BREWER – Eighteen months ago, Chris Page couldn’t even grasp a barbell, let alone lift one.

Saturday afternoon, he was setting a Maine Games meet record in the squat en route to being named the Maine Games Powerlifting Championships lifter of the meet.

Not bad for a guy who had his left thumb surgically reattached after suffering an on-the-job injury.

“I had a reel of wire come off a truck and sever that thumb. They sewed it back on, but it doesn’t work,” said Page, a Central Maine Power lineman for the last 12 years. “I can only use it to pinch things.

“I just adapted to lifting without using it, so basically I do it with four fingers.”

What he does when he’s not climbing telephone poles and stringing wire is lift weight – A lot of it.

Saturday, Page equaled good friend Travis Adams’ meet records of 672 and 705.2 pounds in the squat despite competing 22 pounds lighter than Adams.

“This is the lightest I’ve ever competed,” said Page, who has been lifting for 15 years, the last five as a serious competitor. “I competed in 220s, but I decided to drop down because I want to beat all the records in 198.”

Page, who had a bench press of 440.7 pounds and a dead lift of 622.7 for a total of 1,768.6, said he has also lowered his body fat to 5 percent.

“My normal weight’s 215, but it wasn’t too hard to drop. I pretty much just sweat it out in the sauna and rehydrate with Gatorade,” explained Page.

Page, a 41-year-old Hermon resident who works out regularly with wife Paula, had quite a rooting section as almost all 200 spectators at the Brewer Auditorium cheered him on whenever he strode to the stage.

“It’s all entertainment to me, but the best part is when you’ve got the white lights [indicating a clean/legal lift] and the crowd’s cheering and you know you’ve got the lift,” Page said. “I feed off the crowd.”

Page’s popularity comes from his geniality, success, and inspirational example.

“Well yeah, I hope I can be inspirational, but I train a kid, Craig Popper, who has cerebral palsy and he’s a big inspiration for me,” Page said. “He came to the gym and told me he wanted to do a bench press competition and I told him I’d train him. I’ve been training him seven months and he’s got the state record in the paralympic class with 255 [bench] at 150 pounds.”

Page says he’s just now feeling like he’s back in top shape. He refused to let three months in a cast and another three months of physical rehabilitation curtail his powerlifting.

“I started lifting weights when I was 20 and I’ve stayed with it with a regular routine since,” said the father of three daughters. “I couldn’t give it up. What kept me in it was the guys who I’ve been lifting with at the USA [Union Street Athletics] gym. I’ve made some great friends through this.”

One of those is Adams. The Bangor man was the only person among the 65 lifters competing Saturday to have a higher total than Page with 1,867 pounds. Adams benched 451.7 and dead lifted 710.7.

Page and Adams were just one segment of the competitive field assembled for Friday’s bench press-only session and Saturday. There were also several females, teens, and older lifters in the master and submaster divisions.

There were also a few family members competing together.

Benita Deschaine of Bangor and daughter Rebecca competed, as did Bangor brothers Greg and Matt Guernsey.

Normally, Telford Allen and 12-year-old Garrett would also be competing together, but as CEO of Telford Aviation, Telford’s extensive travel schedule didn’t allow him to train for this meet, so son Garrett flew solo as the meet’s only youth (age 13 and under) lifter.

Despite weighing in seven pounds lighter than the 123-pound class he competes in, Allen squatted 192.7, benched 77, and dead lifted 269.7.

“My dad started about 21/2 years ago and asked me if I wanted to do it too,” said Garrett, who was competing in his fourth meet since he began lifting 18 months ago. “It’s not a team sport, but it builds a lot of confidence. I also like it because the atmosphere is good, the guys at the gym are really nice, and it’s a lot of fun.”

It’s fun for his father, too.

“For me, it’s not about being big. It’s more about being in shape and I like the competition. Plus, it’s a great way for my son and I to spend time doing an activity together,” said Telford Allen, a 42-year-old Hampden resident. “Garrett’s never been a standout in a lot of the sports he plays, but this sport has been great for his confidence. I can see it.”

Rebecca Crapo from Grand Lake Stream made it worth the trip to Brewer as she was named the Downeast Toyota Female Lifter of the Meet with a squat of 352.5, bench of 231.2, and dead lift of 374.7 for a total of 958.4 in the meet, which serves as a qualifier for the State Games of America meet in Colorado March 27-28, 2009.

Those are numbers Anne-Marie Cormier aspires to reach, but it was only the second meet for the 28-year-old from Biddeford since she started lifting in December.

“My trainer’s the one who got me into it. I did bodybuilding last year and decided to try this, said Cormier, who finished with a squat of 236.7, bench of 159.7, dead lift of 242.5 and total of 638.9. “I like the push, I have that competitive bug, and this is something fun to compete in.”

aneff@bangordailynews.net

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