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Dear USAPL Pennsylvania members,
It is with great sadness that I write, as of this year’s
Pennsylvania State Championship on March 1st and 2nd that
I will be stepping down as the USA Powerlifting Pennsylvania State Chair. I
have enjoyed my time as your chair and hope that the relationships I have built
will continue, even though I can no longer hold this position.
In 2001, when I took
over the state chair position, Pennsylvania
had dwindled down to less then 200 lifters. This is a far cry from the days when
Pennsylvania not only had over
350 members, but also hosted some of the top national events in the country. With
not even a State Championship in 2000, the people of powerlifting knew drastic
things had to happen to get Pennsylvania Powerlifting back on the road to where
it once was.
I was asked by several members of USAPLPA to help make this
change by becoming state chair of a state I did not even live in. Although I
lived in New York, my roots and
my Powerlifting network were in Pennsylvania
so it seemed like a good thing at the time.
As your state chair for the last two years, I believe our
team has done a lot of things to turn Powerlifting in Pennsylvania
back around to where it once was. Thanks to the efforts of some dedicated people,
Pennsylvania has hosted some of
the largest regional events on the east coast with exceptional quality.
December of 2002, a goal in Pennsylvania Powerlifting was met by again hosting
a National event in Pennsylvania.
During my time as State Chair, Pennsylvania Powerlifting
growth has exceeded my expectations. What was expected to be 3-4 weekends a
year away from my family and home in New York
has grown to over 10 weekends over the past year. My journey for any
Pennsylvania Powerlifting event ranges from 2 hours to 7.5 hours each way. This type of travel is something that
impacted my family, my job, my finances, my health, and my training. I am a
young lifter, who started Powerlifting to compete, but this type of travel,
time, and energy does not benefit my lifting. It also takes many of my
non-travel hours to update and maintain such a high quality state powerlifting
page as PurePowerlifting.com. This is a job that is not required by the
members, but something that is appreciated by the members. It is a place where
lifters can find state records, and find news and information on becoming a
better lifter. I don’t regret what I have done, or the time I have spent, but
this is the time to make a change.
During my time as
State Chair, my non-powerlifting life has also expanded to getting married. My
wife Jenny, has supported my powerlifting involvement every step of the
way. She has become a certified judge,
so she could come and help me during these weekends away. In my professional
life, the job that pays, I have been promoted. Promotions just like any job, is
an expectation of more from an employee, this has taken even more time out of
my already busy schedule.
I have greatly enjoyed the time I have spent as your state
chair, but it is something that I will no longer be able to do. I would like to
remain a support for the new State Chair, with transferring State Records and
etc. I am offering to keep part of
PurePowerlifting.com as the home for USAPL Pennsylvania’s
web-site, but it will require support from sponsors and meet directors for me
to keep it running.
I don’t regret what I
have done, or the time I have spent, but this is the time to make a change.
Sincerely,
Steven T. Mann
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