STRONG MAN

CAPTION: John MacDonald lifts a Honda Civic Thursday night at the new Evangeline Recreation Centre during the P.E.I. Men’s 230-Pound Strongman Competition. MacDonald eventually won the event.

CAPTION: Ashley Profitt picks up two gas cans on her way to the finish line at the P.E.I. Ladies Strength and Fitness Championships Thursday night at the new Evangeline Recreation Centre. Profitt eventually won the event.

John MacDonald wins P.E.I. Men’s 230-Pound Strongman Champshionship

Ryan Quigley

Journal Pioneer

John MacDonald defeated Terry MacKay in a tie-breaker tug-of-war competition to become the P.E.I. Men’s Under 230- Pound Strongman Championship winner Thursday night at the new Evangeline Recreation Centre.

MacDonald, of York P.E.I. and MacKay, of Bridgewater, N.S. and reigning two time champion of the competition, were tied on the leader board after four events that seen them pulling tractors 50 feet, flipping tractor tires, lifting a car and a medley race lifting a log, a large rock, a keg and a cement weighted lobster trap.

The men then faced off in a tug of war to determine the winner, something MacDonald says he was intimidated by.

“‘I suck at tug-of-war,’ that’s what was going through my head,” he said. “I was kind of hoping we’d go for a pose down or a push-up competition, but tug-of-war it was.”

Third place finisher for the event was Summerside resident Allie Gallant.

MacDonald felt pretty good about his win Thursday night.

“I didn’t think it was going to happen. I don’t really train the strongman that often. I was just hoping to come out and have some fun and winning was a big plus.”

The natural power lifter said the dead lifting the car was the hardest event of the night for him.

“I got in the wrong position, kind of on my toes for it and hanging on for dear life,” he said. “(Dead lifting) is something I train everyday but it’s totally different when you’re lifting those kinds of implements and holding it there all day long.”

MacDonald wasn’t the only winner of the night.

Ashley Profitt took home the P.E.I. Ladies Strength and Fitness Championships crown, beating out her closest competitor by only a few tenths of a second.

“It was pretty intense, I knew I was going to be close,” she said. “It was scary too, I knew I was going to do not bad but I wasn’t expecting to be first, that’s for sure.”

The 23-year old Lot 16 native said she was happy to have won.

“I worked hard to get here and stuff. I did a major weight loss since last August so it was kind of a, ‘Good job Ashley, you’re going in the right direction,’” she said. “It tells me I can do whatever I want if I put my mind to it.”

Profitt beat out second place finisher Rachelle Arsenault and third place finisher for the title.