More than muscle at Strongman showdown

Scott completes a lift in the Cambridge Strongman competition where he qualified to move on to provincials in Hamilton in July. 

George Le Gresley

Sports Reporter

There are two types of competitors: Those who compete as part of a team and those, like marathoners, who compete as individuals. They both have coaching and facilities to train and improve their abilities in their sport. So, what do people who strength-train as a hobby or sport like to do, you ask? Well, they compete in a strongman/woman competition, of course! A few weeks ago, The Weight Pit, a Cambridge gym that specializes in training people to build strength, hosted a “Strongman Competition” at the Galt Collegiate. My interest in this event was to watch and support a family member compete. 

Strongman competitions are far different than Olympic competitions, where athletes compete to lift the largest weight on a barbell.  Strongman competitions challenge not only the ability to lift weights but also to carry and pull large weights, challenge grip strength, with winners determined by a combination of weight, speed, and grip strength. Events are varied and include classic lifting events, such as deadlifting car axles that are harder to grip, a device designed to look like a log, and circus dumbbells; some events involve lifting or pulling trucks or other vehicles. At the Cambridge event I attended, there was a 23,000-pound (10,433 kg cement truck, where competitors race to pull their vehicle in the fastest time over a predetermined distance. Carrying events where competitors carry heavy objects over a distance in the fastest times or number of laps. In the “Farmers Walk,” the athlete carries large weights in each hand; in the “Yoke Carry,” the athlete carries a frame with large weights on each side (I had to watch a video to understand this event). They might also be challenged with a frame carry, where the athlete stands inside a wooden frame made of 4” x 4” posts with weights and races to a finish line! Then there is the “Husafell Stone” carry, a steel Hexagon box filled with weights! All these events are challenging grip and core stability.

Loading events include lifting round stones, sandbags, kegs, or multiple objects onto a platform, as well as combination events that involve lifting a variety of heavy items. Throwing events for these athletes are like pole vaulting, except they have to throw kegs, heavy bags, and weights over bars. Finally, the specialty events like Fingal's Fingers, where one has to lift a heavy log that pivots back and forth. Competitions always feature different strength events and are publicized in advance so that athletes can prepare.

Looking for a good quote about athletic struggle, Chat GPT came up with a good one…”Athletic struggle is the part nobody glamorizes -but it’s where almost all the growth happens.” In Strongman competitions, this is somewhat true, as these competitors who attempt and fail to reach a level either achieved or never reached are always applauded, with the crowd cheering on the athlete to push a weight one more inch to make or break their attempt. That’s real-life drama!

All in all, my friend came in second in his category and has qualified to move on to the Provincials in Hamilton in July, and yes, I will be going to cheer him on, to watch him and others compete, with a new set of challenges!