ET: Congrats on your Huge win at nationals!!! How does it feel to be North America's Stongest Man?

Rothwell:    It felt good, then sore, then good again...

ET:  Give us a rundown of your experiences of 2007 NAS nationals at Circus Circus.
   

Rothwell: After wondering around the Circus-Circus for a bit I found the back door and eventually the back parking lot. On Friday I cheered on our lightweights and got yelled at by Dione for being in the competitor's area. Once they were done, I made the long trip back to my hotel room past all the possible distractions that Vegas offers. Saturday I made it out early and tried to stay out of the sun. The competition started off pretty well with tire, it is a decent event for me so I was confident I would finish the course; the only thing going through my head was "flip now, puke later". My finish was good enough to put me in the final heat of the farmers so I got to sit around and listen to how slick the handles were. They weren't the best nor were they the worst, but in retrospect they were probably small enough to hook grip. I made the turn and about half way back - good enough for 5th or 6th. That put me back into the pack for yoke; another good event. It ended up being a darn good heat and produced the two best times. Thankfully my guy was quicker on the stopwatch. This again put me in the last heat for the Kettle bell. What a great event! Slow down commands and a strangely uncoordinated arm left me off of my training best, but good enough for 3rd or 4th. And then the final event, STONES! I again was in a position to go in the final heat. After the best application of tacky I have ever been a part of, I realized that it was going to be a long time before I was up. This led to the discovery that tacky turns a different color and consistency if left on for extended periods of time. Nevertheless I eventually took my starting position bathed in warped tacky and with the knowledge that if I put up all five stones in a decent time I would win. After loading the fist stone I realized that the tacky was still quite tacky when I had to take the time to peel my limbs off the stone so it didn't follow me to the second stone. After that I played it pretty safe and they all went to their home easily. Then I performed the strongman ritual of rubbing WD-40 into open wounds and abrasions until most of the discolored tacky was off.

ET: What was your training like going into this competition?

Rothwell:    Many squat thrusts and chins...I alternated between the Hostess Diet and the Chinander Diet, consisting of cashews washed down with 50% Guinness/50% half & half.

ET: How did you get involved in Strongman competitions?

Rothwell:  We did some tires and farmers for GPP at Iowa with Chris Doyle. Then in February 2007 I transferred within my company from Naperville to Des Moines. When I was out and about in DM I noticed a flyer for Iowa Strongest Man so I jotted down the contact info and called the next day. After checking my references Shawn Baier invited me up to his place for a training session. After training here and there for a few months I started making it as close to a weekly thing as I could. They haven't kicked me out yet.

ET: What is your athletic background (starting from the beginning)?

Rothwell: I was born a lineman and just got bigger. After a brief stint in soccer and skateboarding I stopped lying to myself and started track (throws) and football in 8th grade and then added wrestling in high school. I had the opportunity to continue football and throwing in college.
   

ET: I know you played college football for the University of Iowa.  What was your experiences like there?  Most memorable moments?

Rothwell:     It was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. I was on a team that went from 1-10 to back to back 10 win seasons. It showed me definitively that hard work and doing things right can get you anywhere you want to be.    Men are forged in the fires of that weight room. I have seen more freakish feats of athleticism then I could have imagined. There are more memorable moments that I could list here. If I had to pick one it would have to be either running Tampa, FL after spanking the gators in their home state or any Saturday night at 420 N. Dubuque St.

ET: What is your motivation to continue competing past college sports?
   

Rothwell: I get a l little weird without a competitive outlet, especially having to be around engineers and architects every day at a desk. That, and kicking ass is a life style you can't just turn off.

ET: What are some of your greatest athletic accomplishments?

Rothwell:    7-time letter winner at Iowa, Outback Bowl Champion, Third place in discus in Big Ten, All-time Discus list at Iowa, Iowa Football Clean record, and now 2007 NAS Champion.
   

ET: What are some of your greatest accomplishments-non athletic?
   

Rothwell: Engaged to a wonderful woman, B.S.E.E. from the University of Iowa,

ET: Tell us about your family.
   

Rothwell: My mother Pam and stepfather live in McFarland WI, I have two younger brothers. The second in line and athletic one of the trio is Ryan and he is currently in his second year playing defensive tackle for Winona State. The baby of the group and creative one is Robert and he will be joining Ryan at Winona next semester to study film. Mother - 5'4"/110lbs., Father - 5'10"/190lbs, average son - 6'3"/300lbs. I can't figure it out either.

ET: Tell us about your training group/training conditions.
   

Rothwell: I couldn't ask for anything more. They are a great group of guys with more knowledge, intensity, and determination than I could ever hope to assemble. We are all basically leaching off of Baier and the "Garage-Mahal" that we get to train in with all his equipment. We have enough space to leave events set up and even to do short yoke and farmers inside. Complete with heater for the winter. About the only thing we can't do inside is Conon's wheel. Zeb our 175 pounder is "intensity in ten cities", Schuler is 200lb going on HWT and the thickest little man I have ever seen, Ike is our utility man that can compete from 300 down to possibly 231, and Baier is like the older brother that makes sure we stay at least somewhat on track. I could think of anything better than training and competing alongside those guys.

ET: What are your goals now in strongman?
   

Rothwell: Qualify for Pro Nationals, win pro nationals, qualify for WSM, win WSM, promote and train.

ET: What are your non strongman related goals?
   

Rothwell: Travel, raise a family, start a business, retire at 50, come out of retirement because I am bored out of my mind, then do whatever it is that strikes me.

ET:  Is there anything else you would like to share with the guys from KCSTRONGMAN.COM?
   

Rothwell: Go Hawks!!!, can't wait for the battle in the basement.