Sunday, February 23, 2014

2014 USAPL Georgia Winter Classic & Single Ply Invitational – Meet Recap

I had the good fortune to be able to compete at the USAPL Georgia Winter Classic & Single Ply Invitational Powerlifting Meet last month on 1/25/14 hosted by Mark Freeman at the Air Museum in Warner Robins, Georgia.  For those of you who are either new to Georgia (like me) or travel in to compete at any of the USAPL meets here in the state, you are in for quite a treat.  I’ve been under the bar in this sport since 1981 and have watched and competed in more meets than I care to remember, and the USAPL crew here is second to none in hosting and operating their powerlifting meets.  I can’t say enough about Mark Freeman, the team at the scorers table, the judges, the loader/spotters and the help that was provided in the warm-up area at the Classic.  It was top notch.  And the Air Museum venue itself was excellent and one of the most creative and interesting that I’ve lifted in over the years.  Net net, everything was extremely well done and the meet came off beautifully for everyone.

I’ve committed myself to lift in the 198 lb. class vs. 220 going forward with the goal of beating the 2010 USAPL Raw Nationals total of 1,438 lbs. I posted at 198 back in July of 2010.  That was four years ago at age 51 and besting that now at age 55 will be a challenge, but in my mind it is absolutely doable if I can stay healthy.  This meet was my qualifier for the 2014 USAPL Raw Nationals in Denver this summer and my goals at the Classic were to get all three squats, benches and deadlifts passed, and to total within 50 lbs. of 1,438 as part of my progression for nationals.

I went to this meet without a crew to handle me which is pretty much out of the norm.  But when lifting raw (belt only) it’s not the issue that it is when you compete in gear, which really does demand that you have two handlers minimum to help you warm-up and execute properly through an entire meet.  One of the very special things about the sport of powerlifting is that you can show up at a meet without help and without really knowing anyone, and help will just find you.  Throughout the day I met people like Pete Bush, Arthur Bui and many others who “adopted” and helped me with my warm-ups, pre-lift preparations and a ton of encouragement when I stepped onto the platform.  All I could say to them was “thank you” for making it a fun meet and a great day at the Classic.

So here are my meet results from the Classic at 198 compared to mine from the 2010 USAPL Raw Nationals:

Raw       Squat    Bench   Dead      Total

2010       540         292      606      1,438

2014       513         286      601      1,400

Var          (27)           (6)       (5)         (38)

Bottom line, I feel pretty good about where I am right now using these numbers as a benchmark.  I was able to go 9 for 9 on my lifts at the Classic, which was good.  I also finished within 38 lbs. of my raw total at 198 lbs. at the USAPL Raw Nationals 4 years ago, which was good (and a relief).  And I felt like I had more in the tank on my squat and my deadlift, so there is some upside there to beat 1,438 which is also good.  I know my bench will never be what it once due to the c6/c7 disc rupture in my neck years ago and the resulting nerve damage to my left shoulder and arm, but the squat and deadlift are still a go!
 
In closing, a sincere thank you to all the great people (now friends) who helped me out and made the Classic a fun and successful meet for me.  I’m now training for Raw Nationals this summer and hope to see friends from Georgia there as well!