High Country Vigour

I had an amazing adventure at Wellington Lake.  I completed the Wellington Swim-Run event which consisted of 3 laps of a 0.3 mile swim and 1.7 km run.  My training had been going well, but I did not take into account the colder water (60-65 degrees) and 8,000 feet elevation.  Despite these environmental factors, I executed my race plan well and finished in 1 hour 49 minutes. 0415 - Alarm goes off, dress, brush teeth, take meds, load car, use restroom twice, load up car 0500 - Get on the road to Lake Wellington.  Directions to main office was fine, then I started to get turned around 0645 - Park at campsite area 0700 - Arrive at starting line, get checked in and body marked 0745 - Race briefing 0800 - Start 0949 - Finish 1005 - Walk back to car and drive home 1145 - Arrive home, clean up gear and shower After checking in, I milled about talking to Felecia, Dana and Steve among other eager race participants.  The disparity in kit and  preparation was startlin...

I had heard of Oliphant's Gym (the oldest gym in North America) a few years earlier on  YouTube . I did not give it much thought until I found myself taking a trip to Toronto and remembered that the gym was located somewhere in Canada.  It could have been Toronto, Montreal or any other city in Canada.  In advance of the trip, I called the phone number and talked to (?).  He asked me to text Carlos who explained that I could just drop in and someone should be able to buzz me in.  I opted for a Monday morning, got in, filled out the waiver and Nisha and I were able to lift. We started with bench press and did a few sets.  I used the straight bar and Nisha used dumbbells. Next we did cleans at the "squat rack."  I used the fixed bar and Nisha grabbed the short bar at the lightest weight. Next was bodyweight movements with the back extension and I did a couple of pull-ups on the bar hanging from the ceiling.  I also felt the need to string up the low ...

Jarrod hosted the Repetition Rampage Record Day.  We did a rules briefing for the athletes and the officials and then got underway.  It was a little chaotic, but overall things went very smoothly with records being attempted when athletes were ready roughly taking turns. Jarrod - 49 - 216.8 pounds Finger Lift, Thumb, Right - 54 pounds x 10 reps Finger Lift, Little, Right - 75 pounds x 11 reps Finger Lift, Ring, Right - 104 pounds x 10 reps Finger Lift, Middle, Right - 120 pounds x 10 reps Finger Lift, Index , Right - 99 pounds x 15 reps Sanjiv - 55 - 208.2 pounds Trap Bar Deadlift - 210 pounds x 16 reps Front Squat - 135 pounds x 9 reps Bench Press, Feet In Air - 135 pounds x 11 reps Press From Rack 100 pounds x 6 reps Kim - Age - 128.7 pounds Clean & Press, Middle Fingers - 35 pounds x 21 reps Gardner Full - 25 pounds x 6 reps Diya Clean & Press, On Knees - 30 pounds x 10 reps Leg Press - Self Loaded - 25 pounds x 10 reps Despite the heat we all had fun.  Jarrod'...

Women's Podium Lifters and Officials The 2026 National Championship was a whirlwind trip.  Nisha and I flew out Friday morning, arriving in St. Louis around 11 AM and driving to Columbia, MO by 1:00 PM.  We relaxed in the room and then headed over to the annual meeting. As usual in Columbia, MO, dinner consisted of barbecue at D-Rowe's which has good service and good food.  It is a bit expensive at $30/person, but that is OK.   Attendees: Chad Ullom Jessica Hopps David Glasgow Larry Traub Neveah Traub Jayden Traub Kristin Traub Drew Traub Jarrod Fobes Nisha Gupta Sanjiv Gupta Logan Wenzel Jeff Wenzel Dylan Wenzel Allison Lupo Tony Lupo David DeForest Lisa Gore David Beversdorf Tony Hose Bill Clark (10) Clark's, (6) Ledaig, (3) HCV, (1) Dino, (1) Frank's Officer reports were read and/or waived. Old Business - Board decisions to be able to remove athletes due to disruptive behavior and waive official scoring were overturned. By-Law Changes - Laundry list were deba...

This was the inaugural installation of the Carnival in the Cul-De-Sac hosted by Joshua Guerin in Greeley, Colorado. The drive up was pleasant enough and enjoyed the hour drive up listening to The Grip Show recap of US Nationals and Canada Nationals. Arriving at the venue, Josh had set everything up and was a very accommodating host.  I emptied my bladder and just squeaked into the 95 kg weight class after taking off my shoes and my t-shirt.  I was pleased with my svelte 208.5 bodyweight and began to get in some food and hydrate.  We took a group picture before hand.  Joshua even had stick on old time mustaches for us to try.  With rainbow and black choices, I opted for rainbow in honor of pride month. After rules briefing we started with the Steinborn Squat.  I went 3 for 3 with good lifts at 89, 109 and 131 pounds.  With some practice, I would like to get this up to 150 pounds, but will not be breaking Al Springs 200 pound record anytime soon.  T...

We had a great time with the Heavy Lift Championship.  It was slow going and a lot of time was spent with warm-up lifts so that everybody could figure out chain length, technique and how to position a neck harness and hip belt. Nisha always opened and was under the pressure of performing (3) lifts in a row with three middle aged men watching, but she did great.  Her neck lift was the trickiest, during warm-ups she missed 50, made 30 and made 40.  She decided to open at 40 pounds, then made 50 pounds and 70 pounds saying it felt easy.  I am not sure if 4th attempts were allowed, but she did put up 90 pounds on a 4th attempt. Jarrod did 100 pounds and did not care for the lift.  He accepted the token effort and was done.  Joshua tested 100 pounds and then opened at 150 pounds also being done.  I was a glutton for punishment and after warm-ups at 100 and 150, I opened at 170 and had a tough lift at 190 pounds for my second attempt. Hand and Thigh was much...

Clark's Gym was hosting two meets this weekend and I decided to enter and submit some record session lifts. Sanjiv Gupta 54 years old Weight 209.6 kg (100kg Class) Lifts performed 4/25/2026 Officials - Jarrod Fobes and Kim Van Wagner Diamond Jubilee Deadlift, No Thumbs - 325 pounds Deadlift, No Thumbs, Overhand Grip - 315 pounds Jefferson Lift, Fulton Bar - 305 pounds Side Press, Bar, Left - 45 pounds Side Press, Bar, Right - 45 pounds Diaper Day Squat, Lunge - 95 pounds Reflex Bench Press - 180 pounds Jarrod Fobes 206.2 pounds 49 years old Turkish Get Up - Repetition - 50 pounds x 10 reps (in about 2:20) Half Gardner - Repetition - 45 pounds x 12 reps (in about 3:30) Finger Lift, Little, Left - 41 pounds x 25 reps (in about 2:00) Finger Lift, Little, Right - 41 pounds x 36 reps (in about 2:30) Lateral Raise, Lying - 40 pounds x 26 reps (in about 2:00) Kim 129.5 pounds 59 year old Clean & Jerk, Behind Neck - 70 pounds Clean & Press, 12" Base - 65 pounds