What happened in 2008, and what's up for 2009?

I turned 59 last Sunday. This will be my last year as an M4 (55-59). There have been a lot of changes this past year in my lifting regimen.

World gym closed the Manassas location and herded everybody out to their Gainsville facility about 10 miles away. The management there would not allow my equipment bag on the workout floor and thought that chalk was a controlled substance and a felony to have in ones possession. I opted out and bought myself and my neighbors’ son a membership at Fitness 19 just 2 miles from my house. The gas savings paid for the memberships. Unfortunately I no longer bench press with Demitrius Maoury. I do miss his attitude and work ethic.

Dino threw me out of his gym for offenses I feel he only imagined. Jim Pope chose to continue working out there so I lost my squat and dead lift partner and a good friend. Had I known that Dino did the same thing to Gary Hart earlier I would have walked. The story I got was that Gary had moved on after Dino lost the law suit because he thought they would close. But apparently the real story was the same as mine. I will not continue to do business with someone who trashes my friends.

On the plus side; my neighbor Sid is a great workout partner. He has a real desire to make gains both physically and mentally. Our squats and dead lifts have been creeping up weekly. We lift unequipped except for an occasional bench shirt night for me. As a matter of fact I had no successful equipped lifts in any meet this past year. I bombed 3 for 3 in Bratislava and was red lighted on my only shirted lift at bench nationals in Charlotte.

I just received an invitation to go to New Zealand and bench press with the Masters World team, however Pat and I had talked it over previously and had decided that we could not afford it this year. We are still paying off the credit card from last years travels that included Bratislava, Slovakia for Master Bench Worlds, Worcester, England for the flower show (I owed it to Pat), Columbus, Ohio for the Arnold (I felt I should help and support my friend Jim) St. Louis, Missouri for Raw Nationals and Charlotte, N. Carolina for bench press nationals. Even though I did not get an equipped lift in I won 2 national championships, Raw 55-59 and Masters Bench 55-59 and took Silver in the Open Raw Bench press.

Sid and I are going to do the USAPL Richmond Open this spring as a qualifier for him to enter the Raw Nationals in Charlottesville this July. My successful meet last year will qualify me. I am also looking at the AAU bench press world championships. I will do the USAPL national bench press championship and see if I can make the masters bench team for Sophia, Bulgaria in 2010. I will be 60 then and could have a good chance to medal.