About Us
MEET OUR
Amazing ForgeX Team
Established in 2014 in Fergus, Ontario, ForgeX has become one of Wellington County’s premier athletic training companies. Partners Michelle Linton, Kelly Linton, Mitch Johnson and Karen Johnson are driven by a passion to see our coaches and members achieve breakthrough results. Using coach-led, athletic-style, functional training methods, we push each other to become fitter and stronger. With over 40 schedule classes per week, the ForgeX Advantage is exceptional coaches, amazing workouts and an awesome facility!
We always hear from our members how much they love our coaches! All our coaches are certified, and all of them share a passion to help our members achieve their personal fitness goals.
Michelle Linton
Partner
ABOUT MICHELLE
In addition to being a Crossfit-L1 trainer, a spin instructor, and a life coach, Michelle oversees all ForgeX business operations. She is an experienced change management professional who helps individuals and organizations turn imagination into action. Through her own life experiences, Michelle has become a strong believer in pursuing a personal life mandate and aligning goals to that mandate. She enjoys personal fitness and fully embraces the connection between mind, body, and soul.
Kelly Linton
Partner
ABOUT KELLY
One of Forge’s founding partners, Kelly is committed to working with the other ForgeX partners and coaches to achieve our potential as a premier athletic training facility. A community leader himself, Kelly is passionate about ForgeX becoming an even more positive contributor to our Town. He works with Mitch to continuously improve ForgeX Athletic Training Facility and equipment, pursues new strategic business opportunities and initiates new community partnerships.
Mitch Johnson
Partner
ABOUT MITCH
Although Mitch is used to putting out fires in his job as a firefighter, he knows how to build a fire inside our members. He applies his love for sports and experience playing competitive hockey towards building a supportive, safe environment for our members to take their fitness to the next level. Mitch is a Crossfit-L1 trainer and has completed CrossFit Weightlifting L1, multiple advanced first aid, CPR, and numerous certifications in the EMR and rescue field. Mitch also enjoys playing golf, is an avid fisherman, and is also a self-taught bagpiper.
Karen Johnson
Partner
ABOUT KAREN
Karen has excelled in many sports over the years, including competitive figure skating, field hockey, baseball and volleyball. She has an education background in therapeutic recreation, and currently works for the Upper Grand District School Board. She brings organizational skills, budget/financial experience and a “getting things done” attitude to our management team! In addition to her role as chief organizer, Karen also models the best attributes of our other dedicated members – she always works hard to get stronger and faster!
Travis Laitar
Head Coach
ABOUT TRAVIS
Growing up in Fergus, Travis attended the State University of New York at Cortland on an athletic scholarship. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Fitness Development/ Exercise Science. Working at a top level fitness facility in New York State, Travis has worked with a range of clients from adult group classes to professional athletes. He has passed the National Academy of Sports Medicine personal training exam, and he is currently pursuing additional training and certifications. Travis is responsible for ForgeX coach development and workout programming.
Maria Mulder
Coach
ABOUT MARIA
Joining ForgeX has completely changed Maria’s motivation for working out. Her motivation is all about getting stronger, fitter and pushing herself to new limits. She loves the sense of community and the support network at ForgeX. As a coach (Crossfit L1 Trainer), she is passionate about helping members build connections — to feel like they are a part of an amazing community and to set new/different goals for themselves — and to help them to achieve those goals. It’s not about comparison! It’s about seeing where you are today and building on that to be even better!
Wendy Cudmore
Coach
ABOUT WENDY
Wendy’s passion is exercise, from high school sports to university intramurals, from years of triathlon racing to teaching various different adult fitness classes. Wendy’s drive to try new things and improve her fitness led to ForgeX. Having been a member since it opened, ForgeX is Wendy’s home away from home. One of the things she loves the most is seeing others realize their passion for fitness and achieve their goals. As a CrossFit L1 trainer, Wendy’s mission is to make fitness fun and accessible no matter what age or fitness level.
Brittany Schwende
Coach
ABOUT BRITTANY
Brittany’s degrees in Kinesiology and Education, along with her experience as an OUA lacrosse athlete, are what drives her passion for health. Through different coaching experiences from working with children to seniors of varying abilities, Brittany understands the significance that an active lifestyle has on your health across the lifespan. Brittany hopes to share her love for community, athletics and movement as she believes we can be stronger together.
Justin Kampen
Coach
ABOUT JUSTIN
Justin believes that physical health and wellness transfers over into many other important areas of life. Having been a prior member at other gyms, he realized that functional training; a community of supportive peers are the keys to building a safe and long lasting fitness journey. Justin wants to help others discover what they are capable of with hard work and determination. He is currently in the process of completing his Crossfit-L1 certification.
Kayla Linton
Coach
ABOUT KAYLA
Kayla is passionate about inspiring individuals to push their limits and fears and achieve more than they thought they were capable of. Kayla is currently studying Health Sciences at Western University and is excited about pursuing a career in proactive health.
Melanie McDougall
Coach
ABOUT MELANIE
She obtained her CF-L1 training certificate while on vacation in Hawaii just before the pandemic broke out. Besides traveling, Melanie enjoys quilting and playing baseball. She grew up playing provincial level softball and pitched for Queen’s University. She has coached U16 female softball teams at the provincial level. Melanie is excited to join the coaching team at Forge and looking forward to helping members reach their goals.