The State of Maine Powerlifting: The Start of a Revolution
Today, I want to switch it up and give a few people their flowers in what I deem is the boom of a revolution in the Pine Tree State.
As I alluded to in previous blogs, the vanguard of this movement comes from a few sources, each I would like to highlight upon.
Moreover, I find myself each day/week/month, becoming more proud of what we have been able to accomplish, really in the last 2 years or so, and think we have only scratched the surface in terms of performance and presentation.
I suppose before I highlight these things, I should make it clear, I am talking about USA Powerlifting’s Maine affiliate. This is not to say USPA Maine isn’t taking off (they are), or the older standards like the APF are not doing well, but to me, the standard of excellence is through USAPL. This, and I am directly affiliated, so full bias disclosure.
Now, the true vanguard of this entire movement starts at the top, in my opinion, and that is the enactment of our state chair, Team Hogan OG, Andrew Graves. There are a few metrics that are rather indisputable in this regard. The first of which, is the growing participation of registered lifters in state. Unfortunately, I do not have the data to back this up, but anecdotally speaking, the breadth AND depth of competitors has grown since I entered the sport in early 2018. With this, comes growth in aspects that might not matter if the year were 2005, but flat-out matter in 2022, and that is the growth of social media presence. Since Andrew has been state chair, there has been a massive influx of followers to USAPL Maine’s Instagram and Facebook and social media as a whole. Off the top of my head, when he inherited the reigns, the Instagram was around 400 followers and as of now, the account is on pace to surpass 1000 total followers at years end. The account serves as a beacon for the younger generation with registration to meets being linked and constant updates and posts of lifters in state. Again, this might not seem like much, but people have to know about the sport and the federation in order to participate. The next metric is the livestream aspect Andrew has brought to USAPL meets himself and I direct. I have no problem stating that any and all livestream related innovations are through him and him alone, and for those of you who do not know, he does not have a background in this domain, teaching himself the reigns and seeking guidance from others as it was a glaring hole in meets as recently as 2022. With things such as lifter bios, graphics and images used in the presentation, a live commentary, this is a legitimate sports set-up and if you have not watched, I highly encourage you to check one out. The last 3 livestreams he has ran have gained 1100, 1300, and 1500 views, respectively. For reference, in 2020, we had a Facebook live stream that had, I believe, 200 views. Andrew and I (I’ll take partial credit for this one), have also made it a point to elevate local and state level meets. Things like kilo plates at every meet, power bars galore, and music selection for third attempts, was NOT a thing when we got into this. With that, the advent of giving out cash and other tangible prizes, such as best lifter banners, has been a very cool way to reward athlete’s hard work and really emphasizes the “earned it”, aspect of the game that was not recognized before, this will only grow to higher and higher heights as well. The last piece is an underrated one in that Andrew is an active competitor. Do I think it’s necessary, no, but does it help to be in tune with what is going on on the micro level? Absolutely. The element of “walking the walk”, is something I admire.
The next piece here is the overwhelming (in a good way) presence of young adults and teenagers entering the sport AND performing like open competitors to boot. In my humble opinion, the future of this sport, lies in the 14-23 age demographic. When I entered in 2018, it was pretty common to see people enter a meet, do it, and never compete again. Again, no data here, but the average age of competitor also seemed to be older, which more than likely had something to do with this. Now, this is not me saying, people outside this demographic are irrelevant, hell I am outside this demographic at the elderly age of 25! Rather, this is me saying we need to take notice and provide the youth infinite resources as this is what is going to keep the sport going. There are some lifters in the state that already have 4-5 meets registered under their belt before graduating high school! That is awesome to me. Beyond this, we are starting to see kids with overwhelming talent, enter the sport with proper coaching and their results are pretty evident here.
This starts with Mr. Evan Downing and his burst on to the scene, setting open state records as a teen lifter and representing the state of Maine at the national level, setting an official American record to boot! His mother’s collective, Stand Strong, is certainly the most prolific group in our state in terms of amount of lifters each meet in this age division and they are all doing incredible things.
I would be remised to not include Team Hogan lifter, Logan Allaire, who at the tender age of 15, was able to set an unofficial American record in his first meet. Again, this will be the norm as we continue, and I am here for it. The key is to make sure these kids have proper guidance and we don’t allow them to fly too close to the sun, as we want people lifting for life, not just there teen years, more on this later.
Lastly, I think the rise of legitimate teams is something that is pretty cool to see. Powerlifting is an individual sport, however, like track and field, the team aspect is unmatched when you can capture it. Although there are some I am probably not aware of in state, I think there are 3 groups you cannot go wrong with and highly, highly recommend their services to all who are looking to either get started, or take their talent to the next level.
Stand Strong, out of Wilton, Maine. As mentioned before, they are easily the most prolific and most active lifters in the state. Sending anywhere from 12-20 lifters in any given meet, at our most recent competition we were 1-2 lifters shy of an entire Stand Strong flight.
Team Kang, out of Sanford, Maine. Coached by Zach Kang, the guys and girls Mr. Kang has been producing and helping improve has been nothing short of incredible. A very respected lifter himself, Zach has produced lifters in the teens all the way up to the masters division!
Team Hogan, out of Old Orchard Beach, Maine. You know me, or else you wouldn’t be clicking on this article. In all seriousness, I am of the belief that you cannot go wrong with whomever you choose, anyone else, I cannot recommend in good faith.
The coolest part of this, is all 3 teams get along and there is no bad blood between groups. I don’t know how the general public feels about this, but toxic competition disgusts me and I want to see everyone at their absolute strongest, uplifting each other, and when it comes to meets, doing their best and letting the chips fall where they lie. If you are entering this sport with malicious intentions in this regard, USAPL Maine might not be for you, and I stand by that.
All in all, I am beyond fired up about the next decade of excellence we are beginning to carve. I believe we will have representation at almost every level of national competition in 2023! Cannot recall a time since I joined the sport this has been the case and to be apart of it, is something I cherish.
To Utopia,
Erik