Ahhhh, where to begin. Orlando was great. Terrible drivers, but it’s a big city. The resort we stayed had multiple pools, and the Olympia was a very neat expo. Just like being in a condensed area of the Arnold, but a little easier to get around. Glad to see people allowed to mix again at their own risk, like humans. Samples were pretty plentiful, and it was cool to see some industry folks in person walking around like Dexter Jackson and Tony Huge (man you should have seen the pants he had on, like aluminum foil

). Dexter Jackson actually came out of the IHOP as we went into after weigh-ins, and then I saw him at the expo again. Not sure if I mentioned it, but Roelly Winklaar did a photo shoot on the bench directly next to me while I was training the first time at Iron Religion. Also, Johnny Jackson has the smallest calves I think I have ever seen; that guy needs to seriously up his SEO game. In general, it’s crazy how small most of these bodybuilders are in real life. The muscle size is incredible, but they are so small compared to the open pro strongmen. James Hollingshead didn’t disappoint one bit, though. Bobby Thompson and Robert Oberst were both at the Olympia (current & former American Logpress record holders & pro strongmen) and THEY are big dudes in anyone’s book.
America’s Strongest Woman was ran fantastically with exciting events and an awesome turnout of 20 women across the light, middle, & heavy classes. There were intensely close battles in every weightclass, but Victoria Long in the heavyweight/open pro is entirely on another level. She swept the show with 1sts in every single event in the heavy class. Look her up; she is absolutely huge, and not remotely fat. Her performance was indomitable - it was Victoria, and then everyone else. She exuded dominance and the combination of brute strength & remarkable athleticism was incredible to watch. She hit a 255lb logpress and simply stopped because it was enough to win the max event. I suspect she can do 285+ currently. I believe she is likely the strongest woman on the planet at this time, overall. I got to chat with her husband for a bit, who is 52 and competed in Master’s Nationals which was held in the morning both days before the women’s pro show, and he was very cool. Talking longevity (he’s been lifting for over 30 years), he encouraged me to start taking mobility and conditioning work more seriously sooner, if he could give his younger self advice.
We had our first night out with friends since our anniversary after the show Saturday, which was terrific, and then took a trip to Daytona Shores Beach the next night. This was an excellent beach, my son’s first time, and a great experience for all of us. It was so cool to share that with him and watch him play in the sand. Then we headed to Jacksonville for a couple nights staying with some family we rarely get to see, and had some good meals and beach time there as well.
I finally feel like we had a real vacation, not one I need to recover from afterwards. I am extremely proud of my wife, and we are both excited for our training ahead of us!