They build them big in Oregon – and powerful.
Jeff Rose’s final order of business on his island adventure was to sit across from two-time defending champion Bronson Tiwanak, prop his feet up against a dividing board and play tug-of-war with a wooden stick.
The stick shattered once and Rose was forced to bend once, but he never broke in winning the Big Island Substance Abuse Council’s annual Summer Jam strongman competition at Edith Kanaka’ole Multipurpose Stadium.
“I’m glad it’s over,” Rose, 35, said. “My vacation starts now. My wife has been on vacation since Thursday, and now I’m on vacation.”
The 6-foot-6 Rose, of Molalla, Ore., earned some free time, summoning more strength as the hours-long competition wore on under a blazing sun.
He won the fifth event, atlas stones – repeatedly picking up a 330-pound rock and tossing it over a bar with relative ease – to take a narrow lead before surviving the winner-take-all against Tiwanak, of Oahu, in MAS wrestling.
Rose has won strongman competitions on the mainland, but his first such Hawaii event was special for a many reasons.
“It’s similar, but this is a very hard event,” he said. “The heat was hard for an Oregonian and humid, and having six events, we normally do five.”
Rose was easily the tallest competitor in either division – Kailua-Kona’s Sean Gutekanst dominated to win among the lightweights – which he said was an advantage and a disadvantage.
It helped in the stone throw and his long arms also came in handy in the farmer’s walk, a lift and carry event, which he placed third.
His height was a detriment, however, in the deadlift. In this case, participants had to lift the back end of a Mustang GT Convertible, top down, with two females from Imua Iron in the front seats. Still, Rose lifted the Mustang 27 times, second only to Kamuela Wassman’s 31.
Gutekanst lifted the back end of a Hyundai Elantra 33 times.
“The two events I had never done before were MAS wrestling and the truck pull,” Rose said. “After watching video and other people go, it’s a technique thing.
“Atlas stones and farmer’s walk are always good to me.”
He was the most consistent overall, finishing in the top four in each event.
Tiwanak claimed the log press, and Wassman finished third despite winning three events (truck pull, farmer’s walk were his other victories). He also finished third last year and second in 2014, and afterward he vowed to come back next year to try and win again.
If it was a bodybuilding or physique competition, the ripped Gutekanst would be the runaway winner every year.
He took second last season behind Tiwanak when there was only an open division and planned to compete in heavyweight this season before scratching plans to bulk up, barely cutting down to weigh in under the 231-pound threshold.
“Bulking up would be more ideal, and being lean actually works against me,” he said. “I really like (strongman), but for the other 364 days a year I have to be happy with myself.”
Gutekanst, 32 and co-owner of Imua Iron in Kailua-Kona, overpowered the rest of his field. In addition to deadlift, he also won the truck pull, farmer’s walk and MAS, his favorite event.
Waiakea graduate Devon Preston finished second on the strength of four runner-up finishes and Joey Cadiz, who won the log press, was third.
Like Rose, Gutekanst also earned entry to strongman nationals in October in Iowa. He was noncommittal about attending, but planned on being back in Hilo next year at a division to be determined.
“Leading up to a competition, I want to bulk up and start putting on weight,” he said. “But when you start putting on weight and start seeing the abs go away, you start doing cardio to get it back and you end up losing strength.”
• Officiating certain events and putting on an otherworldly exhibition of strength in others was Martins Licis, who’s participating in the World’s Strongest Man in Africa in mid-August.
• Dr. Hannah Preston-Pita, CEO of the Big Island Substance Abuse Council, didn’t just organize the Summer Jam and strongman, she also showed off her powerlifting chops, performing the tire flip.
She said the ever-expanding competition will be a two-day event next year and include a Pro-Am.
