The name "Toughman" came about from the guys I trained 3-5 years ago.
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| These guys came up with the name "Toughman" |
They believed our "Strongman" competition had very little to with being strong and more to do with being "tough" enough to battle through the events.
After some serious thought, I agreed that they were right and changed the name from the "Strongman" to the "Toughman".
Year after year, the name continued to prove itself, as the competition would make almost every athlete quit, vomit, or crumble to the ground.
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| A Typical Image of Someone After the Toughman |
It has even elicited some strange reactions such as laying down in the fetal position or staring into the woods "Blair Witch" style.
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| Fetal Position |
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| Advanced Training's Version of the "Blair Witch" |
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| Blair Witch's Version of the "Blair Witch" |
A fair portion of the 2014 Toughman was no different.
If you watch the video at the end of this blog, you will see the usual aftermath of what happens from the events.
On the flip side, the guys completely dominated the day.
To put things in perspective:
- The average finish time was 2:41 (2 minutes 41 seconds). This is 24 seconds faster than in 2013 (average time 3:05) and 40 seconds faster than in 2012 (average time (3:31).
- Not one person tapped out.
- Not one person went over 4 minutes
- One athlete beat Eric Heedles' 2012 record of 2:11 by almost 7 seconds.
For the skeptics out there, the events were no different from that of 2012 or 2013.
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| 2012 - 2014 Toughman Events |
I will save why I believe the athletes did so much better for another time.
For now, I will get to what you really care about ...
BRONZE METAL: Joe Sarno
For the second year in a row, Joe Sarno finished 3rd in the Toughman.
He trimmed a massive 32 seconds off of his 2013 time, by completing the competition in 2:18. (For those of you who cannot add, he finished in 2:50 last year.)
In my Toughman 2013 write-up, I wrote the following ...
Unless Joe decides that chasing girls and going to clubs is more important than football (like 99% of his buddies will), he will dominate future Toughman events.
He trimmed a massive 32 seconds off of his 2013 time, by completing the competition in 2:18. (For those of you who cannot add, he finished in 2:50 last year.)
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| This guy doesn't mess around |
In my Toughman 2013 write-up, I wrote the following ...
Unless Joe decides that chasing girls and going to clubs is more important than football (like 99% of his buddies will), he will dominate future Toughman events.
Unfortunately, 2 other people dominated it more ... giving him the 3rd place finish.
If you know Joe Sarno, you know he is a fierce competitor.
He is so fierce, that he finished the final event (Reverse Sliders) on one leg. In his mind, the pain of moving on one leg was more tolerable than the pain of losing time going back for the slider.
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| Joe Sarno finishing on one leg |
He is so fierce, he wore Superman Under Armour and no one even dared to call him out ...
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With that, I know he is not satisfied with his 3rd place finish, even it was 32 seconds faster than last year.
He will not be satisfied until he wins it all.
I give fair warning for those that doubt he can do it ... He is an absolute beast.
SILVER METAL: Robert Alberino
In our "pre-season" rankings, Alberino was predicted to come in 4th.
Obviously, he was not happy.
As the leader in 2014 Power Points, he believed he deserved a whole lot more respect.
Evidently he did ...
Alberino set a new rookie record by completing the event in 2:14 seconds. (The previous best was Joe Sarno at 2:50).
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| Robert Alberino |
2:14 is clearly an impressive time.
It would have been good enough to win last year's Toughman Event... where the winning time was 2:17.
It was good enough to be the 4th best time ever posted since 2012.
Unfortunately it was not good enough to win first place in 2014.
Like Sarno, Alberino is also a fierce competitor.
Like Sarno, there are many who doubt he can be the best.
Unlike Sarno, Alberino is quiet about his rise to the top of the Advanced Training ranks. (Sarno is far from quiet. He is physically imposing and he lets you know it.)
I believe his quiet persona is what make people count him out.
I should say "made" instead of "make".
I think his 2:14 time speaks quite loudly ...
GOLD METAL: Ryan Smith
For the second year in a row, Ryan Smith came in first place in the Toughman.
His 2:04 time was 13 seconds lower than his 2013 time (2:17) and the lowest time ever posted since the current Toughman format was created in 2012 (formally 2:11 held by Eric Heedles).
Due to his incessant trash talking, Smith winning 2 years in a row was a tough pill to swallow for his competitors.
During Toughman Training, he would refer to the rookies as "The Children" and boast that everyone else should have their own "Toughman Competition" because he already had this one beat.
While his banter drove everyone to get better, he still won the event by a whopping 10 seconds.
And quite honestly, I can see him breaking 2 minutes in the 2015 event.
It is going to take someone with a great deal of talent and a great deal of drive to beat him in future events.
This is going to enrage a lot of people out there ... but face the facts.
When was the last time Ryan Smith missed a training session?
When was going to a party more important than getting better?
When was sleep more important to him than winning the Toughman?
If you are enraged ... Good!!!
Use that passion to beat him in 2015 ...
His 2:04 time was 13 seconds lower than his 2013 time (2:17) and the lowest time ever posted since the current Toughman format was created in 2012 (formally 2:11 held by Eric Heedles).
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| Ryan Smith: 2013 and 2014 Toughman Champ |
Due to his incessant trash talking, Smith winning 2 years in a row was a tough pill to swallow for his competitors.
During Toughman Training, he would refer to the rookies as "The Children" and boast that everyone else should have their own "Toughman Competition" because he already had this one beat.
While his banter drove everyone to get better, he still won the event by a whopping 10 seconds.
And quite honestly, I can see him breaking 2 minutes in the 2015 event.
It is going to take someone with a great deal of talent and a great deal of drive to beat him in future events.
This is going to enrage a lot of people out there ... but face the facts.
When was the last time Ryan Smith missed a training session?
When was going to a party more important than getting better?
When was sleep more important to him than winning the Toughman?
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| Sleep is for Poor People ... and losers in the Toughman |
If you are enraged ... Good!!!
Use that passion to beat him in 2015 ...
Honorable Mention: Joe Ruszkowski ("Ski")
Ski finished 4th in the event with a completion time of 2:35.
Before the event, his peers did not give him much of a chance ... and neither did I. (Of the 7 competitors ranked, he was rated 6th.)
He was battling back from a broken wrist and had been struggling to complete the farmer's walks during our training session.
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| Ski |
His 2:35 finish time proved every one of us wrong.
I cannot wait to see what he does next year.
He has a chip on his shoulder that his so big that he just may be able to shock the world ...
Purple Heart: Frank Torres
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| A blurry picture of Frank Torres |
To save his throwing arm for baseball, I removed sliders from Frank's portion of the competition.
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| Sliders |
To make up for it, I added extra yardage to the other 3 events.
- The 40 yard Sled Drag and Pull became 50 yards
- The 40 yard Farmer's Walk became 50 yards (which he did with his left arm)
- The 80 yard Prowler Shuttle became 100 yard shuttle
Some people thought it would be easier, but I knew it would be a nightmare.
So did Frank.
Rather than beg out of the competition, he took his pills like a grown man.
Not only that, he finished in an impressive 2:36.
It was a bittersweet moment for Frank, as it was the first time he has ever lost a Toughman he has actually competed in.
(I say "actually competed in" because he only competed once before this in 2009. He won that competition and for the past 5 years has been repeating that he is the "Undefeated Toughman Champ.")
All The Stats:
To see all the stats, CLICK HERE
The Highlight Video:
To see how it all went down, watch the video below.
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