Deadlift contest set to debut at Black Dirt Days

By: 
Robert Maharry

Eric Engle and Josh Cordes are ready to bring something different to the annual Black Dirt Days celebration in Conrad—something that most of the audience has probably never seen before.
           
The first ever deadlift competition will begin behind the Conrad Public Library on Saturday with a weigh-in at noon, a rules meeting at 12:45 and lifting at 1:00 p.m. They’re expecting between 50 and 60 lifters, and they’ve received an influx of sponsorships from local businesses to cover trophies, prizes and necessary construction equipment.
           
“It’s really cool to have something different and to have the community support, and to have people coming from different parts of the state, that’s pretty neat,” Cordes said. “I’m thinking it will be a pretty good success. I think it’s going to be neat just for the people who don’t know what it is to introduce them to it. They may have never gotten a chance to see it or do it.”
           
Lifters are expected to make the trip to Conrad from across the state, and many will be first time visitors to the community. And while Engle and Cordes—who hatched the idea after competing in Baxter last summer—are crossing their ‘T’s’ and dotting their ‘I’s’ to make sure that everything goes off without a hitch, they’re excited to offer festivalgoers a whole new experience. 
 
For the full story, see this week's Grundy Register. Subscribe by calling (319) 824-6958 or clicking here. 

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