My bodyblog article on the SC Excalibur 2006

[CarolinaGurl]

Well the bodyblog portion of my bodyspace site is not working correctly so I decided to post my article here so you could all actually read it without overlapping lines of text. I worked very hard at being objective in my review of this competition and I hope it shows.

~Tyra


The South Carolina Excalibur 2006 was a mediocre experience for me in bodybuilding.

On a personal performance level it was a great competition for me.

I weighed in four pounds lighter than previously at Southern Isles and the next day before prelim's I had managed to drop another three pounds in water even though I was fighting water due to my being PMC this week. I have learned my lesson, I will never again aim to compete during this week in my cycle again as it was a total pain in the ass all the way around.

For the first time my abs were really in and I couldn't have been more shrink-wrapped short of having leaned out another 2-3 pounds of fat overall but all in all I was very pleased with my physicality. That is why I am still so disappointed in my weight class placing.


As a competitor I was sorely disappointed with the following:


Organization:

While everyone associated with BH Promotions was very nice their level of organization was not.

At weigh in on Friday we were told to be at the venue no later than 8:30 am. The next morning at 8:30 am you had a whole auditorium of competitors waiting for nearly two hours while the BH Promo staff put up tables, looked for things, organized paperwork, drank coffee and socialized. Pre-judging was supposed to start at 10 am but because of obvious disorganization it did not start till 11 am and wasn’t over till after 2:30 and we had to be back for another mando meeting at 5:30 for the finals!!

Now this would have really been a horrible set up had all the events been filled but we were offered some relief because there was no fitness competitors, no teen and a couple of other BB divisions went unfilled for the day.

My suggestion: In the future BH Promotions should be in the facility as early as possible and fully set up by the time they expect the athletes to be there. That way everything starts on time and the athletes have time to get ready adequately before their division judging. Nothing sucks more than not getting on your oil properly or enough pump up time before being judged.

Facilities:

While the West Ashley High School is a beautiful school the auditorium complex was ill suited for 70+ competitors trying to get to the stage from all over the facility. There were only two womens bathrooms (one stool each) in the entire backstage facility, one that no paper products at all and the other ran out about half way through the day. The lady body builders and figure ladies were housed in a rehearsal room that had windows in the doors with nothing covering them!!

Add to that basic discomfort 30+ woman changing clothes (requiring repetitive nudity) no privacy changing screens and a man coming in without knocking constantly to give 10 minute stage calls. Let’s just say that had to be the most T & A any man has seen short of the local strip club. Talk about uncomfortable!! Would it have been asking too much to have a female stage hand do this along with some newspaper or paper bag taped over the windows??

My suggestion: 1. A female stage hand to notify female competitors of stage times. 2. Paper on dressing room doors with windows. 3. Privacy screens of some sort in the dressing room for people who are a bit more modest (they do exist). 4. Backstage bathrooms with enough toilet paper and paper towels to accommodate an event as large as this one was (2 toilets 45+ women 1 with no paper products at all = insanity)

Security:

While all of the competitors, staff and VIP’s had badges to denote their purpose backstage there was no one at the stage and hall doors limiting access to back stage by people with no badges and no one asking people who had no badges backstage why they were there.

Now add strangers walking around backstage to a women’s dressing room with no paper on the windows or privacy screens… lets just say there were a lot of very unhappy women in that room myself included. This was a pervert with a camera’s dream opportunity for trouble.

My suggestion: If they are going to the effort to have badges for everyone then there should be someone asking people who don’t have one why they are backstage. If people are going to have make up artists, coaches and etc that is all fine and dandy (and I think they should honestly) then issue each of them a badge as a trainer or coach so that a persons presence backstage is discernable from someone who is just back there for no good reason.

Medical:

The biggest cause for concern in my opinion was that there was no EMT, off duty paramedic or nurse available backstage let alone a basic first aid kit on hand in case of injury or in this case dehydration. What was available to stave off or treat potential dehydration? Only two bottles of Pedialite and a thermos of water for 60+ competitors, no glyco tabs, no sodas, no rice cakes, no cookies or juice this was unacceptable.

One male competitor was very obviously suffering from severe dehydration (wobbly knees, constant blinking and dizziness) but no one was backstage to monitor competitors health and he was allowed to walk outside into the hot sun, when he walked back in he promptly passed out, his head hitting the concrete floor so hard that it bounced, knocking him out and splitting open his scalp. A short time later he passed out again this time he was caught by the competitors around him but again no ambulance or medical personnel was called and I think that was a grievous error.

Dehydration in our sport is a very serious issue and it should never be taken lightly (people do die from it if not treated properly and quickly) and in this case it was horribly over looked and it could have easily become a much bigger issue for the health of that specific competitor.

My suggestion:

1. Have an off duty EMT or a Nurse on site or at the very least a well stocked first aid kit. Had an EMT or Nurse been backstage monitoring competitor wellbeing they would have easily been able to spot the signs of dehydration in the competitor I mentioned and could have prevented his fall and splitting his scalp open.

2. With so many sponsors for this show I am sure that every competitor there would agree that someone could have sponsored a few cases of rice cakes, flats of bottled water and soda for the backstage rather than giving us a bag of single trial vitamins that most of us are not going to use (I tossed mine in the trash). I saw that ISS and GNC were out in the lobby selling their wares but none were to be found backstage where they really could have done some good.

Judging:

Judging is one of those sticky subjects that no one ever wants to talk about because their afraid it will sound like sour grapes but I think it is a very valid issue to talk about. Everyone always says things like “don’t compete against anyone other than yourself and your personal best” or “everyone is a winner” bottom line those statements are just not true. We compete to win and be recognized in our sport, period and judging by a panel is how it’s done.

When I first got interested in bodybuilding someone once told me to beware as there was a lot of politics in the sport and that a lot of times local competitors will be placed higher in rankings. This is alluded to because local competitors usually have a passing or potentially intimate relationship with someone on the judging panel (ie: trainers, friends from the gym, coaches, and friends). In other words if you train and compete enough in your area and you meet enough people in the sport locally then there is a chance that the judging won’t be totally unbiased.

Biased judging (even slightly biased judging) hurts both local and non-local competitors 1. by not acknowledging people who have worked hard and are really physically ready to move on to the next level in the sport. and 2. it sets up those who are not really ready to attempt a competition they may not truly be prepared for which could result in them quiting the sport after a demoralizing competition experience. Because of this I personally am in favor of judging done by a panel that is culled from all over the state or multi-state area rather than just the local area. Personally I think it keeps things fair and balances out the panel for the benefit of all the competitors both local and out of area. Even 3 out of area judges on a 7 person panel would be fairer than a panel culled just from the local area.

Having said this I will keep my personal opinions about my ranking in my weight class private as it won't change anything now other than potentially getting me black balled from future competitions. I will say that I disagree with my ranking and am planning to request a copy of my score sheet from NPC. Then I will have clearer answers about my personal performance and can make a more informed choice about my future participation in the SC Excalibur event.

~Tyra

[jaim91]

First of all Tyra, I looked at your bodyspace, and you look(ed) unbelievable. Your symmetry and propoortions were amazing. Kudos for competing, but I think it took a lot fo courage to compete naturally in the NPC.

Medical:

The biggest cause for concern in my opinion was that there was no EMT, off duty paramedic or nurse available backstage let alone a basic first aid kit on hand in case of injury or in this case dehydration. What was available to stave off or treat potential dehydration? Only two bottles of Pedialite and a thermos of water for 60+ competitors, no glyco tabs, no sodas, no rice cakes, no cookies or juice this was unacceptable.

One male competitor was very obviously suffering from severe dehydration (wobbly knees, constant blinking and dizziness) but no one was backstage to monitor competitors health and he was allowed to walk outside into the hot sun, when he walked back in he promptly passed out, his head hitting the concrete floor so hard that it bounced, knocking him out and splitting open his scalp. A short time later he passed out again this time he was caught by the competitors around him but again no ambulance or medical personnel was called and I think that was a grievous error.

Dehydration in our sport is a very serious issue and it should never be taken lightly (people do die from it if not treated properly and quickly) and in this case it was horribly over looked and it could have easily become a much bigger issue for the health of that specific competitor.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. It's a real problem in the bodybuilding world. Dehydration affects everyone from Dexter Jackson, to Mustafa Mohamed to this poor guy at your show, yet no one is doing anything differently. Things have to change, or something is going to get hurt.