Did My First Public Show!

[foxyj75]

Well, I performed in public for the first time yesterday evening! I performed at a local church for a youth group. Man, you should have seen the looks on their faces when I was breaking and bending that stuff!! Before I did the strongman stuff though, I gave them my testimony about how the Lord delivered me from my previous drug and alcohol addiction. I think it really hit home with them, as they were all in high school/college. Hopefully, it will stick with them, and keep them from making the same mistakes I did.

I tell you what, doing all that stuff back to back really wears you out! I broke a Louisville Slugger, ripped a deck of cards, rolled a couple frying pans(one inside another), ripped a couple phone books, bent almost 20 Sivaco 60d's(after the first, alot of kids wanted them!!), fished a 3' x 1/2'' hrs rod, and made a "U" out of a 3' x 5/8'' hrs rod. The kids wanted all the stuff when I was done. I am going to go back in the summer for a multiple youth group gathering, and I have some more local churches interested in having me perform. Man, I love doing this stuff, and when you can do it in a positive setting like this, it makes all the hard work worthwhile!!! Check out the pics below.

When I got home, I was pumped up, so I decided to try some of my new FBBC stock. I wrapped up a Grand Bastard, and gave it a shot. Well, the adrenaline only lasted so long, and the night's previous performance caught up with me! I knew I should have waited until I was rested up to try it, but I was excited, and couldn't help myself. It took me about 5 minutes to get the grand stuck at just over 90 degrees. I know that if I would have hit it fresh, I could have killed it. I was simply exhausted and tapped out! I am going to rest up for a few days, and try it again. It WILL die!! check out the pics below. Later guys!!

God Bless,

Jeremiah

Just broke the bat

Ripping cards

Rolling a pan

One of MANY 60d's!!!!!!

Tearing a phone book

My son Logan ripping a phone book!! lol!

Fishing a 3' x 1/2'' hrs

Making a ''U" out of a 3' x 5/8'' hrs

Grand Bastard on tape measure-5.5''

Grand Bastard stuck just past 90

[DAN PRAYDIS]

great going on something you like to do and its great you turned you life around thats a big one right there and you have a handsome young son that looks up to you he is trying to be just like you great story

[EricMilfeld]

How long have you been doing this again?

Really though, Jeremiah, you're like a runaway freight train. Keep it up, because your enthusiasm is contagious, and your personal testimony of what the Lord has done for you is a powerful one.

[vikingsrule92]

Wow looks like a great show Jeremiah. I hope it made an impression on the kids and I'm pretty sure it did.

Now rest up and KILL that Grand!!! I'm going to beat you to it though

[foxyj75]

Thanks guys!! I really appreciate all the support and encouragement!!

We'll have to see about that Grand, Derek..........

[ox3782]

Sounds like a great show Jeremiah and great job on all the bends you did and tears and rolls!!!

Brendan

[climber511]

When you walked into Gripmas - I knew you were going to be strong as soon as you figured out what you were doing - little did I know how short a time that would take - congratulations on turning your life around and using it to further the lives of young people - way to go!

[vikingsrule92]

We'll see Jeremiah, you might beat me, in all honesty I think you will, but I hope to give you a run for your money You've been on fire lately dude and I hope you keep it up because if you do you'll be legendary in no time.

[jad]

That's awesome man! Thanks for the great report and pics!

[David_wigren]

That's great. Hope you passed on some of that bending addiction to them! And as for that grand, you'll kill it next time!

[Brad Manion]

Congratulations on your first public show Foxman. They sure are fun, aren't they? Also, it's a good thing you're doing for these kids. You never really know who's going to be reached by what you do, but it'll be worth it, trust me. I've always been fascinated by strength, but never really understood what one can do through years of hard work until Fall 1990. I was a 7'th grader and one of my school's gym teachers, Tom McCaughan, ran an intramural weightlifting program. He did the usual demos with weights, but what all us youngsters thought was cool was when he did Highland Games demos, all the while explaining the history behind the games. Mind you, this was 5 years or so before Braveheart came out, but I was very fascinated and that has lasted to this day. Tom told us that if were willing to work at it, the rewards would be tremendous in time. Now that I'm 30, I can say that he was right. Though I've done tougher stuff since then, my favorite demo has to be my very first. I was helping run a high school strongman contest a few years ago, and I got to do my first demo, shredding a deck of cards, side by side with my original "sensei", Tom McCaughan. Words can't describe how much fun that was. Talking with him afterwards, I began to get the ideas for all the stuff I can do now, which makes for a much better show.

Here's some ideas for other fun stuff to try at subsequent demos, if you're interested:

1) After tearing a phonebook in half, try tearing another phonebook into three pieces vertically. Seeing that you have an edition of the White Pages, it's not too thick a book for such an attempt, but for some reason, I have a tough time with those as opposed to books of Yellow Pages, which are thicker.

2) After doing number 1, try seeing how fast you can shred 5 or 6 moderately thick phonebooks in half. I had probably my best response ever to a demo when I did that. I was a little upset I didn't tie/beat my PR, but I still did quite well for me. Plus, even though this is a little bit of stress on the forearms, it won't burn your hands up like card tearing will.

3) Horseshoes, horseshoes, horseshoes With your ability, this would be a great finale and an interesting change of pace from the long bar bending. Don't know what sorta damage you could do to wrenches, but if you're pretty good at those, I definitely see you one day bending a big ol' draft horseshoe like Pat P. at a demo. If what you're going for is making a strong lasting impression, THAT would do it.

Other stuff I've learned doing demos:

1) Kids are pretty cool during these, even up into high school age, but many times, young adults and adults tend to question you and want to see if you're tricking them. I used to get a little annoyed, but I found a mature way to handle this. I simply invite the inquiring person to be a volunteer. I show the guest participant exactly how the feat is done, even going so far as to explain the physical principles, before I let him put his best effort into whatever he's trying. Once he understands that what he and I are trying is no "trick", I then thank him for his effort and encourage the crowd to give the volunteer some applause for the effort before I make my effort.

2) Things that you and I, and every other old-time strongman practicioner automatically understand to be easier are actually more visually appealing to a crowd. For example, even if I were able to bend an 80d spike for a demo, I wouldn't, because I've learned the crowd will "ooh and ah" more over a 120d bend (which I can do). I would keep that in mind if you were doing a demo of horseshoes with a DC0 and a DC3. Both are tough, but even though the DC0 should be a visibly tougher bend for you, people sitting up close can easily see that the DC3 (if there is such a size) is bigger, so they tend to be more impressed.

Anyways, I hope my ideas helped. I'm constantly having to tailor my approach and I always welcome input from other old-time strongman practicioners as well as other people. Great example = I bend 60d's at shows, but never do 1/4" G5 and G8 bolts anymore and instead go straight to 70d nails and then 120d spikes. As my friend pointed out, the bolts look like the same size as the 60d nails, and no matter how well you explain it to the crowd, same size implements = repetitive = boredom. I got around this by going from DO bending a 60d then a 1/4" G5 and then a 1/4" G8 to reverse bending a 60d, then DU bending a 60d, and finishing up with DO bending a 60d before going on to the 70d and bigger nails. If I can ever Heslep bend a 60d, I'll add that to the current rotation.

Also, congrats on that Grand attempt. Outstanding effort considering you just did a show. Seeing how much damage you did in 5 minutes, and based on my experience, I'd have to guess that if you were able to take a complete break from training for 1 week, doing only light calisthenic and flexibility work for your shoulders, elbows, and wrists, you'd smash the Grand down in no time flat. That's the approach that worked for me.

Finally, awesome picture of your son. Looks like he's gonna be a great one someday I can kinda relate, as my nephews seem to love watching "Unka Bwad hurting nails".

Edited January 4, 2008 by Brad Manion

[foxyj75]

Thanks alot Brad, for the support, and the ideas! I will definitely incorporate it into future performances. :rock

You know, something funny happened at my show. I was passing around the stuff for the kids to try before I bent/broke it, and as I was passing around the 1/2'' hrs bar, a burly 15 y.o. put it under his foot, pulled as hard as he could, and got about a 15 degree kink in it! I said "Well, good job, but I'll just take what you did, and turn it into a fish! " It blew his mind when I took the bar, and easily turned it into a fish in about 15 seconds! I learned my lesson with that one; in the future, I'll only pass around the 5/8''!!

Concerning the phonebooks, I did quarter them. I left a couple bindings intact for the kids to have. My biggest problem is that it is extremely hard for me to find phonebooks. My local phone co. won't give me any more free ones, and they're getting hard to find. If you know of a better way to get them, I'm all ears!!

Congratulations on your first public show Foxman. They sure are fun, aren't they? Also, it's a good thing you're doing for these kids. You never really know who's going to be reached by what you do, but it'll be worth it, trust me. I've always been fascinated by strength, but never really understood what one can do through years of hard work until Fall 1990. I was a 7'th grader and one of my school's gym teachers, Tom McCaughan, ran an intramural weightlifting program. He did the usual demos with weights, but what all us youngsters thought was cool was when he did Highland Games demos, all the while explaining the history behind the games. Mind you, this was 5 years or so before Braveheart came out, but I was very fascinated and that has lasted to this day. Tom told us that if were willing to work at it, the rewards would be tremendous in time. Now that I'm 30, I can say that he was right. Though I've done tougher stuff since then, my favorite demo has to be my very first. I was helping run a high school strongman contest a few years ago, and I got to do my first demo, shredding a deck of cards, side by side with my original "sensei", Tom McCaughan. Words can't describe how much fun that was. Talking with him afterwards, I began to get the ideas for all the stuff I can do now, which makes for a much better show.

Here's some ideas for other fun stuff to try at subsequent demos, if you're interested:

1) After tearing a phonebook in half, try tearing another phonebook into three pieces vertically. Seeing that you have an edition of the White Pages, it's not too thick a book for such an attempt, but for some reason, I have a tough time with those as opposed to books of Yellow Pages, which are thicker.

2) After doing number 1, try seeing how fast you can shred 5 or 6 moderately thick phonebooks in half. I had probably my best response ever to a demo when I did that. I was a little upset I didn't tie/beat my PR, but I still did quite well for me. Plus, even though this is a little bit of stress on the forearms, it won't burn your hands up like card tearing will.

3) Horseshoes, horseshoes, horseshoes With your ability, this would be a great finale and an interesting change of pace from the long bar bending. Don't know what sorta damage you could do to wrenches, but if you're pretty good at those, I definitely see you one day bending a big ol' draft horseshoe like Pat P. at a demo. If what you're going for is making a strong lasting impression, THAT would do it.

Other stuff I've learned doing demos:

1) Kids are pretty cool during these, even up into high school age, but many times, young adults and adults tend to question you and want to see if you're tricking them. I used to get a little annoyed, but I found a mature way to handle this. I simply invite the inquiring person to be a volunteer. I show the guest participant exactly how the feat is done, even going so far as to explain the physical principles, before I let him put his best effort into whatever he's trying. Once he understands that what he and I are trying is no "trick", I then thank him for his effort and encourage the crowd to give the volunteer some applause for the effort before I make my effort.

2) Things that you and I, and every other old-time strongman practicioner automatically understand to be easier are actually more visually appealing to a crowd. For example, even if I were able to bend an 80d spike for a demo, I wouldn't, because I've learned the crowd will "ooh and ah" more over a 120d bend (which I can do). I would keep that in mind if you were doing a demo of horseshoes with a DC0 and a DC3. Both are tough, but even though the DC0 should be a visibly tougher bend for you, people sitting up close can easily see that the DC3 (if there is such a size) is bigger, so they tend to be more impressed.

Anyways, I hope my ideas helped. I'm constantly having to tailor my approach and I always welcome input from other old-time strongman practicioners as well as other people. Great example = I bend 60d's at shows, but never do 1/4" G5 and G8 bolts anymore and instead go straight to 70d nails and then 120d spikes. As my friend pointed out, the bolts look like the same size as the 60d nails, and no matter how well you explain it to the crowd, same size implements = repetitive = boredom. I got around this by going from DO bending a 60d then a 1/4" G5 and then a 1/4" G8 to reverse bending a 60d, then DU bending a 60d, and finishing up with DO bending a 60d before going on to the 70d and bigger nails. If I can ever Heslep bend a 60d, I'll add that to the current rotation.

Also, congrats on that Grand attempt. Outstanding effort considering you just did a show. Seeing how much damage you did in 5 minutes, and based on my experience, I'd have to guess that if you were able to take a complete break from training for 1 week, doing only light calisthenic and flexibility work for your shoulders, elbows, and wrists, you'd smash the Grand down in no time flat. That's the approach that worked for me.

Finally, awesome picture of your son. Looks like he's gonna be a great one someday I can kinda relate, as my nephews seem to love watching "Unka Bwad hurting nails".

[MalachiMcMullen]

Jeremiah, my mind is offiicially blown. Simply amazing, I knew the second I saw that DC1 bend on video, when you said you could always get them to 90ish degrees that you were going to be a force to be reckoned with. AMAZING progress and GREAT write up!

BTW, you could organize alittle "phone book drive" at your church. Have people bring in the old ones they have instead of throwing them away, then once your finished with them you can recycle them(they're MUCH easier to recycle once torn up). You'd be helping yourself find phone books AND helping the environment in a small way :rock

Edited January 4, 2008 by MalachiMcMullen

[Brad Manion]

About the phonebooks, go to your local recycling center, if there is one. Unfortunately, you must always have your eyes open for new resources. I made so many trips to my local recycling center (in Florissant, a suburb of St. Louis, MO) that the Florissant Public Works put up signs saying that "rummaging through bins is prohibited". Good to see that I influenced public policy Kinda odd since everything I shred is returned to the recycling center. Anyways, I would maybe check near the checkout lines of local K-mart, WalMart, Target stores. Some of them will have apartment ads, classified ads, free local newspapers, and sometimes editions of the Yellow Pages. I remember to grab a few every time (never too many), and yes, I make it a point to always buy something else so it doesn't look I'm there just for the phonebooks.

Of course, the more demos you do, especially if for family and friends, some of them will naturally remember you as "that guy", and they'll hang on to extras for you.

Good luck to you.

[foxyj75]

Zach, that phone book drive is a good idea!!! I'll have to do that before my next show. Thanks for the kind words and support!! I really appreciate it!

[Tim71]

Great job! Man I knew you had the goods from the first few PMs. You've got crazy potential even beyond what you've already done.

I'm like you on the phone books. I do work for the post office so I get some of the extras from customers who know I do that stuff but my local phone books aren't real thick.

When I did my first show, I realized too that the back to back stuff is alot harder than the teams that go around and get to give each other a rest. Going solo is tough but I actually like it in a way. Commiting yourself to do something in front of a crowd and having nobody else to fall back on it kind of a rush.

Great job and I'm sure there will be many more to come.

Oh yeah, I've wondered how "safe" 1/2 inch at the longer lengths is to pass around. Any more I usually fish 30 inches of it and that may make it a little safer. Any shorter and it becomes awkward for me.

Later and God bless you in this endeavor.

Tim

[foxyj75]

Thanks Tim! The kind words and support really mean alot to me!! I just may have to try that 30'' x 1/2'' for fishing. It wouls seem to be alot "safer" LOL!

God Bless,

Jeremiah

[Alawadhi]

That's just amazing! And you joined this board just 2 month back? Your forearm looks HUGE in the 60d photo. I know you will kill the grand fresh

[Bill Piche]

This is great stuff. The first thing that struck me when I saw the title is how things have grown in the years here as far as a community and the development of people that are members here to be able to put on these demonstrations and further propagate grip training to the masses.

[dhartnet]

That's just amazing! And you joined this board just 2 month back? Your forearm looks HUGE in the 60d photo. I know you will kill the grand fresh

WOW !

Nice job Jeremiah!

A grip legend in the making for sure!

[MalachiMcMullen]

Oh yeah Fox, don't forget to mention the gripboard or grip training every so often!

[kerbjr]

Good work brother the Lord will surely bless your efforts. I have been involved with a religous strongman group now for 3yrs and it is amazing what god can do if you allow him to work in your life. Brad Mentioned Tom McCaughn, who used to perform for Omega force, he was largely responsible for getting me started as well and has kept our group supplied with phonebooks ....Anyhow keep up the good work and if you ever need or want any advice about performances drop me a pr....Brett

[foxyj75]

Thanks for the comments and support guys! Brett, I really appreciate the offer, and I'm sure I'll take you up on it!

Later!

[odin]

Jeremiah,

Congratulations on your stunning progress and your first public show! I'm happy that i got to see you perform at your first grip contest and it is obvious that you've found your sport and more importantly, a way to reach others.

I help run an outpatient substance abuse program in Charlotte NC. If you're ever in the area, it would be great if you could talk to our clients and show them what you can do. A lot of our guys struggle with using their free time & with boredom when not using, despite weekly time with them spent planning their recreational goals,

Somehow pinching block weights and grippers doesn't really excite most of them too much as a hobby. "Bob, how much will I get paid if I'm able to lift the Big Dumbbell?". Telling them I'm doing it "for fun" draws blank stares except in a few.

I think bending and the other more interesting feats might interest them a lot more, but I'm about a year away from doing much in those areas, based on the feedback my L elbow is giving me.

Edited January 4, 2008 by odin

[Gripper42004]

Great job! Keep Grip'n "4" the Lord.