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2007 Gripmas Carol


climber511

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David Horne now has all the bends from the Gripmas Carol up on his site for the reverse bending list - thank you David!

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My Gripmas experience-

Well, lets see... First of all, when I first arrived at Chris' gym, I was immediately greeted and offered handshakes by everyone I spoke to. Overall, a very warm and friendly group of guys. Chris made sure to let me know that I was welcome and to feel right at home. On the way there, I thought that I might be nervous, but that wasn't the case at all. I felt relaxed, but anxious about the comp.

Once the event started, I was pumped and ready to go. The grippers in chokers were up first. Now I am fairly new to the grip world, and although I have grippers at home, I honestly rarely train with them. So I was surprised when I was deciding what gripper to open with, I closed a #3! So when the contest started, on my first attempt, I figured I would go for the 143 gripper so as to at least be safe and get a baseline score for the event. It was my turn, so I put set the gripper in my hand, and squeezed, and WOW it was hard! I don't know if it wasn't set right or what, but I failed on that attempt. So, the next time I picked the 141 gripper and closed it easily. On my last attempt, I took a gamble and picked the 156.4 gripper(I don't remember what it was, a #3 I think), and closed it fairly easily. Overall, I was pleased with my performance in this event.

Next up was the euro pinch. I had never touched this device before prior to the contest. After doing it though, I can tell you that your personal ceiling comes up real quick with this device. After a few warm-up attempts, my first real attempt was at 160. It came up fairly easily. My next attempt was at 170, and I got that too. Pretty difficult though. I tried at 180, but just couldn't hold on. I think I was trying to concentrate too much on pinching it and not enough on just getting it up and down. With some training on this, I think my numbers would jump way up, as this felt like a pretty comfortable lift for me. Overall, I am happy with 170, seeing as how this is the first time I tried it.

Then on to the axle dead lift. My powerlifting background really helped me out here. My biggest limiting factor on this was my grip strength. I had the back to pull more, but my hands couldn't hold on! This was also the first time I had ever tried to dead lift with a thick bar. With a regular bar, I use an over/under grip, and have pulled as much as 600 in the past. But with this thick bar, it makes all the difference in the world! I waited until 297 to make my first attempt, and it was a good thing too! The rest of my attempts after this all only got to about upper shin level before I just couldn't hold on any longer. I could really tell here that my left hand is a bit weaker than my right, as on a couple of attempts, the bar would drop to the left side as I was bringing it up. It didn't help much that my left hand was slightly injured also. I had pulled a muscle in that hand a couple weeks prior to the contest. Overall, I was happy with my performance. I am going to include thick bar training in my workouts in the future.

After that, it was the medley. I must say, Chris got very creative with the implements here! This was also my worst event. I think I was in too much of a hurry, and forgot to take notes of how the other guys were getting this stuff up. I got a total of 11 implements up. Just over half. Honestly, I don't have the pinch strength to get the blobs up, but I think with a cooler head, and more thought, I should have been able to get the other stuff up. Oh well, now I know better for next time! Had I done well in this event, I would have moved up a few places in the final standings.

Next was the reverse bending, which is strangely my strongest bending style. Anyway, for my first attempt, I chose a 7'' piece of FBBC 1/4'' square. I killed it easily. On my next attempt, I wasn't paying attention to when my turn was up, and wasn't ready when my name was called(sorry guys!) My piece of 6.5'' square was only half wrapped! I rushed to wrap it, and it was really loose. I got it to like 25 degrees, but I could tell I was losing alot of torque through the wrap moving around! I tried it again on my last attempt, and got it to the same 25 degrees. when I took off the wraps, I found that it was WAY off center, which was making it harder than it should have been. Next time I will have to be more careful with my preparation. I can see now that it cost me here. And I wanted to get the Bastard too!! Maybe next time.

The last event was the 100# plate hold. I did OK in this event, but I think I could have done better. I should have played with the plates beforehand, and found a comfortable grip position. I didn't, and I paid for it. When it was my turn at the plates, I picked them up at the signal, and my grip didn't feel right at all. I was holding the plate too far out on my fingers. I held on as best I could, and after my pinkies finally failed, I ended up with 51 seconds. Not too bad I guess. And a great way to get a forearm pump!! I'll have to work on this.

Now on to some of the guys I noticed. First of all theres Jedd. He's kind of hard to miss!! This guy is friggin huge! To look at him, you would think he would rip your head off, but in reality, he is a very warm and caring guy. Upon first seeing him, I was greeted with a "Hey, I'm Jedd. What's your name?" and a hearty handshake( which felt like shaking a catcher's mitt!). I was really impressed with the way Jedd was giving the other competitors friendly advice on how to do the different events better. He was also always shouting encouraging words to the contestant(s) on stage. I really liked this guy, and hopefully will get the chance to compete and talk with him more in the future. In the contest, Jedd reminded me of his Juggernaut avatar. Almost unstoppable.

Next there was Eric. A very friendly guy, and always interested in what you were saying. Eric's strength was impressive. Always a smooth and sure demeanor about him in competition. I was glad to finally get to meet him, and we chatted for a bit, and he gave me some pointers on my DO. He also gave me a tip on my card tearing, and it has helped that immensely. He was also nice enough to give me a really nice pair of heavy leather wraps. Thanks again for that Eric!

On to John Eaton. John seemed to always have have a smile on his face. He made sure to encourage me and make me feel welcome whenever he got the chance. I really appreciated that. I also don't believe in the supposed lax training schedule that he is supposed to have. This guy is STRONG!!! His wrists are as big as my ankles. He also has some of the thickest hands I have ever seen. Watching him face curl the blobs was awesome. I would like to talk to him more when I get the chance. John, tell me what you think of that shoe when you get the chance!

Dave was one of those guys that is super strong, but doesn't look like he is as strong as he is. He made the events look easy. I don't think I ever saw him show strain at all! Anson is also really freakin' strong. His intensity and focus, as well as his explosions of brute strength were inspiring.

I want be like Chris when I get older! His fitness and strength are some thing to be admired. He and his wife, Theresa, were the best hosts that one could hope for. Chris, you put on a top notch contest, and made your home our home for the night. Theresa, you are an awesome cook, and I appreciated you support from the sidelines.

Bob also really impressed me. He may not be huge, but his strength is! On the axle he was pulling double body weight! On the euro pinch, he was also pulling over bodyweight. Similar performances came from Bob the entire contest. Although humble and soft spoken, Bob was like a lion in disguise, with serious strength under the surface.

If I didn't mention you, I apologize, I met alot of great guys, but I was focused on the comp. I witnessed many great feats of strength and had an unforgettable time. I can't wait till the next time I can talk and grip together with you all. Later

God Bless,

Foxman

Hey there. Pleasure to meet you and compete with you bro. You did a great job. Look forward to seeing you at the next one.

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Bob I am arond 260 Stew is around 185. I am the big little brother :D

Whooooooooooa...hold the train! Stew is 185? I thought he was like a 155lber with all the talk about light bw. Don't let Eaton see this thread, the smack talk will be on :D

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A correction on the bending - Brad Ardrey did a successful bend of a 5" Grade 5 - had to cut it for him but he did it just fine!

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Foxman, to say you have a lot of potential would be an understatement. You have an inspiring enthusiasm about you that indicates you'll be progressing at a furious pace. And it was a real pleasure to meet you! It will be fun to see how much you've progressed by your next contest.

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If Gripmas were tomorrow

• I’d leave the Grippers in chokers event alone. The only real problem with this as an event is the necessity of having so many calibrated grippers.

• Euro Pinch – I would probably use the Olympic collars as they might be easier to keep tight but I don’t think it would have changed the results significantly. What I was aiming at was to have a “base” weight of the “set up (Euro plates, collars, pipe)” come out to an even 10# increment – and I was able to do that pretty easily with Jedd’s stuff. My main goal was to make the most balanced front to rear set up possible along with keeping the stated weight as close as possible to the actual calibrated weight – and I think I did that pretty well.

• Axle DL – I think it went pretty well as it was.

• Medley – I think the event itself came out just the way I had hoped as only two people were able to finish it out of the 22 there. To be honest, my intention was to just score ties as ties but in the end decided to put in a very small factor just to show the “winner” on the score sheet so that years from now – we would actually know. I liked the balance of strengths needed and the lack of advantage for the most part to large handed individuals. Early on I kicked around the idea of assigning difficulty ratings to each item but difficult by whose standards – it all comes down to “your” strengths – what is hard for you may be easy for the next guy etc.

• To be honest, this was so much fun – I could do a whole sort of contest around a “Monster Medley” and enjoy it. I imagine that when we finally come up with an Organization of sorts – medley’s probably won’t be a part of the “World Championship” contest – but as a separate after competition event – something like this could be some serious fun to do during the play time afterwards.- and may be the best way I’ve seen to sort out weaknesses.

• Reverse Bending – I don’t even know if it’s possible, let alone feasible but I think all bending stock should be of the same length. I think Eric did a great job with the adjustments for length but it still is an inexact science at best. Outside of this I honestly don’t see any type of bending as much of a “grip” strength test. I know we’ve argued this one out before but it’s become more of a test of overall body strength the way we do it now. Even reverse style is bending a sort of “folding” for a few guys who have figured it out. I like it and it’s fun but……

• 100# Plate Hold – short term, I would split the pairs of plates I had. Both weighed the same, the lips were the same size etc but the winner of every pairing but one was on the grey plates – better friction I believe. Looking back – I wish I had substituted another event for it.

• Other things I want to think about some more for future events – I’m not sorry I did this but it added a lot of time to the contest - but allowing people to continue trying lifts on pinch and Axle after they were out. In a contest with so many new people there who had never seen the official implements I decided it was better long term for the sport to go for “fun” rather than efficiency in time. I think next time I will also consider limiting warm up attempts either in number or to another bar etc and making the competition platform just that. With 22 competitors, it did add a lot of time. But I do think it was the right thing to do for this particular contest.

• Scoring – the German and “percentage” system are the same with a decimal point shift so I consider them the same system really. I would still use it as I don’t like people skipping last attempts or not having to go all out to win as I think sometimes happens with Strongman – that doesn’t mean I’m right – just that I believe that is best. No scoring system is going to work perfectly over a wide variety of event types like grip has at the moment. Max weight, number of items loaded, timed holds, bending different lengths of steel, and especially ties are all things that in an ideal world would lend themselves to a single system. But I doubt that is possible in an easy fashion – and for one with the understanding of math that I have – impossible. But you boys with the smarts, if you can come up with a workable solution – my son says he will write up an Excel sheet and give it to whoever wants it.

• Let me say I’m glad these conversations are taking place – using Gripmas as an example is great, it will mean that next year, I can have all these things sorted out in advance. Like everyone, I want things to be done as fairly as possible.

• This was my first actual contest as a promoter, it won’t be my last. I love competing – I love the people – the camaraderie etc. I know I’m old and tend to look back a lot more than some but I remember when it was guys in a garage – as organized as this Gripmas was compared to the others – it was still a bunch of guys in a garage, lifting heavy stuff for no fame, darn little glory, and some cheap prizes. It reminds me of when I was a young man doing the same thing – just guys in a garage digging deep within their selves and doing the best they can. I loved it then and I love it now – and I hope to love it for many years to come. I guess that’s why I didn’t rent a bigger venue for the contest and kept the whole thing the way it was. There’s a lot of talk now days about the state of weight lifting and strength sports in general – with all the drugs, assistance gear, etc. But there are still places where the true spirit of the old timers still lives; I like to think my garage was one of those places last Saturday.

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Well said, Chris!

And I agree on all points.

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It reminds me of when I was a young man doing the same thing – just guys in a garage digging deep within their selves and doing the best they can. I loved it then and I love it now – and I hope to love it for many years to come. I guess that’s why I didn’t rent a bigger venue for the contest and kept the whole thing the way it was. There’s a lot of talk now days about the state of weight lifting and strength sports in general – with all the drugs, assistance gear, etc. But there are still places where the true spirit of the old timers still lives; I like to think my garage was one of those places last Saturday.

Hell yes Chris, hell yes ;):D:rock :rock :rock :rock :rock :rock

I get some other guys(who've never competed in strength sports) laughing at me whenever I tell them I'm driving 6 or more hours out to have a contest in some guys garage. I wouldn't really want it any other way but a bigger venue wouldn't stop me from competing, I would just be happy I was here now when the sport was young enough that talk of comp venues mostly meant "who's house?". I was turned off of alot of popular sports because alot of people are motivated by the financial rewards of being signed to some big team.

Every single person I met at Gripmas and this goes for the BBB3 as well, young or old, new or veteran, world class or entry level strength all seemed to have that spirit you spoke of Chris. It's not like Jedd, Dave, Eaton or anyone for that matter will get their name or face on the cover of some magazine for their grip accomplishments, their not going to win big bucks or sponsorship but that doesn't stop them from putting their heart and soul into training and trying to better themselves... well for most, I hear Eaton doesn't train ;) but the fact remains that, for now, grip is mostly a close nit community with world class strength athletes mentally and physically.

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• This was my first actual contest as a promoter, it won't be my last. I love competing – I love the people – the camaraderie etc. I know I'm old and tend to look back a lot more than some but I remember when it was guys in a garage – as organized as this Gripmas was compared to the others – it was still a bunch of guys in a garage, lifting heavy stuff for no fame, darn little glory, and some cheap prizes. It reminds me of when I was a young man doing the same thing – just guys in a garage digging deep within their selves and doing the best they can. I loved it then and I love it now – and I hope to love it for many years to come. I guess that's why I didn't rent a bigger venue for the contest and kept the whole thing the way it was. There's a lot of talk now days about the state of weight lifting and strength sports in general – with all the drugs, assistance gear, etc. But there are still places where the true spirit of the old timers still lives; I like to think my garage was one of those places last Saturday.

Chris, I think that may be the best post I've ever read on this board, the quoted part above is my favorite paragraph and it sums up why I enjoyed the event so much.

I thought the plates looked a little loose on the 2HP, but someone told me that was just an illusion created by using the washers with bigger plates covering them up. I realize you put a huge amount of effort into getting everything to work smoothly. I really loved this event and would like to see it in more contests.

I enjoyed the axel, wouldn't mind seeing it contested as a "lock out" event (last few inches). Seeing you pull the (363 or 375?) axle "for fun" was one of the highlights of Gripmas, in my opinion.

I thought the medley was a true work of art, beautifully conceived, and it truly hit all my weak points. I did several of the "hard" items (would have liked a little more weight on the thick DBs) and missed many of the "easy" ones. Lots of fun but evil.

At this point, I see bending as a "necessary evil" if I'm going to compete. I will likely get hooked on it once I experience some success.

I would have rather seen some type of thickbar or thick DB hold for time than the plate hold, but it was fun in a way.

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Chris,

As a promoter, would you ever have an interest in an implement that would be the same material and dimension of a standard olympic bar, but would rotate on bearings and be used like a rolling thunder?

I've been toying around with making one for awhile.

I'd be interested in your thoughts.

ps. agreed, that last paragraph is why I always read your posts.

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Spot on Chris ! So your not planning on installing ferns and Chrome in the garage right :D

Bob I am arond 260 Stew is around 185. I am the big little brother :D

Whooooooooooa...hold the train! Stew is 185? I thought he was like a 155lber with all the talk about light bw. Don't let Eaton see this thread, the smack talk will be on :D

Heck Josh I didn't know it ever stopped :D Oh ya I weigh in at 182 now need to eat a few more big macks I'm wasting away!

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Great write up guys! wonderful contest I hope everyone had as much fun as i did. As anyway the wise older fella shows us younger fellas how things should go. This was a well planned and executed contest. Great points on the events and changes you would make Chris. most of the points I never even thought about.

The barn is nothing like I thought it would be, at first horses came to mind but when I saw Rice grip temple I was drooling :rock One sweet heated gym you have there.

Gentleman as always it was a pleasure to see everyone again and it was great to see a lot of new faces and strong grips :(

bravo to all :bow

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Chris,

As a promoter, would you ever have an interest in an implement that would be the same material and dimension of a standard olympic bar, but would rotate on bearings and be used like a rolling thunder?

I've been toying around with making one for awhile.

I'd be interested in your thoughts.

ps. agreed, that last paragraph is why I always read your posts.

Dub - not exactly sure what you mean but hey - one more thing for the medley is always good :rock It sounds like a RT with a 28 to 32 mm handle? Please explain further.

And for Stew - chrome and fern huh - how about we look at the Eleiko bar(chrome) and track some grass (green at least) in?

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Chris, I meant to mention earlier how impressed I was with the medley event. It really showed the time and effort you put into the Contest. I honestly don't know how you could improve on it.

I also thought the gripper event with chokers was a great idea. Everyones set was of course uniform, I hope it catches on.

On the rim lift you mentioned, I noticed the greenish plates had a slight slope on the inside of the rim. Maybe this accounted for the difference.

High points of the Contest for me were:

Anson's intensity

Jedd's long fingers holding on to almost 400 on the axle.

Closing (John Eatons I think) ridiculously easy 3.5 gripper.

Watching everone lift on the medley event.

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Why The "Garage" Contest

As I posted way back in this thread – I considered renting our local Recreation Center. I could have advertised, probably generated some strength athletes and spectators with nothing else to do that day and easily could have had the local press there to cover it. The “but” was this – I had 10 people actually sign up and send in their money by the deadline I had set. There were some others of course that I “knew” were planning to attend but…………… By that date the Recreation Center had already been rented and was no longer an option – in my town, that is the only other option. To be honest I liked having it in my garage (my garage isn’t quite like the image “garage” usually brings to mind) but hopefully this will inspire people to “put their money where their mouth is” in regards to their next contest and send it in far enough in advance so the promoter can actually make his plans. Promoters have expenses to meet and plans to make that must be made in advance – and knowing how many are coming is what lets you make those plans. I have been guilty of this in the past myself but the shoe was on the other foot this time and I understand completely now having been there. Having to replan the menu the morning of the contest kind of sucks. If my count was right, there were 41 people there all together counting my school throwers and visitors that came in and out – not a bad crowd overall. The throwers were trying the grippers and bending nails two days later when they worked out so a couple new grip guys perhaps. Last minute entries should be something looked at as a bonus – not something you have to depend on to not lose money on the event.

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  • 1 month later...

I just picked up the Gripmas Carol 2007 DVD from Nick - 3 hours of footage for $15.00 including postage here in the states. If interested drop me a PM. Chris

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