AMERICAN KETTLEBELL CLUB REPORT "We Made the Right Decision" article by Eric Liford, Editor AmericanKettlebellClub.com
Below is an exact reprint of an article by Eric Liford, American Kettlbell Club (AKC), Editor-in-Chief after returning from a 5-week European/East Coast tour with Valery Fedorenko, AKC head coach and world champion kettlebell lifter.
We made a good decision.
We ended our 5-week European adventure with a Certification in New York, hosted by our Fire/Rescue Advisor, Mike Stefano. It was a very emotional trip. Valery had not seen his family in 8 years, and his Coach in over 10. He saw people and places that brought back lots of memories for him. I'm glad I was there to witness it all. I have lots of footage that I'm looking through already, so stay tuned for some interesting bits of information.
When we arrived in New York we were met by Mike. He was on time of course. When you leave home for 5 weeks, travel to multiple countries where they speak very little English, and have just flown across the Atlantic successfully, seeing a familiar face is instantly soothing. For that moment New York was home and Mike was family!
Many thanks to Mike, and we apologize for not being able to function that first night. We had to catch up on some much needed sleep so we could be ready for a full house at Certification.
The next evening taught us something about our friend Mike. We trusted he was the right man in terms of Fire/Rescue experience and how it could relate to Kettlebells. He's a retired captain from the FDNY, and now helps others prepare for the physical exams for Fire service using Kettlebells and other methods. He wrote a very successful book for Firefighters and is in the process of writing another.
Mike is also very energetic and enthusiastic about kettlebell training and has been one of our biggest assets in the spread of proper kettlebell lifting. All this we knew, but we learned first hand something else.
Let bravery be thy choice, but not bravado - Menander (342 B.C. - 292 B.C.)
The above quote is an old one, but I can't think of anything more appropriate for how we feel about Mike Stefano. After our full day of rest Mike invited us to dinner with his wife, Kim, and his best student, Ashley. On our way to the restaurant we all spotted a destroyed motorcycle in the opposite lane, and a guy laying on his back in the large grass median that separated the 4 lane roadway. Quicker than I could process what was going on, Mike jerked into the grass and instructed Kim to call 911. Before I could figure out how to get out of Mikes SUV, he was on his knees over the poor guy that was obviously still in shock. He didn't even know what had happened to him.
We weren't the first on the scene. There was a volunteer fireman that I suppose just happened to see it all, but this guy was in panic mode. He was running around screaming, CALL 911! CALL 911! We already had, of course. Mike took over. The volunteer looked at me and Valery and said, "YOU. and YOU! Help me get this motorcycle out of the road!" Maybe it was a stupid thing to do looking back, but we ran over to what was left of a motorcycle and dragged it out of the road while spilling fuel.
When we came back to Mike he had this guy under control, not letting him view his mangled ankle. I mean, the skin was completely removed, bone exposed, so who really knows what we were looking at to be honest. One fellow motorcycle rider came on the scene later, took a 1-second look and began vomiting, so it was not a light injury.
Needless to say, it was not a good start to a fun evening, but I commented later how calmly and smoothly Mike handled everything. I've seen some trauma before, but there is a definite skill to how one reacts to it, and for sure how one takes charge of the situation. Anyway, the guy stabilized, there seemed to be no major, life threatening injuries and the Police/Rescue personnel came on the scene.
LESSON 1: It's not Brave to ride a motorcycle, it's Bravado.
When I complimented Mike on being so calm and effective at the scene, he didn't say what I expected. Stuff like, "yeah, I've seen it all. This was no big deal." Or " We fireman are trained to handle this type of thing. We are professionals." All this is true, but not Mike's words. He never once showed any kind of BRAVADO. He just explained what would happen if he showed panic or overreacted etc. His concern was with the victim. In other words, he was still in instructor mode even with me.
I'm not going to call Mike a hero for this situation because I'm sure he's done many more things that would qualify him as such, but no doubt he is the right man for our Fire/Rescue Advisor and we are proud to associate our name with his. We made a good decision in Mike Stefano.
LESSON 2: Let bravery be thy choice, but not bravado - Menander
One last thing. Mike did an excellent job at the Certification. We have had so many positive remarks, both in email and on our Forum, about him following this Certification. I was also watching him instruct during the working phase of the course and he literally had 8 to 10, or more people listening to him on several occasions. He's a good teacher and no doubt will prove to be a great Coach. Thanks for all your help Mike!
One last thing. Mike did an excellent job at the Certification. We have had so many positive remarks, both in email and on our Forum, about him following this Certification. I was also watching him instruct during the working phase of the course and he literally had 8 to 10, or more people listening to him on several occasions. He's a good teacher and no doubt will prove to be a great Coach. Thanks for all your help Mike!