by David Dellanave
MEET ANNOUNCEMENT
Date: July 28th, 2012
Location: The Movement Minneapolis, Plymouth
Weigh-in: 9-9:45am
Lifting: 10am
Lifts:
Clean and Press – Heels Together
Steinborn Lift
One Arm Dumbbell Press
Deadlift – Fulton Bar, Ciavattone Grip (Double Overhand Axle Deadlift)
Contest is free, but advance registration is required and can be done online at https://www.movementminneapolis.com/contest-registration/
Drug testing along USAWA guidelines.
by Al Myers
(The following meet report was written by Bill Clark in the July, 2001 issue of the Strength Journal, Vol. XII No. 5.)
OLLENNUKING, MONK PACE THE USAWA
Columbia, Mo. June 24 – The smallest crowd in the history of the USAWA National Championships enjoyed a “fun” weekend, came away with a good share of records, engaged in close battles for best lifter awards, all in an air-conditioned setting at Lange Middle School – which proved to be an excellent venue for a national competition.
Only 17 lifters were on hand and two others – Chris Waterman and Frank Ciavattone – paid entry fees which they knew they’d not use, just to support the meet. The meet sponsor, Clark’s Gym, didn’t take in enough money from entry fees to pay the rent, let alone pay for awards and other details.
Thanks to generous entry fees from Rex Monahan, Howard Prechtel, and Ciavattone, the losses were cut tremendously and the USAWA voted to cover any losses after the latest Monahan contribution.
But – the fact remains – the USAWA membership did not support the championships…..for whatever reason. Maybe it was high gas prices, maybe it was distance, maybe it was a shrinking economy. Or maybe it was either none of the above or all of the above. The gut feeling was that the membership has come to show only limited support for the title meet, even when it was in such a setting as Ambridge or Lebanon.
Regardless of those who stayed home – those who enjoyed the weekend engaged in some of the closest competition ever. John Monk won the grand champion award over 19-year-old Abe Smith of the host club, then teamed with Abe to set a two-man deadlift record of 825 pounds in a post-meet record session. Joe Garcia used a 1,500-pound hand-and-thigh to finish third overall.
Amorkor Ollennuking and Noi Phumchaona did some great lifting with Amorkor taking the grand champion award and Noi the top master plaque for the women.
The closeness of the competition was pinpointed by the difference between Dennis Mitchell and Al Springs. When the dust settled, Al totaled 1843.491 points (age corrected) and Dennis finished with 1843.472 points. Talk about the thinnest of margins!
The meet was also a battle of the walking wounded. Art Montini had back surgery less than two weeks earlier and was told to lift no more than five pounds. He didn’t exactly comply, but often took only a light opener and moved on. Dale Friesz was making his first start after hip replacement surgery three months earlier. Dave DeForest had minor surgery on his calf two days before the meet. Howard Prechtel had a badly damaged right quad and could do only three of the seven lifts. Bill Clark set aside degenerating cartilage in the lower back and neck and a totally unusable left shoulder to turn in some of the more grotesque performances of the weekend. A fun time was had by all.
The meet was a “gym” meet. Because of the small field, the press was not invited to attend and no public announcement was made. When people are lured into a national championship, they expect to see a full field and not a small group, half of whom were barely moving. To have brought in the press would have been to embarrass the USAWA.
For those on hand, it will go down as a truly “fun” meet, even if they could not walk on Monday. Clark’s Gym thanks to group which worked all weekend, loading and moving equipment, meaning that no lifter had to load a weight all weekend. In fact, the lifters had to do very little officiating as well. The slave laborers are listed in the results.
MEET RESULTS
2001 USAWA National Championships
June 23-24, 2001
Columbia, Missouri
Meet Director: Bill Clark and Joe Garcia
Emcee: Bill Clark
Scorekeeper: Bill Clark
Loaders: Joel Anderson, Jonathan Anderson, James Foster, Tom Powell
Officials: Art Montini, Kerry Clark, Casey Clark, Joe Garcia, Dale Friesz, Howard Prechtel, John Monk
Lifts: 1-Arm Snatch, 2-Barbell Deadlift, Hand and Thigh, 1-Arm Hack, Clean and Press heels together, Steinborn, 2-hand Anyhow with Barbell and Dumbbell
Men: Top Ten Placings
1. John Monk, Pennsylvania
2. Abe Smith, Missouri
3. Joe Garcia, Missouri
4. Denny Habecker, Pennsylvania
5. Bob Geib, Hawaii
6. Al Springs, Missouri
7. Dennis Mitchell, Ohio
8. Dave DeForest, Missouri
9. Rex Monahan, Colorado
10. Art Montini, Pennsylvania
Women: Top Two Placings
1. Amorkor Ollenuking, Missouri
2. Noi Phumchaona, Ohio
Best Lifter Awards:
Women Open – Amorkor Ollennuking
Women Master – Noi Phumchaona
Men Open – John Monk
Men Master – Joe Garcia
Men Junior – Abe Smith
by Al Myers
(The following meet report was written by Bill Clark in the Strength Journal, Vol. XI No. 3)
NEWCOMERS RULE THE USAWA
Lebanon, Pa., July 1-2, 2000 – Newcomer Ed Schock, a 47-year-old attorney from Lebanon, was the surprise winner of the Best Lifter trophy at the USAWA Nationals here – in his hometown – in the closest battle for MVP honors ever at a USAWA Championship weekend.
Schock finished with an age-corrected total of 1027.37 points, barely edging past Frank Ciavattone (1023.57 points), John Monk (1020.91), and John McKean (1016.79). The battle was not decided until the final neck lift when Frank, who had won the last USAWA heavy lift title, failed with a 300-kg record effort. Jim Loewer, a 15-year-old from Ambridge, Pa., easily won the junior top lifter award. Great future here.
The women’s title went to Su. J. Mason, a 36-year-old from nearby Selinsgrove. She slipped past 56-year-old Noi Phumchaona, 595.68 to 505.37. Best of the older master lifters was Art Montini. The 72-year-old had a 982.63 point total and set eight records in the 85 kilo class of the 70-74 age group.
Hats off to Denny Habecker for an outstanding meet. Not only did he run the meet, he also was the best lifter in the 55-59 age group.
MEET RESULTS
2000 USAWA National Championships
July 1-2, 2000
Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Meet Director: Denny Habecker
Emcee: Bill Clark
Scorekeeper: Judy Habecker
Assistant: John Long
Loaders: Terry Barlet, Tom Minnich, Neely Frye, Jason Hlavaty, John Hlavaty, Chris Loewer, Doug Campbell, Reggie Hayes, Brandon Pensyl, Mark O’Brien
Lifts: One Hand Snatch, Clean and Press Heels Together, One Hand Ciavattone Deadlift, Pullover and Push, Hack Lift, Clean and Jerk Behind Neck, Zercher Lift, Neck Lift
Men: Top Ten Placings
1. Ed Schock, Pennsylvania
2. Frank Ciavattone, Massachusetts
3. John Monk, Pennsylvania
4. John McKean, Pennsylvania
5. Art Montini, Pennsylvania
6. Bill Spayd, Pennsylvania
7. Joe Ciavattone, Massachusetts
8. Denny Habecker, Pennsylvania
9. Jeff Ciavattone, Massachusetts
10.Brian Crowe, Pennsylvania
Women: Top Three Placings
1. Su.J. Mason, Pennsylvania
2. Noi Phumchaona, Ohio
3. Cara Collins, Massachusetts
Best Lifter Awards:
Women Open – Su.J. Mason
Women Master – Noi Phumchaona
Men Junior Overall – Jim Loewer
Men Open – Ed Schock
Men Master – Ed Schock
Men 20-39 Age Group – John Monk
Men 45-49 Age Group – Ed Schock
Men 50-54 Age Group – John McKean
Men 55-59 Age Group – Denny Habecker
Men 65-69 Age Group – Dennis Mitchell
Men 70-74 Age Group – Art Montini
Men 75-79 Age Group – Howard Prechtel
Men 80-84 Age Group – Paul Eberhardinger
by Al Myers
The first half of 2012 has been a record setting pace for the USAWA. So far 589 new USAWA records have been established in the Record List. If this pace continues we will eclipse 1000 records this year!! However, you have to wonder how all this recent activity has affected the RECORDS RACE? Well, I just did the count and it has not affected it at all!!! The top 12 “record setters” are still in the same order as the last time I did the count last December. It has put several lifters “on the fringe” of the Century Club, and very soon now we will have some new members in this inclusive club of top performers. One lifter has dropped out, Joshua Monk, which now leaves the Century Club at 20 members. Most of this list is a “who’s who” of Hall of Famers (only 6 in the century club are not in the HALL). The biggest mover on the list was Chad Ullom, who moved up from position #20 to position #14.
CENTURY CLUB (as of 5/29/2012)
| RANK | LIFTER | RECORDS |
| 1 | Denny Habecker | 407 |
| 2 | Art Montini | 390 |
| 3 | Al Myers | 354 |
| 4 | John McKean | 260 |
| 5 | Joe Garcia | 233 |
| 6 | Dennis Mitchell | 232 |
| 7 | Noi Phumchona | 214 |
| 8 | Frank Ciavattone | 212 |
| 9 | Bill Clark | 202 |
| 10 | Bob Hirsh | 201 |
| 11 | Howard Prechtel | 170 |
| 12 | Dale Friesz | 145 |
| 13 | Scott Schmidt | 139 |
| 14 | Chad Ullom | 139 |
| 15 | Jim Malloy | 133 |
| 16 | Ed Schock | 132 |
| 17 | John Monk | 123 |
| 18 | Rudy Bletscher | 120 |
| 19 | Mary McConnaughey | 117 |
| 20 | Chris Waterman | 114 |
Our trusty leader Denny still leads the Records Race. However, he dropped back a few records from his last count of 410. Blame it on the Jungle Boys – Denny lost a few of his overall records after their last record day. But then again, Art didn’t use Denny’s lapse to narrow the margin on him. He should have been putting those young legs of his to use and making it to more meets while Denny was napping.
I also did a count of lifters who are almost there – the CENTURY CLUB that is. The closest is Dean Ross, who’s record count now stands at 97. Dean is a warrior at record days – he is always looking to break the next record. Dean has attended several meets already this year. I predict he will be the next member. Dean is entered in Nationals in Vegas, so it would only be appropriate if this milestone is reached at the GRANDDADDY meet of the year. Joshua Monk’s count also stands at 97, but unless he gets back to the platform in the USAWA, he may not rejoin the club. Next in line is John Vernacchio, who has 92 records. John has been fighting some ill-health lately, but I think with a little encouragement we can get him back in a meet to put a few more records on the board. Next up in line is the Clark-trained dynamo, Abe Smith, who has 88 records. Abe is still a young man with loads of strength, and there is really no reason he has not been in a USAWA competition lately. Maybe this little prodding will get him back into action??? Bill DiCiccio is another Hall of Famer who has dropped off the list because of recent inactivity. His record count is 90 – only 10 short of the club!!! Surely McKean and Montini can get him to Art’s Birthday Bash to set 10 records so he can join them in the Century Club. (I know you guys limit the records at THE BASH to 5 each, but this warrants an exception). Another very close lifter, is Mike “Murdo” Murdock. Mike is standing at 85 records. Only one good meet Mike and you ARE THERE!!! Make it happen this summer because I know you can. All you got to do is not break your own records this time around. The last lifter I’m going to mention is Bob Geib. His count now stands at 77. The truth is that Bob has easily broken over 200 records in his long lifting career within the USAWA, but then his records get broken as well. Now that Bob is “back in action” in the USAWA, I predict he will make the Century Club. In fact, he is in my prediction as one of the next three lifters to make it (following Dean and Murdo).
RIP Rex Monahan, who’s record count now stands at 93. Rex is a man who truly deserves to be in the CENTURY CLUB, and I’m sure would have if he was still with us on the lifting platform.
by Al Myers
Jesse watching and judging his daughter Gabby performing a 80 pound 12" base squat at the 2012 Jobes Steel Jungle Record Day.
Jesse Jobe really put “on a show” with his first USAWA promotion – the Jobe’s Steel Jungle Record Day. It is exciting to see a new enthusiast club like his in the USAWA. And on top of it all – the lifters in his club are exactly the type of lifters that fit into the USAWA’s philosophy. These guys (and gals) like good ole fashioned hard training, and don’t mind trying something that might be a little “out of their comfort zone”. Plus I can attest to their drug-free status as I’ve now had a chance to drug test most of them (with the exception of the KING APE himself, Jesse, who is next on my list!!).
When Jesse announced in his writeup that all together they set a total of 188 new USAWA records in their record day, I was a little skeptical. Because if this was the case, it would make their record day a RECORD record day. Never before has this many records been set in a single day in the USAWA, and that covers 100’s of meets over the past 25 years. You think of all the big meets put on by Howard Prechtel of Cleveland, Frank Ciavattone in Boston, the two iron masters in Pittsburgh, Art Montini & John McKean, Denny Habecker in Lebanon, John Vernacchio in Philly, and Bill Clark in Columbia. You would think the honor of this would be with one of those legendary promoters, but here comes the Jobes Steel Jungle!!! What a way to make an impression in the USAWA!!!
I finally got the “final count” done on the number of records and it came to 181 individual records and 3 team records. The reason it wasn’t the 188 that Jesse claimed was because there were several cases of the SAME GUYS breaking a record in the same weight class. So in a sense, a USAWA record got broken TWICE in the same day!! (but it only officially counts as one record) I was amazed at the number of records individual lifters set – newcomer Tim Songster led the way with 33, Jesse had 31, Gabby 24, Alison 21, Troy Goetsch 17, Corey Kenkel 16, Mac Capello & Bryan Benzel 9, Darren Barnhart 4, Josh Haggin 3, and poor Scott Tully only managed 1 (but 1 is all it takes to get “in the book” for the day). I won’t go into individual highlights as there were many. Several ALL TIME USAWA records were set, as well as many NOTABLE performances. I’ll save those stories for some other day. But here is a listing of the records set if you are intested: 2012 Jobes Steel Jungle RD
I did a count of current records from individual events/competitions in the Record List. Of course, this listing is only for CURRENT RECORDS and doesn’t represent the actual records set at the time, which would have been higher. However, I do feel that the 181 records set at the 2012 Jobes Steel Jungle Record Day is the most EVER performed in a single event/competition in our history. I am going to claim this as a record of records.
TOP TEN LISTING OF RECORD PERFORMANCES
| RECORDS | EVENT | PROMOTER |
| 181 | 2012 Jobes Steel Jungle RD | Jesse Jobe |
| 142 | 1995 IAWA Worlds | Howard Prechtel |
| 127 | 1991 IAWA Worlds | John Vernacchio |
| 124 | 2012 Dino Gym RD | Al Myers |
| 118 | 2003 USAWA Nationals | Dick Hartzell & Carl LaRosa |
| 112 | 2004 USAWA Nationals | John Vernacchio |
| 112 | 2002 IAWA Worlds | Denny Habecker |
| 109 | 2005 USAWA Nationals | Dick Hartzell & Carl LaRosa |
| 105 | 1990 USAWA Nationals | Attilo Alachio |
| 102 | 1999 USAWA Nationals | Art Montini & John McKean |
COMING TOMORROW – the update of the Records Race, which has been “shook up” from all of this recent record activity. One has to wonder if all of this recent record setting might have changed the rankings? Plus I’ll give the updates of the lifters who are “on the fringe” of making the CENTURY CLUB in the USAWA.