First strongman contest of the year is done!

In the end, I came out 11th out of 26 - the level of competition was much higher this year than it was last year, no question about it. I came in much stronger than last time, but everyone else did as well plus a handful of new people that did very well in some events.

Event rundown -

1. Log press went exactly as I'd expected with 215, 235, 255 to start. Went for 275, but it was either too heavy or I was too spent so I could only get it to the top of my head and no higher. Tried twice, but couldn't get it to work. Still, I tied for 2nd as the next highest press was 275 spilt between two others, so that was my best event!

2. Sled pull, my nemesis from last year still whipped my arse this time but not anywhere nearly as badly. Grass was not slick like last time and I borrowed some cleats for the event to get an edge, but it still took me just a fraction under 54 seconds to complete it. I got halfway down the course very smoothly, but lost my steam and rather than letting my legs do the work, I ended up using my back to row the 550 lb. sled down the last 30 or so feet of the 75 foot course. Disappointing, but I know for sure what I have to work hard at for next year. That one put me way down on the list due to my time being so slow - I'd have had to be under 40 seconds to be competitive in this one.

3. Stones, made 3 as I'd hoped for, 4th one did not budge at all. Again, no tacky was allowed so there was no way to get extra grip on the smooth stones - chalk was the only option, which doesn't help all that much. I don't feel bad about not making more as only 2 people in the event made it past the 3rd stone, and only one person completed the entire run of 5. My problem here is that I fumbled with the 250 lb. stone for about 10-15 seconds before I could get a grip (dropped it twice because it slipped out of my hands), and this cost me big on the event. I should have made them in around 25 seoconds without my errors, and it definitely cost me one or two placings in the final standings. Now I'll be training stones without any tacky more frequently until 300+ is a snap!

4. Tire flip - my lack of endurance hit me big time, plus I used my imperfect technique that made it harder for me as well (I tend to straight deadlift tires instead of leaning into them and letting my legs to the bulk of the work). Came in at 46.28 seconds total. I had to catch my breath twice on the last 2 flips, plus I came up about 12" short of completing the course with a full flip so I had to upend the tire one last time to cross the finish line. This in all cost me about 7-10 seconds and another shot at being 1-2 placings ahead in the final standings. Lesson learned - get a pair of synthetic cleats and learn how to lean into the tire more to pick up speed!

5. Farmer's walk - I did well as expected, but there were a lot of guys who flew down the course this time. Time completed - 26.40 seconds. I lost about 2-3 seconds when the jug in my right hand slammed into my right leg, causing my to drop it just about 15 feet shy of the finish line. Again, I'd have placed higher if I hadn't lost the time to about 4-5 others with this error, but nothing I can do about it now! Still, a good run even with the fault, so next year it'll be even better.

Hope to have some pics of everything in the next few days. My wife took a few, a friend's wife took some more, and I may spring the $20 to get the shots that the professional photographer took over the course of the day. All in all, definitely fun, and next year I'm promising myself to make top 5!

Nice job Ryan!

I enjoyed reading the report! 11th out of 26 is great in my opinion. Next year reaching your goal of top 5 would be totally sweet too!

I've never been to a strong man competition. I've only seen them on TV. I always enjoy watching them and I'd love to see you compete sometime.

Anymore contests on schedule for this year? Keep us updated man, and well done!

Yeah Ryan good work. I am waiting to see the pictures.

http://media.putfile.com/Fords-Strongman-2006

Here's a video clip that inadvertantly features me in two of the events - you'll get to see me in the sled pull (watch as I fall behind about halfway!) and the tire flip (notice the stall-out near the end where it's obvious I had to take a bit to catch my breath!), lurking in the background during the other events and posing for some group shots near the end. Once I get more pics I'll post them up here!

Ryan

Good Work Ryan! I've never seen that kind of event done in real life, much less tried any of it myself, but it definitely looked impressive and challenging on the video!

Cool video! Great job!

On the farmers walk, how much weight are you carrying in each hand?

Sam is making you look small in that shot of Kirk, Jan, You, and Sam. Has he gotten even bigger (I think he was about 320 last time I saw him)?

The camera angle makes Kirk look taller than usual as well.

Regards,

Sensless

Awesome, it was tons of fun to watch. I need to get stronger, so I can do some stuff like this

You are the man Ryan. I've been telling people that for 4 years. See you again in August!