An old, fat fool starts a log. Hope no-one minds

Enjoy yourself on sunday mate!

Have a good un Pete.

Will do Mish, it's always good to see old friends and there old friends a plenty at these comps. I do like your avatar. It makes me think of Steph and that always makes me happy

Cheers Malc. Things have been going pretty well and the targets aren't too high

All the best for tomorrow 750 is yours

Thank you Michael

Good luck for tomorrow Pete, all the best.

Right then. Sunday 23rd, up early and out for 8.30 ish and off to the Lancs and Cheshire. It's an hours drive and 44.4 miles. Almost all motorway and hellishly good for the fuel consumption. There were few enough lifters for two flights and it was decided that the unequipped would go first in the flight and the equipped would go bak to back with them in the second. This means that the first lot would start at 11 and the second lot (including me) would be off and running around 11.45 ish. SO as the first lot were warming up I took my pre comp evacuation and began squeezing myself into the suit. Then they announced that they would not lift back to back and that the unequipped would do all their lifts first and then we would do all ours. The reason I believe was that there was a dire shortage of spotters and they wanted some of the unequipped lifters to spot for the equipped lads. This was the only way they could do it. So out of the suit, back into the civvies and in persuit of bacon butties.

We actually started just after two.


Squats

The warmup was poo as there was in racks in facility for the larger gentleman, and the bar was a golds gym special and ws slippy, very slippy. We managed though

260 - pass, very good

272 - pass - not so good*

280 - pass, very good

*I wrapped my knees too soon and on realizing this then realized that there easn't enough time to unwrap and rewrap, so went into this with my knees feeling something other than tip top. felt for it a bit on the way down, but it was always going. It lacked speed and fluency. Details matter. Time the wrapping better.

Bench

In their wisdom they only gave us twenty minutes to warm up and that really isn't long. Raw first then shirt on then blockwork, Six lifters to one bench. I don't think anyione had an unrushed and complete warm up. My last warm up was a 165 to one block, just didn't have time for one to the chest and I don't like to open without a touch. Especially not with a new shirt.

177.5 fail - missed the line

177.5 pass - better but not as good as it should have been

182.5 fail - line again. Bloody shirt must be female. But as first dates go there have been much worse.

Deadlift

Warmups were fine so all boded well

260 - pass. Not overly good, started with the arse too high and no zap whatsoever

270 - pass. Better, better start position but not enough leg and not enough zap

275 - pass. Better again. If the first two had been good this would have been also but the first two weren't. Good start position, good leg, but wery lacking in the zap department

Conclusion

It was fun. That's the main thing. I totalled 732.5 with whichever way you cut it is a disappointment. Having been giving a certain start time and then having it changed at the very last minute was not good. My heart goes out to the organisers and I genuinely feel for them over the issue of spotters. But this wasn't good. My performance was not as good as it could have or should have been, but, the one positive was that in the squat and deadlift I improved as the weight went up, which bodes well for the future. We will overlook the bench as it was first date with the shirt, that will improve, just need a couple more month of boardwork. The squats drew particularly good comments (they couldn't see the wrapping error on the second) and the consensus was that even a French referee who had caught me in bed with his wife couldn't have failed them. And that gentle reader is praise indeed.

Weight was 133.4

Well done pete, and with limited warm up time. Good lifting

Cheers Dax. If I ever get nine lifts in or leave a comp happy - I'll retire.

You wouldn't think I won would you ?

Another Victory Pete. That's a bloody good habit to have.