Back on the Air – Episode 11 »
By napalm on Feb 15, 2012 in Radio Shows | 4 Comments
I was approached recently by a long time friend, Sean Dockery, about starting Grip Strength Radio back up.
I’ve always loved doing Grip Strength Radio, but it is so much more fun doing it with an on-air partner than just doing it yourself.
“Doc,” as he is most often known, is one of the most knowledgeable guys around. Although he is not the most active poster on strength boards, he is heavily involved in Grip Sport, and he is a guy you should know about. So let me tell you a bit about him.
I first met Doc on-line through the Gripboard in I think 2003, and met him in person at the first Night of Strength in 2004. Night of Strength was one of the first large gatherings I ever attended and it saw people from all walks of the Iron Game congregate at the Arnold Classic in a hotel conference room for several hours of freestyle strength exhibition. That night, I watched Doc nearly pull the Original, Richard Sorin-owned, Fatman Blob to lock-out, something which at the time was unheard of.
Doc is highly skilled. He has pulled off some of the most out-of-this world Blob feats known to man. He performed a Double Clean of two Blobs, which may have been Fatman Blobs, I am not 100% sure, and he performed it with EASE. I have lost track of many of the unbelievable Blob feats he has accomplished over the years, but he has continued to add awesome Blob feats to his resume, even recently performing what is called a “Pop” or “Mid-Air Transfer,” where the Blob is lifted with one hand, released, and then caught and returned to the ground with the other hand.
In fact, Doc competed here and there in Grip Sport up until about 2006 – he can tell us the actual year in a later show. Putting up respectable numbers in contests, he was always a contender for a top spot finish. He always stated that competition was never his main priority, and it has been several years since he competed in Grip Sport, but has taken part in many Highland Games competitions in recent years.
And although Doc is not a regular Grip competitor, that does not mean he is not involved. In fact, he has volunteered to serve as head judge at many competitions. He has officiated the Gripmas Carol on many occasions and also took this role at the 2011 North American Grip Championship, held in Ohio. I truly appreciated this, by the way, as not only did it allow me to compete at a much higher level by being able to focus more as an athlete than an administrator, but it also allowed me to take moments and step away to address my injured back.
Doc is also an accomplished craftsman. I believe Doc can build just about anything that does not require a complex process such as fission or fusion. Doc built a most awesome Power Stairs set-up for me for Nationals 2011, helping make it the first time that event took place at a Grip contest. He has also fashioned much of his own training equipment from both wood and steel, including some of the gear he is using frequently in his training now to lift the Inch Dumbbell, his current training goal that he will no doubt conquer very soon.
Aside from his on-going exploits with the Blob, his past experience in comps, his ability to build anything under the sun, and his willingness to support contests and the sport we all love so much, Doc is an accomplished Indian club swinger, bodyweight featist, stone lifter, and all around lover of strength. To top it all off, he has become a great friend to me over the years, and I am excited to start doing Grip Strength Radio with him.
Enjoy our first episode, as we knock the rust off, and let us know what you think of the show and what kind of things you want to hear covered here – leave comments below – we can’t wait to read them.
Jedd
