Josh Bryant - Speed Strong

You must believe in yourself to make something of yourself. While that may sound trite, it doesnt make it any less true. And, like any truth, you must experience it to know it.

The journey to the attainment of self-affirmation can get a powerful boost when someone else believes in you, when they say you matter.

Knowing we matter is crucial for any of us at any time, but it is particularly poignant during that formative period of adolescence. Perhaps one of the most self-affirming experiences is the confidence gained through athletics. With dedication and discipline, a young person can watch an almost mystical transformation of character through the acquisition of strength and skill.

Certainly, that was the case in our experience. From our determined efforts, our bodies became hard and our hands became skilled in the arts of contact sports. Thereafter, we got noticed. Girls turned their heads in our direction (perhaps not as many as we would have liked). School administrators gave us praise.

We would also receive compliments from many of the old-timers in the community. You know, the guys who skip social media updates to still read the sports page of the local newspaper. One such individual was Al Torrio . He had kids who attended the private school in our town and achieved athletic acclaim in their own right. Although they had since graduated, Al continued to follow sports and liked to be involved in high school athletics.

As we wrote about in our book The Saga of the Tijuana Barbell Club , we grew up in a small beach town. Now, in the sprawling hills behind our community, there were a growing number of premier wineries. In the midst of these estates, which were more snooty and refined than bacchanalian and rowdy, Al had a horse ranch.

The stories that came down from the hills about his ranch were epic. He would hold parties for league championship teams. Nothing sinister or out of control, just some old-school fun. You know, real backwoods stuff. ATVs, skeet shooting, hog hunting, and even some catfish noodling (before the time-honored method of fishing became a viral sensation on the internet).

So, we had this on our minds the day we ran into Al, as we walked out of the gym. He was wearing his trademark tank top, which revealed a broad chest and powerful shoulders, and old-school shorts, which showed his thick upper legs. All the big muscle groups were clearly developed.

Hey, I know that thousand-yard stare. You guys just finished up some hard training. Man, you boys dont mess around.

We attempted to brush off his compliment.

You cant hustle me, Ive been to the shadiest of Detroit pool halls and came out on top.

Not sure how to respond, we gave a slight chuckle.

Hey, enough small talk, I got to hit some shoulders, he said while shrugging his broad delts for effect. Yeah, fellas, Im having some people up at my place this weekend, some coaches and a few trainers. It would be great to have you guys there. Ill have my secretary get you guys the details.

All right, time to hit the gym, he said, without waiting for us to respond. He nodded brusquely and rushed on to his workout.

So, after a call from his secretary (who had a voice like dripping honey), that next weekend we found ourselves pulling up to Als Tuscan-style palatial estate.

As we stepped into his foyer, we noticed the high beam ceiling, ornate chandelier, and marble floor, which made the house look like something from a gangster movie. This wasnt surprising, given the rumor that Al was a connected guy (meaning he had associations with some of the families back east).

Before our imagination could get the better of us, Al came to greet us with a broad smile.

Fellas, I am so glad you could make it. Come out back, everyone is out by the BBQ pit, he said, making a broad stroke with his massive arm. A simple wave of the hand would have been too dainty for Al. There was nothing dainty about Al.

Following him out back, we saw an expansive setting of a lush garden and stables framing one of the most elaborate BBQ setups we had ever seen. Sitting around a large spit of meat rotating over a massive bed was a motley crew of local physical cultural legendssome we knew and some we just knew of.

There was Coach Chiefy (from Jailhouse Strong: 8 x 8 Offseason Powerlifting Program ), the mystical Rocky (from Jailhouse Strong: Tactical Shield Training ), the premier tactical athlete Thic Vic (from Tactical Strongman: The Complete Guide ), and that blue-collar workingman hero Bosco (from Time Under Tension: Tactical Training ), along with a couple of local prizefighters, a smattering of local gridiron and baseball diamond stars who had made it to the big show, and a few of the incomparable best of the bouncing trade.