Author Archives: Al Myers

Dino Gym Challenge

By Al Myers

MEET ANNOUNCEMENT –

DINO GYM CHALLENGE featuring a “tribute to Art Montini”

Art Montini was a very dear friend to me.  It’s hard to believe that this spring is coming upon 4 years since his death.  I had the opportunity to travel with Art to many overseas IAWA competitions and spent many a nights rooming with him.  Art was a very intriguing man.  One thing I know for certain – he loved the USAWA and all round weightlifting. He was always looking forward to his next meet and continued to train daily until his passing.

I have decided to make the Dino Gym Challenge this year as a tribute to Art.  I picked several of Art’s favorite lifts for the competition.  He was truly an all rounder and liked most all the lifts, but I feel these were his favorites as he often picked them for record days and his Gold Cup lifts.   I just had to include a heavy lift in the meets lineup as Art loved his “chain lifts” and made it to many Heavy Lift Championships.  I would say the Hip Lift was his favorite.  He always had a heavy bar in Ambridge BBC all loaded up for the Hip Lift.

Of course, a meet in Art’s honor wouldn’t be complete without the Arthur Lift. Most would give credit for this lift to another Arthur, but Art did bring it to the USAWA so I’ll always say the Arthur Lift was named after Art Montini!!!

After the meet I will have food available so please make plans to stay awhile to grab a bite before you head home.  Art just loved his Italian food so that’s what the menu will be.

Please let me know if you plan to be here so I can make proper arrangements.  I’m hoping there will be many stories told about Art  throughout the day.  I know I have my share!!

 

MEET DETAILS:

Meet Director:            Al Myers and the Dino Gym 785-479-2264

Meet Date:                 Saturday, January 15th, 2022  1:00 PM – 5:00 PM

Location:                    Dino Gym, 1126 Eden Road, Abilene, KS 67410

Sanction:                    U.S.A.W.A Memberships cards can be purchased on meet day

Weigh-ins:                  12:00 -1:00 PM the day of the meet

Divisions:                   Juniors, Women, Masters, and Open

Awards:                      None

Entry:                         None – but please notify me in advance if you plan to attend

Lifts:

Teeth Lift

Deadlift – Fingers, Middle

Deadlift – One Arm

Hip Lift

A teeth bit and a hip harness will be available to use, but if you want to bring your own that is preferred.  A “shared” teeth bit probably wouldn’t meet any COVID precautionary protocols so if you got one please bring it.

After the meet there will be an exhibition Arthur Lift competition to honor Art and his legacy in the USAWA.  It will not count towards the meet total, but will have a special prize for the overall winner in the Arthur Lift based on adjusted points and an overall winner based on total pounds lifted.

The next day (Sunday) there may be a scheduled time for record day lifts, but that will depend on the interest.

Jack Shanks and his Stones

By Al Myers

One of the great highlights for me attending the IAWA Gold Cup in Belfast was getting to meet Jack Shanks.  Jack is “Stevie’s Father” and the person who has inspired many of us to take on the Dinnie Stone Challenge.  Jack is an extraordinary man and it was an honor getting to meet him.

Jack Shanks talking to the lifters at the 2021 IAWA Gold Cup prior to the Shanks Lift Challenge

Jack Shanks talking to the lifters at the 2021 IAWA Gold Cup prior to the Shanks Lift Challenge

After the completion of the meet Stevie had arranged for a special contest for lifters to challenge themselves in the Shanks Lift.  The Shanks Lift is a fairly new IAWA lift named in the honor of Jack Shanks.  Two years ago when it was approved Stevie performed an exhibition of it at the 2019 IAWA World Championships that I hosted in Abilene, KS in which he lifted an amazing total of 330 kilograms making Stevie the first person to set a record in the Shanks Lift.  At Belfast, seven lifters took part in the Shanks Challenge under the watchful eye of Jack.  There was some great lifting, with Paul Barette winning the event, followed by Steve Andrews in second and Gary Ell in third.  Before the contest commenced Jack gave a presentation of how he trained to be the first person to correctly lift the Dinnie Stones 50 years ago (1972).   No one had been successful with Donald Dinnie’s challenge to lift the stones in the previous 100 years! It was a very interesting presentation to me (and one I wish was recorded so I could listen to it again) as Jack was very meticulous in his training plan.  He had rings made to match the rings of the Dinnie Stones and even attached them to training stones so he could progressively advance his training poundages.  The talk ended by him recalling the day he lifted the actual Dinnie Stones in front of a large audience at a publicized event.  I’m sure he was very anxious at the time to accomplish something he had put a lot of work into!

A few days after the Gold Cup Stevie took me to his parents’ house and I got to sit down with Jack and enjoy a nice visit with him over a cup of coffee and biscuits.  He still lifts to stay in good shape and showed me his personal gym in his garage which contained weight equipment that’s museum worthy.  I was privileged to see his training stones which he still has in his back yard.  They have shown the wear of years in the elements but still quite impressive in size and shape.  The total weight of his training stones are over 800 pounds!  Jack told me he was pretty confidant after lifting his own stones that he could lift the Dinnie Stones.  I want to point out that the first time he seen the Dinnie Stones was when he lifted them!

Jack Shanks and his training stones. Pictured left to right: Stevie Shanks, Al Myers, and Jack Shanks.

Jack Shanks and his training stones. Pictured left to right: Stevie Shanks, Al Myers, and Jack Shanks.

It was a great honor for me to be part of all of this.  Now onto some good news – next year the Gold Cup will AGAIN be in Belfast and everything is planned to make it BIGGER and BETTER than this year.   Stevie is hoping to get more lifters involved in the Shanks Lift Challenge, and Jack will be there to oversee things once again.   I encourage all lifters to put this event on your personal meet calendar!

Gold Cup

By Steve Gardner

Reflections on the 2021 Gold Cup – 6th November in Belfast:
Group picture from the 2021 IAWA Gold Cup in Belfast, Northern Ireland

Group picture from the 2021 IAWA Gold Cup in Belfast, Northern Ireland

Well following last year when everything was cancelled, Stevie Shanks and I did finally get to run our Gold Cup competition a year late. It was always going to be difficult in the aftermath of Covid, a lot of people still unsure about travel and interaction etc so we knew we would not be as well attended as it might have been and of course we did not expect any foreign lifters to be present, so it was absolutely amazing that we still had 19 lifters on the Gold Cup Platform including Al Myers and Brandon Rein who made it in all the way from Kansas USA. We were blown away by the support, and the competition was really outstanding, in all its three parts this time.
Firstly we had The 2021 Gold Cup first, with 19 lifters aged from 9 to 74, with Sonnie W Gardner and Ray Dews, and a whole range between ranging from Juniors to Open Division lifters and Masters. The variation of different lifts was superb to witness making the whole thing a very exciting spectacle. All the lifters were just amazing, of that there is no doubt! James Gardner took the top amended spot with his Shoulder Drop of 91 kilos to win the Howard Prechtel Award, ahead of Ray Dews with his Bent Arm Pullover of 51 Kilos, with Steve Sherwood in third place with a great 2 hands 2″ Snatch of 62.5 kilos.
Secondly by the usual record attempts where lifters get the chance to lift on the second choice lifts if they haven’t used them already (again all were fantastic, but worthy of special mention was Steve Sherwoods 2 hands 2 inch Dumbells Deadlift of 158.6 kilos which not only took the 70+ Masters record but broke the much younger division record that had been held by Bob Hirsch of the USA since the 90s by over 30 kilos (truly outstanding) .
And then Thirdly, a special one off ‘Shanks Lift Challenge’ because we were at the home of the great Jack Shanks (who was not only present but was right up front as he had been all day, watching and supporting every lift). After Jack relayed his story of how he became the first person in modern times to lift the Dinnie Stones correctly fifty years ago, one hundred years after Dinnie himself did it, and explained how he devised ways to train to lift the Stones…hence the Shanks lift we have today) Seven lifters stood up to the Challenge and it was super entertaining to watch them battle it out, with Paul Barette coming through to win the event, with Steve Andrews in Second and Gary Ell in Third.
The Presentation of Awards after the Banquet was terrific, and after the main prize giving we witnessed the Hall of Fame induction for Paul Barette who had earlier received the Shanks Lift Challenge from Jack Shanks…I think Paul was on cloud nine as they say…what a night!
We were not finished of course because we then moved back into the function hall where Stevie Shanks and his amazing band ‘Flash Harry’ performed a fantastic gig from 10pm through to 1.30am…and well what can you say about it? I am running out of good descriptive words here, they were absolutely electric…what a show, we all felt privileged to be present as we rocked the night away!
This trip was one of the best, and i have done nearly every single World Championships and Gold Cup since day one. Howard Prechtel (God Rest his Soul) who was IAWA’s first President and started the Gold Cup tournament in 1991 would have been so proud that 30 years later, not only that it is still going but that it was as fantastic as it was. The whole trip and event will be remembered by those who were there for a long time, I thank all of the lifters who made the trip, from wherever they traveled, to those who refereed and loaded, to everyone who played a part in it, BUT ESPECIALLY to my great buddy Stevie Shanks who went the extra mile for us all……..and you know what is the most exciting thing?….because this event was held under difficult circumstances because of Covid and restrictions…we have been asked to put the event on again in November 2022 so that we may be able to receive a greater number of lifters from more destinations….and boy o boy Stevie and I cannot wait, I don’t know how we will top this year’s event, but you can bet your bottom dollar we will try….
MEET RESULTS (PDF) – 2021 Gold Cup Results

World Championships

By Al Myers

2021 IAWA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Group picture of lifters attending the 2021 IAWA World Championships

Group picture of lifters attending the 2021 IAWA World Championships

The number of lifters for Worlds were small this year – but the lifting was big!

It was a difficult year for Worlds this year due to COVID and the lack of lifters being able to travel, but the SHOW went forth.  Many thanks to Denny and Judy for making that happen.  I’m really glad for this even though it was not really possible for overseas lifters to attend to make it a true international competition, its better having it than not having it.  I would hate to see Worlds cancelled two years in a row as the World Championships and the Gold Cup are the two big events for IAWA and are what defines IAWA.

Now onto the lifting!  Beth may have been the only women entered, but she put up great lifts in every event and would have been tough to beat by anyone.  She’s super technical on the lifts with great form.  Truly worthy of being the overall woman’s lifter.

Randy Smith performing an one arm deadlift at the 2021 IAWA World Championships.

Randy Smith performing an one arm deadlift at the 2021 IAWA World Championships.

Randy Smith was the Overall Men’s Lifter.  Randy has been involved with the USAWA and IAWA for 20 years now, and I swear he lifts and looks the same now as when he started! I’m not just saying this because he always brings me beer when we get together either.  He was followed closely by Denny in total points.  Denny had a great day of lifting which is hard to do when you are the promoter and focusing on putting on a good event.  Third place overall was fellow Habecker’s Gym member Barry Pensyl.  Barry has been lifting in the all rounds for many years, as well as Dave DeForest who made the long trip from Columbia, MO.  It’s pretty rare now to be around lifters in this sport who have been doing it longer than me, but both of these guys got me beat on that having done their first meets in the early 90’s. Young Aidan Habecker had a great day of lifting as well.  I have really enjoyed watching him mature into a qood all rounder thru these past few years.  Also – got to really thank Terry and Lou for doing all the loading.  These guys were loading so fast I about told them to slow down a bit so we could “stretch” the meet out a little longer!

I can’t say enough about Judy and all she does for our sport.  She made us a great lunch, did all the scorekeeping, and then made us a big banquet meal!!!  I know Denny gets lots of  “pats on the back” for all he does as meet director and as our USAWA President (which is well deserved), but without Judy I would worry that he might drop the gavel!

To summarize – another outstanding World Championships which I was glad to be part of.

Meet Results:

2021 IAWA World Championships
October 2nd, 2021
Habecker’s Gym
Lebanon, PA, USA

Meet Director: Denny Habecker

Meet Announcer: Al Myers

Meet Scorekeeper: Judy Habecker

Meet Officials (3-Official System Used): Denny Habecker, Barry Pensyl, Dave DeForest, Randy Smith, Al Myers

Meet Loaders: Terry Barlet and Lou Tortorelli

Meet Caterer: Judy Habecker

Meet Photographer: Lou Tortorelli

Lifts: Clean and Press, Snatch – One Arm, Bent Over Row, Deadlift – One Arm, Curl – Cheat, Pullover and Push, 2″ x 2 bar Vertical Bar Deadlift

WOMEN

LIFTER AGE BWT C&P Sn1 Row DL1 CC P&P VB TOT PTS
Beth Skwarecki 40 68.3 42.5 30.0L 47.5 90.0L 50.0 77.5 90.0 427.7 459.1

EXTRA ATTEMPTS FOR RECORD

Beth 2×2″VB 100.5

MEN

LIFTER AGE BWT C&P Sn1 Row DL1 CC P&P VB TOT PTS
Randy Smith 67 89.0 52.5 37.5L 85.0 120.0R 65.0 87.5 145.0 592.5 695.8
Denny Habecker 79 84.3 42.5 22.5R 80.0 95.0R 45.0 77.5 100.0 462.5 663.7
Barry Pensyl 73 64.3 35.0 22.5L 65.0 80.0R 40.0 60.0 75.0 377.5 593.1
Dave DeForest 61 88.8 57.5 37.5R 85.0 102.5R 65.0 85.0 102.5 535.0 590.3
Aidan Habecker  18 91.3 45.0 35.0R 65.0 110.0R 55.0 80.0 145.0 535.0 490.7
Al Myers  55 103.7  —  —  —  —  —  — 145.0 145.0  —-

EXTRA ATTEMPTS FOR RECORD

Randy 2×2″VB 150
Denny 2×2″VB 105
Aidan 2×2″VB 150

Notes: All lifts were recorded in pounds.  BWT is bodyweight in kilograms.  R and L designate right and left arms.  TOT is total kilograms lifted.  PTS are overall adjusted points corrected for age and bodyweight.

 

World Postal Championships

By Al Myers, IAWA President

WORLD POSTAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Another great year for the IAWA World Postal Championships!!

This year we had 42 lifters compete from the United States, Australia, England, and Canada. This World Postal Championships is one of three (with the World Championships and the Gold Cup being the other two) promoted by IAWA.   I want to REALLY thank all those that participated. Your participation is what makes this a great event!  As per the tradition the past few years, the lifts of the first day Worlds were contested.  I’ve included all class winners and best lifters, individual overall rankings for men and women, 3 person team rankings, and club rankings.

I want to give special mention to the overall winners in each category.  The Overall Best Men’s Lifter was JEFF CIAVATTONE, and the Overall Best Women’s Lifter was BEATA BANAS.  The Overall Best 3-person Team went to FRANK’S BARBELL CLUB (Jeff Ciavattone, Frank Ciavattone, and Wade Marchand).  The Overall Best Club went also to FRANK’S BARBELL CLUB.   The Overall Best Association went to the USAWA, with the IAWAUK in second, and the ARWF in third.

It’s always exciting to see new clubs participate.  This year CLARK’S CHAMPIONSHIP joined in and 3 lifters from their club (Nick Frieders, Tony Hose, and Dave DeForest) competed in their first World Postal.

There were several Junior Lifters competing this year with the youngest, Everett Todd, at eight years of age. The oldest lifter in the completion was Denny Habecker at 78 years of age. I also want to mention 3 lifters who competed as Exhibition Lifters (because of lack of an official to judge their lifts) just to show support to IAWA and the memory of Andy Goddard.  These lifters were Gary Ell, Jason Farrugia, and Sylvia Stockall of Canada.

If anyone notices any errors in these results please let me know as soon as possible so I can get things corrected.  Sometimes I have difficulties reading the handwriting on the official scoresheets.

Again, I want to thank everyone for entering this meet and making it an outstanding annual event in IAWA.

MEET RESULTS (WORD) – 2021 World Postal Results

1 … 4 5 6 7 8 … 321