Steve Carrier can squat lift 800 pounds, roll a frying pan up like a burrito and bend steel rods held in his teeth. Yet the most powerful thing about this mountain of a man — make that two mountains — was his message.

The 6-5, 300-pound Carrier is part of a group of motivational speakers known as “The Power Team.” Carrier presented to Holmen high and middle schools, Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau High School and Onalaska Middle School on Friday, and audiences at Sand Lake Wesleyan Church in Onalaska on Saturday and Sunday night.

When it came to causing destruction, a buzz saw could hardly have been more effective than Carrier. The behemoth snapped baseball bats, ripped apart phone books and even a license plate, bent horseshoes, and decimated frying pans and steel rods. He then proved that he was far more than a brute instrument as he roamed the phonebook-strewn floor, delivering his inspirational message.

Carrier spoke of the importance of making good choices, setting goals and chasing dreams. “We have all done silly, stupid, crazy things in our life,” he said. “But that does not mean that we are silly, stupid, crazy people.”

Carrier also spoke out against drug and alcohol abuse and the degradation of women. “A guy will never love a girl he doesn’t respect,” he said.

Carrier said his main aim was to challenge students to “think before they act.

Carrier’s message carried a healthy dose of humor. During his performances at the church, Carrier wanted to make sure his audience knew that the steel rod he was about the bend over his head was not a fake in any way. So he called up two elementary girls to assist him.

After Carrier apologized for calling them dumbbells, each girl hung onto one end of the bar. Carrier then lifted the bar with apparent ease, while the girls clung to the bar wearing expressions of shocked glee.

At the church, Carrier’s message was more spiritually orientated than in the schools. He emphasized the importance of family and Christian values, while repeating several themes from his school visit.

“Don’t think about what you can’t do,” he said. “Pray about what you can do.”

Any mention of religious themes was not included in the school presentations, although students were invited to attend the presentations at the church.

Carrier had some new tricks up his sleeve for the church presentations. In addition to performing several of the feats of strength that he did in the schools, Carrier squeezed pop cans until they exploded, spraying the crowd with Diet 7-Up. For his grand finale, Carrier smashed his way through 12 concrete bricks with his elbow

Carrier’s personal story is inspirational in itself. As a child, Carrier was limited by metal braces he had to wear to support his legs. But aided by an inextinguishable dream to play basketball, combined with an ambitious physical rehabilitation program, Carrier’s iron will gave him more support than leg braces ever could.

He went on to set his high school’s vertical leap record and earn a full scholarship to play basketball at Arkansas Technical University.

ON THE WEB: For more information on Steve Carrier and his organization, The Power Team, log onto www.thepowerteam.com.