An information and preparation session is being held for all those entering the February novice competition and anyone who’s after some extra comp day tips. Topics to be covered include: general comp proceedings, what to bring, what to wear, putting on bench shirts, squat/DL suits and knee wraps, making weight and much more.

Please read the information provided by Chris Seville in our Members’ Resources section beforehand (especially if this is your 1st or 2nd comp). The session will start at 8pm sharp, so if you wish to be involved, please get to training early so you’ll be finished in time (particularly if you are doing your DL doubles in a suit as it always takes longer than you think).

Please note:

• Experienced lifters who will be helping instruct during the session: Please bring anything you think will be of use.
• New lifters: If you want us to check your comp gear before the day, please make sure you bring everything you think you’ll use.

-Dave

Australia Day Gym Opening Hours: 9am – 5pm

President – David Jame
Vice-President – Alistair Ballie
Treasurer/Public Officer – Chris Schaerf
Secretary – Chris Seville
Head Coach – Robert Wilks
Membership Officers – Andrew Clark and Michael Censori
Student MUSA Representatives – Adam Trudgen and Michael Censori
Social Coordinator – Minh Nguyen
Web Master – Noah Hannibal
General Committee – Fiore Inglese

A special thanks also to Mike Censori for his excellent work with the drinks.

Best of luck to all in reaching your goals for 2010 and I’ll see you in the gym!

-Dave

Unfortunately as Robert rarely dabbles in the pastimes of “riff-raff”, his pool was about on par with his current squat technique and hence he was easily bundled out by Fiore in the first match. Despite there being some impressive cameos, the early favourites like “son-of-a-pool-shark” Mike Censori failed at the final hurdle and it came down to Fiore and Luke. Fiore, the wily veteran, used all his guile and cunning throughout the tournament – including drawing Wilks in the first round and getting a bye in the second – however, when it comes to riff-raff and their pursuits, there can only be one king, and, with victory to prove it, that title belongs to Luke.

I hope this was written in a suitably Wilksesque manner to match Robert’s comp summaries, but on a more serious note, I would like to thank everyone who helped out throughout the year with a special thanks to those who have put their hands up for committee positions in 2010. So congratulations to Luke Bainbridge, our current club pool champion, let’s hope we get to do it all again soon!

-Dave

A huge 2-day Matti Tikka end of year competition in Sydney from November 21-22 saw 5 Melbourne Uni lifters venture north to take on 50 other competitiors and tropical heat to record 4 personal bests and the one obligatory disaster.

Ripped off in Sydney

Top of the tree were the two original Hard-Gainers, Chris and Chris. Chris Seville (82.5kg) fell over on 257.5kg Squat, came back and got it, then did the same routine on the Deadlift, 257.5kg flying up and then out of his hands before a valiant repeat. 665kg is a best by only 2.5kg but that puts Chris into the exalted EII ranks. In that session Club satellite member Sean Muir also improved, post hip surgery, with 640kg at 75kg.

Chris Schaerf is a prudent man, second only to Julian Ross in fiscal restraint, and is armed with an MBA, an honours degree in Commercial Law and now a Masters of Commerce. But he is no match for Minh, the Vietnamese shirt-peddler. Chris has now been sold 6 shirts, none fit, none work and now Minh is wearing gold chains. Here Chris narrowly missed a 1cm high best 277.5kg Squat, but on the Bench his special custom-made-to-fit-like-a-glove billowed and offered no resistance to 200kg. Chris came back for a best ever 280kg Deadlift and 740kg Total. However the big coin in Sydney for Chris was the great new bridge Minh sold him.

But all this Elite lifting was small beer compared to the death-match between the 82.5kg tyros, Al Baillie and David “Encino Man” Platzer. We all know Theo and Andrew sent Encino Man down to destabilize the Club before the big Melb v. Qld Unis clash next Nationals, but this primal force has been bottled (in a test tube) and will be turned on his former keepers in 2010. Here Dave merely hinted at the fireworks to come with 567.5kg total and victorious karate kicks to various inanimate and animate objects after each lift. But then came Al, also with a 30kg PB to pip the Encino Man on the last lift and the battle of wills will only continue.

Speaking of test tubes, Luke Bainbridge claimed to be experimenting on his Squat and successfully proved that if you Squat high you get red lights. But Luke will be back next week at Ross Productions Global contest to redeem himself (again).

And finally, Michael Censori overwhelmed an Einsteinian field, and Theo, to come dux of the Level 1 Coaching Course.

- Robert Wilks

The MUWPC nationals team wearing the new club t-shirts and displaying the ‘Best Club – Men’ trophy which Melbourne University won for the 3rd consecutive year.

MUWPC powerlifters wearing the new t-shirts

Chris Seville squatting his way to a win in the 82.5kg class

Anyway, in the “Classic” (ha) competition Alistair Baillie improved to 507.5kg at 75kg to win the coveted “Best LeftOver” trophy (which for some strange reason also seems to always go to Melbourne Uni). Another standout Melbourne Uni Leftover was Garish Shanker with 542.5kg at 90kg, after obliterating precious brain cells on the bar and still doing a best total despite suffering a concussion the severity of which was demonstrated by his choices later in the evening. And then we had Simon the Likeable Close with 475kg at 82.5kg. Greg Peiris also in his first comp at 100kg and ancient John Rutherford, still battling on with 437.5 at 82.5kg.

On to the Championships proper and an ignominious start with Minh Nguyen stone motherless last in the 67.5kg class – yet Minh’s 512.5kg was 20kg above his best and he did not fall over on any of his lifts, nor have to be cut out of any suits, so it was all good. Survival is the name of the game for Neville Harris at this stage and he nursed himself through to a hardy win at 75kg. The pace quickened in the 82.5kg class where Chris Seville was steady in never really being threatened for a win with 662.5kg

The third win in a row came in the 90kg class, with a sub-par David Jame finding expected challenges not to emerge. Also at 90kg Club visitor Wim Van Weenen pulled an Over 70 World Deadlift Record, before rushing off to more pressing assignations.

In the heavy classes the going got tougher. A Master of Laws and an MBA did not render Chris Schaerf capable of rational thought in the 100kg class and the lure of even figures saw him bomb on 200kg Bench Press. Before that Chris was promising with 275kg Squat, but the ringing in his ears of DeLulio’s laughter from afar saw Chris constrained to a similar figure in the Deadlift. At 125kg Con Barbakos improved to the magical 800kg level but still has more that can be drawn from the well. Also at 125kg Luke Bainbridge had to restrain himself before September’s World Junior Championships, but came through with an Australian Junior Total Record of 735kg.

Billionaire Borneo Bench-Presser Darren Low deserves a story to himself. After about a dozen training sessions for the year he boldly started with an AJR in the 125kg Bench Press Championships and equally boldly bombed. Undeterred, down to the pizza shop went Darren, an hour later he weighed in 3kg heavier and then defied the naysayers by again starting with an Australian Junior Record. And this time he got it! 202.5kg! Breaking totally free from reality Darren then called for 242.5kg, the spotters were nervous but nothing was going to stop Darren – nothing except 242.5kg of merciless iron that is and twice the audience was treated to some eerie supine contortions. But with eleven Bench bombs from the 100kg upwards lifters, somehow this Darren-Mania seemed normal – almost.

Next year there will be a double challenge for the club, as we will be hosting the Australian Championships and needing to build quality in the Special part of the world that is our membership, all the while meeting the University’s requirements. But for 30 years now we have come up with something exciting, strange and unexpected and 2010 will be no exception.

Full competition results

Robert Wilks

Joel Kirkilis squatting

The other three of the beltless (no leather) four included newcomer Joel Kirkilis. Near-crippled by a background in bodybuilding, Joel began his journey into the light with a promising 500kg total. Luke-spawn Andrew Clark was surprisingly together on seven successful attempts, whilst tardy trainee Patrick Virtue was unsurprisingly untogether in a battling 4-success 307½ kg.

Meanwhile, amongst the carnivores, young Michael Censori improved 50 kg to total 382½ kg at 67½ and Soviet Mystery Man Vladimir Roudavski also improved, throwing in an improbable 220 kg last deadlift attempt, just so another confounding piece of disinformation will go into his KGB file. Another one needing a check on the birth certificate, Ned “Rohan Smith” Brook recovered from trauma on the squat to total 402½ kg in his first contest.

In the bench-only contest Laird Ross created some spectacle in a long day by dropping 150kg on his head, with the help of a separating rack. Laird exited via ambulance, but two scans were negative for damage (not presence) re the brain.

Out in the wilder fringes of competitive Powerlifting, Garish-inspired Alex Chen and Jithan Varma both needed three attempts to get through their squats, but thanks to the lifetime ban imposed on Garish putting shirts on anyone, made it easily through the benches. Rachel Kendrick came back from her knee surgery to lift well and Daniel Lim was suitably Minh-esque in the 67½s.

The contest featured two real-life lifters, Mary Macken tuning up for the World Masters with an even 300kg and Yuval Bar, injured and down from his phenomenal best of 235kg, with a still strong 200 kg bench press.

Onwards now to Broadmeadows, the natural habitat of the battling Powerlifter, on September 19.

Full competition results

Robert Wilks

Best lifters for us were, firstly, Con Barbakos, who improved an overdue 40kg with 790kg at 125 and set three club records (Squat 290kg, Bench 220kg and Total). Just behind him in that class was Luke Bainbridge, who broke the one record Con missed with Deadlift 293.5kg. To confuse things even more Luke broke Con’s old Australian Junior Records for Total and Deadlift! The other worldly Chung Wai mystified again, breaking the Australian Junior Total record with 553.5kg, not that Chung would know, and setting a 137.5kg Bench Press club record.

Chung Wai on the bench

Next top performances came from Chris Seville, 9 out of 9 attempts for another 40kg jump, with more to come at the Australian Championships. Also with a top performance former Club Bad Boy Neville Harris celebrated his return to the fold with a best of 670kg at 75kg, many years after he first breached those dizzy heights.

David Jame demonstrated that 107kg into 90kg won’t go and bombed miserably on 302.5kg Squat after a monumental loss. Club proto-member 75 year old Wim Van Weenen set two World over 70 Records, with 222kg Squat and 236kg Deadlift. Also in the 100kg class Chris Schaerf loomed large with a 737.5kg total.

Further down the lists, Minh the Merciless was surprisingly sane through his squats, but began to spasm once more on the Bench and was in full flight on the Deadlift, missing hopelessly twice, being warned twice for disreputable conduct and then coming through on the last Deadlift, just to show that the rules of logic do not apply to him.

Amongst the newcomers, Russian refugee Vladimir Roudavski was unsettled by the mysterious guy in the front row reading “Pravda” upside down but held together for an improvement in his second contest; unfortunately no-one has seen Vladimir since his last Deadlift though. Garish “Damien” Shankir Squatted an enormous (for him anyway) 200kg but twice missed 240kg Deadlift, blowing his hoped for chance of recruitment into the Indian Premier League.

And on it went. Bests also came from Adam Truger and Michael Censori. Mark Woodruff coasted through 560kg at 90kg and is a secret weapon for the future. Laird Ross was tuning up for the World Sub Junior Championships, but unfortunately was tuned out too, on a shock miss on 158.5kg Australian Record BP.

All this put Melbourne Uni well ahead in the Intervarsity team score, for two wins in the two years of the revived IV.

- Robert Wilks

Full competition results