Tag Archives: Clark’s Gym

Awards as Motivation

by Al Myers

This is part of the collection of awards present in Clark's Gym.

I have been in numerous club gyms, and one thing that sets them apart from commercial “chrome and fern” gyms is that there is always an abundance of old trophies, medals, plaques and award certificates hanging around.  Some of these places have awards that are over 30 years old!  Yet, they still bask in their glory of being visible for all gym members to see, as the day they were shiny new.  I always marvel at these old awards, and take the time to check all of them out.  I wonder, “who won this one?, and “what competition did this one come from?”.  This is a sight full of mystery, but at the same time gives you the burning desire of motivation. Anyone who has won an award knows the satisfaction that it brings, and not because of the hardware itself, but the hard work that goes into earning it.  The time in the gym pushing those extra sets, and the commitment and sacrifice training time takes away from the rest of your life.  If it was just the trophy that gave you this fulfillment – go out and buy yourself a big trophy and put wording on it proclaiming yourself the greatest weightlifter of all time!!  I assure you – that award would not mean near as much as the tiny certificate that you won the day you had a personal record lift.

In the Dino Gym I have a large collection of old weightlifting, strongman, and Highland games awards placed on a mantel overlooking the gym.  This mantel runs the entire width of the gym – 40 feet.  Most awards are “double stacked” on this shelf.  I haven’t counted them but it has to be well over 100 trophies. The funny thing is that I have at least that many in boxes in the attic!  When the mantel was full, I had to call it good.  When I first put up this trophy mantel, my wife referred to it as “my shrine” to myself.  I tried to let it slide, but her comment really hurt my feelings (even to this day and that has been a dozen years ago!).  That was not my intention.  I wanted to have a gym that any lifter would take serious when they enter the doors. I wanted us to not just “talk the talk, but walk the walk”.   Displaying hard-earned awards shows a gym newcomer that we are serious about what we do – and that we have the proof to back up what our training is all about. 

The trophy case in the Ambridge Barbell Club.

Most all of the other USAWA Clubs have a “trophy wall” as well.  Last November at the Gold Cup, Frank Ciavattone took me down into his basement which holds Franks Barbell Club.  I was overwhelmed by his collection of trophies and such.  Just a quick glance at this, and ANYONE would know  that Frank was a Champion.  As we browsed through things, Frank had a story on each award.  To him – these trophies were mementos that held a collection of memories from the competitions he has been in.  I have been to the historic Ambridge BBC a few times now, and each time I spend a little time looking over their collection.  Their collection is a lesson in weightlifting history – some awards date back 40-50 years.  The JWC Training Hall has many very unique awards.  Thom has on display some awards that were won by previous JWC members.  Truly a compliment to those that had a significant part of  the JWC history.  Clark’s Gym is another gym that has a great display of awards that is rich in history.  As you look over Clark’s Gym extensive collection of awards, it is a true inspiration.   I could go on with several other examples like these.

The point I want to leave you with is that it is not egotistical to display awards if done for the right reasons.  If it motivates one young kid to change their life by forming a commitment to training and physical fitness that keeps them out of trouble, it is worthwhile!   But now I gotta go – it’s time to polish my shrine!!!  (haha – THAT’S A JOKE!!)

Team Spirit

by Thom Van Vleck

We have a lot of fun with our team rivalries in the USAWA.  While it is all in good fun, it has gotten heated from time to time, but that’s OK.  Sometimes that’s what it takes to get fired up for big lifts!  It reminds me a lot of the rivalry I felt when I was a Marine.  We hated the Army, Air Force, and Navy, but when we had a common enemy we quickly banded together.  In the Marines we had a saying: “You won’t find a better friend or worse enemy”.  I also believe: “Once a Marine, always a Marine” (Chesty Puller said that, the most decorated Marine of all time and a personal hero). I feel the same about my affiliation with the JWC.

A great photo of Dino Gym member and enforcer Scott Tully....in a great shirt! While I've kidded Scott about this photo, it would not be hard to find one of me in a Dino Gym shirt. And, no, that's not my bald head in the photo!

We all enjoy our training for lots of reasons.  I’m sure most of us have a primary reason for doing it and for most, that primary reason is probably to get strong!  For a bodybuilder it may be to “look strong” (I never understood why you would want to look stronger than you really were….I want to be stronger than I look!).  The reality is that we probably train and compete for lots of reasons beyond that.  One of those reasons is for the social aspect.  We are humans, we generally seek out companionship….even loners will have a dog or cat for companionship! So, for social interaction, we join teams.  Now, I’m not talking about “socializing” (although that certainly happens!) but the act of finding a common bond or thread.  Common interests, so to speak.  That’s the social aspect I’m talking about.

We also like competition.  I can recall going out to the old JWC gym at about age 10 with a buddy of mine and doing a powerclean and push press.  The first thing he did was slide on a little more weight and lift it….and it was “ON”!  We didn’t stop until we’d about killed ourselves!   Teams give us the best of both world’s.  We can hook up with like minded individuals and find the motivation of competition within our own team and then against other teams.  But we can also have mutual respect for our rivals.  I know I have a lot of respect for my “rivals” in the Dino Gym, Clark’s Gym, Ledaig…and the rest.  That’s why I own at least a t-shirt from each and in the case of the Dino gym almost a whole wardrobe of clothes!

Teams are a good thing.  They give us motivation, friendships, rivalries, and in the end, good times.   Being a part of a team can hold us to a higher standard than standing alone.  It can also reflect a lot about who we are and if done right, in a very positive way.  So join a team in the USAWA, or start a new one and join the rivalry for bigger gains and good fun.  I’m sure Scott will love the fact I used his photo for my example….and I’m sure it will motivate him to lift a little harder the next time we compete!

Zercher Meet

By Joe Garcia

MEET RESULTS – THE 2011 ZERCHER MEET

The mighty have fallen. This last Saturday, Jan 29, the longest running meet in the USAWA, in fact dating prior to the formation of the USAWA, the Zercher meet was once again held in Clarks gym at Columbia, MO.  At one time, it was one of the premier meets  of our organization,  but recently has fallen on small times.  This one was no exception.  We had a total of three people in the gym, Bill Clark who judged the meet; Tom Powell, our exceptional loader, who never lifts in any of these meets, but like clockwork, shows up to put the weights on the bars; and myself, the lone lifter in the meet.  Quite a bit different from the ones back in the late 80’s,  where we ran three platforms for the lifters.  Consisting of 13 lifts, it makes for a hard day on the body.

On a side note, we may see Bill back lifting in the near future.  He has been to Atlanta to see his favorite surgeon, and they will be replacing his shoulder down the road.  That will be welcome news as he really can’t even move his arm more than about 3 – 4 inches at this point.  Add a new hip and he’ll be good as new.

Since I have been favoring a rotator injury from last summer that started out with a fall from a horse, I pretty much knew that the overhead lifts and the bench weren’t going to be too outstanding for me.  I was correct in that they were all down in poundages, though not as much as I thought they would be.  In the other lifts, except for the Hand and Thigh, I either was able to do the same as last year or bettered a couple of the lifts.  The older lifters in the association will understand how that becomes a victory.  Anyway, for the most part I was happy with the results, and as always, enjoyed seeing Bill and we did end up at the Golden Corral for a late lunch.

2011  Zercher Meet
Clark’s Gym, Columbia, Missouri
January 29, 2011

Meet Director:  Bill Clark
Official:  Bill Clark
Loader: Tom Powell

Lifts: Leg Press, Heels Together Clean and Press, Clean and Jerk, Heels Together Deadlift, Bench – Feet in the Air, Hack Lift, One-Hand Deadlift, Zercher Lift, Steinborn, Neck Lift, Hand and Thigh, Hip Lift and Harness Lift.

Results

Lifter Age BWT Lg Press HT Press C&J HT Dead Bench
Joe Garcia 57 212 400 150 165 315 205
Hack 1Hd Dead Zercher Steinborn
275 245 -R 255 195
Neck HandThigh Hip Harness Total
375 1075 1675 2300 7630

All results in pounds.  BWT is bodyweight in pounds.

Backbreaker Pentathlon

by Joe Garcia

The 2010 Schmidt Backbreaker Pentathlon was held Saturday, November 6, 2010 at Clark’s Gym after a one year abstinence.   Steve Schmidt showed up with his back machine loaded on the truck, Mike Murdock rolled in from Kansas, and Bill Clark and I rounded out the crew.  Bill stayed out of the competition, running the meet and judging, with the rest of us both competing and judging attempts.  After weigh ins, we got started as usual with the Harness lift.  As this was the first time for Mike in attempting any of these lifts, we showed him how to put on the gear and get into the setup.  Wanting to break a few of Bill’s records, Mike came up a little shy but managed a nice 1000 lbs for himself.  I put in a 2415 and tried a personal best of 2615 to no avail.  Warming up while I was struggling with my lifts, Steve got a fairly easy 2705 and decided that was good enough for the day.

Next up was the Hip lift, so we unloaded the bar for that lift.  Mike was able to get 865, showing that with a little work his Harness would definitely go up.  After the Harness, the legs just didn’t seem to have any push, so I was only able to get 1485, and Steve put in a 1915, again not really pushing the limit.

Everyone’s favorite the Hand and Thigh lift was next event.  Again, the bar was unloaded, and we showed Mike the rudiments of doing this lift.  Mike picked up 445, Steve had 1105 and I got 1200.  This is one event where Steve did have problems, just couldn’t get his groove.

Switching to a different big bar, we then proceeded to the Neck lift.  Like any lift, there is certain technique which will aid the lifter in doing the lift and Mike struggled on this one.  Rather than letting the legs do the work, he tried to do the whole thing with his neck.  But, with Bill egging him on, he did manage a 200 lb lift, thereby breaking one of Bill’s records which made Bill extremely happy.  He had threatened to give Mike more weight on the results even if Mike hadn’t gotten the lift just to take it off of his own record.  Both Steve and I did a 335 lb lift.

The final lift of the day was the Back lift.  Out to Steve’s truck to haul in the infamous back machine. It’s not as smooth as the one at the Dino Gym, but seems to work pretty well for Steve.  Mike was able to get 635, with the biggest difficulty being in getting in and out of the contraption.  The least favorite of the five lifts for me, I kept working on setting the depth and the boards and was finally able to get 1625 which seemed fairly easy, but someone nailed the 1825 to the ground.  Steve worked up to 2425 and once again decided he didn’t want to work too hard so stopped at that point.

End results were Steve as the overall winner, with a fun day, and I’m sure that some records were set. Good to see Mike show up in the Show Me State, actually two times in two weekends.  We all went to Golden Corral afterwards to partake of their delights.

Results

Lifter Age Bwt Harn Hip HT Neck Back Total Points
Mike Murdock 70 241 1000 865 445 200 635 3145 3,331.39
Joe Garcia 57 208 2415 1485 1200 335 1625 7060 9,746.00
Steve Schmidt 55 229 2705 1915 1105 335 2425 8485 10,989.90

NOTES:

All weights in pounds. Points are adjusted for bodyweight and age.

Officials: (3 Certified Officials used on all lifts – Bill Clark, Joe Garcia, Mike Murdock, and Steve Schmidt)

Lifts:  Harness Lift, Hip Lift, Hand and Thigh Lift, Neck Lift, and Back Lift

Clark’s Record Day

by Joe Garcia

Clark’s Gym was the setting for another record day, today Sunday October 24,  one of many over the years overseen by the man that started all this, Bill Clark.  It was a beautiful day outside and a fun one inside.  While we didn’t have a large number of players, it is always good to participate in the strength game and be around others who also enjoy lifting.  Leading off was the bench master Dave Beversdorf, along with a young protégé of his, Chris Arnold.  I came in to see whom ever showed up, set some records, talk to Bill and of course, go out to eat afterwards.  Though he is physically hurting and really needs to get his shoulder replaced, even Bill decided to set a couple of records, but was stopped on doing too much because of his right shoulder.

I didn’t get any pictures, due to having to mess with business in the morning,  but Shelly Beversdorf did get some videos, which will probably end up on YouTube.

Officiating was done mainly by Bill and then myself,  and James Foster and I  also provided the spotting for the heavy bench attempts.  Lifting was done over the course of about 3 hours, and 21 records were set, not counting attempts that might be both open and master records.  Looks like a good warm up for Thom’s record event coming up at the end of the week.  Afterwards, we retired to George’s for a bite and more conversation.  Next on the agenda at Clark’s will be the Schmidt Heavylift Pentathlon.

Results:

Clark’s Record Day
Clark’s Gym, Columbia Mo
October 24, 2010
All lifts and weights are in pounds

Dave Beversdorf – Age: 45, Weight: 299, Class: Hwt
Bench Press – Left Arm: 145
Bench Press – Right Arm: 165
Bench Press – Hands Together: 275
Bench Press – Reverse Grip: 410
Bench Press – Alternate Grip: 410

Chris Arnold – Age: 17, Weight: 180, Class: 85kg
Bench Press – Left Arm: 110
Bench Press – Right Arm: 110
Bench Press – Hands Together: 185
Bench Press – Reverse Grip: 185
Bench Press – Alternate Grip: 225
Bench Press – Feet in Air: 205

Joe Garcia – Age: 57, Weight: 205, Class: 95kg
Bench Press – Hands Together: 185
Continental Snatch: 135
Continental to Chest: 205
Deadlift – Fulton Bar, Ciavattone Grip: 260
Vertical Bar Deadlift – 1 Bar, 2″, Left Hand: 170
Vertical Bar Deadlift – 1 Bar, 1″, Left Hand: 225
Vertical Bar Deadlift – 1 Bar, 1″, Right Hand: 200

Bill Clark – Age 78, Weight 247, Class: 115kg
Vertical Bar Deadlift – 1 Bar, 2″, Left Hand: 110
Vertical Bar Deadlift – 1 Bar, 1″, Left Hand: 175
Vertical Bar Deadlift – 1 Bar, 1″, Right Hand: 105

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