2010 Nationals

[Guest Bullitt]

Congrats to all the competitors! Great job Mr. National Champ!

[rico300zx]

Congrats Jedd! way to protect home plate! :mosher

rico

[jpmmkrahling]

Congrats guys, That must have been something, numbers look close for 1st. I cant wait to read the write ups and individual results.

[climber511]

Brent won a well deserved Diesel Award also. He had a great meet and is really coming along with not only his physical strength but also his mental game is getting better and better.

[climber511]

GGC 2010

This was a really fun contest. I didn’t have one of my best performances but I really enjoyed myself. I did close a gripper I had never managed before, that was nice. My pinch was really off – it didn’t really fell slick, it just kept falling out of my hands LOL. The Axle was brand spanking new but Jedd had cleaned it up well and it really felt solid but it kept falling out of my hands too – that seemed to be the theme of the day for me – stuff falling out of my hands. The medley was simply Awesome! Super challenging but oh so sweet and fun – Jedd really outdid himself and came up with perhaps the best medley ever. The wrist roller event was my downfall (well one of them anyway) – I simply couldn’t figure it out how to go fast and while everyone was saying their forearms were trashed – the only thing hurting on me was the sides of my thumbs – what the heck was up with that??? Not sure how I got outsmarted by a wrist roller but I did.

Jedd and Andrew were neck and neck – back and forth all day – a terrific competition between two of the best – fun to watch. Brent Barbe has been improving fast all year – in Highland Games as well as Grip – I think he finally put his head right and is finally using all that power I think he has had all along. John Eaton and I were neck and neck until I screwed up the wrist roller at the end and he put me down – rematch at Gripmas big boy! Zach was fine until he bombed the Axle – which pretty much finished him – he did come back with a great run on the Wrist Roller though.

Thanks to Jedd, his dad, Delraine (food was great as always), and everyone for all their work and a great time as usual when I visit there. And to Kelly and Erica – keep on your Dad and don’t let him slack off – keep him on task (and yourselves as well hehe)!

[Hubgeezer]

Thanks Chris Climber for the report. I presume that there is more than just me who are looking forward to reading/seeing something else on the Nationals that were on Saturday.

Kudos to all who traveled and participated! And congratulations to Jedd on his 2nd National Crown.

[Sher]

Thanks Chris Climber for the report. I presume that there is more than just me who are looking forward to reading/seeing something else on the Nationals that were on Saturday.

Kudos to all who traveled and participated! And congratulations to Jedd on his 2nd National Crown.

Yes, there are. (Pics or vids perhaps?)

[bencrush]

Congrats to everyone! Looking forward to the writeup.

[Jedd Johnson]

Here is the write-up that I submitted to the area paper. I haven't seen what they actually put in. I told the guy to edit it for the space he had available. No disrespect to the other competitors. I kind of made this an Andrew vs. Jedd thing because I wanted to be able to try to engage the audience in the drama of the struggle. I'm trying desperately to get a group of people interested in this stuff around town here so I focused on the fight for the lead through most of the write-up. It was a great day for grip and I hope everyone enjoyed themselves as much as I did. Special shout out to Brent who did awesome all day long. He joined has been working his ass off for months, coming up to my place (5-hour drive) almost once a month and has been following the Grip Authority videos I put out each month, and he's killing it now. Big gripper, nice axle, huuge medley (21/28 items). Thanks to all the guys that helped with judging and other administrative parts of the contest. Also thanks to Mary Anne for loading. She was an immense help to me.

A New National Grip Strength Champion is Crowned

On Saturday, September 4th, the United States Grip Strength National Championship was held in Camptown, Pennsylvania and the home town competitor, Jedd Johnson, arose victorious amongst a crowd of perennial top-level contenders.

Grip Strength is a sport similar to Strongman that has been growing in size on the East Coast since 2003. Whereas Strongman contests, which often appear on ESPN involve lifting stones, pulling trucks and other FULL BODY strength endeavors, the sport of Grip focuses on testing the competitors’ hand, wrist, finger, and forearm strength.

Throughout the Grip season, contests are held throughout the United States, and competitors who meet specific qualification requirements can become eligible for the National Championship held in Bradford County each year.

For the 2010 installment of the Grip National Championship, the events included Heavy Hand Grippers, Two Hands Pinch Lift, Thick Axle Deadlift, Monster Medley and 75-Foot Wrist Roller.

The fight for the title of 2011 Grip Strength Champion was a nail biter from the start as the defending champion, Andrew Durniat from Wooster, Ohio, and Jedd Johnson tied on the first event, Grippers, each closing one rated at 182.1 lbs. The Grippers used in competition are tested with a device called a Rice Gripper Calibrator, a mechanism used to hold the Gripper while weight is applied to it in order to see how much weight is required to make the handles touch together.

Following the Grippers, Johnson pulled ahead slightly on Durniat in the second event, the Two Hands Pinch, a test of thumb strength. Johnson, who owns the World Record in the Two Hands Pinch with 256.04 pounds, had an off-day in the event, but still lifted 30 pounds more than Durniat, pulling slightly ahead of him in the standings with a lead of 2 points.

Johnson’s lead was cut in half after the next event, the Thick Axle Deadlift, as Durniat out-lifted Jedd with a pull of 423 pounds to Johnson’s 384. The Axle is a 2-inch thick bar with weights added that tests the athlete’s open hand strength, as most people are unable to get their fingers and thumb completely around the device.

With the score Johnson 29 to Durniat 28, the fourth event, the Monster Medley was upon them. This event involves a series of nearly 30 challenges that must be lifted, squeezed, ripped and bent in succession within the 4-minute time limit in order to acquire as many points as possible for the event. This Medley started outside with the athletes maneuvering a series of odd objects, and eventually working their way inside to another series of Grip challenges of ever-increasing difficulty. The Medley included carrying a 120-pound anvil with one hand by the horn, tearing a phone book, bending a bolt, ripping a deck of cards, and 20+ other challenges. Durniat once again edged out Johnson, successfully completing 24 while Johnson completed 22.

The score was now a dead heat with Johnson and Durniat locked in a tie at 38 points. The final event, the 75-foot Wrist Roller would decide the 2011 champion. This event involved pulling a sled loaded with 45 pounds up an inclined course 75 feet long. The sled was attached to a strap and was pulled up the course by turning a 3.5-inch Wrist Roller using Grip Strength. One of the most severe tests of forearm strength and endurance in the sport, this event leaves the hands, wrists and forearms completely fatigued. The competitors must give it everything they have left in order to pull the sled as far as possible within the 1-minute time limit. Johnson emerged victorious, successfully completing the 75-foot course in 49 seconds. The only competitor to do so, Johnson won the competition with a total of 48 points to Durniat’s 47.

In other highlights from Nationals, Brent Barbe from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania rose to the occasion of National Competition setting a personal best in Grippers and the Axle and finishing third with 42 points. Rounding out the group were John Eaton (Cuyler, New York) with 37 points, Chris Rice (Crooksville, Ohio) with 32 points and Zach Coulter (Temperance, Michigan) with 27 points.

“The sport of Grip is extremely fun,” says Johnson. “Just about anybody can train for it and excel at it if they put the effort in. I enjoy telling other people about the sport and showing them how to get started. I would like nothing more than to help increase the interest in the sport and help elevate its popularity.”

For more information on Grip Strength, visit Johnson’s website at www.DieselCrew.com.

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Edit: I just found the article on their website: Daily Review Article

[Jedd Johnson]

Great write-up. It's like I was in your mind during the medley, which is freaking scary.

I also got the anvil by the heel, but I had to try it twice. Chris murdered it though on his first attempt.

I thought you went pretty quick with the anvil and farmers.

More later. I'll try to get some vids around.

[odin]

Great write-ups Chris, Jedd and Brent! Congratulations to all the competitors! I hope to compete next year.

I'm looking forward to seeing the #s and videos.

[Forever]

Good job to all and great write ups

[IROC-Z]

Big congrats to all the competitors. Sounds like a fun time was had by all!

[bencrush]

Congrats guys!

[Jedd Johnson]

Here are the numbers from Saturday

Grippers

Jedd Johnson 182.100

Andrew Durniat 182.100

Brent Barbe 174.200

John Eaton 169.200

Chris Rice 156.400

Zach Coulter 156.400

Pinch

Jedd Johnson 238.519

Andrew Durniat 193.456

Brent Barbe 200.300

John Eaton 208.519

Chris Rice 208.519

Zach Coulter 143.394

Axle

Jedd Johnson 384.444

Andrew Durniat 423.144

Brent Barbe 363.944

John Eaton 353.675

Chris Rice 342.838

Zach Coulter 0

Medley

Jedd Johnson 22

Andrew Durniat 24

Brent Barbe 21

John Eaton 13

Chris Rice 15

Zach Coulter 7

Wrist Roller

Jedd Johnson 75'

Andrew Durniat 67.750'

Brent Barbe 57.270'

John Eaton 43.000'

Chris Rice 33.010'

Zach Coulter 51.938'

Final Score

Jedd Johnson 48.252

Andrew Durniat 47.144

Brent Barbe 42.951

John Eaton 37.542

Chris Rice 36.084

Zach Coulter 24.442

[Joefrey]

Congrats Jedd ! Awesome results !!

[Florian Kellersmann]

Big congrats, Jedd! Sounds like a great battle!

[Hubgeezer]

One week later, I finally get around to saying "congratulations"!

Two guys tied for LAST PLACE in grippers, 156.4 RGC, a Hard 3. That's very good! And Chris Rice, Age 62, hits a PR in gripper closing at that. Impressive, very impressive.

[Jedd Johnson]

Yes, it was awesome seeing Chris hit a PR!

[climber511]

Yes, it was awesome seeing Chris hit a PR!

Thanks guys. No one was more surprised than I was!

Edited September 12, 2010 by climber511

[Jedd Johnson]

Your set looked a lot better bro.