Jenn Jones, CrossFit Princess, Going Anywhere She Wants

The prolific sports drink Powerade wants to remind us through its recent ads that we’re all just a kid from somewhere.

fciwomenswrestling.com article, powerade.com photo — fciwomenswrestling.com article, powerade.com press photo

For each one of us that somewhere is mostly something special.

That is especially true for the sensational CrossFit Michigan Princess, Jenn Jones from Novi.

In a March 2014 article found at boxlifemagazine.com they educate us, “With just under 3.5 billion females on the planet, being able to claim you are the 6th fittest woman in the world is certainly something to be acknowledged.”

That’s for certain and that’s one of the many reasons why Femcompetitor Magazine wants to acknowledge her great accomplishments which can be very inspirational to our world of beautiful fully competitive submission wrestlers.

The informative site killcliff.com expands, “Jenn Jones is a three time competitor at the CrossFit Games. She is known for her strength and gymnastic skills. Jones attended Western Michigan University where she was a champion in the MAC Conference in vault, beam and the all-around. After barely missing advancing to the CrossFit Games in her very first attempt in 2011, Jones has been a mainstay the past three years. Although she made the move from the Mid-Atlantic region to the South Central where she now lives and trains in Houston, Jones has remained in the top three each year. In 2014 Jones finished in tenth place, giving her back to back finishes in the top ten.”

Watching Ms. Jones online video interviews reveals a beautiful, determined and down to earth young woman who has achieved much but is clearly not finished. Whether its visuals of her running and pacing herself through densely wooded areas or putting in the time bursting a sweat in gyms and training centers, Jenn is full tilt.

Like our female grapplers, Jenn has had the opportunity to travel extensively including visiting Hong Kong with Reebok to demo CrossFit and help promote it on a global level and encourage you women to become more involved in fitness.

Her efforts are having a positive effect.

A well-rounded girl we discover more about Jenn at shape.com who shares, “When she’s not busy saving lives at the hospital, this traveling nurse can be found coaching at CrossFit Eado in Houston. This year will be Jenn Jones’ third time at the Games, going in as the current first-place contender from the South Central regionals and reigning sixth Fittest Woman on Earth from last year’s main event. While she, too, was a gymnast growing up (with more than 100 competitions under her belt including two NCAA qualifications), Jones says that she is in better shape now doing CrossFit than she ever has been in her life.”

As is our custom, it’s time to travel Jenn’s somewhere.

Novi is a city in Oakland County in Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 55,224, an increase over the 2000 census count of 47,386. The city is located about 8 miles west of Detroit.

Novi continues to be one of the fastest growing cities in Michigan. The construction of Twelve Oaks Mall in the 1970s made the city a major shopping destination in the Detroit metropolitan area and is often credited with ushering in an era of growth that lasted for 40 years.

Novi was ranked #48 on Money magazine’s list of the Top 100 Best Places to Live in 2008.

Things become even more interesting and unexpected.

As of 2011 15.9% of its residents were Asian, and Novi had 2,438 Japanese residents, giving it the largest Japanese population of any Michigan municipality. By 2011 the Japanese population experienced an increase of 53% from 2003, when the city had 1,417 Japanese residents.

Novi is often called Little Tokyo.

In the 1990s several Japanese automobile firms had opened offices in the region with many of the Japanese population visiting on temporary visas.

In an interview Jenn stated she loves fine dining on local specialty restaurants.

She has one right in her own backyard with quite a moving and sad history.

The respected news and information source examiner.com informs, “Shiro Restaurant and Sushi Bar in Novi has many good things going for it, and the most striking is its historic location. Housed in a mansion known as White House Manor, the restaurant conjures a feeling of opulence and grandeur upon arrival.”

According to Shiro’s site, shiro-restaurant.com, Shiro means castle or white in Japanese, and the name is fitting for both the beautiful exterior of the mansion and the classic white decor in the dining room.

There is more to the story.

Mr. Charles Rogers and his family became wealthy producing and manufacturing canned milk and have been credited as the inventors of condensed milk.

The house was called “White House Manor”, not because of its color but because it had been built with profits from the Milk Company. Mr. Rogers had always dreamed of having a daughter and although he and his wife were blessed with four sons, he was never satisfied.

He dreamed of a beautiful young woman to walk down the majestic grand staircase one day in a bridal gown and years later, it seemed that dream would finally come true. One of his sons presented him with a granddaughter.

From the day that she announced her engagement of marriage, no expense was spared to bring her a magical wedding. The entire house was redecorated, flowers were brought in and a fantastic wedding and reception was planned on the grounds of the mansion.

Sadly it did not happen.

On the eve of the wedding, the young girl eloped. Shortly after, Charles Rogers passed away.

True story.

Sad Story.

What a story.