ST. PAUL - It was an impressive display of strength and dedication at Lakeland's Strongest 3 on Feb. 18. This year, the show was brought indoors at the St. Paul Ag Corral, and with skijoring being held nearby, residents were treated to a full day of entertainment.
About 50 competitors took part in the amateur strongman competition, according to Colten Sloan, one of the organizers and also a professional strongman competitor from the area. Last year's event featured more competitors, but organizers decided to cap the number this year.
And while the competition itself was exciting, for Sloan, one of the highlights this year was the crowd in attendance.
"I love that St. Paul is getting into strongman," said Sloan. He noted the Ag Corral was a "perfect venue" to host the event and "the show went amazing."
Taking place for a few years now, Lakeland's Strongest is making an impression on the provincial strongman scene, and acts as a stepping stone to other, high level events.
For local athlete Tessa Prior, Lakeland's Strongest 3 was her first time competing in the sport, but she's no stranger to keeping fit. With a group of strongman athletes training behind Prior's fitness fitness studio in St. Paul, she became intrigued and started asking questions.
"Being athletic my whole life, and always chasing a challenge, I was prompted to sign up," says Prior. Having two professional strongman athletes living locally - Sloan and Angela Houle - the pair is opening the door for local amateurs to get involved in the sport, says Prior.
Speaking to the competition on Feb. 18, Prior says, "I thought the actual lifts would be the biggest challenge. I was wrong. It’s a different environment - a competition - than in the gym. You can do the lifts all you want, dial them in but nothing prepares you for the nerves of a live crowd, especially in my hometown."
While she's unsure of her future in the sport, ultimately, Prior was able to set some personal bests at this year's Lakeland's Strongest, and walked away with her head held high and third place in the novice women's category.
Up next
Up next for local pro strongman competitors Sloan and Houle is a trip to Ohio to compete in the Arnold Classic over the first weekend of March.
Later this spring, Sloan will be hosting a pro strongman event in St. Paul on May 20, while Houle will be heading north in July to compete in a western Canada strongwoman event.
Top results from Lakeland's Strongest 3 include:
Novice Women - first place Caitlin Mark; second place Kelly Ruhland; third place Tessa Prior
Lightweight women - first place Gen Segger; second place Kristina Goldring; third place Tamara Large
Middleweight women - first place Jaclyn Klukach
Heavyweight women - first place Kerry Gantly
Novice men - first place Shandy Donaldson; second place Shane Hogan; third place Oswald Treutler
Teen - first place Devin Trey Houle
Lightweight men overall - first place James Anderon; second place Ian Wheat; third place Colin Lewry
Middleweight men overall - first place Brandon Balchford; second place Mike Schiml; third place Doug Jones
Heavyweight men overall - first place Tomas Dobson; second place Darcy Flaska; third place Alex Crisby