Andrew Dube Posted May 6, 2019 Share Posted May 6, 2019 Okay what a trip, where to start with this? I was very excited to be able to attend this contest. I have not been bending for over a year, instead focusing on strongman and directing my grip work towards Legends in September. I have a busy summer planned and I knew the only way I could get away for the day is if I could take one of my kids with me. I decided to take my 5 year old son Adrian on our first road trip and come down to spectate. Given that in person bending contents are so rare, and wanting to support @Donc101 and the other benders and it was fairly close to home. We left Waterloo shortly after 6am with the hope Adrian would sleep a few hours in the car. He did not but he was content and our drive was uneventful (though I did witness someone do a U turn on the I 94 and drive back 20ft to take the exit they missed ). Growing up we would drive to Florida every year at Christmas to visit my uncle and I loved stopping at the Cracker Barrels all along the interstate. So when we saw a sign for one just before our exit to Don's we pulled over for breakfast. With our bellies full we arrived at Don's around 1030 and followed the sound of music and excited voices to his garage where we were just in time to watch the first event, DO unbraced, get under way. Don indicated that I would be bending too. Ah okay, DO is not a strong technique for me so I asked for a piece of 1/4" and Amir kindly lent me some wraps. After that Adrian got introduced to Don's kids and they proceeded to play like lifelong friends for the rest of the day. I was nervous about how entertained Adrian would be and had come prepared with lots of activities, snacks, and ready to give him 100% of my attention. With Adrian entertained I was able to participate fully in the contest for the rest of the day. I had a great time bending again. I made selections that I felt were within my abilities not wanting to injure myself knowing that I was not conditioned for bending. The medley was incredibly fun with 20 minutes to bend a horseshoe, wrench, snap a bar and 4 oval nails. I bent a 8" adjustable for the first time, and probably my fastest time ever to snap a 3/8 bar! The oval nails were new to me and turned out to be frustrating and painful. I managed two of the four spending at least half my medley time on them. Special thanks to @Tom Flesher for lending me his wraps! When all was said and done I wound up in third place behind Don and @Buccos1! I certainly didn't expect this and I feel my performance was only helped by having no expectations for myself for the day. I believe if I had trained specifically I could have gotten a few points more but the overall placing would have been the same. Don and Carl are both beasts and it was a pleasure to bend in the same medley heat as them! @JHenze646 had generously created three trophies for the top finishers and Don had a great idea for a way to thank him. I won't say anymore here so it remains a surprise! After the contest there was cold beer and Don had prepared a delicious feast for us. Don truly put on an amazing contest, from conception to execution his passion for bending and the community was on display. I had a great time hanging out with everybody, some people meeting for the first time, first time in person or reconnecting. @Anton.Torrella and Tom are a fun pair, and I look forward to drinking moonshine with them at Legends where currently it looks like we are the open class! A special thanks to Don's wife Kelly who was always a second set of eyes on Adrian and even cooked him lunch. I really felt so welcome in their home! We departed at 630 and arrived home at 940. By 830 Adrian had had enough of driving and being overtired cried for the remainder of our drive. "Isn't there a faster way home?" "Oh yes I'm just taking the slow route because I enjoy your tears." "whaaaa!" "Right you don't get sarcasm yet." 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHenze646 Posted May 7, 2019 Share Posted May 7, 2019 How did your long bar bend go? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Flesher Posted May 7, 2019 Share Posted May 7, 2019 7 hours ago, JHenze646 said: How did your long bar bend go? He murdered a 3/4x44 bar and probably would have done fine on a 40. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Dube Posted May 7, 2019 Author Share Posted May 7, 2019 Here's what I remember bending: DO: 1/4" Reverse: G5 DU: 1/4", 9/32" Long bar: 3/4"×44" Timber spike: 10" Medley: DC1, 8" adjustable, 3/8" snap, and 2/4 oval nails snapped Everything before the medley I bent fairly quickly. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buccos1 Posted May 7, 2019 Share Posted May 7, 2019 Great job with everything Andrew! You definitely had more in the tank. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHenze646 Posted May 7, 2019 Share Posted May 7, 2019 6 hours ago, Tom Flesher said: He murdered a 3/4x44 bar and probably would have done fine on a 40. His long bar technique is quite dialed and impressive but he will be humble about it. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Dube Posted May 7, 2019 Author Share Posted May 7, 2019 18 minutes ago, JHenze646 said: His long bar technique is quite dialed and impressive but he will be humble about it. I've bent some big bars but not for a long time. I think 44 is the shortest I ever got with 3/4" and I'm not sure I ever got it to parallel (might have been 42). I do plan to get back into bending, most likely after Legends. I have some very specific goals with reverse and long bar. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anton.Torrella Posted May 7, 2019 Share Posted May 7, 2019 Great job in the comp Andrew and thanks again for sharing your technique tips for reverse and the slim double hammer lever, and especially for telling me to put that horseshoe in the crook of my knee during the medley - if I remember you bent that 8" wrench right over your leg with no padding too right? Really impressive - awesome time hanging out and I'm really looking forwarded to seeing you in September at Legends where me, you, and Tom battle it out for the open class - good luck at the strongman comp! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Dube Posted May 8, 2019 Author Share Posted May 8, 2019 22 hours ago, Buccos1 said: Great job with everything Andrew! You definitely had more in the tank. Thanks Carl! Next time I'll be prepared to empty the tank! 21 hours ago, Anton.Torrella said: Great job in the comp Andrew and thanks again for sharing your technique tips for reverse and the slim double hammer lever, and especially for telling me to put that horseshoe in the crook of my knee during the medley - if I remember you bent that 8" wrench right over your leg with no padding too right? Really impressive - awesome time hanging out and I'm really looking forwarded to seeing you in September at Legends where me, you, and Tom battle it out for the open class - good luck at the strongman comp! Thanks Anton! Glad if anything I told you helped Yeah I kinked the wrench over my leg (I try to bend it over my index finger) and later got the leg crush with double suede. Excited to see you at Legends! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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