Question of the Week #2: Contest Promotion - February 16, 2007

by Ben Hanson

Not only am I a strongman competitor, I'm also a contest promoter. For the most part, all promoters are either active or former strongmen. To address this question, I'm going to break it up into two parts.

Part 1: (This week's question courtesy of Brokenbrickman)
"What kind of thinking goes into determining what events appear in what competition?"

There are a few different factors that go into determining which events are chosen for any particular strongman competition. First is the promoter's background. Some promoters come from a powerlifting background, which often results in contests that showcase the brute strength type of events: the deadlift, presses, and other events that don't require competitors to do a whole lot of moving around.

Other promoters, like me, come from a more athletic, sports-oriented background. These promoters' contests tend to feature the more "showy" type of events like tire flips and truck pulls. While it is evident that we, as promoters, tend to include events that play to our strengths, it should also be noted that a combination of both static and moving events are necessary for a challenging and entertaining show.

Part 2
"In any one competition are the various events picked to compliment each other according to some larger purpose? Is each of them designed to test a different aspect of strength or muscle group? If they're testing 'aspects' of strength, what are most common aspects? Can you lump various events into broad categories like carrying, lifting, pulling, etc? Is there any way to compare results across two competitions with totally different events at each?

Or is it random? Determined by the entertainment factor? Determined by a need for variety? Something else?"

Personally, I'm of the philosophy that a proper, traditional strongman contest should contain at the very least: a deadlift, an overhead pressing event (log, axle, keg, etc), a moving event (farmers walk, tire flip, truck pull, yoke, etc), a medley (a combination of multiple events that must be completed in succession), and the Atlas stones. Using that formula, you not only test a person's static strength with the deadlift and press, but you also test their athleticism and muscular endurance in the moving event and medley. Then, everything culminates in the most primal test of strength, the stones. Strongman, as a sport, is often referred to as "strength athletics", and only by testing the competitors in each of the aspects mentioned above can one truly find the best strength athlete.

Outside of that, the event selection is entirely up to the promoter, limited only by his imagination and resources. While each promoter is free to design events that will cater to his own strengths, it is understood that the attendance of quality competitors depends heavily on the variety of events and the weights being used.

For a more in-depth look at how a contest is put together from its conception to the trophy presentation, check back next week for all the details of the first contest I ever promoted.

Posted by Ben Hanson at 6:00 AM

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