Alan's 2013 Season Log

[Alan H]

OK, here we go...my next workout will be a Shaffer Park Geezers throwing session. It will be interesting to get some benchmarks of where I am, seeing as I'm a bit rusty after lifting a lot for 4 months, but not throwing much. We're going to throw right through a Games sequence, should take about 3 1/2 - 4 hours.

GOALS...subject to change.

1. Throw well and have fun. Treat others with dignity and respect and make a positive contribution to the Games, tradition and my local throwers.

2. Throw in Scotland and have fun and don't embarrass myself!. Corollary to that is a 25 foot, 56 weight for distance toss. THAT is a big, tough goal.

3. I'd like to see some new PR's. Would like to push my LWFD to 56+ and HWFD to 35+ ... It's long overdue that I set some hammer PR's, too. 69' 10" is my Heavy hammer PR. 70 is SO close. I'd sure like to see my light hammer go over 86 feet, again.

4. WOB. 14. Just once.

5. Get up on the Pleasanton podium one more time. That's going to be very difficult to do. Ain't happening in the WOB championships, not with Roger and Dennis and Steve around, not to mention Richard Campbell and that Big Guy from So Cal. It's also pretty unlikely to get up there for the overall. I'd be happy to finish in the top 4-5 overall in 2013. But Caber? I could, possibly get top 3 again. I know what I'll be doing, a solid month before Pleasanton!

[Alan H]

I got out at lunchtime yesterday for 20 minutes of winds with the heavy hammer....didn't even throw it, just did sets of 10 winds. I think I got up to about 100, total, which wore me out pretty well. --looking forward to the Geezer Games at Shaffer Park, tomorrow.

[Alan H]

Fun session with the lads at Shaffer Park yesterday... we had six of us. The G man continues to impress with his ridiculous athletic ability particularly in hammer. Steve E. is looking trim at 225 pounds and is faster than ever in his stones delivery. Tony brought his throwing axe and lots of folks took turns burying it in the tree trunk targets. Marty is getting his two-spin 28 weight toss even better, and hammers are looking good.

Yours Truly had a blast and the numbers aren't too bad.

The Perfect Braemar got out to 25 and a little bit.
Open Stone...the shuffle got me nuthin', so I stand-threw it out to 31' 10" or thereabouts. Any day I stand one out past 31 feet is a good day.
HWFD ... we weighed Marty's "42" and confirmed that it's actually 44.3 pounds. It's big so it looks impressive, though. Anyway, I had big issues with fouling out the side of the trig, so I know what I'm doing in practice this week. 31' 10" or something like that.
LWFD - Just didn't have it dialed in, and also has issues fouling out the side with this one, too...so I'm doing first turn drills this week. 47' 8" or something in that ballpark.
Heavy Hammer .... 'bout the usual. I like Marty's hammer. 64 and change and then 66 and change.
Light Hammer... ugh...took a bunch of these. some were about 77-78, a couple were down around 74 and I got one out to 80 and change when I remember to stick my hip and open up into the field.

Then threw the 56 WFD, got in about 5-6 throws. They're going about 20 feet, but the G Man and Jay had a suggestion which helped. This is a work in progress.. I don't need to have this "together" until July, and it's going to take every minute I can give it.

Caber.... turned the little iron caber a couple of times and got good pop on the butt end of it. Then picked the Iron Giant 5x, got it 3x, slipped out of my hand once, and picked it but had to dump it once. It was fun to watch the G Man with it...he picks it but it's just so bluidy heavy that he's shaking like a leaf from the exertion. Still, he picks it, controls it, gets a run up with it and gives it a heave. That's pretty impressive.

After everybody left I walked over to the old pile of doug fir logs that Wayne cut two years ago, and pulled the smallest one out. It kind of looked like the fungus was surface only, so I stood it up a few times and pushed it over. It sounded good, so I upended it a couple of times and let it fall from about 30 deg. ontp a big redwood log. I heard no cracking sounds, no self-destruction, so I cut it to 17 feet, loaded it on my truck and took it home. After I prep it and round off the end, we will now have an honest A class caber for the CHAC and Ardenwood. This thing will be 17 feet, minimal taper, and probably 115 pounds.

Today I took the Ardenwood WOB uprights in to the welder to get it cut down to 18 ' 6"....two sections of 6 feet and one section of 6' 6". That means we can put the bar up to 18 feet, which is mmore than enough for the crew we have at Ardenwood. I also took my steel cylinder that is my 42 pound WFD, which has been 44.5 pounds since I got it, and am getting 1/2 an inch of the cylinder cut off. That should bring it right down to close to 42 pounds and we can throw it at Ardenwood.

[Alan H]

The Ardenwood Caber Quiver...

1.) The unnamed newbie-lass caber.... 12 feet long and I'm guessing, 35 pounds.
2.) The Candy Stick .... 13' 6" and 37 pounds or close enough.
3.) The new A-class lasses caber .... 15'6" and last time I weighed it, 73 pounds, but it's drying out fast and I'll seal it when it gets to about 65 pounds. This is actually perfectly big enough for a Super-Masters caber.

4.) Stumpy .... 12 feet long and 50 pounds ( the old Cardinal caber, cut down after it cracked - I may not use this caber, might just cut it up. It's served its time.)

5.) Grandpa's II ... 17 feet and 70 pounds
6.) The Whomper .... 16 feet and 87 pounds
7.) The Clansman ... 15 feet and 110 pounds...the end is pretty badly cracked from last year, I still have to inspect this.
8.) Waynes .... 17 feet and estimate 115 pounds.... still have to weigh it.

[o1d_dude]

Alan, when you throw the 56 you have to remember that it responds to power rather than speed. You're going to have to wait for the ball to come around into the power position before you start your pull. Exaggerate the movement, use your legs, lotta up and down, drive into the release.

You should be throwing that bad boy out 27 feet or so easy peasy. Maybe more.

[Alan H]

I think I'll get there. Right now, it's just figuring the bluidy thing out. I'm getting a bit stronger..."throwing stronger" from starting to throw more. Marty and I were groaning about the difference between "gym strength" and "throwing strength" after the last Shaffer Park extravaganza. I'm finding myself lifting to the release, and that's a good sign, I think.

I've learned this, though.... GOT to stay down. GOT to....if I stand up, it's *Over*.