IFSA on Versus, March 17

[Richard Reynolds]

Just a heads up that according to my dish (direct tv), VS will be showing strongman at 2:00 PT (5:00ET).

Hopefully it will be something new, but probably not on a Saturday afternoon timeslot

[Mike Westerling]

I'll definitely be checkin it out.
-Mike

[Mike Westerling]

1. The ifsa overhead block lift world record set by big Z was 308lbs and the final stone in the series at wsm was 295lbs which means both Don Pope and Phil Pfister would have a legit shot at it since they both did the 295 at the end of the series.

2. When Travis set the original record with the light set he was standing behind a "starting gate" a few feet away from the ring and when big Z just broke it he was standing over the first stone.

3. When Steve Mac's strap broke no one ran out to give him a new one. I would think at least one competitor would have felt some "camaraderie" and thrown him a new one. I know they are very competitive but who wants to win like that?

Any thoughts or any other observations?
-Mike

[Mike Landrich]

1. The ifsa overhead block lift world record set by big Z was 308lbs and the final stone in the series at wsm was 295lbs which means both Don Pope and Phil Pfister would have a legit shot at it since they both did the 295 at the end of the series.

2. When Travis set the original record with the light set he was standing behind a "starting gate" a few feet away from the ring and when big Z just broke it he was standing over the first stone.

3. When Steve Mac's strap broke no one ran out to give him a new one. I would think at least one competitor would have felt some "camaraderie" and thrown him a new one. I know they are very competitive but who wants to win like that?

Any thoughts or any other observations?
-Mike

1. The aluminum block would be tough to hold in the cold. Anytime I'm doing something in my shop in the winter I use gloves when handling metal. It "sweats" when the heat from your hands contacts it. Either way, I'd still like to see Pope, Pfister and Savickas compete.

2. How much was the difference between their times? If it was close, it would make a difference.

3. I read on this board when it happened that IFSA rules state a competitor must finish an event with the equipment he brought out at the start of the event. So no one could give him theirs. I doubt too many guys would want to win like that and would show camaraderie, if they were allowed to.

[Nikhil Rao]

I saw an interview with Steve Mac where he said he felt like there might've been some conspiring to keep him out of the finals. I'll see if I can dig it up. Missed it on tv cuz i'm a spaz.

There it is:
http://www.chasingkaz.com/archives/steve_macdonald_the_chasingkaz.phtml

I can't believe mac was within 20 minutes of where I went to school for three years. Bah!

[Ian Duggan]

Have you read the orginal piece in his training journal (link here) (http://asp.elitefts.com/qa/default.asp?qid=47778&tid=119) on Elite though? Basically the only way he didn't go to the final was if Savickas beat his time, finishing first, and Muramets finished last. Guess who did three stones and then stopped for no obvious reason?

Muramets is no slouch on the stones normally. Although he had qualified already, so I guess you could argue that he was saving himself for the final, but then why did he save himself and Savickas didn't?

Sounds a bit off anway, but I guess if you're going to set up all kinds of USA vs the Rest of the World (or whatever) team comps. throughout the year, stuff like that is going to happen in individual comps. too.

[Nikhil Rao]

the straps thing seems silly. If you're going to make straps part of the event, then they ought to stop the time and let you put on a new pair of straps. I'm not a straps fan, but in my mind this would be the equivalent of if the apparatus itself broke midway through an athlete's turn telling him he had to keep using the broken apparatus despite the disadvantage...

[Kevin Cronin]

wait, I turned it on at 5 and it was an episode I had already seen (the same episode thats been aired AT LEAST 4 times already) but then tehy had the infamous broken straps for teh second episode? Dammit, I thought it was gonna be the same second episiode I'd already seen. Total BS

[Nikhil Rao]

i think 2k6 is already out on DVD. At least in australia.

[Mike Landrich]

the straps thing seems silly. If you're going to make straps part of the event, then they ought to stop the time and let you put on a new pair of straps. I'm not a straps fan, but in my mind this would be the equivalent of if the apparatus itself broke midway through an athlete's turn telling him he had to keep using the broken apparatus despite the disadvantage...


There is a huge difference between your gear breaking and the promoter's breaking.

I agree the rule is pretty lame though.

[Kevin Cronin]

i think 2k6 is already out on DVD. At least in australia.

I've looked for it and not found it. Any idea where to pick it up nikhil? (PAL plays in a computer, right?)

[Nikhil Rao]

http://www.gpstore.com.au/DVDs/1536919.html

typing in 'ifsa 2006 strongman' in google yields about 50 different australian stores claiming to have it.

Amazon US doesn't though...weird.

[Daniel Dase]

1. The aluminum block would be tough to hold in the cold. Anytime I'm doing something in my shop in the winter I use gloves when handling metal. It "sweats" when the heat from your hands contacts it. Either way, I'd still like to see Pope, Pfister and Savickas compete.

2. How much was the difference between their times? If it was close, it would make a difference.

3. I read on this board when it happened that IFSA rules state a competitor must finish an event with the equipment he brought out at the start of the event. So no one could give him theirs. I doubt too many guys would want to win like that and would show camaraderie, if they were allowed to.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVnd8ia91NE

Pfister got it in 25 seconds, which is over the IFSA world record, but when you consider the distance of the stones from the platforms and where they started from, I think he would have beaten the World record for IFSA's stones ring.

Also, not shown in that video, I remember that Tarmo Mitt had the fastest time in that event, but I can't find what his time was.

[Brandon R.]

I just read all the comments on that yoututbe video, and I'm amazed at all the stupid people insulting Pfister just because he won. They can't accept that Mariusz can be beaten. Its sad

[Nikhil Rao]

I just read all the comments on that yoututbe video, and I'm amazed at all the stupid people insulting Pfister just because he won. They can't accept that Mariusz can be beaten. Its sad

they see Mariusz' physique and assume that he's the strongest.

These are the same people that think a 230lb BBer is stronger than a 190lb athlete.

[Ian Duggan]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVnd8ia91NE

Pfister got it in 25 seconds, which is over the IFSA world record, but when you consider the distance of the stones from the platforms and where they started from, I think he would have beaten the World record for IFSA's stones ring.
You can't compare the times between the two events. Different weights and type of stones, different heights, one outside in the rain, the other indoors in the cold...
Also, not shown in that video, I remember that Tarmo Mitt had the fastest time in that event, but I can't find what his time was.
Tarmo Mitt was 2nd behind Phil Pfister. It's something rarely mentioned when they talk about the last event of WSM 2006 deciding the winner, but not only did Phil beat Mariusz, but so did Tarmo Mitt and Don Pope.

I can only assume that this is because Mariusz didn't actually get the stone in the hole for a while, it sort of rolls about on the platform for a bit. I guess the clock doesn't stop till the stone is in it's proper place.

Results from finals (http://www.theworldsstrongestman.com/wsm/2006/final.html)

[Mike Landrich]

they see Mariusz' physique and assume that he's the strongest.

These are the same people that think a 230lb BBer is stronger than a 190lb athlete.


I love how since Marius loses the last event, these people assume Phil stole the contest on this 1 event. He won 5 of 7 events. If his DL wasn't so weak, he would have dominated the entire contest.

I live near Buffalo. There are Bills fans who still think the first Super Bowl Buffalo loss was because of a missed field goal (which would have been the season's longest for the kicker). They forget the team shouldn't have been in that situation to begin with. It's the same with Marius fans, they want to blame his last event, or should I say last chance to snatch victory from the more dominant man.

[Richard Reynolds]

Tarmo Mitt was 2nd behind Phil Pfister. It's something rarely mentioned when they talk about the last event of WSM 2006 deciding the winner, but not only did Phil beat Mariusz, but so did Tarmo Mitt and Don Pope.

I can only assume that this is because Mariusz didn't actually get the stone in the hole for a while, it sort of rolls about on the platform for a bit. I guess the clock doesn't stop till the stone is in it's proper place.

Results from finals (http://www.theworldsstrongestman.com/wsm/2006/final.html)
Mariusz only got credit for 4 stones, because the 5th rolled off. Once Phil was done it was over, so even though Mariusz had the stone on the platform, he didn't settle it in the hole and it rolled off. He would have gotten second place in that event if he bothered to settle the stone.

[Ian Duggan]

AH! That makes sense. I did wonder, but I've yet to see a camera angle that stays with Mariusz after Phil has finished his 5th stone.

Thanks for clearing that one up.

[Nick Best]

Hey mike, Big Z's record in the block is 145 kg(319) not 308. The room steve was in was 20 degrees none of the guys were in the room to help. Travis is just a bad ass on the stones,Extremly fast and proficient. He could start anywhere and still kick ass. Thanks--- Nick