Saskatoon strongman Nathan Grimard was introduced to competitive lifting through an unlikely source, an Instagram group called Alleyway Strongman.
However, once joining, his initial training didn’t begin in a gym.
“Originally, Alleyway Strongman trained out of a back alley,” Grimard said. “It was just a group of a few guys, and then, in June of 2018 I believe, Black Anvil officially opened and it’s been the home for strongman (ever since).”
Other than their love for the sport which involves lifting, pulling, and carrying heavy and unorthodox objects, it’s the bonds of friendship and the strength of community that keeps Grimard, 22, and other strongmen coming back.
“That was one of the biggest draws, just how good of friends you become,” strongman competitor Tom Bryson said.
“Even when you’re competing against guys and you want to beat them, but, you don’t want them to get injured, and you don’t want anyone to mess up. You want everyone (that) you have to beat to be at their best. So, you’re always encouraging other people.”
“Everybody respects each other because everyone knows how much work has to go into it to get to a certain level,” Grimard said. “They know the grind day-in (and) day-out. So, we all just respect each other.”
As a way to further grow their community Alleyway offers free beginner strongman classes, allowing newcomers to test their hand at the sport for free.
“Especially nowadays, it’s people picking and choosing what they want to go into. So, if you get an opportunity to go down, meet some people, train; if it’s without a fee, just whatever gets people exposed to it,” Bryson said.
That introduction was all it took to hook Grimard, who now dreams of competing on the world stage.
“The dream is to get an invite to the world’s strongest man eventually,” Grimard said. “But, that would be eight to ten years down the road. But, I’ll keep working towards that.”