IKFF/NAKF Meet in Michigan

Flew to Flint, MI last weekend to attend the IKFF/NAKF meet. This was a great meet in terms of competitor turnout and organization. We had over 50 competitors. I didn't compete this time around. I needed a mental break from competitions and it turned out to be a good decision as I caught a cold earlier in the week. In addition to that, it allowed me to lend a hand to Ken, Lorraine, and Matt and the rest of the volunteers to ensure the meet ran as smoothly as possible.

Just a few of the many noteworthy accomplishments: Marty Farrell returned to the platform after major surgery and did a 10 minute LCC&J set with 2-24kg bells. Scott Helsley made a valiant attempt at a MS ranking in the LCC&J with 2-32kg bells. He missed by only 4 reps. He's very close! Friend Boris Bachman was the sole competitor in the mens 32kg Biathlon. He did an impressive snatch set (over 50 total reps). Glad he made the trip. Chris Duffy turned in an awesome performance in the Biathlon and did 106 reps with 2-24kg bells. It has been fun to watch his progress since meeting him in Boston last September. Phillip Humphrey also did very well.

Andrew Durniat competed with the 24s since his time lately has been dedicated to his Strongman endeavors and he was recovering from a recent Strongman competition. Of course, he had an impressive performance. In addition to that, he did some awesome grip and strongman demonstrations. Unfortunately, we were busy tallying the results so I had to catch the highlights on the video.

The most rewarding thing about this competition was watching some folks that I have trained/Coached shine not only as competitors but as KB Lifting Coaches. Maya and Steven were both at the January Certification in San Diego. Steven was in my squad. They've taken information from Valery Fedorenko, AKC Coaches Like Jon Hoskins and myself, and have done very well at absorbing it and then disseminating it to their students at the Ice Chamber Gym. Their ability to learn and to coach was reflected in Maya's awesome 16kg LCC&J performance, and the awesome performance of all of their students.

It was also rewarding to watch up and coming lifters like Eric St. Onge and Sean Armstead. I worked with these guys in Toronto. Their technique is coming along and I'm really looking forward to watching their continued progress. Eric turned in gutsy performances in the 40kg LCC&J and Chair Press events.

There were many many other great performances. It was great seeing Liberty Gray and the rest of the Michigan crew. Liberty turned in some awesome 10 minute sets including going the full 10 on the 24kg LCC&J event.

Our Irongarm friend Andy (Andy74) made the trip to watch the event. If you don't know about Irongarm, you probably shouldn't ask. He seemed bored initially, but quickly got into it. Lorraine and I were so thankful he stuck around for the evening festivities. It was great seeing him again. We hadn't seen him since the Sterling, VA competition in May 2004. Thanks for coming down and hanging out Andy! Along those lines, our friend Peter Silverman also made it to the competition to watch. He couldn't stick around for the party, but it was good to see him again.

We had a great dinner on Saturday night. It was fun hanging out with the competitors and of course knocking back some cold ones with my steak. I had a little too much to drink, but my cold is gone now.

Thanks to Ken, Matt and Lorraine for helping organize the event and to all folks who volunteered as judges. Thanks to Valery, Eric and Marty for making the trip from Cincinnati to show your support. Most importantly, thanks to all the folks for making the trip and stepping onto the platform. The turnout will defiitely help the continued growth of this sport.

I did a poor job of taking photos again (got a few to download of Lorraine and Andy). Here are a couple of great links that detail the event along with the photos.

Ice Chamber Blog

Boris Bachman's Account of the Festivities

Check out the last 2 posts in Scott's Blog...

Funny Guy Scott Helsley's Twist on the Events.



CI