TRAINING LOG:Alan Hebert

Two and a half hour throws with Robert Krieger, tonight.  We did some sheaf and WOB.  Sheaf is feeling good. I don't practice it much, but it appears that I haven't forgotten how to throw the thing. WOB is what it is. I got 13 feet 2x tonight, hit the bar at 13' 6" and 14 is just not there.  We'll see how it goes after a week of rest. I'm still a little bit low on *pop*, muscle recovery might help that.  So Jim Walker, you've still got my number (by two freaking FEET) in WOB!

Then did some HWFD, and after Robert left, some LWFD.  I am  **Very** happy with how weights are coming along. All my HWFD tosses are 31+ now with a lot over 33, as I pace it off.  LWFD, everything over 50, with several out to about 54 and one even at 56  (really? hmm).  REALLY happy with that.

I finished up with half a dozen light hammer tosses in the gathering dark.  Again, thanks to a huge tip from Jake Sullivan, about keeping my left arm straight during the last wind, my radius is up and distances are up.  Everything tonight was certainly over 80 and one for sure over 90. I'm not feeling the thing with driving the right knee, but enough already. I'll work on that when I get back.

That's the last all-around throwing session before the World Championships.  I lift light and fast on Friday, then going to Rusty Price's WOB and stones workshop on Saturday.  Then there's a weeks rest and then....it's time to bring out my A Game with the big lads  in Greenville, South Carolina.

very nice! 

Nice! It's always great to have an opportunity to work with someone who knows what they're doing!

Thanks, everybody, it was totally worth it!

I did a great, laid-back hike at Sunol Regional Park with Joan, today. We didn't exactly push the pace, but it was fun, and she did great on the trail with her new titanium hip. Uneven ground? No problem.

Then came home and went out for an hour and a quarter practice.

I had UNBELIEVABLE leg cramps last night, they hurt SO bad, so I didn't go hard today. The goal was to find out what, of all the stuff I learned from Rusty Price yesterday, what I can put into practice at the MWC. Upshot...one thing in stones and the whole new principle in WOB...that's a go.  I have lots to work on when I get back.

Masters Worlds Wrapup

Oh, BTW.... South Carolina is a beautiful state and Furman University is just G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S.!

I also threw today in the B class, and came 7th of 14.  I managed a second in both heavy hammer and caber, which is pretty cool.  I hit the bar twice with the 56 pound weight in WOB, and while it's been a long time since I've tried that, it's significantly higher than I've ever gone before.

A serious highlight of the trip was having Adriane Wilson watch my open stone today and give me a HUGE, pivotal training tip.  Just doing that one thing bumped my glide throw up a foot and a half, so I am looking forward to putting it into practice soon. Even though the actual number  I threw was horrid, I can feel the potential and I'm looking forward to making it Happen.

Now.....the numbers.  Upshot...no melt-downs, though pretty damn close in hwfd... but honest truth, a bit disappointing.

Braemar Stone. You never know if the stone is 22, 23, 24 pounds, so this is kind of subjective.  Several of the throws FELT good.  I got under the stone and  had plenty of spring. However, both days the tape said 24-25.  It SHOULD say high 26's to high 27's.  So that two and a half to three feet difference is kind of disappointing.

Open Stone. 30' 6.5", standing,   on Saturday.  meh.  Not a meltdown, but not at all what I want.  Sunday...29 feet.  I really should be throwing 32's.  But I know this.  At least I got that big tip from ADriane that combined with what I learned from Rusty last weekend, will probably help my OS numbers, soon.  I sure hoped for 31+.  The Greenville OS is a *nice* rock, BTW.

Heavy Hammer... Heavy hammer rocked.  I'm generally just going gangbusters on heavy hammer this season and even last season. 69 '9"  is my second biggest throw ever.  Sundays 64 footer was OK, nothing special.  Anyway, I'm very happy with this.  BTW, we started with this event on Saturday.  Myles got me by half an inch for third, here.

Light Hammer. Didn't do it on Sunday... Saturday  82' 4.5  but the other two throws were 78-79. I should be well over 85 by now, and I've been throwing high 80's in practice.  82+ is by no means a meltdown, but I am a little bit disappointed, especially in the other two throws. No, be honest....I'm quite disappointed.

WOB ... got 13 again on Saturday, but it was ugly- over a non-knockoff bar.  14 feet might as well be on Mars, still.   I didn't expect to nail 14, but crawling over 13 like that is a drag.  Then again, I cleared 10 with the 56 pounder on Sunday, and rang the bell at 11 feet, twice and that's not too bad.

Sheaf. ... quite the kerfluffle over my West Coast fork.  The local judges did NOT like it.    I've been on a roll with sheaf recently so  going out at 22 was a serious drag. I really thought I'd get 24 at least.  On sunday I used a local guys 3-tine, took forever to figure out what was going on and went out at 20.  Gaaaahhh.... However, I got some tips from  Jeff Baty and I can incorporate them into practice.

caber .... Oh. My.  OOooohhhhhh, MY Goodness.  The freaking stick was NINETEEN feet long and 91 pounds. It was whippy cedar, you could feel it wobble in your hands.   It's the same stick that they gave the local A class boys on Sunday.  I've never even considered picking up a 19 foot long caber.  I picked it, controlled it, took it down the field and got three pulls, but I have not a clue how to time the pull on a stick that long and they were all just ridiculously late.  What'cha' gonna do?  On Sunday I was all over the 16 foot 75 pound caber, which is what I'm used to pulling....banged that over 3x  like a Boss, and pulled early like I'm supposed to but if I'm going to throw with the Big Lads, I gotta learn how to handle Big Sticks.

Weight throws

These are a major disappointment. I have been working SO hard on this.

Light weight for distance - 28 lbs ... We got to the weights incredibly late on Saturday. They were the LAST events of the day. I'm used to them being in the morning.  The heat index on the field was about 105 degrees.  These Southern boys throw a very different weight from what I'm used to. 
All of that goes to explain what happened, but **Truth**  that's just excuses.  Step up and throw.   I've been throwing 50+ foot bombs in practice. To see my best offerings land at 43 and 44 feet just *hurts*. My best throw on Saturday FELT good. I'd have sworn that it was 48+ and probably better but I just had no gas in the tank any more, and I got 43' 0.5".  Ouch.

Heavy Weight for Distance  This is the closest thing to a total meltdown.  I just could NOT settle in with these weights. The ring handles are fine, but the chain binds up badly as you crank the square things around.  I'm SO not used to this.   I fouled two throws.... and my best was an **AWFUL** 26' 3".  That's my worst throw in two seasons...since I triple-fouled at Costa Mesa last year.  That hurts.

On Sunday (today) we threw the 56 for distance, and between the weight and those chains that kink, I could do nothing with it. I fouled one throw - never really got it going, it was just pathhetically comical.  I totally hosed up the  second one, but at least put it out there for a disgraceful  17' 9"... and then did even worse on the last one.  This hurts.  I haven't been practicing the 56 for a *very* LONG TIME.  If I'm going to go to Scotland next summer though, I need to put in the time.

So all in all....a mixed review of my personal performance. Some good, some bad, a lot of "OK but not great" and a real heartbreaker in the weight throws.

Alan H wrote: Sheaf. ... quite the kerfluffle over my West Coast fork.  The local judges did NOT like it.    I've been on a roll with sheaf recently so  going out at 22 was a serious drag. I really thought I'd get 24 at least.  On sunday I used a local guys 3-tine, took forever to figure out what was going on and went out at 20.  Gaaaahhh.... However, I got some tips from  Jeff Baty and I can incorporate them into practice.

Nice write up, Alan - Glad you had fun in my home state :)

I will remember that next time I'm at Ace Hardware. the one here by my house sells three tine forks.

KiltBill wrote: I used to get harassed about my fork being to short. I had to argue there is only a restriction on how long it could be not how short. I believe you can cut a 3 tine to a 2 tine but 5 tines are taboo? Why? So Alan do you think there is any benefits to a 2 tine over a 3 tine?

Guys throw huge with both styles, so I think it's just what you're used to.  The first time I threw sheaf was at Enumclaw, and Wally had cut-down 5-tine -> two tine forks.   The next time I threw sheaf was in Southern California, and again...5 tine cut down to 2 tines.  So when it came time to get my own, I just went that route and didn't really think about it.  Kel Mulrey makes forks here in  California and he makes 3-tine forks...well, he doens't "make" them, but he finishes stock forks off really nicely so they look great and the tines are super-slick.    I know that Carlos Borges throws a 3-tine fork. Aside from that, everybody I know of throws a 2-tine.

I'll say this, though.... going from a thick-tine fork to a thin springy fork...whooops!  Now *that* was a surprise!

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Last night CHAC practice. I mostly coached. I'm still getting over the stomach flu, or food poisoning or whatever it is.  I did a few tosses with the 8 pound womens peanut, trying to incorporate both what I learned from Rusty and what I learned from Adriane this past weekend. It'll come when I'm healthy.

Then we did some WOB with the 28 pounder, and I acquainted the team with what Rusty told me about driving the weight down to the "pull point" by "sitting on your arm". After that, we spun a few and I tried to incorporate what Adriane said about landing with both feet on the ground with some pointers from Bethany. I only threw about 4-5x but it felt different...more in control and more powerful. I cleared 16 by a country mile with no effort, probably had 18 or 19 feet.  16 is as high as my wob standards go.   That makes me about as mighty as the womens world champ!  Hey, I'll take it. :lol:

This virus or whatever it is, is kicking my butt....

C. Smith wrote: The strictness of the rules in the south, iirc, is because a 5 tine fork is a manure fork, not a hay fork.

Hey Alan

Silverback wrote: The spring is good and helps go higher w a 16 pound bag, that is what you want, a springy 3 tine, for a 20 pound bag you want a stiffer fork.  Why don't you ask Eric Fraisure what he uses to go 36 feet w a 20 pound bag, or any of the other guys battling w him up there?  I can promise you it is a 3.  Check w other world record holders in this event, KO, and so on.  3 tine.  Check w the guy with the 25 pound bag record, uuuuuuh the Smith guy and it is 3 tine.  The reason they don't allow a cut down 5 tine is it tears up the bag.  The tines are close and it just eats it up.

Myles, the fork I borrowed on Sunday was a three-tine with really springy tines.  Most of the B class guys had forks that were so shiny they almost looked like stainless steel.  BTW one of the guys...might have been 20 years old and mayge 150 pounds, went  26 feet, which I think is pretty good.  Anyway this one still had the black paint on  it, and the difference in "boingggg" factor between that fork and mine was very significant.  If someone could learn to make use of that, I absolutely could see how it could add a couple of feet.

Bill, I'll have to look around next time I'm out there, like for a workshop at Ryan and Rusty's or something.

I finally might have this digestive system mess behind me.  I'm down ten pounds in seven days.  294....  whooiieee.  Actually this modified BRAT diet, replacing tea with ginger ale is not so bad. I might stick with this for another week or two and see if I can't drop another  five-seven pounds. It'd be nice to be back in the 280's again.

Anyway, hour and 45 minutes by myself today, as nobody else showed up. And I was gonna "play coach" today.

Did some O stone glides for about 40 minutes. They're better, using what Rusty and Adriane told me, but I can still power it out there farther by just sticking the stone in my jaw 'real hard, and getting in power position and sticking it.

Bit ' Braemar, spent some time just jamming the hip out there absolutely as hard as I can.  STICK it.  I saw Joe Wilson stick a couple of big Braemar tosses this way in Greenville, and it has worked OK for me in the past so I did half a dozen this way and then half a dozen with "*boinggg*.  meh. six of one, half a dozen of the other. Everything 28 feet with my 21.6 pound stone. 

some HWFD...not much. I'm clearly not completely back from the intestinal flu, this wore me out really fast.  4-5 throws, all over 30 but nothing spectacular.

some LWFD ... 6-8 throws, just going through the motions, staying low and letting the hips drive the weight. 48-53 feet.

Some spinning wob.  meh.  I can clear 12, but it's by no means dialed in.  13 is there, height-wise but I don't seem to be able to get it over the bar. 14 is on Mars.  I"m starting to suspect that it always will be.

Ahhhhhh Tepid Water.......