Over the top with Carol Molnau

Before she was lieutenant governor and transportation commissioner, before she beat Jesse Ventura in a keg-tossing competition, and before she was a politician, Carol Molnau was a “dedicated farm wife” and national arm-wrestling champion.

Because she is once again in the spotlight, the Chaska Herald has graciously reposted its post-championship profile of Molnau from Wednesday, Oct. 6, 1982.

Looking past the amusing photo and the handful of memorable quotes like “My arm is tired,” “I’m a big-boned woman” and “It turns out I’m built for the sport,” the article contains a possible foreshadowing of the legacy of the future lieutenant governor and transportation commissioner whom Gov. Tim Pawlenty referred to as a “one-woman SWAT team at MnDOT.”

What she found as she explored the activity was that it was one in which she could compete without spending a lot of time in practice, with little expense and on her own time when the farm work allowed for relaxation. “I love softball but if you miss a game you let the team down.”

Despite letting the team down, Molnau has made sure that being transportation commissioner doesn’t take up too much of her time. How apt that the state of Minnesota needed someone at MnDOT who could play ball, and we got an arm-wrestler instead.

Editor’s note: The Chaska Herald denied our request to reprint the image, but we encourage you to click through and see it for yourself.