Short Road to Popeye's Fall Classic 2019 - 1 Day Out

One more sleep to go, well I say that but I always have a hard time getting a good sleep the bight before a show, too much excitement and thoughts going on in my head. I usually wake up way before my alarm goes off and it's set early believe me so I usually just get up at that point and do something productive like posing practice or getting last minute stuff ready.

Today I got a lot done, stuff like shaving my entire body, getting one last tanning session in, a nice upper body pump over at BodyByBrandt where Dean Brandt also gave me some posing practice tips that really helped out a lot.

I will also be getting my spray tan done early Saturday morning by Leigh Brandt "ProEliteTan" so this time around I will be just as dark as everyone else, not taking any chances at Popeye's Fall Classic!

I also went to the Athletes check-in and meeting, well kind of. I did not get the email telling me that the venue had changed locations and I ended up traveling from Coquitlam to Richmond and back to Coquitlam again in rush hour but did make it just in time to get signed in and setup for the show.

So now it's off to bed for me and hopefully I can get at least a few hours of restful sleep before tomorrow...

Short Road to Popeye's Fall Classic 2019 - 2 Days Out

Here we are just 2 days out from the Popeye's Fall Classic at the Hard Rock Casino here in Vancouver BC. Not a crazy day but still lots to get done...

I started things out with my morning 3+ mile walk with Sammy my good boy, of course I also had to get some work done in the afternoon, then I went and did a 1.5 hour workout followed by a quick stand up tan. Then I picked up the kids from school followed by some posing practice at home. After the posing I had a quick shower and then my wife and I took Jordan our daughter along with her friend to a haunted house and corn maze in Chilliwack. This took about 3 hours in total which gave my wife and I a little bit of time to go for a second shorter walk.

Once at home I had a second exfoliating shower so I could apply my spray on tan. I then did some more posing practice for about 45 minutes followed by my late night snack. What will tomorrow bring?

Popeye's Fall Classic 2019 the Journey Begins

About a month ago I was asking everyone what show I should go into, there where a few options for me... The Amateur Olympia in Las Vegas and even the Canadian Nationals in Toronto, all my option are within about a month of each other so timing wise they work out. But when it came down to it I decided to go with Popeye's Fall Classic 2019 since it is a local show which means a lot less cost for me to attend and a lot easier on my family not having me away traveling on my own.

The only real downside is there is no opportunity for a Pro Card at the Popeye's Fall Classic since it is an unqualified show. That said Popeye's Fall Classic is one of the best local events with a big turnout and lots of top level athletes to compete against. At least that's what I found last time I went two years ago. Popeye's Fall Classic also gives out some really nice prizes to the overall winners including a really nice 4EverFit mountain bike, photo and video shoots, I believe some sort of $1000 gift card and of course a bunch of supplements! And this year Big Ramy is the guest poser! Wow!

My plan is to compete as a Grand Master in Physique along with the Open class to rub shoulders with the kids! I am not sure about Classic Physique even though last time I placed 3rd in Open, some room for improvement here... So I am looking at a timeline for this show to contest prep of about 3 months. I only have one more short holiday to factor in coming up in about 2 weeks so this will not get in the way, after that it will be go time in terms of cutting down, until then I will do my best to put on some size. Let's see what this old 50 year old can do representing the Grand Masters this year!

No More Fitness Competitions For Me

This is another one of those video you really need to watch as I go into a lot of detail on why I will not be competing in any more fitness shows.

A lot of it is because of personal reasons, I simply want to change direction and focus more on a balanced life which is really hard to do when you are training and preparing for a show like this.

I also talk a lot about my disappointment in the organization of this latest show the IFFB Elite Diamond Cup Vancouver. Like the lack of competitors at the show, how disorganized the show was in terms of knowing what was going on, the misinformation I was told about how they would be handling IFBB Elite Pro Cards that where promised for Masters Division when there were no masters for me to compete against?

I came away from this show extremely disappointed in how it was handled and even a little bit in myself because even after what I feel was one of my hardest worked for preps, I still did not feel like I brought my best to the stage, perhaps father time is catching up with me a little bit. Yet another reason to focus on other areas of my life.

I will still be pursuing Health and Fitness but in other ways, maybe even better ways that are more relatable to my audience?

Road to the IFBB Diamond Cup - Show Day

Watch and see what happened during my Show Day at the IFBB Diamond Cup in Vancouver BC Canada.

I want to thank my Family, friends and supporters that have been behind me during this last few years while I worked my way up the official organization ladders from show to show to get to where I am now.

It has been rewarding in many ways, personal challenges where made, goals where achieved, many of the simple things we take for granted in life where set aside for the greater goal, some I regret now and some I am better off without.

I will be making a separate video going over the result and how I feel about them and the show in general but for now here is the summarized version:

• 1st in Masters Physique. (I was the only contestant)
• 1st in Open Classic Physique C Divisions. (I was the only contestant)
• 5th in Open Physique C Division. (There where 5 contestants) 

All the athletes from around the world at this show looked great and deserved to be up on that stage. This was a high level show.