Well, things never go as planned, but in the case everything still worked out. I came off a great training cycle going into the meet, and everything felt great. The only thing that could have been better was another couple weeks to learn my new Metal Jack Deadlift Suit. I had only pulled in it 6 times going into the meet: 3 absolutely terrible, and 3 great workouts.

Typically, I am nervous all week heading into a meet. Not the case this time, the nerves didn't really hit me 'till the day of. In the warmup room I settled in a little bit and talked to several other Elitefts Team members, and met a couple new teammates, including Sheri and Ken Wetham, who are two of the nicest people I've ever met. Despite the plates being in Kilos, I knew exactly what I wanted to hit in warmups and everything felt great, despite weighing in at a scrawny 214 lbs, and I knew I was ready to go. My last warmup was 675(ish), which felt light and fast.

1st Attempt: 725. I planned to be conservative on my opener to get some nerves out. Despite the big crowd I didn't even notice anything outside of the platform. 725 was as easy as I planned it to be and was a great confidence booster.

2nd Attempt: Planned 775. With kilos I had to make it 777. I had no doubt in my mind that I would get this with the way my training had been. I had the straps on my suit cranked tighter than ever which made it tough to get to the bar and I didn't get a solid grip on the bar from the start and I could tell right away. The weight moved fast and I had it locked out easily, but the weight was slipping the entire time and I wasn't able to hold on long enough. Despite shaving my callouses down it still ripped the skin off my hand and I was bleeding pretty good.
bryan doberdruk hand

3rd Attempt: I planned at least 800 and have no doubt I would have hit it if my second had gone according to plan. I took 777 again. Despite my hand being torn I still had no doubt I'd get it. Just like I thought it hurt like hell grabbing the bar and it wasn't nearly as smooth as the previous attempt but I locked it out and that was good enough to take home 1st place in the lightweight division.

I'm obviously happy because I won the meet, especially being my first meet as an Elitefts Team Member. I still feel like I have unfinished business with an 800+lb deadlift. I have no doubt I am strong enough to do it or that I could have done it in that meet.

Thank you's: It is overwhelming to have so many people who are willing to sacrifice their time to support you. I had at least 50+ family, friends, Elitefts Teammates, and Strength Lab family come out to watch the meet. I can't thank you all enough. And a all of the congratulations in person, text, and social media the past few days.

To my wife, Jaclyn. I'm sure it's hard enough putting up with me on a regular basis, let alone preparing for a meet. She is by far the most supportive person I could imagine. I know I don't say it enough, thanks for everything you do for me!

Obviously, to Dave and Traci Tate for believing in me to represent the company you've worked so hard to build. I will be forever grateful for the opportunity and the support you've given me.

Moving forward, I will be back into raw powerlifting but will continue to mess around with some gear here and there. I would like to do another deadlift only meet at some point just to get that 800 off my back. In the mean time back to training hard!!