I’ve been home for about a week and by now I usually dump my camera and delete the photos from my phone so they don’t take up too much space. But I can’t. I keep looking through my photos and reminiscing about how amazing those 4 days at USAPL Raw Nationals were. Some of the highlights were meeting and watching Jenn Thompson bench 313 lbs at 132 lb bw. She is just such a genuinely wonderful person. I spoke with her briefly the morning of and you would never guess that she was about to unleash a beast on the platform. Seeing girls like Payal Ghosh and Tina Daneshmand pull almost 3 times their body weight and watching Bonica Lough and Leann Hewitt squat and bench more than most guys I know was truly legendary to see in person. And then there was the awe-inspiring pull from Kim Walford. It received 2 red lights and is still highly contested, but as we heard before, some of the best lifts of all time don’t get white lights. It was a humbling experience, to say the least. And of course, being present as Ray Williams squatted over 1,000 lbs! I know he’s not a lady but that was too impressive not to mention!

This weekend reminded me why I love powerlifting. I just can’t seem to keep my eyes away from the platform. Raw strength is so amazing to me. Being 4 weeks out from my own meet, this weekend has really gotten me pumped.

But mostly, I have to say that meeting so many of you really made the weekend amazing. Not only to see you in action, those of you who graced the platform but also actually being able to speak with you in person, to be able to make Instagram and facebook friends real life friends. I can’t tell you how many times Corey and I looked over at each other in disbelief, we couldn’t believe that we were actually there. We met some of the greats in the sport but meeting those of you that have been around GWPL from the start really made the weekend worth it.  You ladies, who are mothers and wives and girlfriends and sisters and daughter… just regular people with regular lives, that love this sport just as much, if not more than I do, you are the ones that I love to meet and hug. I am honored and so happy to be able to do what I do. It gives me the opportunity to see what an incredible community female powerlifting really is.

I could literally ramble on and on about how great those four days were but I won’t… I hope you enjoyed Raw Nationals from my perspective in these photos. (Click Here to see the rest on Facebook) If you see yourself, please feel free to copy the photo and share… all I ask is that you give credit for it.  Tag @girlswhopowerlift or @iron_knight_