Thousands entered the contest and over a MILLION dollars was raised for the After-School All-Stars but only ONE could be declared the winner. Alex Mihelick, champion of last year's Omaze TANK RIDE, shared his incredible story with TheArnoldFans so we could let YOU in on his awesome experience. Hanging out with Arnold Schwarzenegger for an entire day while talking movies, smoking stogies, eating meals together, riding around in a tank and lifting weights with the world's best-known bodybuilder sounds like a dream, but I assure you, Mihelick was NOT strapped into REKALL's blissful dream-vacation-chair. This was REAL! And today, Arnold unveiled the action trailer of his and Alex, and the tank's day together! Watch it below, then read our exclusive tale from Alex about the experience!
Alex Mihelick: A couple months ago, I was just a regular guy, following people like The Rock and Arnold Schwarzenegger on Twitter, trying to get some extra gym motivation on the lazy days. One day, Arnold tweeted about a charity contest he was having. Upon learning that the charity was for kids after school programs, being the son of a teacher, I decided to make a donation. I noticed there was a contest and thought it might be cool to win but didn’t think twice about it. That was, until I got a phone call...from Arnold! Thanks to Arnold, Omaze, and After-School All-Stars, I won an opportunity to fly (with a guest) to L.A. and hang out with Arnold.
Both my brother and my flights arrived late in L.A., and we were exhausted by the time we checked in to the hotel. After walking to our room, we opened the door to discover a gym bag full of Arnold things, and a hand signed welcome note from Arnold himself!
He hooked us up with signed copies of his book, shirts, jackets, a stack of his MusclePharm products, movie posters, a DVD set and more. To top it off, he made sure I was adequately prepared for the next day with my brand new Arnold Tank Watch. As tired as we were, we were too amped to sleep. I couldn’t begin to comprehend what just happened to me… and the adventure had yet to begin!
After finally getting a little sleep, we got ready, and headed down to the lobby. Before we could eat, I got a call from Arnold’s team letting me know they were outside. Moments later, we discovered we would be riding to the set in Arnold’s veggie oil-powered Hummer.
I thought to myself, this is the coolest thing I had ever driven in (Although it only stayed at the top of that list for about 2 hours). I hopped up front, and we were on our way. Little did I know, Arnold had yet another surprise in store. I thought we were driving to the set, but started to get suspicious when we pulled up to a large, gated house…We had pulled up to Arnold’s house. His house.
We walked in the front door and saw the most incredible sight – Arnold sitting at the breakfast table, with an extra place setting next to him...for me. Again left speechless, it took me a minute to figure out what I wanted to say and ask the man. My brother and I introduced ourselves, and we all chatted for a while.
Suddenly, Arnold jumped up and asked me if I wanted to see his gym. Like a kid on Christmas morning, I shouted, “Absolutely!” We walked down a hallway with the big USA flag prop from Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, around the replica of his tank, past the pictures of him and Nelson Mandela and into his gym. Arnold F***in' Schwarzenegger’s gym! Arnold…Schwarzenegger’s…Gym! I was standing in the place where the man who revolutionized weight lifting actually lifted weights. It was like taking batting practice at Yankee Stadium with Babe Ruth. He coached me on a few exercises (he picked the ab machine…maybe he was trying to tell me something??). He threw 185 on the bench, and after I did 10 reps, he told me that 30 years ago no one could do it once, and now everyone is benching 300. I told him that it was because of him. He smiled, thanked me, and told me it was time to crush things.
After breakfast and the gym, we piled into the car and headed to the movie set/ranch where Arnold kept his tank. I called “Shotgun”, but I quickly realized that when you are Mr. Olympia/A-list Actor/Governor, you pretty much always get to pick your seat first. Nevertheless, Arnold, my brother and I spent the 30 minute drive chatting about a variety of topics. For instance, much to my surprise I learned his favorite lift is bent over rows. His favorite actor to work with was Danny DeVito, and his favorite movie to film was True Lies.
We discussed education, how much I hate “legs” days, and some movie sequels he has planned. We talked about Conan and I told him I wanted to see a Running Man sequel and he said it was a good idea. I am hoping he gives me a role in that one. We talked about Running Man vs. Hunger Games. I took a Business Presentation techniques class in grad school, and one of my presentations was on our (hypothetical) company sponsoring Arnold in a similar style competition vs. Jennifer Lawrence, and what it would do for our brand recognition. As we talked, he mentioned that with the success of the Hunger Games, it might be time to do a Running Man sequel.
Not only is Arnold a legendary story teller, but I had the green light to ask him anything I wanted. I found myself wishing the car ride was longer, but then I remembered we had a slightly different type of ride we needed to take. After a brief pit stop (ask my brother about that one), we pulled up to the set. Soon enough, I saw Arnold sitting in the front seat, a production team, and a TANK, I began to realize what was about to happen.
Arnold gave me a few quick pointers, and we started filming an action movie. (Side Note: I am really hoping Hollywood magic is real and the editors can make it so I don’t look like a complete idiot). Arnold taught me how to smoke cigars, lift weights, and even deliver some one-liners, all in Austrian accents. It turns out my accent wasn’t quite as good as his. Once we had a plot and some Oscar-worthy characters developed, it was time to hop in the tank.
As we climbed in the tank, the director was yelling direction on where to drive, what to crush, etc. Mid-instruction, Arnold responded “Exactly,” and we were on our way. With Arnold at the wheel, I found myself on top of a tank, heading directly toward a car. It was right then that I realized this is by far the craziest, coolest shit I had ever done. As we drove closer and closer to the car, I started thinking that it might be a good idea to hold on. We hit that car dead on and crushed it. We went on to crush 7-10 more things, all of which you’ll have to watch the video to see…
Later, Arnold had to leave to read for Terminator 5, but his team gave us a tour of Arnold’s office. We had lunch, admired his weightlifting trophies and checked out some cool movie props. When it was time to go, I tried to sneak the Conan sword out with me, but it was kind of obvious. We thanked Arnold’s team and headed to the only logical place… Muscle Beach.
Going into the experience, I was wondering what it would be like. I had always heard Arnold was a great guy, but was still a little worried that much of the day would be staged for the cameras. It took only 30 seconds of hanging out with him to realize that day was going to be special. Arnold is an incredibly down to Earth, genuine person. I couldn’t thank him enough for all of the special extras we experienced. It was a day I will never forget.
In 2011, Schwarzenegger told TheArnoldFans at the Arnold Classic that he was offered a new script treatment for The Running Man. Even more recent, the Governator did a live chat during Sabotage promotion and said he'd like to see a Running Man sequel. Although, I'm against Hollywood remaking classic films, I completely agree that The Running Man would benefit well with a modern / less cheesy direction. Now, Arnold is again talking The Running Man with Alex Mihelick so let's hope this film gets a reboot (AFTER King Conan) with Arnold's involvemet. I'd personally like to see Schwarzenegger's character (Ben Richards) to be forced into the game as a Stalker of the runners! After all, Arnold will get "10 points for his biceps alone."
Congratulations, Alex! Your experience will no doubt be a day you'll NEVER forget. That guy who played tiny tennis against Arnie in the Super Bowl ad is a choir boy in comparison to you, Alex. A choir boy! Thanks for sharing your story with us, Alex. Now, we must be going. Please excuse TheArnoldFans staff as we too hop up on Schwarzenegger's tank and roll out towards the After-School All-Stars headquarters. They need support and we will always be there for Arnold and his fantastic after school programs! There are still several weeks left to enter this year's Omaze contest and get a chance to "Blow Sh*t Up With Arnold!" Whether or not you win, YOU will be an All-Star! Goooooo, get to the tank!
