2009 December - A Gripmas Carol - climber511

[odin]

A Few Gripmas Impressions

I'm still too brain-dead to do a decent write-up, but I know what it is like from the other end when you can't make it to a comp and want to hear something-anything about what happened.

I thought the choked gripper event was really fun and it was cool to see Chad and Brad kill those monster grippers at or above an average #4 level. I believe Melissa Rinderle closed a gripper around the #2 level, very strong; it was nice to finally meet Mike and Lindsey did great as well!

The 2HP was simply spectacular with many PRs set and the Clash of the Titans between Chad and Jedd. Seeing Chad get the record was very exciting and it was thrilling to see Jedd take it right back with his father watching, especially after he'd come so close to getting it in the past. I could guess how Chad must have felt after the emotional roller coaster, but think this will spur him on to even greater heights. To keep it together and win the overall contest after that showed great focus.

I really liked the one-hand axle event as it basically tests the same thing as the DO axle with less risk of injury. Chad almost looked like he was saving energy here as all his lifts seemed easy for him.

I was going to start a thread about Mary Ann's sledge lever, but thought perhaps that would be best left to Mary Ann or Brent (who might have finally beaten Eaton if John could have made it, as he showed no weaknesses). Mary Ann's sledge lever was one of the most amazing feats I've ever seen in a day that was truly unforgettable. It really illustrated what can be done with training; I'll be thinking about her lever if I ever I feel my determination waver in the future. The battle between Mike and Bob L was great as both were very intense as they handled more weight with the hammer than I could have done with two hands.

Chris did a great job organizing the contest and the medley was brilliantly planned as it challenged even the strongest men and he somehow managed to win the LW (again) in the process.

There wasn't as much of the usual Festivus-type activities afterwards because everyone was so wiped out.

Nick Rosendaul was perhaps the most improved, he looked to be in great condition! Andrea had a great attitude and made a strong showing as well.

Thanks Chris for a very well-organized contest with cutting-edge events, Teresa for the great hospitality and food (sorry for eating like two); Chris' sons Josh and Sean for all their help, to Six the cat for the affection and to Doc for his great job in judging all the events.

Contest attendance this year has been pretty low overall what with the economy and all and I was concerned Gripmas would be no different so I was surprised and really pleased when I had so many sign up. As usual we lost a few and gained a few as the time got nearer and ended up with I think 23 competitors plus I have no idea how many spectators as they came and went all day – I need a bigger garage – hint to wife. The big surprise was when the phone rang one day and it was Chad and he wanted to come to Gripmas. To be honest I thought when he was selling all his grip stuff, he was getting out of the sport. He said he hadn’t been training grip at all and wasn’t worried about how he would do but wanted to see old friends and have some fun – uh, yeah, right. Then he called back a while later and told me some of his lifts –there were higher than ever! Then Nick had a get together at his house and I watched Brad Ardrey do some crazy stuff. And I knew Jedd and Dave would be their usual strong selves - I could see a huge contest coming up here.

A long time ago Jedd told me it took him 3 months to get ready for the GGC contest and I laughed – heck I can barely do it in three months, even now, with a few under my belt. My big concern this year was kind of two fold. I knew that this was going to be a very long contest – and I knew how to cut it back but not do that and still accomplish my goal of allowing (helping) everyone achieve the absolute best performance possible for each one. So I decided to set it up for good performances and if that took a while – so be it. Doc and a few of us discussed some ideas for next year already to help with the time factor but I still want to set the stage for everyone’s best as much as I can.

Never in my life did I dream that some Saturday in my little garage gym would I see such a display of strength, friendships, excitement and whatever kind of magic we had that day in there. I’ve put on a few contests and been to more than a few now but it just “felt” different that day – I somehow just knew it was going to be special – Chad definitely had his game face on, Jedd was pacing around psyching up before we even started, Brad looked serious, and Dave was as calm and relaxed as ever. And boy did it deliver – and in spades! People were on their feet all day (part of that was of course that we had too many people and not enough room hehe) cheering, clapping, stomping, and screaming - and in general going crazy with PR lift after PR lift. Everyone rose to the occasion with unbelievable lifting. I can’t say enough about the ladies – they were intense – all of them. I think they were a little apprehensive at first but you could just see their confidence grow as the cheering for them started and things went on – and it sounded like Chad’s and Jedds WR lifts when Mary Ann did that crazy Monster Sledge Lever! The place was out of control!

Grippers – come on, how exciting is the normal gripper event? We had calibrated grippers it seemed every 3 or 4 pounds from 58# to 209# and they were falling like dominos. I remember Chad coming up and asking if we could make a harder gripper than what we had on the table out of Josh’s adjustable. So we had to adjust and calibrate a gripper just to finish! We had a 209# gripper and it wasn’t enough – what the heck!

Euro Pinch – everyone used Jedd’s Euro to be sure that everything would be accepted without question when (not if ) the records started falling. And fall they did – we started with the wider settings and worked down so Chad’s 255# WR lift fell first and the place went absolutely nuts! In all the excitement of Jedd’s record lift – let’s not forget Chad’s WR as well. If I could wave a magic wand and change one thing about the contest – it would be that they both choose the same width and were going at it head to head – lift for lift back and forth. But I don’t know if my heart could have handled that. PRs were falling everywhere. 13 of the top 50 lifts ever done on the Euro Pinch setup were done at the Gripmas Carol that day.

One hand axle dead lift - worked out well but for whatever reason just wasn’t as exciting as the other events to me. There was some great lifts with Chad and Melissa impressing me the most – Melissa was on fire here – one strong and sweet lady. Chad appeared to hav more in the tank.

Sledge Lever – let’s get my thoughts out right up front. This is not a “normal” free sledge lever and simply cannot be compared to one in any way. The record set here is in my mind “The Gripmas Carol Lever Record” and that is all it is. If I have it again (and that is very likely) – the group of us discussed how we think it can be made better. But what it was – was fun – really fun. I loved it! With no muscle needed to hold your arm up – and no stabilizers needed to control it side to side – plus no fear of busting your head open – we were free to apply every ounce of power we had into the sledge – and you can see the results in the massive amounts of weight lifted. This was one exciting event to watch also – it was pandemonium when Mary Ann hit 12# and crazier yet when Bob and Mike did their lifts. I never saw more determination than Bob showed on his last attempt – I thought he was going to pass out!

The Medley - I struggled mightily to figure this thing out as to how to match it up so the newer competitors wouldn’t get skunked and yet it “might” have a chance of stopping Chad, Jedd, Dave, and Brad. The plan was to not allow them to do the harder bonus lifts until we had them tired out just a little. Even tired from 20+ very hard events they all lifted the Inch but failed on the Monster Blob of Jedd’s – a lift they all made after the event while not in a medley setting. So in a way it was a success, in another it still resulted in a tie for all four of them. Chad easily pinched my 2 – 100# plates afterwards – at least twice that I saw – the guy is incredible and he made it look very very easy!

Individual thoughts -

Chad Woodall – this guy is simply “The Chad” and in the Grip world, nothing else need be said. Jedd’s WR seems to have pushed Chad’s WR and win in a tough competition aside somewhat – the guy SET a WR in grippers – SET a WR in pinch and WON the contest – he deserves all the kudos we can give him!

Dave Thornton – The Silent Killer someone called him – quietly going about his business and taking a hard fought second place. This guy is my idol in a medley - perfect pace and never a miss until the very end. The guy has ice water in his veins it seems.

Brad Ardrey – Brad competed here in 2007 and I beat him by one place – I don’t think that’s ever going to happen again. This guy is scary strong all over and doesn’t even train this stuff – look out if he decides to actually try.

Jedd Johnson – my man Jedd – I have watched him chase the Pinch record for so long now that when he hit it – I was so incredibly happy for him.

Nick Rosendaul – Nick has been getting stronger in all the feats of strength for a while now but it’s finally coming together in the contest setting for him as well – some big PRs for him Sat. Note to all on the pinch – changing width added a bunch to Nick’s numbers – you could be next.

Brent Barbe – Brent had a strange day – I’ve never seen anything quite like his sort of hop during the pinch event. Brent, Nick, and Mike had a real battle going on.

Mike Rinderle – the Rinderle who didn’t win a prize – going to take a while to live that one down buddy! For a first year competitor – Mike has made unbelievable progress – another year like this and he’s platform material for sure.

Rosario Cusenza – After Brad – probably the biggest arms there – a very strong man who with some skill training in the events would be fun to watch.

Jeff Parker – all Jeff needs is to train and specialize for a while in grip and he will be tough. Did a double Blob lift afterwards like nothing!

Mike Krahling – sledge hammer Man – if he can bring up his other events – he will be very tough. He just needs to become more well rounded.

Clayton Gellatly – said he couldn’t make it and we started without him. Then he showed up and jumped right in – I know he’s been fighting a bad back injury and I was pleased to see him compete and not have any trouble. He did some mighty fine lifts for a Highland Games guy.

Chris Rice – I had a great day. A PR in Grippers, a tiny but nice PR in Pinch, I think this was the first Axle DL in competition for all of us so every lift was a competition PR. The sledge lever was a blast – I levered the 25# lift but got called on raising my shoulder too much (rightfully so) but I know I’m strong enough for it and more now. And I had a fantastic (for me) medley with all 20 items plus 2 of the 4 Bonus items – only one less than the big boys got! I was so tired I was stupid by the time the sledge got going but I made it through.

Josh Dale – For a guy who has only been training for arm wrestling – he hasn’t lost much. Crazy strong grippers as usual, a bodyweight pinch, down just a bit from my expectations in the sledge I guess. He was tough as usual.

Bob Lipinski – I squeaked out a victory over my rival in a close and hard fought contest. As it usually does, it came right down to the wire and the medley event.

Bob Sundin – Mister Fatbar. Bob continues to get stronger – great gripper close, a much improved pinch – big Axle DL, but the sledge really hurt him.

Zach Coulter – Zach has seemed to be struggling at the grip contests lately – I’m not sure exactly why. The strength seems there – I can’t put my finger on a reason really but I know he’ll work though it.

Chuck Carns – It was good to see Chuck back into it – he did great for his comeback performance after a couple years off. I want to thank his wife for all the pictures.

Dan Sweeney – Dan and his friends’ main sport is not grip but fighting – I’m real glad it was a grip contest and not a fight – all three of them looked like they would be very very tough in a ring.

Victor Torres – I got to talk to Vic for a while – what a nice guy. He just needs to train events more – he says increasing his grip strength has made a huge difference in his control while fighting.

Mary Ann McKeague – Focused Intensity! If Mary Ann was bigger, she could compete with the guys I think. What a competitor! And a 5’ 2” girl (maybe) levering a 12# sledge – that simply isn’t right but what a smile it put on her face!

Melissa Rinderle – The Trophy winning Rinderle – smile Mike! Made a close competition netween her and Mary Ann with her big Axle DL – super nice lady.

Lindsey Rinderle – I think I’d have a crush on her if I was young again – what a little sweetheart – and darn strong too.

Andrea Rosendaul – The Geezer Award winner – I think she surprised herself with how well she did. And the best darn cookie maker around!

Big thanks to Sean Dockery for his judging and to Weldon for helping so much with the loading etc.

The Program I talked about that you never saw – well I got the last couple bios the day before the contest so I didn’t have time to put it all together.

Sponsors – I have thanked all but Steve Slater in another post but I want to mention Sean Dockery again – his scrolls were real works of art and he had to have spent an awful lot of time doing them!

FBBC

Diesel Crew

Dale Harder – Education +

Farmstrength

Sean Dockery

Nick Rosendaul

Andrew Duriant

Chris Rice

Steve Slater – Steve showed up with the biggest – yellowist dumbbell ever seen. Empty weight was 131# I think with a 3” handle – I got it after the contest but it was tough. Steve also brought some prizes but I’m not sure what to call them. Large wooden dowels turned down to a taper with cable loops on them – pretty cool looking things. Big thanks to Steve!

Please take a few minutes and send a Thank You to all of them and remember them when it’s time to spend your money!