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2017 June - NAGS Championship - A. Juncker


Adam Juncker

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NAGSC: A humbling experience.

On Saturday June 3, 2017 my bride and I made the perilous journey from Redneckville, Indiana to Nashville TN.  3 hours of interstate travel through God's country in our minivan.

We had a little trouble finding the location because iphone maps did not have the right location.  Thanks Siri (I never liked her anyway). But after arriving we were greeted by Gil, solid eye contact and a firm handshake. Maria's gym looks awesome and was just the right size for this venue. 

The first person I met was John McCarter. I've wanted to meet this guy in person for a while. Just as I suspected: all the seriousness of an elite grip athlete yet humble and nonchalant in demeanor. I met many others but I won't get into too much detail. 

First event was grippers - 20mm block set. I thought this would be my best event, after all - this is what I trained for....  I was unpleasantly surprised at the difficulty of the grippers. The ratings are what they are. I could tell others were surprised too. I won't make excuses. I closed a 135 righty.  Last week I closed a CPW rated 145 at home. Thought I would be good for 150. But the strength wasn't there. 

The euro was also a little frustrating. Prior to Saturday I have never touched one. It's a bit nuanced to say the least. On my second attempt I went for 75 k and just missed the cross bar.  3rd and 4th attempts missed the mark. I was trying 58mm (?).  I think this was a little too wide but I learned something too: I shouldn't expect to do well on things I haven't specifically trained for.

Weight and width changes went surprisingly quick.  I thought this would be a bit of a nightmare, and for those making all those changes I'm assured that it was. But from the perspective of a competitor it was rather painless.

Enter the Axle dead lift.  Once again I surprised myself at how weak and unprepared I was for this. No excuses, just another learning experience. I was humbled at how well others did.  The power and intensity of competitors like:  Gil, Eric, Mike, Pat, Tanner, Tim, Aaron, and many others was inspiring. Although I don't show emotion well I was inspired.

The medley: I pretty much came just for the medley. I couldn't budge the anvil (although I tried very hard).  Memory is kind of fuzzy on how many items I got but I was happy at the end.  You have to strategize with a medley: I try to make the First 5-6 items things I know i can lift. Once again, humbled by those that lifted the 180# dumbell to the platform seemingly with ease.  Tanner Merkle, in a rush to get one more item, placed a item intended for a 4" lift on the platform by mistake. A display of raw power even if not intended to be one.

I really appreciated all of the competitors. Everyone was very supportive and offered numerous pro-tips along the way. I must have forgotten to remove the "Hello, my name is 'Complete Amateur' sticker from my shirt".
Tanner Merkle received the well deserved "Best overall lifter" award.  This was scored allometrically according to bodyweight and the amount he lifted. This guy is super strong, so strong you have to see it in person to appreciate it.  Even Paul Knight seemed to be awestruck. My feelings were mixed between "I'm not worthy", and "maybe I should take off my shoes". 

Not to mention Eric, Jedd, and Tanner all performing multiple lifts of a new Inch replica and  Gil's 180#. Even some double lifts and rowing. I'm pretty sure that I couldn't row 172 lbs if it were glued to my hand.

I'm a little slow to socialize with others but it's a new community for me and everyone was very supportive.  I know that I failed to mention numerous feats and lifts done by others and for that I apologize. There were so many world class people there doing world class things, it all just kind of runs together. 

I may have left with my tail between my legs but I had a great time and even my wife said that she was not bored.  Congratulations to all those who placed: I can't say enough about how awesome the atmosphere was. 


 

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3 hours ago, Adam Juncker said:
3 hours ago, Adam Juncker said:

NAGSC: A humbling experience.

On Saturday June 3, 2017 my bride and I made the perilous journey from Redneckville, Indiana to Nashville TN.  3 hours of interstate travel through God's country in our minivan.

We had a little trouble finding the location because iphone maps did not have the right location.  Thanks Siri (I never liked her anyway). But after arriving we were greeted by Gil, solid eye contact and a firm handshake. Maria's gym looks awesome and was just the right size for this venue. 

The first person I met was John McCarter. I've wanted to meet this guy in person for a while. Just as I suspected: all the seriousness of an elite grip athlete yet humble and nonchalant in demeanor. I met many others but I won't get into too much detail. 

First event was grippers - 20mm block set. I thought this would be my best event, after all - this is what I trained for....  I was unpleasantly surprised at the difficulty of the grippers. The ratings are what they are. I could tell others were surprised too. I won't make excuses. I closed a 135 righty.  Last week I closed a CPW rated 145 at home. Thought I would be good for 150. But the strength wasn't there. 

The euro was also a little frustrating. Prior to Saturday I have never touched one. It's a bit nuanced to say the least. On my second attempt I went for 75 k and just missed the cross bar.  3rd and 4th attempts missed the mark. I was trying 58mm (?).  I think this was a little too wide but I learned something too: I shouldn't expect to do well on things I haven't specifically trained for.

Weight and width changes went surprisingly quick.  I thought this would be a bit of a nightmare, and for those making all those changes I'm assured that it was. But from the perspective of a competitor it was rather painless.

Enter the Axle dead lift.  Once again I surprised myself at how weak and unprepared I was for this. No excuses, just another learning experience. I was humbled at how well others did.  The power and intensity of competitors like:  Gil, Eric, Mike, Pat, Tanner, Tim, Aaron, and many others was inspiring. Although I don't show emotion well I was inspired.

The medley: I pretty much came just for the medley. I couldn't budge the anvil (although I tried very hard).  Memory is kind of fuzzy on how many items I got but I was happy at the end.  You have to strategize with a medley: I try to make the First 5-6 items things I know i can lift. Once again, humbled by those that lifted the 180# dumbell to the platform seemingly with ease.  Tanner Merkle, in a rush to get one more item, placed a item intended for a 4" lift on the platform by mistake. A display of raw power even if not intended to be one.

I really appreciated all of the competitors. Everyone was very supportive and offered numerous pro-tips along the way. I must have forgotten to remove the "Hello, my name is 'Complete Amateur' sticker from my shirt".
Tanner Merkle received the well deserved "Best overall lifter" award.  This was scored allometrically according to bodyweight and the amount he lifted. This guy is super strong, so strong you have to see it in person to appreciate it.  Even Paul Knight seemed to be awestruck. My feelings were mixed between "I'm not worthy", and "maybe I should take off my shoes". 

Not to mention Eric, Jedd, and Tanner all performing multiple lifts of a new Inch replica and  Gil's 180#. Even some double lifts and rowing. I'm pretty sure that I couldn't row 172 lbs if it were glued to my hand.

I'm a little slow to socialize with others but it's a new community for me and everyone was very supportive.  I know that I failed to mention numerous feats and lifts done by others and for that I apologize. There were so many world class people there doing world class things, it all just kind of runs together. 

I may have left with my tail between my legs but I had a great time and even my wife said that she was not bored.  Congratulations to all those who placed: I can't say enough about how awesome the atmosphere was. 


 

Thanks so much for the quick write up. And so glad it didn't seem to drag along. Having not run a contest with the euro and axle before we were worried about the time and weight and width changes so this is nice to read. We so appreciate you coming out! Talk soon!

 

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19 minutes ago, JHenze646 said:

@Adam Juncker How many contests have you been to?

This Is my 2nd comp so far. Many more to go hopefully 

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2 hours ago, Adam Juncker said:

This Is my 2nd comp so far. Many more to go hopefully 

Hmmm.  I should think so! 

Sweet trip report man.  Looking forward to meeting you.

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Sounds like you did well.  In any sport, the top guys make it look so easy.   Grip is no different. 

Keep working hard and you'll improve. 

Thanks for the writeup.  It was unfortunate that I couldn't go.

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It was great to meet you in person. 

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Nice meeting you brother.   Hope to see you at another comp soon.

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