Area native wraps mind around TV’s ‘Broken Skull Challenge’ – The Free Lance
July 22, 2014 by admin
Filed under Lingerie Events
Heather Hudson is the female version of Superman and his mild-mannered alter ego.
At least, that’s how former Washington Redskins wide receiver Gary Clark describes the Spotsylvania County woman, who was a star soccer player at Courtland High School and now plays for the Baltimore Charm all-women’s football team.
“Heather is very gentle and laid back off the field and this fiery take-charge person on the field,” Clark, a two-time Super Bowl winner who became head coach of the Charm in 2012, said in an email. “It’s like you see two different people. She’s our female version of Clark Kent and Superman.”
Expect to see Hudson’s Superman side when she appears on this coming Sunday’s episode of Steve Austin’s “Broken Skull Challenge,” which airs at 8 p.m. on CMT.
The pre-taped episode features Hudson, 23, and seven other female athletes competing in a series of challenges until all but one is eliminated. The last woman standing will try to complete the grueling “Skullbuster” obstacle course for a $10,000 prize, which Hudson says she plans to use to help relatives in the Philippines recover from last year’s tsunami, according to CMT.
Austin, an actor and former professional wrestler, is the show’s host.
Hudson, who can’t reveal whether she won or lost the competition, says she’s “always doing random things.”
That includes competing in the Legends Football League—formerly the Lingerie Football League—in a uniform that looks like a bikini with shoulder pads. Hudson said she tried out for the Baltimore Charm in 2012 after a friend watched a game on TV and told her, “You could do that.”
So why not take a stab at reality TV, too?
“I’ve always been a competitive person so I just thought, ‘Oh what the heck, it doesn’t hurt to try and audition,’” said Hudson, who played varsity soccer for Courtland from 2005–09.
She seems comfortable in front of a camera.
A clip of the upcoming Broken Skull Challenge episode shows her talking trash about an older opponent. The two were about to face off in a game called “Snatch,” in which the first to grab a sandbag in the middle of a so-called “battlefield” and ring a bell is declared the winner.
“I’m gonna go in there, I’m gonna snatch that bag, I’m gonna ring that bell and send that old lady home!” Hudson, doing her best imitation of a professional wrestler, says in the clip.
Her opponent also has some choice words: “Heather, this ain’t no football field. You’re too young to know what old-school tough is.”
In keeping with the trash-talk theme, Clark—who played for the Redskins from 1985 until 1992—says Hudson’s opponents on the show don’t stand a chance. In fact, his prediction is that she “straight up kills it.”
“She is an athletic freak and will dominate” he wrote. “I could be wrong but who am I kidding I’m hardly ever wrong when it comes to judging talent.”
Spotsylvania resident Matt Cruz, an instructor at Cudgel Crossfit in Stafford County, said he started working out with Hudson two years ago. Hudson, who is becoming a certified Crossfit instructor herself, is a natural fit for the Broken Skull Challenge, he said.
“That’s the kind of stuff that she really enjoys doing,” Cruz said. “She enjoys having a few bruises to show off.”
Hudson, who is just 5 feet, 2 inches tall and 125 pounds, says she can bench press more than her weight and can squat a little more than 200 pounds. The self-described adrenaline junkie said it was exciting, not intimidating, to compete in front of a former pro wrestling champ whose nickname is “Stone Cold.”
“That whole experience was just surreal,” Hudson said. “It was cool just to see where I placed among . . .handpicked women that are really athletic.”
Jeff Branscome: 540/374-5402
jbranscome@freelancestar.com
WHEN TO WATCH
Spotsylvania County resident Heather Hudson will appear on this coming Sunday’s episode of Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Challenge. The one-hour show airs at 8 p.m. on CMT.
For more information, visit cmt.com/show/steve-austins-broken-skull-challenge/series.jhtml.
Hudson’s next game with the Baltimore Charm women’s football team is 8 p.m. Aug. 9 and will be shown on the Legends Football League’s YouTube channel at youtube.com/mylfl. The team, which is 1–1 this year, will play the Omaha Heart in Ralston, Neb.
