You guys..you won't believe it, but we had MORE shenanigans at the competition today.. After we got out there and rehashed yesterday's ridiculousness a bit more, we decided there was nothing left to say or do about it and just to move on and work hard and do our best.. So, we did!
Our first workout set for today was a snatch + overhead squat complex.. You must snatch the weight overhead, and then complete 3 overhead squats (a full squat in the snatch would count as the first OHS, so..of coarse, since I planned to go heavy, if things were going well, I was going to do a snatch + 2 additional OHS.. That's how I roll!). We warmed up and waited our turn. I was feeling pretty good. The weight was moving well and I was starting to think that maybe another PR could be in the works! Jaclyn wasn't feeling as confident, but I knew she would be fine.. She started off at a couple lighter/safer sets, dropped one of them, so we decided she should go with a hang snatch, which she finds to be more consistent, and that worked well. She got the 115# she planned on, and then got a pr match at 125! I started in on the 125# and all was working well. 135, 145.. All were going well, so it was time for the pr match at 150#.. And I got it! It actually felt pretty easy.. We added on the 155# and after an initial slight miss out front, I got it!..and then managed to hang on for the OHS, too. Yay! We had about a minute left, so we went back to 130# to let Jaclyn go for a pr and, despite her lack of confidence going in, she got it! Unfortunately, I think the surprise of it all was a little too much, because she lost it on the OHS, but a pr snatch, none-the-less. So 2 more PR's for the pair of us! We ended up a mere 5# behind the team that was tied with us, which we were actually quite proud of, given that the lifts are a significant strong point for at least one of their gals, so being that close to their numbers was a good thing for us. Especially given that we aren't in a heavy weightlifting focused cycle right now, so only doing snatches 1 or 2 times a week! Anyway.. So we were happy about that..
The second workout was a 21/18/15/12/9/6/3 couplet of Deadlifts (185) and pull-ups. We had talked about how we would break it up..first person on the DL aims for just over half the reps, then as the second person finishes up, they move to the pull-up bar to complete the set unbroken. We executed this plan perfectly, and for that, I'm quite proud of us! We were moving well, communicating well, and through the first, and biggest set, we were rep for rep with the first place gals.. We kept moving, and though their Deadlifts were slightly faster, we were keeping up and catching up on pull-ups.. Then..somehow..things....changed.. We were still moving.. They were still moving.. All at about the same pace, though we seemed to be moving to and through the pull-ups quicker..but then, all of a sudden..they were done? I think we were in our round of 6's or maybe finishing 9, when they were done.. We finished strong and, though confused a bit, went to congratulate them on their work. Looking back, the one gal did seem a bit uncertain of whether she should take the praise, but maybe that's just me looking into things a bit too much, but it did strike me as odd.. At first, I just wondered how we fell so far off pace, but then our 2 JoCo supporters mentioned that 'things seemed odd' and that perhaps a round was missed?! No way, I thought..that couldn't happen..could it!? So I guess we speculated a bit, but obviously couldn't do more than that.. Our suspicions were confirmed, however, when our coach, who had come by to support us and watch the workout..who is known for his 'rain man-esque' ability to count reps (sorry, Mike.. You know people call you that, right? It's a compliment?.. I think?.. Anyway. He has an uncanny ability to keep track of numbers in a workout, and probably other ways, too, I've just never tested him on that.. He may or may not know what kind of underwear they sell at Walmart or what time Jeopardy is on..) and keep track of where people are in the workout (even when you think he's not looking!), said that he watched and was counting and is 100% sure that they skipped the entire round of 15. WHAT?! The whole round?! How does that happen.. How did the judge miss that.. How did they miss that.. Everyone watching.. NO one wants to stand up and ask 'how did they go from matching reps with that team to finishing over a minute ahead of them?'?! Nobody?! I'm sure most would wonder why our coach didn't say anything, but you also have to see it from his side.. How would it look for him to go up to the owner, whom he has never met, to make a big stink 'swearing' that he 'knows' they missed the reps based on nothing but his own counting.. Especially when it would only look like he was trying to boost his own athletes or being a sore loser.. So, no. Though I momentarily wished he had said something, ultimately I can understand that it wouldn't have been the right move.. For anyone.. But, still.. I think anyone that was watching had to think something strange had happened there. Heck, if WE had finished that far ahead of them when it had been clear that we were rep for rep through the workout, I would have immediately wondered what had happened.. You're telling me they didn't find that odd? We are also fairly sure that they watched their recording of it later.. So they knew they cut the workout 30 reps short, but yet said nothing.. We talked a bit about what we would have done, had the roles been reversed.. If we had made a mistake like that in a competition.. Or what we would do if they DID come to us and acknowledge the mistake.. And the bottom line was, we would have just appreciated the acknowledgement and their honesty. We wouldn't have run to the judges or started yelling and carrying on about how the scores should change, etc, etc.. We just would have appreciated that they recognized the mistake and felt bad out it.. But, no. I will say, though.. For sure, their group wouldn't make eye contact with me the rest of the day.. Whether that was because of a guilty conscience or not is obviously just assumption.. But they went from regular, smug smiles and chatting with us to literally avoiding eye contact and not responding when I said 'hello' directly to the girl as I came out of the restroom.. So.. That was kind of weird.. All of it. I still cannot believe such a huge mistake just went unceremoniously swept under the rug.. Huh.. Not doing much to entice us to return to your fine establishment for any more of these competitions that you plan to host, there, CF Unbroken.. I will say, the owner, Jim, seemed aware that something was up.. Something was off with those results.. But, again, unwilling to question further or really look in to solving the problem.. I also find it ironic (or is it coincidental?) that I had overheard this team discussing with Jim that morning about how important it is to have well prepared judges and to be sure that they are clear on the workouts and standards and such..but yet, the poor judging wound up saving them the trouble of completing 30 (THIRTY) of the reps in the workout! Again.. Huh..
Well, so that was that.. Needless to say, we were a bit disheartened after that and I think Jaclyn (understandably) was struggling to get motivated for the next thing.. With feeling screwed over in 2 of the workouts now, and after tweaking her elbow a bit in the OHS.. It wasn't turning out to be quite the day we had hoped for.. And, spoiler alert, but it didn't get much better from there.. The next workout was an atlas stone(65#) ground to shoulder and a sprint.. So for the first round, 1 person had to do 10 atlas stones over the shoulder, and then sprint across a loooong open field, full of high grass and pot holes (are they called pot holes in dirt? I don't know, but you get what I mean, yes?), run back, then the second person completes that work.. Then for the rest of the 12 minutes, you do as many rounds of the 10 stones and sprints, broken up however you want between the 2 partners. We planned on doing 5 each on the stones, and then whoever did the first 5 stones, would do the sprint, switch, repeat, etc.. I think it went well.. We were even with the lead in the first round, but then they slowly pulled away.. I think we just weren't as fast on the stones.. We ran fine, but just couldn't catch back up.. But we gave it our best and, again, wound up in second.. No complaints on this one! We definitely got second..fair and square, which we much prefer to all the drama. Give us a nice clear cut finish over missed reps or boo-hoo-ing fans any day. Of coarse, I wanted to win that, but it was fairly clear from early on that they were cruising through those stones more efficiently than we were.. So. That was that!
Finally, it was time for the 'championship workout', which would be worth double points..which sounds exciting! But in reality, the teams were pretty set.. The final workout was another 'move heavy, odd objects' kind of thing.. Which was fun, but I prefer a more 'technical' kind of workout for a final, but obviously, that is because it suits me better, so you can't always count on that! But, like I said, it was fun and I enjoyed the workout. It was a 500m (each, which I think I PRd on that! I was pretty proud, since rowing is NOT my thing!), then each complete a 200' overhead carry(85#.. Very awkward!), a 200' farmers carry (44#), and a 200' sled push. Guess what..we got..second! Womp womp.. We happened to be up against a crazy good rower, so though we both rowed solid 1:50-ish/500m pace, we were still probably 20 seconds behind? And stayed about there throughout.. So. Again.. That was that. 2 days of work, 3 PRs, lots of solid teamwork and communication, dealing with an abnormal amount of BS in getting worked over by judging/comp directors/other competitors.. All comes out to a second place finish. While I'm never disappointed with a second place, it's certainly harder to take with all the silly crap.
My overall take-away from the weekend? Jaclyn and I make a great team. We worked hard, communicated, stepped up when it was needed, and we did a damn good job. I would partner with her again any time! So, I hope we can find another good comp to get in to.. As for this comp? The volunteers and members from the host gym were all incredibly nice, kind, supportive, interested in our feedback and feedback from other competitors on how things were going and if we needed anything from them. I enjoyed the community at CF Unbroken quite a bit. On the flip side, however, I think that in their effort to impress certain competitors and, what seemed to me as, insecurity on whether or not they were doing a good job, they allowed outside influences to alter the results of the competition, and that really just cannot happen.. I understand that judges aren't perfect and that they just want to do what they can to keep things fair and keep people happy, but to allow for teams and their fans/support crew to get in the ear of the comp director and cause a change in the results of the judges ruling on the 'field of play', is pretty crazy, and not a good thing for the validity of the competition. Finding volunteers that are willing and able to uphold the standards and give out 'no-reps', when they are called for, and to be accountable for keeping track of reps and rounds in the workout that they are judging..it's not easy! But it's such an important part of these competitions and truly can make or break the whole thing. I feel like, though well meaning, the judging at this competition completely dropped the ball. There was a lot of reps allowed that should never have counted.. There was uncertainty in themselves on whether the rep or round or time count was right.. That's the whole thing! That's what you're doing out here! Not that they need to tell me what the workout is, that's on the athlete.. I feel like they were more 'rep counters' than judges, and clearly had some trouble with that part, too. Again.. Don't get me wrong.. I've judged before and it is NOT easy. I feel like a lot of the responsibility is on the director of the competition.. Provide your judges with stop watches, when warranted.. Provide them with score cards that are pre-marked with reps and rounds, so they can physically mark them off as completed, leaving no need to question whether a round was missed..'nope. Marked it off right here. They got all the rounds'(or not.. I'm totally not bitter about that. 30 reps?? No big deal.. Not at all..). Things like that can go a long way.. Then instead of worrying whether their chicken scratch on the paper makes any sense, or whether they are counting right, they can focus on judging the quality of the reps and completion of the workout.
To the folks of Unbreakable and the other competitors this weekend, thank you for your hospitality and for your kind words of support. I thoroughly enjoyed the workouts and was excited to come and complete them and test our abilities on them. The workouts were pretty well rounded and, I thought, fun! Unfortunately, I don't really think I will be back.. Which makes me sad.. Both because it is a nice gym in a decent location for me with kind members, and also because that eliminates a potential source of close competitions to sign up for.. But with all the events of the weekend, I just don't see how it would make much sense to return. I won't even mention the prize packages (oops! I just did..), but the 3rd place gal approached me and she was ticked! I must say, when it was advertised as having 'cash prizes and swag from sponsors' for podium finishers, you kind of expect..some..cash?? Especially when each team paid good money to enter?? I get that this is business, and obviously the host expects to make some money for hosting.. But ALL the money? Generally, some of the entry fee goes to the prize packages.. Generally.. Just sayin.. Any time you sign up for these, you don't plan to win, or to win money..but when it is advertised as such..well.. You kind of expect it. I'm not complaining about the kind donated gifts from their sponsors/vendors, but.. The cash?? Maybe they forgot it??
What, too negative and selfish to end on that note? Hmm.. Nope! That's all I've got. I will say I am SUPER excited about the workouts for this week because we are finally tackling some of those Games workouts I watched the top CF athletes work through about a week(?) ago.. So, I'm psyched! Hope it goes as well in reality as it does in my head! (Spoiler..it never does..) but it will be fun trying!
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