New Zealand All Round WL

by Al Myers

New Zealand All Round Weightlifting Association

I have just heard that ALL ROUND WEIGHTLIFTING may be rejuvenated in New Zealand.  Cliff Harvey has moved back there, and has taken an interest in promoting the sport.  Cliff has been very involved with All Round lifting for many years, and was a big of the 2007 IAWA World Championships held in Christchurch, NZ.   I attended that World Meet, and it was a unbelievable meet.  The meet director was Bruce Savage, but several others were instrumental as well in promoting this Championship.

Cliff Harvey performing an One Arm DL in the 2007 IAWA World Championships in New Zealand.

Cliff placed 6th OVERALL at the 2007 IAWA Championships in New Zealand.  That year has been the only year the IAWA Champs have been held in New Zealand.  Let’s hope that Cliff gets the New Zealanders reorganized and they host another big IAWA meet in the future!

IAWA World Postal

by Al Myers

MEET ANNOUNCEMENT
2013 IAWA ‘ANDY GODDARD’  WORLD POSTAL ALL ROUND CHAMPIONSHIPS

The late Andy Goddard performing a very difficult IAWA lift - the Middle Fingers Hack Lift.

Steve Gardner has just announced the details of the 2013 IAWA World Postal Meet.  Steve has been promoting the IAWA World Postal Championships for the past few years in memory of his good friend and training partner Andy Goddard.  I was very fortunate to have known Andy, and competed with him several times before his “too soon” departure.  He was an ALL ROUND GREAT GUY as well as a very good All Round Weightlifter.  I’m glad that this postal championship is dedicated to him, and I applaud Steve for keeping Andy’s memory alive by promoting this important IAWA event in his memory.

The three big promotions of IAWA are the IAWA World Championships, the IAWA Gold Cup, and this World Postal Championships.  Worlds and the Gold Cup requires traveling, but this Postal Champs can be done right in your own gym!  I think this meet is a very important one as it allows everyone the opportunity to compete in a big IAWA event no matter what your circumstances are.  It is also free to enter, so there are very few reasons as to not enter it!

The rules for this event are as follows (as outlined on the entry form):

This competition is open to all IAWA lifters, for teams of three, and individuals as well.  Teams may be a mix of open/masters/juniors/ladies, as well as all age and bodyweight allowances will figure in for the results.  No limit to the number of lifters, if a team or group enter more than three: the top three will form the team score.  A sheet caters or 5 lifters.  If you have two teams, then just copy, and use two sheets, etc.  All lifts must be officiated by  2 or 3 IAWA Referees (they should sign the score sheet).  YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE IN A TEAM.  Individuals may also take part in the competition as all rankings will be listed for age/weight classes.  Have fun lifting in the Annual “Andy Goddard” Memorial Competition.  Good luck.

Now for some added important information:

1. The date for entry is the END OF JULY.  Make sure your lifts are completed and sent to Steve by that time . 

2. The lifts chosen for this event are the Snatch -One Arm (with bar), the Pullover and Push, the Clean and Jerk, and the Deadlift. The One arm snatch and the P&P are USAWA official lifts and the rules are outlined in the USAWA rulebook.  The Clean and Jerk and the the Deadlift are IAWA lifts (not USAWA lifts).  However, the rules for these two lifts are outlined in the USAWA Rulebook under Section X. Rules of the Basic Movements.

3. If you live in the United States, you MUST be an USAWA member to participate.  Make sure to join before you lift in this postal championships or you will find that your lifts will not be recorded in the official scoresheet.

4. All lifts must be performed in the same day.  This is not specified in the event rules, but is a assumed rule of all postal meets. 

5. Please enter your results in kilograms in the scoresheet.  Steve would make the conversions for you – but the meet is scored in kilograms so enter them that way.

6.  Make sure you PRINT the names of the three officials used as well as having the officials sign the scoresheet.  For USAWA lifters, these officials must be active current certified USAWA officials.  Make sure to check their “status” on the website before assuming  they are current.

7.  As per any meet and as OUTLINED in the rulebook, you get three attempts.  These must be declared and adhered to.  You don’t just keep adding weight till you miss and take unlimited attempts.  That’s not the way a meet runs. The fourth block in the entry form is for an extra fourth attempt for record.

8.  Make sure to list all attempts on the entry form.  Circle the ones you make and cross thru the ones that are missed.

9.  Please write CLEARLY on the scoresheet, and fill out the scoresheet completely!

10.  Remember this postal championship is ran on the HONOR SYSTEM.  Be truthful in your efforts,  and feel good about giving your best performance in an honorable manner. If everyone does that – the future of this meet is strong.

ENTRY FORM – 2013 World Postal Entry

LESSONS LEARNED FROM ‘THE PINES’

BY DAVE GLASGOW

WHEN I WAS A KID, MY FRIENDS AND I HAD A NAME FOR BEING SECOND STRING ON ANY TEAM WE PLAYED ON. WE CALLED IT “RIDING THE PINES”. I WAS VERY FAMILIAR WITH THAT TERM AS I HAVE A LOT OF EXPERIENCE WITH THAT PARTICULAR VIEW OF MOST SPORTING EVENTS I ‘PARTICIPATED’ IN. IT STARTED FROM A YOUNG AGE.

I DISTINCLY REMEMBER MY FORAY INTO THE ATHLETIC WORLD. I WAS 5 YEARS OLD. MY AUNT AND UNCLE GOT ME A PLASTIC BALL AND BAT FOR MY BIRTHDAY. THE FIRST TIME I HIT THAT SPHERE IN THE ‘SWEET SPOT’, I WAS HOOKED. FROM THAT MOMENT ON, I WOULD PLAY ANY SPORT THAT CAME MY WAY. THE ONLY PROBLEM WAS, MY EAGERNESS TO PLAY FAR OUTSTRETCHED MY ABILITIES.

AS A ADOLESCENT AND TEENAGER, ESPECIALLY IN THE ERA I GREW UP, NO ONE (OR DAMN FEW) KNEW ABOUT ‘GENETICS’ OR NATURAL ABILITY. SURE, NATURAL ABILITY WAS TALKED ABOUT, BUT MOST OF US THOUGHT WE COULD OVERCOME THAT WITH HARD WORK AND PERSISTANCE. THIS WAS, TO A POINT, TRUE. HOWEVER, LITTLE DID WE KNOW THAT THE VAST MAJORITY OF US DID’NT HAVE THAT ‘X’ FACTOR AND OUR EFFORTS WERE, MOSTLY, SELF FLAGELLATION. AS FOR ME, ‘THE PINES’ WERE MY CONSTANT COMPANIONS.

LOOKING BACK ON THOSE DAYS, I REALIZE, NOW, THAT I THOUGHT I WAS A LOT BETTER THAN I WAS. IT NEVER OCCURRED TO ME THAT THE MANY COACHES I HAD SAW MY ABILITIES AND PRESCRIBED THE BEST PLACE FOR MY CONTRIBUTION TO THE TEAM.

HOWEVER, HERE ARE SOME THINGS I LEARNED BY BEING A UNIFORMED SPECTATOR.

PERSISTANCE. NO MATTER WHAT SPORT I WAS PLAYING, I MADE EVERY PRACTICE, EVERY MEETING, CHEERED MY TEAMMATES, WHATEVER WAS ASKED OF ME. THIS PERSISTANCE CAME IN REAL HANDY LATER IN MY LIFE.

DETERMINATION. WHAT MORE CAN I SAY ABOUT THAT. IT IS SELF EVIDENT. TO DO ANYTHING IN LIFE, YOU NEED THIS QUALITY, IN AN ABUNDENT AMOUNT. BELIEVE ME, SITTING ON THE PINES, SOMETIMES, TOOK ALL THE DETERMINATION I COULD MUSTER.

RESILANCE. SITTING ON THE BENCH TAKES A LOT OF THIS. DAILY REJECTION, IN FRONT OF YOUR PEERS, IS NOT SOMETHING I ENJOYED, AT ALL. HOWEVER, I WAS GOING TO BE DAMNED IF I WAS GOING TO GIVE IN AND QUIT. ALL I NEEDED WAS ONE ‘CHANCE’! (THAT ‘CHANCE’ CAME IN A COLLEGE SOCCER GAME. WHAT HAPPENED IN THAT GAME IS STILL PAINFUL, BUT I DID’NT STOP. I SHOWED UP FOR PRACTICE THE NEXT DAY. I HAVE NO EARTHLY IDEA WHY.)

WILL POWER. ANY OF YOU WHO HAVE HAD TO MAKE WEIGHT KNOWS WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT HERE. SHOW ME A HIGH SCHOOL KID WHO IS’NT CONSTANTLY HUNGRY AND I’LL SHOW YOU A SICK KID. THIS AUTO-STARVATION WILL TEST THE VERY CORE OF YOUR BEING. AND QUESTION YOUR SANITY.

SELF ESTEEM. YEAH, I KNOW. HOW MUCH SELF ESTEEM CAN YOU GET ON THE PINES?? GOOD QUESTION. I HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT THIS A LOT. I HAVE COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT MY PARTICIPATION MADE ME THINK MORE OF MYSELF, DUE TO THE FACT THAT, BY GOD, I MAY BE ON THE BENCH WITH PRECIOUS LITTLE PLAYING TIME BUT I WAS PART OF A TEAM! SOMETHING BIGGER THAN MYSELF. THE CAMMERADERIE CARRIED OVER TO A SENSE OF SELF WORTH THAT I AM STILL PROUD OF TODAY.

I HAVE COME TO REALIZE THAT MY TIME ON ‘THE PINES’ SHAPED ME INTO WHO I AM TODAY. LIFE THROWS A LOT OF CURVE BALLS AND TAKEDOWNS. STANDING IN TOUGH TO ATTEMPT TO HIT A CURVE BALL THAT MAY OR MAY NOT BREAK IS A PARODY OF LIFE THAT IS HARD TO DENY (YEAH, I DID GET TO PLAY. ONCE IN A WHILE!). BEING TAKEN DOWN IN A MATCH IS NOTHING COMPARED TO WHAT CAN AND WILL HAPPEN TO YOU IN THE REAL WORLD. LAY THERE AND GET PINNED OR GET TO YOUR BASE AND WORK OUT OF IT.

FINALLY, THE SPLINTERS IN MY ASS HAVE LEFT ME WITH GREAT MEMORIES AND I HAVE NO DOUBT THAT BEING PART OF A TEAM KEPT ME OUT OF A LOT OF TROUBLE THEN. BESIDES, WHAT BETTER WAY TO GET A RING SIDE SEAT TO THE BEST SHOW IN TOWN!??

CLUB CHALLENGE CANCELLED

by Al Myers

URGENT ANNOUNCEMENT

I just received word from John McKean, the Meet Director of this weekend’s USAWA Club Challenge, that he is cancelling the meet.  John has concerns of the recent bad weather and poor road conditions, and does not want to risk anyone’s travel.  The weather has been unpredictable recently, and the roads could quickly become hazardous for travel.

Please pass this information along to anyone that may have planned to attend the Club Championships.

Building a Training Hall

by Roger LaPointe

The Ambridge Barbell Club can be classified as an "Old School" Training Hall!

Training halls are not built over night. What do you think of when you hear about a training hall? My guess is that a different image is conjured up from when you hear “fitness facility”. Am I right?

The old gyms and YMCAs, where many greats in the iron game trained, tended to be dingy after thoughts, as far as facilities would go. The great old training halls that I think of had beautiful woodwork. They may have had lines of old globe type barbells and Indian clubs lining the walls. There would always be a heavy duty, slightly raised wooden lifting platform in the center of the room. There was always some boxing equipment, or even and full ring.

These were the genuine “man caves” of a bygone era. You didn’t see pastel colors or ferns. There might be a mirror on one wall, but the art work would typically be nicely framed instructional courses, anatomical charts or promo photographs of strongmen from the past. There would be a bulletin board with the information on the next weightlifting contests or wrestling matches. Guys like Sig Klein would be your instructor, not a “personal trainer”. They were genuine record holders who had actually competed and set records. Respect was implicit and you asked them questions. You would never question them. You want to see training halls? Is it time that your place started morphing into a training hall, instead of just “weights in the basement”?

All the best, Roger LaPointe
“Today is a good day to lift.”

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