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Sharon Armstrong

With Grace

By InnerVoice

November 23^rd, 2018

Superhero mom

I grew up in Ontario as the youngest of four kids. I have an older brother and two big sisters, so I wore hand-me-downs until I was fifteen. I’m ninety-nine percent positive that to my siblings I was their annoying little sister, but to me they were my partners in crime, my role models. A lot of our family activities came from getting outside, getting fit and getting involved in sport. My dad was a runner (still is!) and my mom loved cycling and skiing (still does!). As a mother of two girls of my own, I honestly don’t know how my mom took four little kids up the mountain to go skiing. We would fight, lose skis and poles, fall off the chairlift (we would actually push each other off the chairlift) and Mom would still just love getting us up the mountain. When I think of superheroes and people who inspire me, I definitely think of my mom.

Her and my dad were a real team when it came to marriage, and it shows; they have been married for 54 years.

I also secretly idolized my brother Kevin. I wanted to do everything he was doing, which ultimately started my tomboy years (I couldn’t BMX, skateboard or learn to ride a dirtbike in a skirt). As much as it was about learning these cool, fun, new sports, for me it was always about just spending time with my brother. I’ll never forget running home from elementary school to get a ride on his new motorcycle (the motorcycle he knew he wasn’t allowed to have). He had it for a full week before my parents found out, but in that week I fell in love with motorized sports. I had to have one of my own. And although I didn’t know it yet, the close relationship I shared with my brother would ultimately lead me to my career as a stuntwoman.

Sharon Armstrong

Sharon Armstrong

Sharon Armstrong

Sharon Armstrong

Sharon Armstrong

Stuntwoman

I’ve been a stuntwoman in the film industry in British Columbia for 18 years. People usually ask me how I got into stunts, and the answer is that I chased down movie sets to hand out resumes, and volunteered to move stunt mats and pads. I worked hard and it was something I really, really wanted. I was all-in. In 2000, it wasn’t as busy as it is now with all the Netflix series’, so I had to put my head down and try to prove myself. My big break came on a movie with Uma Thurman called Paycheck. I was the backup stunt double for Uma and I was super proud of myself to get that opportunity. Whether it’s the right place, or the right time, or both, you need to make the most of those opportunities in life. I earned the respect of the stuntmen and stuntwomen in the industry, and many of them paved the way long before me. There are a lot more movies and shows to work on now, and I can tell a new performer who appreciates the hard work it takes to get in, and stay in the industry, versus a performer who doesn’t hustle or reach out to introduce themselves to some of the older, more experienced performers. To me, that's a missed opportunity; you’re missing out on learning from someone else's story.

One of my biggest accomplishments came after that first movie I worked on. I was asked to be a member of Stunts Canada. That was the moment I knew I had made my love of stunts into an actual career, one that I was passionate about. I love the entertainment side of my stunt career. I love the adrenaline rush and butterflies I get from that one little word ‘rolling’. I love the deep breath I take on the countdown (3-2-1) before they call action. I love that quiet 5-second moment I get all to myself where I can hear a pin drop before they call action. As much as I’m a stickler for structure and routine, I love the unknowing of how the day will unfold, where we will be shooting, how the stunt will get worked out and how long the day will be. It’s just a day to do what I love, test my limits, but have fun and show my daughters the importance of dedicating yourself to something you are passionate about.

Sharon Armstrong

Sharon Armstrong

Sharon Armstrong

“My parents used to tell me in a polite but suck-it-up kind of way, that there will always be someone smarter, faster, stronger,... and that’s just life. A gentle reminder to focus on myself and stay present to things I can control. It’s been good advice along the way, especially in sport.”

Photo by Matt Clark

Pretty and strong

During high school I fell in love with soccer, and ended up playing 5 years in college for the University of Western Ontario. I was named All-Canadian in my final year, which got me a try-out for the Canadian national team. Tryouts were being held at Simon Fraser University, in BC. At that time, I had never been to BC and was excited to start a new chapter of my life. I was convinced that soccer was going to be my path. I wanted to be just like Mia Hamm and play soccer for a living. She was a female athlete I looked up to. She wasn’t pretty strong, she was pretty AND strong. My favorite quote of hers is, “My coach says I run like a girl. I told him if he ran faster he could too.” Being an athlete became less and less about “you are good...for a girl,” and more about just being really good at your craft. Period.

I didn’t make the national soccer team at the BC try-out. At first, I felt defeated and lost. But as cliche as it sounds, everything happens for a reason. I fell in love with Vancouver and started really enjoying individual sports. I had spent so many years of my life being part of a team, having a leadership role within that team, always focused on rallying the troops, and getting warmed-up and psyched-up the way everyone else did. I was craving a shift from that. Things like the Grouse Grind, Ironman and enduro trail races caught my attention. I enjoyed being in my own head space with sport. It’s where I would reflect on my life and things happening in it. I’m a thinker, and mostly an introvert, which can sometimes affect my communication. I like to take it all in and assess things in my mind before reacting or saying something I might regret. I’m like this when I ride or race my bike, too, I think. I settle in mid-to-front pack and assess the pace, listen to how my body feels and once I’ve taken it all in, I start to read the play. That’s happening on repeat for the duration of the race.

Sharon Armstrong

Sharon Armstrong

Photo by Chris Thorn

Photo by Chris Thorn

Photo by Matt Clark

"I’ve never been an aggressively competitive athlete. I don’t grit my teeth or stare down the competition. I didn’t trash talk on the soccer field or get up in someone’s face if there was a bad call that didn’t go in my favour. I’m more the type to admire someone’s funky socks or colourful jersey at the start line.”

Photo by Chris Thorn

Method

When I didn’t make the cut for the soccer team I decided I better make use of the Masters Degree I earned from Western. I got a job training athletes at the Human Performance Centre. It was there that I realized I didn’t want to train other people. I wanted to be the one training, moving my body, being physically involved in something. I was an athlete and I wanted to make my passion for movement a big part of what I did, daily.

Method is an embodiment of that idea—I get to show my passion for movement every day.

Method classes are an intense, fun and focused workout. I work a variety of different interval types from tempo, to climbing, to speed work, all in a 1-hour ride. From September to December I do my usual weekly sessions. January to April are focused on adding some back-to-back classes (doubles) to build my endurance, and by May I’m also adding in an outdoor ride and doing a race or two to keep the intensity up. Anything you do consistently, works. I’m proud of the community at Method and how it welcomes everyone from beginners to pro riders. Soon, we’ll launch Method Junior. I’ll be doing classes in January to inspire kids between the ages of 11 and 15 to get involved in cycling. We look forward to creating an environment for youth girls and boys to pedal for fitness and for fun.

Photo by Matt Clark

Photo by Matt Clark

Photo by Matt Clark

Photo by Matt Clark

Family is my 'why'

This year’s Whistler Gran Fondo was a different race. It was a wet race and I felt behind right from the start. We didn’t pull a team together (join us on Team Method for next year) so it felt like a chase the whole time, and I couldn’t find a group or pace line to work with. Going up Taylor Way, my heart was coming out of my chest, but slowing down wasn’t an option. I was on a new Argon 18 bike which I love, so my bike felt good, but I was just wishing my legs felt better than my electronic shifting!

I’ve done about six or seven Whistler Gran Fondos now, and I’m seeing more and more men make an opening in a pace line for a female rider. I used to feel I was being boxed out of some of the fast pace lines that were led by men in the past. Now, you see the female riders leading the pack and holding their own in the pace lines. My sister, Wendy Simms, can hold her own on a mountain bike, cyclocross bike, and road bike. She is a household name at the Test of Metal and the BC Bike Race. I’d love to do a cycling event with Wendy and my other siblings; I’d learn a lot, and we would have some good laughs along the way. That’s the kind of riding I enjoy.

At Method, we ask: What’s your ‘Why?’ Why do you commit to something? Why do you dedicate yourself to something? For me, the answer is family. My husband, Jamie, didn’t race this year, but he took our daughter, Blake, out on the course to cheer me on, and set up a Method tent to support all the riders. I was cold and despite my bike’s excellence, I could feel myself getting slower. Whenever I’m struggling, I think back to the Leadville 100 — one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. Nothing on a road bike will be as hard as those 100 miles on a mountain bike that day in Colorado. The mixture of that, and wanting to see my husband and daughter was what me keep pushing harder (our other daughter, Riley, was at a sleepover). Seeing them became my ‘Why’ as I got closer to the finish. I kept digging, and there they were, smiling and cheering. I stayed with the little group I was working with, but Blake didn’t understand why I didn’t stop to give her a high five. I’m a sucker for mom-guilt, but I knew having her see me working hard and doing something I love would be worth pushing on to the finish line.

A 2nd-place finish with family there: my ‘Why’ was accomplished.

Photo by Tammy Brimner (TLBVelo Photography)

Photo by Chris Thorn

Photo by Chris Thorn

Photo by Tammy Brimner (TLBVelo Photography)

Photo by Tammy Brimner (TLBVelo Photography)

Inspired to keep going

Sometimes I ask myself how I’m juggling all this.

Why am I juggling all this?

Is it worth it?

Juggling my stunt work, Method coaching, and the kids, there isn’t much of the day left. After having our two girls, I kept the stunts up but was disappointed that taking the break meant I wasn’t getting the doubling jobs I used to. I know everything is about balance, but I had to learn that the hard way. I went back to stunts too soon after Riley was born and I jumped off a moving truck and fractured both of my ankles. Obviously, I couldn’t walk and had to take time off. At the time, Jamie and I were starting to get Method going and the injury just made more work for both of us. It was a risk I didn’t need to take and it landed me farther behind on so many levels. Since then, I’ve learned to turn some days down if it makes our family life too crazy. Or if it means I miss too much of the girls’ routines. I really love being a mom, and family is the most important thing to me. I also really love being a part of the Method community that Jamie and I have created. Jamie inspires me with his dedication to wanting to make a difference in peoples’ health. Coaching inspires me because everyone has a story and it’s only really when you work hard and dig a little deeper, that a piece of that story comes out. We feel better than when we started.

I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be in my life. So much of how I got to where I am today came from a certain mind set I have. That little voice that guides me what to do and the person I want to be. To push harder, to not give up, that everything will work out, to be kind, to dig deep, to take the risk or to hold something back. All of those things got me here, with this life I’m so proud of. Something in my mind, the way I process decisions, hard times, good times, friendships, marriage, family, sport, stunts... it’s all handled in the same way. With commitment, respect, and...with grace.

Now, when I think of balance with work and life, it has to include all those things that are important to me.

Family, Method, Stunts.

They all keep me grounded and inspired to keep doing what I’m doing.

Photo by Chris Thorn

Sharon Armstrong

Photo by Chris Thorn

Photo by Chris Thorn

Photo by Chris Thorn

Footnotes

Words by Sharon Armstrong, Cover photo by Matt Clark (@stirlandraephoto) and as attributed, Edited by Cody Royle, Published by Travis McKenzie, Copyright NTSQ Sports Group Inc.

FootNotes

Words by Sharon Armstrong, Cover photo by Matt Clark (@stirlandraephoto) and as attributed, Edited by Cody Royle, Published by Travis McKenzie, Copyright NTSQ Sports Group Inc.

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