Mukwonago woman wins national beer-stein holding competition

MUKWONAGO - Holding a stein full of beer might seem like a typical Friday night activity for some, but for others, it's a full-fledged competition.  

Steinholding, or "Masskrugstemmen," is a traditional Bavarian contest of strength, where drinkers hold out a full one-liter beer stein for as long as they can, or at least until the competition falters.

It seems like an easy feat, but since a competition-grade stein full of beer can weigh more than 5 pounds, it quickly becomes more than just a show, but a mental battle of endurance.  

Just ask Julie Gilbert, a Mukwonago woman who was named the women's champion at the national steinholding competition held Sept. 16 in New York City.  

"Once you're strong enough, it's truly a mental game," Gilbert said.

Just for fun

Gilbert joined her first steinholding competition on a whim last year, during Oconomowoc's German Christmas Market. She was hanging out in the Old Beer Tent, sponsored by Old German Beer Hall, when someone announced they were about to start a beer-stein holding competition.  

"A friend of mine was like, 'We've got to do it,' " Gilbert said. "So, I decided to do it kind of on a lark." 

They signed up, and Gilbert ended up holding her beer stein longer than any of the other women. She was announced the winner, and she got to keep the beer stein.  

Though she would sometimes tell her friends the story of the competition, she said it was "just kind of a fun thing that I did."  

However, this summer, around eight months after the original competition, Gilbert received an email saying she had qualified for the national championship. Apparently, the amount of time she had been able to hold the stein was longer than any other woman in the regional area, qualifying her for a spot at nationals. 

Good-spirited competition

"At first I thought maybe I wouldn't go. It was going to be logistically difficult," Gilbert said. "But I couldn't pass up the opportunity; it was just so much fun." 

Before the competition, Gilbert was a part of the German-American Steuben Parade on 5th Avenue, and she met with some of the other competitors at a social event the night before. The Friday before the competition, Gilbert also went sight-seeing with her husband, Tom, and father, Pat Galagan, who both traveled with her. 

"They're a super friendly, super inclusive group," Gilbert said. "Everyone was there having fun, enjoying the German culture and supporting each other."  

The championship was also all in good spirits, though it was still a competition.  

Gilbert said that she began training for nationals as soon as she found out she would be competing. Her friend, Jeff Lawrence, who is a power-lifter, helped her train. All in all, Gilbert said she ended up lifting about three times a week for around 45 minutes. 

By competition time, Gilbert could hold out her stein for about two minutes before she said she starts to feel uncomfortable. The longest she had ever gone in training was 4 minutes, 3 seconds.

Holding out

During the competition, judges are going around checking on the competitors' form. For example, one must hold their stein parallel to the group.  

By the time they hit four minutes at the competition, Gilbert was one of the last in the race, and her form was still holding strong. However, she said, she barely heard the announcement that four minutes had passed. 

"Your brain is just so overloaded with trying not to drop the beer," Gilbert said. "It doesn't register. You're just trying to hang on." 

Gilbert saw that the other woman still in the running was starting to falter in her form. With two "strikes" already, one more comment from the judges could disqualify her.  

Since Gilbert only had one "strike," she knew if she held on long enough for the judges to call out the other woman, she would win.  

And she did, setting the new female national record at 4 minutes, 20 seconds.  

However, the physical activity left her pretty drained immediately afterward. 

"I went to clap my hands together, and my right hand hit my left elbow ... I was completely spent," Gilbert said.  

For winning, Gilbert gets a trip for two to Munich, the capital in the German state of Bavaria, and the title of national champion. 

Now that she's won the national competition, Gilbert said the rules don't allow her to compete again. However, she is able to return next year as a judge.  

Celebrating culture

"It was more fun than I ever imagined, and somebody else should get that chance," Gilbert said of the rule. "It's really to promote German culture and for everyone to be included I think that's a great rule." 

As the popularity of "Masskrugstemmen" continues to grow, Gilbert would encourage anyone to try their strength at an Old German Beer Hall event, or somewhere else that hosts the official competitions.  

Even though Gilbert said she isn't of German heritage, she thinks it's a wonderful way to celebrate the culture, and that no matter what your heritage is, people from all heritages watch the German-American Stueben parade, and anyone can compete in the steinholding competition.

"One of the things that struck me about the weekend was nobody cared if you were German or not," Gilbert said. "If you were there, you were German enough."