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This past weekend I took my team to the USAPL Raw Nationals in Scranton, Pennsylvania. It was the biggest powerlifting competition I have ever attended or have ever been a part of. In some classes there were over a hundred lifters. Even though it was the largest meet ever, it was a very well run meet. Goggins Force and Bell Power Systems teamed up to form a team. At the end of the competition we had won the overall combined team championship. This was a very big win for Bell Power Systems and Goggins Force.
It has become almost impossible to win the team title with just one single team. The reason is, the winning team who has been winning most of the time usually chooses lifters from all over the country but mostly are not even coached by them.
I was very fortunate to meet a lot of new lifters. The raw aspect of this sport has really grown. Although this was a well-run meet, I'd rather not see another national meet this large again. I think by it being so big, there's not much attention paid to the top 10 lifters, as I believe it should be. A national meet should be about the best, not the top 100 of your class at the same time.
I spoke with Mikelina Belaineh, my elite teammate, who says she didn't compete because she had just competed three weeks ago at the Pan-Am games and didn't think that she'd be able to peak again in such a short time for this. I totally understand that. She definitely could have placed in the top 5 if she had chosen to compete, though.
Overall, it was a great weekend.