2011 Gary Gordon Memorial Meet

Overall Winners of the Meet

What a great meet!

The lifters and the spectators were great.  We had competitors from all armed forces branches from as far West as Texas and as far North as Illinois.  It was nice to see old friends and make some new ones.  

As I spoke with countless veterans, active duty, and defense contractors I found a theme that seemed to concern everyone.  The defense cuts have everyone running scared and no one seems too sure about the future.  Still ... everyone kept a sunny disposition even in the storms that soaked Mac Dill during the meet.  

Spero continued to amaze as he promoted, setup, MC'd, and competed in the event.  The good doctor is truly a one man show and is just an example of what an Army Spec Ops member can do all on his own.  As usual, the judging was TIGHT and that is exactly what I love about his meets.  If you get a lift passed there, it will pass anywhere.  I've watch people that  have known Spero for years get turned down on lifts that were questionable.  The crew is efficient and friendly.  All of them are lifters and some of them are elite lifters.  

There were quite a few "first time lifters" from the base and they seemed to me to be of the highest quality of people.  They were articulate, intelligent, and seemed highly motivated to do well.  I even got to witness a very young man who will no doubt become a powerhouse in the not too distant future.  It was his father that worked with Spero to start the annual September meet.  It will be nice to see some of my expectations concerning the talented young people around me come to fruition ... provided I'm still around to see it ;-)

In the end, this was a great way to commemorate warriors that fight to the death to protect those who are unable to fight.  The meet was on the September 11th weekend and held a high dose of emotion.  It was enough to bring me out of my retirement from competitive lifting and I am happy I did.  So now we sit back, have a glass of wine, and drink to the health and happiness of our friends and family.  Don't forget to buy more Ibuprofen.

Check back this week for videos!