Locals compete in Strongest Man and Woman VIII

MILTON — The 2019 Alabama Strongest Man and Woman VII was Aug. 10 at The Hangout in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Chris Slater, in partnership with the Strongman Corporation, hosted the event.

The Bar Strength and Conditioning gym in Milton "had athlete participation with an awesome display of feats of powerful strength in the five events offered," a spokesperson stated.

Among these five events were the log medley, yoke, Ukranian dead lift, three element carry (Husafell stone — or H-stone, sand bag and weighted keg) and keg load.

Light weight and master light weight contestants had to lift 180, 210 and 235 pounds in the log medley; and had to do 380-pound lift repetitions in the Ukrainian dead lift. They had to carry 225 pounds for each part of the three-element carry; and lift five different size kegs (180, 200, 230, 250 and 275 pounds) on a 48-inch high platform.

Heavy weight contestants had to lift in the same five categories. The weights required in the log medley were 210, 230, and 250 pounds. The yoke requirement was 600 pounds. The Ukrainian deadlift called for 425-pound repetitions; and the three-element carry was for 250 pounds each. In the keg load, heavy weights had to lift kegs of 230, 250, 275, 300 and 325 pounds on a 48-inch high platform.

"The day was an extremely hot 94 degrees not including the heat index of 115, which was the perfect scenario for adversity due to being able to hydrate properly to maintain strength and endurance," The Bar's spokesperson said.

Master light weight and novice light weight participants from The Bar were Tyler Reeves and Justin McCarthy. Heavy weight novices were Duane Cummings and Jacob Miller. Another was Dan Belanger, who "achieved an outstanding third place in the Masters Level Competition! The phenomenal determination of this athlete is unsurmountable having had a knee replacement this year and standing strong in pursuit of his goal demonstrating a 'true grit spirit,'" the spokesperson said.

Athletes train at The Bar utilizing weighted kegs, atlas stones, multiple log bars, chains, various yokes, harnesses, and a variety of gigantic tires, to name a few. The fellowship is dynamic as athletes with the same interest bond together to support and cheer each other on.

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Locals compete in Strongest Man and Woman VIII