Latest / Caught on the Mike... / Embracing Challenges Ahead with Ultimate Fighter & MMA talent- Austin Hubbard

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Embracing Challenges Ahead with Ultimate Fighter & MMA talent- Austin Hubbard · Caught on the Mike...

• 1:00
  SPEAKER_01: Ladies and gentlemen, this is caught on the mic.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_01: Austin Thud Hubbard.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_01: I gotta ask you, man, have you ever considered making some merchandise that says Thud Life on it?
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: I I actually have uh had some merchandise like that before.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um yeah, I I you know, every once in a while I'll sell fight shirts, you know, sell them to fans and whatnot.
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: Um I I'm starting to get a lot more questions when I'm gonna have my next fight shirt out.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: Um so maybe I I I better start playing in a design in my head.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, you know, because there for a while I was putting out shirts and uh I was using this one guy and um I don't know, I didn't I just felt like I was putting too much out there.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: I I feel guilty about having people, I mean, think thank thank you to my fans that you know always buy the shirts and stuff, but you know, I I felt bad that I was putting a fight shirt out every fight and they're you know paying the$25 for it.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I just kind of gave it a little break for a minute.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: Uh wanted to get some get some fights under the belt, drive the need back up and all that, or the want.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_00: And uh yeah, I'll I'll come out with something again here soon.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_01: Well, let's set the table a little bit.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_01: I'm speaking with Austin Hubbard, 155er from the UFC, former LFA champion.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_01: How you doing, man?
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: I'm doing pretty good.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: I can't complain.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: Uh just coming off my two, three-week break and uh since my fight, and just trying to get back into shape now.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_01: You've been doing a lot with a hyperbaric chamber, haven't you?
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: I have, and it's it's I've always wanted to try it, and uh, it's the first time I've ever um experienced, you know, or try using a hyperbaric chamber.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: And like I said, I've been doing it for about three weeks now, and uh it's it's been really cool.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: I like it, and I can definitely see a difference and notice a difference, and it's a really cool experience.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: I highly recommend it.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_01: So explain what a hyperbaric chamber does.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: You know, honestly, I don't even know how well I can explain it.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: Um from what I gathered of it, it's like a pressurized chamber that heals you really fast somehow.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_01: Awesome, man.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: Awesome.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_01: So let's let's talk a little bit about your origin stories.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_01: Where are you from and how did you get into mixed martial arts?
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm originally from uh Rock Falls, Sterling, Sterling, Rock Falls area.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I was born and raised there and lived there my whole life up until I moved to Colorado, which uh I've been here for a little over five years now.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um but uh so how I got into MMA, this story always cracks people up, I feel like.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_00: Um I started fighting because I was super bored.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I I just wanted something to do.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: Um I I grew up doing about every sport there was in high school.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: I wrestled year-round and then played football.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: And um when I graduated high school, the college that I ended up going to didn't have football or wrestling.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, you know, I just I was bored.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: I was wasn't ready to be, you know, done competing.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: I felt like I still had a lot more to give as far as like my athletic career.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, and honestly, I I didn't reach a lot of my goals that I wanted to reach at that point in my athletic career.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: So that was also a big driving factor that kind of kind of pushed me into MMA, you know.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: But admittedly, when I got into MMA, it was just for something to do.
• 4:38
  SPEAKER_00: I wanted to work out, um, you know, compete.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: Uh it wasn't ever something like I got into it, and I'm like, oh, this is gonna be my job, um, you know, or anything like that.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: It was it was purely a hobby, um, a workout.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: I enjoyed it, and then uh, you know, I got pretty good at it, and I just really fell in love with it, and I had 10 amateur fights, and my amateur career went really well.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and then you know, I made the transition to being pro.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_00: And even when I went pro, I I wasn't really thinking, oh, I'm gonna make it to the UFC.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: This is gonna be my job.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I actually have a criminal justice degree, and I wanted to be be a police officer for like as long as I can remember.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and so it wasn't until I was four and oh as a professional that I decided, you know what, I'm I am gonna give this a shot because you know I I enjoy training, I enjoy, you know, the sport, uh the lifestyle and everything, and and so at that point is when I decided I needed to, you know, uh expand my horizons a little bit and go to a bigger gym.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: And that's how I ended up out here in in Denver, Colorado with uh Elevation Fight Team.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_01: Weren't you considering a move to Milwaukee before you moved to Colorado?
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_01: I was.
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_01: How did that all come about?
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: So I was doing a little bit of cross-training, you know, uh between my hometown gym and then Militage Fighting Systems.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_00: That was like a 45-minute drive from from where I lived in Rock Falls or in Sterling.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_00: And then uh Mill or Milwaukee was I think a three-hour drive or so, and I would go up there, me and my other teammate Justin Wetzel, and uh we would kind of spend like a week there, like here and there, you know, every couple weeks we'll go up there.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, we we both knew uh like we were very fortunate.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_00: We had great mentors, you know, for the start.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but eventually to evolve, you need to keep growing.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_00: Um you need that those more bodies and you know, all that sorts of things.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: So we knew we needed to move away um to a higher, you know, level of gym and whatnot.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, you know, the natural thing for us was all right, we're gonna go Milwaukee.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_00: It's the closest like big name gym.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_00: Um, we were already cross-trained there and really liked it.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: And then my coach, uh Joel Laughlin at the time was like, hey, there's this like really like cool team out in Denver, they have a lot of good things going on.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_00: Like, I really think you should go out there and check them out before you make a decision.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_00: And uh so we set up like a uh come like a tryout.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: We came for a week, and uh we got here, and I just absolutely loved it.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: Um yeah, like everything felt right.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, from the training, the city, the Colorados, my first time ever even being to Colorado.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: Um, everything just felt really right.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I I got home on a Monday, or I'm sorry, got home on a Sunday, went to work on a Monday, and I was like, you know what?
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna put in for a transfer.
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_00: It's not like I'm gonna actually get it.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, but what's it gonna hurt?
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: At least I tried, you know, and I I put in for this transfer, and they literally called me the day after a Tuesday, and they said, Hey, you got that transfer?
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_00: When can you move?
• 8:10
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, Well, when do you need to know by?
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_00: They're like, We need an answer by tomorrow.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_00: And uh so I was lucky enough to meet Neil Magney when I was here for that training or here for the week, and uh arranged, you know, living with him and everything, and and then yeah, I've been here ever since.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_01: That's amazing.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_01: What is it about the Midwest and the Midwest MMA scene in particular?
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I I feel like uh a lot of the Midwest guys are you know wrestlers, you know, Midwest is known for wrestling.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_00: That's kind of the the home base for you know wrestling.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: You know, Pennsylvania's really taken off recently and everything like that.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_00: But uh, you know, Midwest has always been known for wrestling.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_00: So um if and for anyone who's wrestled, especially at like uh you know a really competitive level throughout high middle school, high school, and that sorts of things, that you just kind of you that toughness just grows into you, you know, through wrestling.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_00: Uh you either you break and you don't wrestle, or you you wrestle and you get really good at you know handling that uh that hardship, you know, and you just work through it and and working through all that hard stuff always makes you better in the end.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_00: So uh yeah.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's it's weird.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_01: I uh I spent a good portion of my youth living in the southwest, and I I lived in Colorado for a certain amount of time, but I went to high school in Iowa and then I ended up moving to Nebraska, and you're absolutely correct.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_01: I never even put the two and two together, but like small town Iowa basically feeds all the wrestling colleges in the area.
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so that's that's pretty that's pretty cool.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_01: And elevation, elevation's been kind of the sleeping giant the past few years, hasn't it?
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 9:56
  SPEAKER_00: We you know, we started getting you know some good recognition.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_00: When we won team of the year last year, and uh, you know, it's it's the hard work is starting to pay off, you know, and and people are starting to take notice.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I would definitely say our team has kind of emerged as a a powerhouse, you know, one of those uh high-end, you know, MMA teams that are you know out there.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_01: I've been following along with Elevation, and that's how I got connected with a lot of you guys, and I've been really impressed with the story of how the gym's grown in popularity and the recognition that it's received.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_01: So, what's your favorite thing been about being an MMA fighter?
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I the the best thing about being an MMA fighter is when that fight is over and it's a hard-fought fight and you get the victory.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_00: I I nothing can top that.
• 10:50
  SPEAKER_00: At least that I've ever experienced.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: That that feeling after winning them through all the hard training, the cutting weight, you know, we you know, uh MMA fighters sacrifice a lot to get even to the point, you know, to the UFC.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_00: And even at that point, a lot of the guys aren't making like killer money, you know what I mean?
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: Like, um, so it's a lot of sacrifice, a lot of work, a lot of you know, blood, sweat, and tears for not necessarily the highest payoff, you know what I mean?
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so it that that win is is always extra special.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_01: You know, talking about blood, sweat, and tears and sacrifice, uh about a year ago, but year and a half now, you had pretty gruesome injury, didn't you?
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I did.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's actually round two years ago now, I think.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's crazy how fast it goes by.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_01: So let's talk a little bit about that that because it's kind of a it's a it's a rare injury, isn't it?
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I was I was the very first case in UFC history uh uh at least from what I was told, with uh compartment syndrome.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_00: Um so it's in my right leg, it I have a scar from like basically my kneecap all the way up to my hip.
• 12:05
  SPEAKER_00: They had to so what it is basically your muscle takes so much damage.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_00: I I got kicked.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: Um and honestly, I I've been kicked way more.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_00: I I don't know what it was that night that you know it caused me to get compartment syndrome, but I did.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_00: Um and what it is is your your muscles and legs swell up so much that there's no war no more room.
• 12:30
  SPEAKER_00: So it basically just cuts off the blood and oxygen and everything to your muscles and your legs, so your leg actually dies.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_00: And if they if go unchecked, you can lose your leg, you can even you lose your life from what I was told, um, you know, depending on the severity of it.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so and actually when when I did go, by the time I did go into my first surgery, and when they cut it open, uh my muscles already unresponsive and turning gray, they said.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: So uh look yeah, luckily I I got in there, you know, it's I they kept telling me, oh, you want to go to the hospital, you want to go to the hospital?
• 13:09
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, I don't need to go to the hospital, it's just leg kicks, like I've had a million, like of course it's gonna hurt and be sore.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so I I was like, I'm gonna just go up to the room, you know, and keep icing it and relax.
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I when I got on the elevator and went up to the room, I actually passed out.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_00: So thankfully I did pass out because then I was forced to go to the hospital and you know, and then obviously they they did the surgery and all that, and but yeah, if I if I would have made it up there and just fell asleep, there's I my legs gone if if not worse, you know what I mean?
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: Like I definitely wouldn't be fighting anymore or anything like that.
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_01: Now, is that a type of injury that is any way preventable?
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_01: Is there anything that you could do physical therapy-wise to you know, I have I have no idea.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 14:01
  SPEAKER_01: So, what was your recovery like from that then?
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_00: I've I've always been like able to recover pretty efficiently and you know, fast.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_00: So from I had three surgeries, I was in Canada for a whole week after the fight, you know, dealing with all that.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_00: So from my very last surgery till I started training, like full-on training, complete uh physical therapy and all that.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_00: I it was only three months, and I've been training ever since, and I haven't had a single issue with it, no pain, no like residual effects or anything like that.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_00: Like I said, I I have people reach out to me all the time, like, what'd you do?
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_00: How'd you get over this?
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm I tell them everything I did, and I mean these some of these people have been dealing with this for years, and they're still like issues training and doing regular things.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_00: So I feel very fortunate that you know, despite you know the the crappy situation of you know surgery and all that, I am you know fortunate that I I did recover relatively uh fast and and didn't have any more issues outside of that, you know.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, absolutely.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_01: So who are some of your heroes and who's made a lasting impact on you?
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, my number one heroes is obviously uh my parents.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_00: Uh you know, they've they helped me become the person I am today.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_00: Uh you know, without the lessons they've taught me growing up and and all those sorts of things, uh I I would not be who I am today.
• 15:31
  SPEAKER_00: And so they're they're my number one heroes.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_00: They've always uh you know driven me to my dad and well both my parents, mom and dad, have always said, you know, do what you love to do and and go do it, you know what I mean?
• 15:46
  SPEAKER_00: Don't settle for something you don't want to do, you know, as far as your living and and things like that.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, I I embrace that.
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: I I decided, well, I love training, I love MMA, I'm gonna pursue this.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, without you know that type of you know being instilled in me of go do what you love, um, who knows if I would have you know stuck to MMA, you know, to the extent I did to where I'm at now, and now it is obviously my career and everything.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_00: So uh definitely my parents are are number one on that list.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_01: So do fighters have a different level of work ethic than say your average Joe?
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_00: So that's fighting's hard, you know what I mean?
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_00: Like, but you always come across those people that just skim by and it make it work, and you come across you know, people who work really hard but never get to where they want.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_00: So it you know how that goes.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_00: It's a being an athlete in general, like in any sport, you you kind of come across that whole array of really talented but lazy, really hard worker but not very talented, and then everything in between, you know what I mean?
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_00: So um, but yeah, overall, you know, fighters especially at you know a high level doing it for a living, yeah.
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_00: I would say they're definitely tougher than your average Joe.
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I already knew the answer.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_01: I just had to ask it though.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_01: So, what's Austin Hubbard's tip for making the world a better place to live right now?
• 17:22
  SPEAKER_00: You know, what I would say is it's kind of the old saying, you know, treat others how you want to be treated.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_00: No one wants to be treated like crap, no one wants to be disrespected, no one wants to be talked down to.
• 17:36
  SPEAKER_00: And if you don't like those certain things, then why would you do it to someone else?
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I I uh I'm a big believer of what like comes around and goes around.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_00: I I try being the best person I can be each day, you know, because I I do believe that it's gonna come back around at some point.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_00: So uh, you know, just be be a good person and and treat others how you want to be treated.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_01: And I gotta tell you, you know, speaking to your character, um, you're very accessible, man.
• 18:04
  SPEAKER_01: And I love like trading a few messages from you.
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_01: It's like, hey man, how watch the last fight, how how you've been eaten afterwards, and you're like, man, I'm grazing on everything in the house.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_01: But you are very you're very humble and down to earth, and I really enjoy that about you, and that that makes me a huge fan uh of you as a fighter.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_01: What are some long-term goals right now?
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, long-term goals, obviously, you know, uh champion one day, you know, um, it's a lot of work, but you know, that's obviously top of the list on goals and more, you know, little down the line, but you know, coming up is yeah, I want to work my way up to being ranked.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: Um, obviously, a lot of work.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_00: Um, I wanna I wanna make a good living doing what I love.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_00: I want to take care of my family.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_00: I I'm married now, have a stepdaughter, and um I want to give them a great life.
• 18:57
  SPEAKER_00: I wanna, you know, provide for them so they can do what they love in life.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, for sure.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_01: So do you think you're gonna get another fight on the books in 2021 or is it gonna be maybe early 2022?
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_00: I'm definitely trying to.
• 19:11
  SPEAKER_00: Ideally, if it was like a perfect world, um, I would love to fight end of November-ish, um, early December.
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_00: And I might I'm getting married next year.
• 19:23
  SPEAKER_00: Uh well wedding, we're technically already married, but we're getting we're doing a destination wedding, so it's easier to get married before you go on everything.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_00: And that is in February of next year, uh, near the end of the February.
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_00: I'm February 26th.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_00: So if I could get like one more in before, like, like I said, late November, then like early February, uh that would be perfect case scenario for me.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: So you said you're your stepfather.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I'm a stepfather as well.
• 19:54
  SPEAKER_01: How hard is that stepfather life?
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_00: Honestly, I love it.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_00: It is uh her name's Sophie, and she's she's awesome.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_00: We we she's 11, um, you know, and we get along great.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_00: We it's fun.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_00: I like it.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_00: It's you know, I've always been a very family-oriented person, you know.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_00: Growing up, we always had family dinners, family like movie nights, you know, all that sorts of things.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_00: So um for me, it was it was kind of an easy transition, you know, because I'm so family oriented and now I I have my own, you know.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so I think it's really cool.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_00: I think it's a lot of fun.
• 20:30
  SPEAKER_00: I love it.
• 20:31
  SPEAKER_01: Do you love living in Colorado then?
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_00: I do.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's quite a bit more scenic and exciting than where I came from, you know, in the small town surrounded by cornfields in Illinois.
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_00: Don't get me wrong, I love my hometown and everything.
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_00: I was born where I was born and raised, but uh it's nice to branch out sometimes.
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely, absolutely.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_01: So, what are some of the things that you guys do as a family?
• 20:56
  SPEAKER_01: What are some of the what are some of the activities you do outside of fighting?
• 20:59
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so we recently started like our family like paint night where we all kind of find something we want to paint, like uh we'll like YouTube uh canvas painting for for beginners or whatever, and find something we like, and then we'll we'll all sit outside on the patio and paint it.
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, there's obviously always movie nights.
• 21:23
  SPEAKER_00: We take the dogs hiking and on walks.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: Um yeah, I feel like we we do quite a bit together.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_00: It's pretty much who I hang out with most of the time nowadays.
• 21:34
  SPEAKER_01: I totally get that.
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_01: I totally get that.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I I I try and make at least two pilgrimages a year to Colorado.
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_01: I try and go in the spring and in the fall uh because those are the best times because as you and I were talking about before we started recording, it's been hotter than hell the past couple days out there.
• 21:51
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it has been weird.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_00: All summer really has been hot.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_01: And it's I feel it's been really weird this year that summer kind of got a late start.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: Like where I'm at in Nebraska, it was like it would rain and then it would get really hot and then it would rain for a week and then get really hot, and it didn't really get nice to swimming weather until school started for the kids again.
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_01: Getting married officially on a destination wedding in February.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_01: Where are you going?
• 22:17
  SPEAKER_00: We're going to Mexico.
• 22:19
  SPEAKER_00: That's awesome, man.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_00: I'm ex- I'm looking forward to it.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_00: We were going to do, you know, the old fashioned uh back in our hometown, everyone calling big wedding.
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but as my wife was planning that, she was getting stressed out, and we were like, hey, let's just do a small destination wedding, and you know, and that seems like it's gonna be a lot better, a lot or different, but it'll be fine, you know what I mean?
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_00: It's we're looking forward to it.
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_01: So um I got remarried just a couple of years ago, and we were engaged for oh, I'd say like two and a half years, almost three years.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_01: And then it was just one of those things where my wife was like, Well, I mean, this is the second time around for both of us.
• 23:02
  SPEAKER_01: She goes, You gotta plan it.
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_01: So we ended up doing like two or three week notice and a backyard wedding, family only.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_01: And it was yeah, it was awesome, man.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_01: It was awesome.
• 23:12
  SPEAKER_01: And yeah, it going to the core of what you were talking about.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_01: It was it was just centered around our family, and it was centered around who needed to be there, you know?
• 23:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'm not much of a planner, I'm more of a go with the flow type of guy, and it drives my wife crazy, and she plans out everything to a T.
• 23:30
  SPEAKER_00: So she handled all that, and luckily it was it's been an easy process for me.
• 23:35
  SPEAKER_01: Awesome, man.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I just tell her if it makes you happy, it makes me happy.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_01: That's that's what's important, right?
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_01: So, fun fact um, doing a little research before uh we got to talking for the podcast.
• 23:51
  SPEAKER_01: You and I share the same exact birth date of December 22nd.
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_01: So, what was that like for you growing up?
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_00: So it's funny when people ask me that.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, I don't know.
• 24:02
  SPEAKER_00: It's the only birthday I've ever had.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_00: So what do I have to compare it to?
• 24:07
  SPEAKER_00: You know what I mean?
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_00: But no, I feel like it's always been, you know, I'm I've never felt like my birthday and Christmas have been one thing, you know what I mean?
• 24:17
  SPEAKER_00: Um, so it's always been cool to me.
• 24:19
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know, it's been fine.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_00: It's kind of like having two birthdays because you get, you know, a few days before you get your celebration, your birthday party, and then it's Christmas.
• 24:29
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't know.
• 24:29
  SPEAKER_00: I like it, I guess.
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_01: See, I'm on the opposite side of the fence.
• 24:33
  SPEAKER_01: Do you have any siblings?
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_00: I do.
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_00: I have an older sister and a younger brother.
• 24:37
  SPEAKER_01: So both of my younger brothers were born in the spring.
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_01: So I got to see them have their birthday parties in the spring, and mine being three days before Christmas, I had the opposite experience.
• 24:46
  SPEAKER_01: I had everybody forgetting that it was my birthday.
• 24:48
  SPEAKER_01: It was like, oh, we forgot.
• 24:56
  SPEAKER_01: But man, rest assured, I will uh I will make sure to to send a brother a birthday message this year.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_00: I appreciate it.
• 25:02
  SPEAKER_00: I'll I'll send one back.
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_00: It'll be easier to remember each other's birthdays.
• 25:09
  SPEAKER_01: That's right, man.
• 25:10
  SPEAKER_01: You know, Austin, I appreciate you hooking up with me for the podcast.
• 25:14
  SPEAKER_01: Do you have any final thoughts you'd like to share with any of our listeners?
• 25:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, uh, you know, I hope all of you guys um strive to be the best you can be each day.
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_00: Um and do what you love.
• 25:26
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't have to be a professional athlete, it doesn't have to be, you know, one thing or another.
• 25:32
  SPEAKER_00: If you if you love doing it, you know, pursue it.
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and that's the message I'm always trying to spread out.
• 25:38
  SPEAKER_01: You know, Austin, I would love to chat with you again.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_01: Let's stay in touch.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_01: I'd love to have you on the show sometime again in the future.
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_01: What a fantastic individual.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_01: It was a pleasure getting to talk with Austin today on the podcast.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_01: If you're not following Elevation Fight Team on social media or Austin on Instagram, do so today.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_01: And since we're talking about following people on social media, make sure you give Cod on the Mic a follow on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Twitter.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_01: Share this episode or any other past episode with your friends.
• 26:15
  SPEAKER_01: I appreciate the additional support.
• 26:17
  SPEAKER_01: It's been a quiet week and a half.
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_01: I have been bogged down with things at the day job, but hopefully life will be resuming to its state of normalcy in the next week or two.
• 26:27
  SPEAKER_01: I'm always looking for new and unique guests, so if you think of anybody or you are that person, shoot me a message.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: Or visit me on www.caughtonthemic.com.
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_01: If you're listening to this through the Apple Podcast app, I appreciate those five star reviews.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_01: This has been Caught on the Mike with Michael Clark.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_01: I'm Michael Clark.
• 26:50
  SPEAKER_01: Until next time.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.