A test of strength

Miriam Ostermann
Times Associate Editor

 

Since he was 13-years-old, Strathmore’s Brandon Thompson watched in awe as strong, colossal men lifted weighty Atlas Stones and pulled mammoth machinery hundreds of feet. Then on June 20, after four years of power-lifting and with only five months of strongman training under his weight-lifting-belt, the 29-year-old beat his personal records and finished fourth place in his first-ever Strongman competition.
“I like the competitive aspect of it, and I’ve always found it fascinating some of the things these guys could do and how strong they were,” said Thompson. “It was harder than I had expected and really challenging, but it was a lot of fun.”
The 12th annual Strongman Classic competition in Cranbrook, required 16 contestants to go head-to-head in six events. Kicking off the challenge, competitors had to complete a 46,000 lbs logging truck pull, followed by a Pressing Event, Carry and Drag, Hercules Hold, Atlas Stones, and Medley: Loading Event and Farmer’s Walk. Although Thompson had a slow start, he quickly picked up the pace throughout the event. Holding a 2000 lbs vehicle on an incline with the breaks released in each hand, he was able to hang on to his grip for 29 seconds, catapulting him into third place for the event. From there he lifted four out of the five Atlas Stones ranging up to 365 lbs, and placed them on a barrel. Athletes were also required to pull a 375 lbs sled, and for the Pressing Event were required to lift a 175 lb log over their head five times, a 150 lbs keg three times, and a 100 lbs dumbbell with one arm. Sitting in fourth place by the time the last event rolled around, Thompson crossed the finish line only seconds before his opponent, solidifying his spot.
“It was amazing,” said Gleichen Strongman Andrew Bolinger, owner of SMASH Strength in Calgary, who helped Thompson get started in the sport. “Very few people go into their first contest and do that well. It’s clear that he is a natural at this sport.”
Thompson, who moved to Strathmore during his last year of high school, grew up competing in track and field and playing junior B hockey until he turned 20 years old. Then four years ago, he found his calling in power-lifting, participating in three competitions placing first twice, and second once, for his age and weight group.
Weighing in at 240 lbs and standing 6 foot 2 inches tall, Thompson felt he was finally strong enough to consider training for the strongman sport. With personal best scores of dead-lifting 550 lbs, a 456 lbs squat, and a bench press of 295 lbs, the athlete was quickly challenged with unconventional ways of training, lifting Atlas Stones and flipping 600 lbs tires at SMASH Strength in Calgary.
“With power-lifting you have to be very conscious of your technique, because the weight is really heavy, but with Strongman, there is still technique involved, but you have to be really strong,” he said, explaining that dead-lifting requires a completely entirely approach than lifting an Atlas Stone. “It’s completely different. There’s nothing similar about it. The only thing that’s similar is that you pick something off the ground.”
With only three individuals participating in Strongman from the Strathmore and Wheatland County area, Bolinger, who has already seen overall interest quadruple since last year, hopes accomplishments, such as Thompson’s, will pique the interest of other local residents.
“I’d like to get more, I know there’s a lot of really strong Firemen in Strathmore and they already have the building blocks,” he said.
While also working out at Anytime Fitness in Strathmore, Thompson will continue to divide his time with SMASH Strength in preparation for his next competition later this year.