High Country Vigour

The Colorado Single Arm Challenge was a rousing success and a fun way to ring in the month of March.  Jarrod, Sanjiv, Kim, Diya and Nisha competed at the host site in Lakewood and we had (11) remote lifters submit results as well. Although I have participated in several other meets remotely, this was only the second sanctioned event hosted from High Country Vigour.  It is always a little stressful managing the pace of competition, my own lifting, making sure the lifts are accurately recorded, spotting, loading and officiating.  Fortunately our little club in Colorado supports each other by providing equipment, encouragement and all around good attitudes. Some of also squeezed in the Q1 Postal Lifts and some records.  It made for a challenging 3 hour local competition. The record session was exciting as well.  In Lakewood, Jarrod gave the Inch Dumbbells a ride.  In Missouri, Riley had an amazing Pinch Grip Deadlift at 355 pounds which I would have loved to s...

Q1 Postal Continental Snatch - 95kg = 176; 100kg = OPEN Press From Rack - Behind Neck - 95kg = 110 (me); 100kg = OPEN Trap Bar Deadlift - 95kg = OPEN, 100kg = 635 Q2 Postal Rectangular Fix - 95kg = 70 (me); 100kg = OPEN Clean & Seated Press - 2 Dumbbells - 95kg = 100 (me); 100kg = OPEN Hack Lift - One Hand [LEFT] 95kg = 248; 100kg = OPEN [RIGHT] 95kg = 248; 100kg = 330 Q3 Postal Crucifix - 95kg = 77; 100kg = 60 Cheat Curl - Dumbbell - One Hand - [LEFT] 95kg = OPEN; 100kg = OPEN [RIGHT] 95kg = OPEN; 100kg = OPEN Deadlift - One Hand [LEFT] 95kg = 320; 100kg = 253 [RIGHT] 95kg = 309; 100kg = 364 Q4 Postal Dumbbell Swing - One Hand [LEFT] 95kg = 40; 100kg = 45 [RIGHT] 95kg = 40; 100kg = 55 Bench Press - Fulton Bar - 95kg = 225; 100kg = 225 Vertical Bar Deadlift - One Bar - 2" [LEFT] 95kg = 130(me); 100kg = 200 [RIGHT] 95kg = 160; 100kg = OPEN

https://www.oldtimestrongman.com/blog/2018/10/11/kodi-rammurthy-naidu-indian-hercules/

While I certainly have my share of prejudices, having grown up in the United States through Iran hostage crisis, I am pretty impressed by Khalil Obhab.  I learned about him through a Facebook post announcing the death of Steve Cotter with an image of a poster. Being a fan of teeth lifting and performing strongmen, I had to dig a bit deeper.  According to the Wikipedia article, he was born March 23, 1924 and died April 20, 2023.  In addition to being a performing strongman, he also acted in seven films between 1964 and 1971.  The Poster is from Gerry Cottle's British Circus which came to North America in 1976.  He performed in 37 different countries, having emigrated to Ireland in 1971, living in Italy and going home to Iran in 1991. The linked video shows some of his feats of strength which included lifting an elephant (with essentially a hand and thigh bar from a raised platform), bending, being run over by a truck, pulling vehicles, leg pressing a plank with 8...

For an introductory event, keep it simple, but exciting. Venue - This could be your garage, a CrossFit gym or a VFW Hall depending on the turnout expected. Pick some lifts - With 200+ lifts, you could get crazy, but I would recommend lifts from the floor that require minimum set up.  Cleans, snatches, and deadlifts are the easiest to set up and judge.  The press out rule is not nearly as strict as it is in Olympic Weightlifting.  Variations of Olympic Lifts, SBD, Strongman and Dumbbell variations may be more comfortable for athletes coming from other strength sports.  I would avoid contesting the Lano Lift or the Harness Lift for a first event in your area. Find an official - USAWA has (19) level 2 officials and (15) level 1 officials mostly concentrated in Missouri, Kansas, Kentucky, Boston, and Pennsylvania. Sanction the Event - Fill out the meet sanction form and submit payment to the treasurer. Drum up athletes and get them registered with USAWA. Have Fun! -- M...

I would typically avoid being a naysayer or cynical without offering another solution or constructive criticism, but a recent article on usawa.com struck a nerve with me. It was entitled "5 Ways to Grow the USAWA in 2025" and suggested Recruiting meet directors in geographic areas without a USAWA presence Making Nationals a can't miss event Modernize logo Encourage sponsorship with uniform changes (knee sleeves and leggings) Embrace change I was originally set back by the premise that USAWA wants to grow.  It has always been a 100ish athlete all volunteer organization with modest budget.  Income consists of membership fees, meet sanctioning fees and donations.  Expenses include drug testing, web hosting and awards.  The organization has stayed in the fringes since 1987 specifically by not getting too big for its britches. Recruiting meet directors is a great idea.  However, assuming athletes want odd lifting, they will need at least one official who would have t...

High Country Vigour (HCV) All Round Weightlifting requires quite a bit of equipment in order to contest 195 lifts.  The majority (150) can be done with basic equipment.  There are also (13) Fulton bar lifts.  The only class of lifts that stand alone are the Heavy Lifts and variations (8) which require a special heavy lift bar and accessories.  Finally, special equipment is needed for another (24) lifts. Barbell, plates, dumbbell handles, collars, rack Fulton Bar Fulton Dumbbells Finger Lift Ring Heavy Lift Bar 2" Vertical Bars 1" Vertical Bars Roman Chair Inch Dumbbells Weaver Stick Saxon Plank Foot Press Apparatus Back Lift Apparatus 3" Barbell Trap Bar Dinnie Handles 3.5" Dumbbell Handle Rim Lift Stubby Bar 3x4 Metal Saxon Hand & Thigh Bar Hip Belt Neck Harness Chest Harness Teeth Bit Travis Lift attachment Hand & Thigh Bar Hand Rails HCV can contest 186 of the 195 lifts in the 13th edition of the record book.   A. Bar Lifts - Presses, Snatches, C...