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2018 June - NAGS Championship - Andrew Dube


Andrew Dube

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One of my main goals for 2018 was to qualify and compete in NAGS so I was very excited for the opportunity to check that off my list this weekend. Training had been going well and I was confident in a strong performance. Rob and I were the only competitors registered for the 105 class. Since we train together I had a pretty good idea of my odds. I thought I could edge him in grippers and wrist roller but would lose substantially in the other three. With percentage scoring my only chance would be if Rob washed out on an event. 

My morning started with a very punctual 4 am pickup from Rob with Nick already in the car (he traveled an additional 1hr from London first). We then picked up Gus at a car park 30mins later. By 6 we had crossed the border with no issues. We made one stop for gas stateside and arrived at the venue sometime after 830. Jedd, Luke, Nigel and Adam Culver (who was working all day to make things run smoothly, thanks Adam!) were busy getting everything setup. We spent some time visiting (others arrived during this time) and checking out all the events. Once we could officially weigh in at 9, our car left to grab some breakfast at a nearby greasy spoon. Rob and I both made weight easily. When we returned everyone was there and the contest started on time at 11.

Grippers: I had warmed up jumping every 10 from 80 to 140 and took my opener at 145. It was a miss. Frustrated I decided to drop back to 140 to get myself on the board. I took my third attempt at 145 and missed again. I could feel my set needed to be just right if I was going to get this, and I managed to finally get it on my fourth attempt. I was hoping to do better here but it was enough to edge Rob who closed the 140. I know this gripper set had surprised some people last year and several people underperformed this year as well. However some managed great numbers and while I do agree that different makes of grippers feel different, and gripper ratings vary, I think the only thing going on is the added element of performing in a contest.

Euro: This was my first time touching a euro. I had done all my training on a 2" climber pinch and decided to pinch at 52mm. I don't remember the exact numbers here. I opened around 180 successfully and then made a 10lb jump and missed it 3 times. A few thoughts here, the Euro has a very sharp corner relative to my climber pinch. As a consequence every lift I made warming up and attempts pulled a little skin in my thumb webbing. I managed to not tear but I only made about 10 lifts with it. I would not want to train with such a device. Also, the way the weights are loaded on either side makes it awkward to fit between your legs. I can only imagine, even more so for the shorter competitors. Otherwise, I like the Euro. It was well seasoned with great texture and changing widths while time-consuming ran very smoothly. I think an adjustable pinch device like the one @Adam Juncker built is the best option I've seen. Oh and I think Rob lifted like 30lbs more than me. 

Napalms Nightmare: Also my first time touching this implement. We had trained for this by fixing two rolling thunders together. Thick bar events are my weakest and I knew this is where Rob would smash me with the percentage based scoring. The NN felt easier than our double RT setup and I opened with an easy 280. During this time I was having a discussion with Tom Bryson about strongman training and lost track of what was going on a bit because suddenly it was up to 305. I asked Jedd if I was SOL or if we could drop back down to take an attempt at 290. He kindly agreed and I made it. I put it back to 305 for my third attempt and it ripped right out of my left hand. Usually, once I miss in thick bar its game over but I took a minute and to my surprise, I managed to get within an inch of the crossbar before I returned it to the floor. If I had been paying attention and was a bit more conservative in my jumps with longer rests I think I could have taken 300. Lesson learned. It would not make any difference as the contest was filled with thick bar monsters. Rob finished with 350 after taking an ambitious final jump to 370. Eric, Justin, and Tom didn't start to warm up until it hit 350. I believe Justin opened at 400+...

The Medley: Medleys are always my favorite part of a contest and I was very excited to take a run at this one. A short medley like this requires the right strategy for success. Given that the lowest item in a category was worth 2 points it was obvious that the most important thing, was to do something in every category rather than waste time trying to upgrade a feat for one extra point. My plan was to start at one end and work my way through scoring points at each station and then circle back if I had time to reattempt. I had even printed off the medley list, hightlighted the weights I thought I would attempt and left it on my toolbox at work a week prior to prepare myself to stick to the plan. There were a few adjustments I made after trying some items when we first arrived. I was very happy with my medley run. I stuck to my plan and when I met a feat I could not get I quickly downgraded and moved on. With time left on the clock I made a second attempt a the 2 35s pinch and got some air but not enough. I ended with 41 points. Rob had a great medley run and scored 51. There was no chance now. 

The Wrist Roller: I may have been one of the few people looking forward to this event. I expected this to be a good event for me but had no idea if I would lose steam half way down. Prior to my attempt only Nick had finished the distance with a time of 57s. I gave it my best effort trying to utilize longer strokes over faster shorter ones (these grip jokes just write themselves) and finished with 56s. My lead was not to last however as Chez, Justin, and eventually Luke left me in the dust. Rob had another great showing here and I only beat him by 1 second. 

In the end, I placed second to Rob in 105 and 9/18 overall. I'm pleased that I cracked the top 50% and overall with my performance. Congratulations to @Rob McMurren  who not only smashed me but finished 4th overall. Though we were competitors we are training partners first and I was happy to see him do so well. Plus he was my ride home 😛 Congratulations to @Lucasraymond on his overall victory! Thank you to Jedd, Luke, and all the sponsors, and volunteers who helped run this event and all the competitors who made the trip! After the contest, I jumped on the arm wrestling table with anyone I could. With so many talented arm wrestlers there it was a great opportunity I didn't want to miss. We helped clean up a bit and hit the road at 630. We made one stop for gas and had planned to stop for food but Rob was a man possessed and got us all home in great time. I was wrecked the next day. My kids did not let me sleep in. 

 

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Always a pleasure Dube, keep up with the ingenuity with equipment. The wellington looks awesome! I couldn’t let you beat me twice on a wrist roller event! 🤣

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Nice write up and thank you for the mention. 

I hope you attend next year. I will be there.

I have plenty of excuses why I didn't go this year, none of them are good.  

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2 hours ago, Lucasraymond said:

Always a pleasure Dube, keep up with the ingenuity with equipment. The wellington looks awesome! I couldn’t let you beat me twice on a wrist roller event! 🤣

Thanks Luke! You had bigger fish to fry than me on that wrist roller. Let's do it again sometime!

2 hours ago, Adam Juncker said:

Nice write up and thank you for the mention. 

I hope you attend next year. I will be there.

I have plenty of excuses why I didn't go this year, none of them are good.  

Thanks Adam! If not NAGS then hopefully we can meet up at a contest soon. I'd love to pick your brain on a few things...

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2 minutes ago, Andrew Dube said:

Thanks Adam! If not NAGS then hopefully we can meet up at a contest soon. I'd love to pick your brain on a few things...

I would like to make it up to Canada sometime.....  

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Gteat meeting you Andrew.  For not training on a Euro or NN, you killed it!

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16 hours ago, Mike Rinderle said:

Gteat meeting you Andrew.  For not training on a Euro or NN, you killed it!

Thanks Mike, great to meet you too! I've already watched the horseshoe dvd and it's got me fired up to bend again! Maybe I'll try a shoe this weekend...

12 hours ago, riccardomagni said:

Great work!!  Sounds like you did very well.  Congrats! 

 

11 hours ago, terminal said:

Excellent. Well done.

Thank you, gentlemen!

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21 hours ago, Adam Juncker said:

I would like to make it up to Canada sometime.....  

Anytime! We'd be happy to have you! I think a couple of Americans were thinking of crashing the cross Canada contest in September...

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