeled “for women” that were 25 lbs. next to a standard set of 45 lbs.

“That didn’t sit right with me, because the women I train don’t need a lighter standard. They’re capable of much more.”

He continued, “They took that challenge individually, and from there we built a focused training approach centered on mastering the deadlift.”

Rutledge explained the difference between powerlifting and weightlifting which is often referred to as Olympic weightlifting.

“They are completely different sports. Powerlifting focuses on maximal strength using the squat, bench press and deadlift. Olympic weightlifting focuses on speed and technique, using the snatch and clean jerk to move weight explosively overhead.”

He explained USPA meets take place year-round throughout the country and Snap Fitness in Morrisville holds two meets a year. The next one will be held in November 2026.

“We’re competing against ourselves, totally! So, a win for one of us is a win for all,” said Morey.

When all the medals had been handed out, the HERcules Team collected three gold medals for firsts in their age and weight category; and my cousin was presented with a medal for lifting 150 lbs, a challenge that she had trained for starting in January and achieved for the first time the day of the meet.

To a woman, the HERcules team said their biggest concern going into the competition was the rule that they had to wear skimpy singlets. They all had their HERcules T-shirts with the slogan on the back that said, “I’ll lift that for you, sir” under the USPA uniform.

These women, whose ages spanned the 70s, the oldest member having just turned 80, could not have looked more self-assured as they lifted above their weight.

Rutledge says it best about women entering the field. “They’re in their 60s, 70s, even 80s, setting records and redefining what strength looks like. What they did goes beyond numbers on a bar, it’s a reflection of discipline, courage and what they’re capable of when they commit to something bigger than comfort.”

And, he said, “The energy is electric!”