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Re: New USAPL Website: Thank you!------WebKitFormB
Posted By: Jason " Too Pretty" Burnell In Response To: Re: New USAPL Website: Thank you!------WebKitFormB (Rich Edinger)
Date: Wednesday, 28 May 2008, at 12:09 p.m.
Reggie and Rich,
Masters will continue to be 100+ for at least the short term - everyone gets older. Some, I think it does come down to a decision between Men's and Masters and as people become older they tend to choose the easier one to place in - Masters. Age, injury and closeness are all factors too.There are other factors as well. Out here in the west we deal with a lot of other feds for competition. Lots of people are more into getting trophy or record in a single lift than in a real meet. At my gym there is a trainer who specializes in finding 60-70 year old lifters (the older the better), training them for a while and entering them in the bench/dead only feds meets where they invaribly set a "you've lived a long ass time WORLD record." He makes sure to get that 205 lb deadlift in the local paper to "legitimize" it. Can't laugh too much, that guy has trained more champions than Joe Weider in the last couple of years. He won't have them lift in a USAPL meet because... well they can't win or break all the records in the first meet.
And that is really what we're talking about - fear of not winning every time you hit the platform. If you go to Men's Nationals, there is a huge chance that you will not win. When was the last time Cardella, Mike Bridges, Tony Harris or the Hybrid or Siders/Gillingham lost? When I first started, it was a honor just to be on the platform with these guys but I don't think that feeling is the same anymore for a couple of reasons:
1)The top 100 in PLUSA - the best drug free, single ply lifters are going to find themselves way down the list in the top 100 and the top 100 is something that everyone looks at.
2)PLUSA coverage - every month its the 1000 lbs high squat of the month or the 800-900 lbs multi ply bench of the month. The days of people being impressed with a 500 lbs bench are gone. I mean, as great as Mike Hara is, there are a ton of guys that bench 500 now - not single ply and drug free but if you look at the mags, everyone (well, except me) benches 500. If you're over 181 and don't bench 500, you might be able to get a handicapped placard for your car.
3) The old "everyone" is on drugs attitude. This is a tough nut to crack - there is still the perception out there that if a person lifts "too much" he must be cheating. We discussed that here not too long ago. The idea that some of the top lifters are using might keep some away.
4) We are seen by some as elitist pricks.
5) The lack of a huge crowd draw at Men's Nationals..... and by huge draw, I mean the Jason Burnell Traveling Road Show. Let's face it, a chance to hang out and possibly have a beer or 6 with the #####iest Man in Powerlifting has got to be worth at least 25 lifters and untold butts in seats in the audience.
So, how do we fix these things?
1)We can't control the Top 100 but we can control the USAPL Top 20 and our own site(s) and the way we present ourselves. We've got to be more proactive in terms of promoting the positive things about the drug free choice without being preachy about it.
2)Again, we can't control PLUSAs coverage but we might need to more positively promote the achievements of drug free lifters - both in the mag and within our community. One step that's been mentioned might be to ressurect the lifter classifications and include them in PLUSA and on our site/newsletter. For example, a listing of lifters that achieved a Class 3 status in the previous quarter. The sport is built on Goals and while not everyone can lift like Tony Harris, everyone can focus on that next level. That might also help to counter that "first place trophy or its not worth lifting" mentality.
3) Wow, this is really a tough one. We face the "he's using" accusations from outside and inside. One EC member shared with me some stats about how many times some lifters have been tested. We need to make that be known publicly. The Database is a good start but only if people go looking for it. We need to put that info out there periodically in print- again PLUSA and the Newsletter.
The next step would be to remove the tesrting from the USAPLs hands. As long as we are doing the testing or all of it, there will be the accusation that we're "protecting" certain lifters. That is one advantage of third party testing, even at meets - if we're not choosing the lifters or testing them, we can't be accused of "protecting them.
You'll never escape the idea that some lifters are using because...hey, some lifters are. That is the reason we test. The failures prove that there are cheaters in our midst. However, that doesn't prove that the system is failing. It proves that the system is working. It just needs some tweaking.... and a huge influx of cash. LOL
4) This is easy. Each of us needs to realize that we are ambassadors for the sport and the next person you cross paths with in the gym will either become a lifter or won't. It doesn't matter if that person is a skinny, little pencil necked, pastey, dweeb. He might be a world beater someday. If you don't believe me go look at Ed Coan's book... he's going to kill me for that one. LOL
Each one teach one is an old expression that applies. That might mean saying " I'll explain as soon as we've finished our sets" when someone asks "what are the chains and giant rubber bands for" in the middle of you set, rather than the standard answer of "ARHGGKSDLFGSFGPKLDF{G{DFFG."
Also, we probably need to promote what we are doing positively without, implying that other peoples choices are wrong (except for single lift lifting LOL).
Music at meets. I'm going to have to get Chuck for the next Nor Cal..... assuming I promote a meet again......
Everybody loves that "disturbed/ Michael Buble" monster mix.
5) The best news is that my shoulder has just about healed and I lifted in my first meet in 2 years a week or so ago. I'll lift again on July 12 and then I'll hit Lance's meet in November to qualify for Men's Nationals. So.. at this point, USAPL needs to take advantage of the fact that The Big #####y will be returning to the Big Dance in 2009. It's kind of fitting since my first National meet was Andrea's Nationals in Colorado and next year USAPL Men's Nationals will be returning to Colorado. So, tell all your friends and training partners that in 2009, the Deepsquatter Road Show will finally return and Men's Nationals will be fun again.
The only questions will be these:
1)Will Disa bring me a Mickeys after my last Deadlift?
2) Will 2009 be the year that Johnny Graham wears the pimp hat?
3) Will I return to form and challenge the refs to red light me like I did in my first Nationals? Mooney drove all the way from Oregon looking to red light me... couldn't because I'm so damn pretty.
4) Will Garry bring his sorry butt down from Canada to lift as a special honored guest lifter. Canada, it's like a state, right?
There you have it. All the answers in one place.
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