The Challenge 40 Battle of the Eras Player Preview: Averey Tressler
I spent a good 8 years of my life both actively pleading online and silently manifesting for Averey Tressler’s return to The Challenge.
On the nights before Challenge departure days, I would leave out some Hooters Hot Wings and a pitcher of Bud Light in hopes that Santa would come and get our girl on The Challenge.
Well, it finally worked. Averey returned for All Stars 4, looked terrific, performed at a high level, and is now on again for Challenge 40. All Stars 4 was essentially Averey’s second-ever season as a player, and she held her own going against elite female competitors. The only hope is that she can learn from some of the big mistakes she made during her return and get to a Final this time around.
Averey’s Cheat Sheet (TLDR Version)
Introducing Averey:
Averey’s original show was Real World Portland. I was immediately an Averey fan because she owned who she was. Averey came from a rough upbringing where she had to fend for herself. She worked at Hooters, paid all her bills, began taking care of her siblings, and just really showed a lot of grit and tenacity as a human while also looking great and owning her sexuality.
As someone who loves messy and authentic Reality TV, I’ll never forget her hooking up with Johnny Reilly in the bathroom of the pizza place they worked at during their first day on the job. Which doesn’t sound classy at all, but man, it made me a fan because Averey is a real person. When she talks on screen in her confessional, you can see all her thoughts forming in her brain in real time. What also made me a fan was her fight with Nia. Where Nia took a cheap shot at her, hit her in the back of the head, and instead of going, “Oh my god, did I just get hit?” Averey just turned around and started throwing punches fast. To me, that was the type of person who would thrive on The Challenge. That’s a person who, when adversity gets thrown their way, they’re ready to tackle it head-on.
We saw Averey make her Challenge debut on Exes 2, where she and Johnny Reilly were one of the only real couples in the house with actual bad blood/hurt feelings. They weren’t just a random one-season showmance or hookup — the two of them had real issues with one another, and it played out in every daily challenge. Any challenge that required teamwork, they weren’t on the same page, and he was a general dickhead. When it came to pure athleticism, they were a strong duo who won two eliminations, and Averey had an hour-long battle with the much larger Nia in a physical Elim. In the end, she & Reilly lost to Leroy & Nia and then to Bananas & Nany in Redemption. Overall, it was a promising rookie showing by Averey.
She wouldn’t return until Rivals 3, where they partnered with Leroy after he trashed her on an Exes 2 aftershow (to which he trashed her because he was Reilly’s friend). Except Leroy was hurt, so they got sent home immediately, and for some reason, Averey never got another shot. Over the years, Averey would’ve fit in well on so many casts, whether it had been Invasion, Total Madness, Double Agents, or any of the first three All-Stars seasons. It took until All Stars 4 for Averey to get a chance.
Once she got the shot, though, Averey put the house on notice by earning a Star from the jump and consistently performing near the top in most of the early daily challenges. If there was any doubt about Averey’s abilities as a physical competitor, she silenced them. Now, where things didn’t go great is that she lacked killer instinct strategically and mentally. Averey had an easy chance at a star where she could’ve thrown herself in to face Tina and would’ve been able to the end coast as Cara was public enemy #1. Instead, Averey played scared and missed her opportunity to grab a Star to where she was on the outside looking for the Final. As one of the biggest Averey supporters, I was highly disappointed. Going into this season, I hope she doesn’t make the same type of mistake.
Challenge 40 will be a different experience for her, though. On All-Stars 4, Averey was kind of the rookie without many connections entering the game. On 40, she has friends from All Stars 4, some friends from the Real World Portland, and is in a new phase of her life where she’s now dating Adam Larson. I’ll be upfront and am willing to say that I’m teetering on my Averey fandom a bit right now. I’m always going to root for her; however, if she plays a safe & boring game again on 40, I don’t know if I’ll be hankering for her to be back on my TV like I was in the past.
Player Vitals & Stats
Averey Tressler: 33 Years Old, 5'6, (Guesstimation), 2 Seasons, 1 All-Stars Season, 2–1 Elimination Record
Skills and Physical Strength:
If there are any cardio or endurance-based challenges, Averey is an immediate favorite. If you put Averey in a partner-based Final with someone who is strong with puzzles, she may have the Amber B-esque ability to steal a win. Based on what I saw from Exes 2, she’s a pretty above-average swimmer. And in all the heights/balance challenges on All Stars, Averey moved and carried herself well. Even though she lacked experience compared to most of the vets, she didn’t seem timid or afraid at all.
Averey is a bit undersized when it comes to any daily challenge or Headbanger where raw weight or size is involved. She’s not beating a Tori or Olivia or Laurel in the backpack elimination. That said, Averey is scrappy for her size and is a little taller/more lengthy than you realize.
I think Averey is a slightly above average athlete with a high fitness level and a ton of heart.
SSMP (Social, Strategic, Mental, and Political) Game:
I don’t want to call Averey dumb, because I don’t think she is. I do believe there is a booksmarts element that is a bit lacking for her. You can tell that she grew up fast, learned to pay the bills, became self-sufficient, and then didn’t need to study calculus because she was already thriving in life. But when it comes to stuff like word puzzles, memorization games, tangrams, and math, that ain’t her game. Which if you’re competing as an individual, it’s something you need to win.
Averey is mentally tough, though, and is someone I see thriving in high-pressure situations. On Exes 2, she did her best when in elimination. In that fight with Nia on the Real World, when chaos happens, she shows up.
For the social side of the game, I think Averey is in a solid situation where she has Derek, Ryan, Jordan, and Nia as very strong and loyal allies. It does pain me that she’s dating Adam because her not having the ability to Polidick hurts her in terms of the social & political game. I mean good for Averey for finding actual love and passion here love. From a game perspective, though, the ability to flirt with Mark Long after he pops a blue pill could make or break Averey or someone else’s game.
Strategically, Averey is someone I would like to see take big risks because there are so many massive threats on the women’s side of the cast. If Averey has any chance of winning, she’s got to make some power moves if ever given the chance.
Eliminations & Winning Potential:
There’s a certain portion of this cast that I think Averey would beat in a headbanger like Pole Wrestle, such as: Katie, Michele, Amanda, and Aviv. And then there’s a much larger portion of the cast that I think would have her number size-wise and experience-wise: Kaycee, Tori, Emily, Laurel, Cara, Rachel, etc.
In games of balance, skill, dexterity, or carnival games, I do like Averey’s against anyone because she’s a scrapper. I’m not saying that she’d win, but she’s someone who I can see pulling off an upset.
Can Averey win? The odds are not in her favor. She’s never been to a Final and is going up against a stacked cast. If Averey can get to the Final, she needs it to be formatted in a way where she isn’t going to be personally required to solve a bunch of puzzles. I’d say there’s a less than 1% chance Averey wins this season, and that’s more of a credit to the overall strength of this female cast. Hell, if Averey can get to the Final, that should be celebrated as a win itself.
