Needless to say, 2020 has been a whirlwind of uncertainty.  From concern about what this new virus was and even where it was, to hard decisions about how or whether to keep our home businesses open, and of course how long the initial lock-down would ultimately last.  Kettlebell events in particular seemed untouchable at first, after all our sport doesn't require close interaction or contact between athletes.  However, one-by-one our beloved destination competitions met the chopping block - OKC Vancouver International, Crazy Monkey, Seattle WAKSC Worlds... 
Of course, our friends managed to "pivot", and so did we.  ZOOM Video Communications became all the rage and their stock skyrocketed, resulting in a revenue spike of almost 4-fold by Q2 of 2020!  It really is no surprise because the whole kettlebell community bought in and defaulted to the ZOOM  platform.  Talk about a lifesaver.  The NKC managed to salvage the year, participating in 5 competitions - our yearly average.  It's a shame we didn't get to see many of our kettlebell friends in person, but we demonstrated exactly what it means to be part of a team, as well as a community - we showed up, we put in the effort, and we gave each other strength in a time of struggle.
Nice work team.

JANUARY:
​On January 13th we held our first club In-House meet of 2018.  We had some new lifters take to the platform, and many existing members got to shake the rust off and test their lofty ambitions.

The results are as follows:
C. Birchard - Snatch 14kg x 219, Jerk 2*12kg x 49
​J. Buczek - Snatch 12kg x 168 (66 rep PR!), TALC 2*12kg x 59 (Debut TALC set!)
D. Coulson - Snatch 8kg x 205 (53 rep PR!), MHS OALC 10kg x 103
​L. Cochrane - Snatch 8kg x 167, MHS OALC 10kg x 95 (Debut)
​N. Buczek - Jerk 8kg x 80 (Debut)
R. Robertson - Snatch 18kg x 203 (54 rep PR!), Jerk 18kg x 158 (debut biathlon jerk)
​L. Robinson - OALC 8kg x 103 (Debut OALC set!)
S. Macys - Snatch 28kg x 115, TALC 2*20kg x 86

FEBRUARY:
​On February 3rd, we headed to Vancouver, BC for Jodi Boates' annual IKFF kettlebell sport meet at Jodi Boates Athletics gym.  It was an opportunity for our lifters to try some new things and take stock of their continued progress.

​The results are as follows:
​C. Birchard - 5min MHS Snatch 16kg x 121, TALC 2*12kg x 92 (1st Ever TALC Set!)
​J. Buczek - Snatch 12kg x 183 (15 rep PR!), TALC 2*12kg x 69 (10 rep PR!)
​R. Robertson - OA Biathlon 20kg x 135.5 (debut 20kg biathlon attempt)
S. Macys - Biathlon 24kg x 131.5, TALC 2*24kg x 42

Congratulations to all lifters!  Keep looking ahead to your next conquest!

NEXT EVENT - March 24th, OKC International Vancouver, Richmond Oval

Last year, the Nanaimo Kettlebell Club made the trip down to Victoria to participate in the Holiday Pentathlon Challenge.  What is the Pentathlon?  It's a battery of 5 exercises, 6 minutes each, 5 minutes rest, each performed as a multi-switch set. 

The Exercises
1. One arm clean (max. 20rpm)
2. One arm long cycle press (max. 10rpm)
3. One arm jerk (max. 20rpm)
4. One arm half snatch (max. 18rpm)
5. One arm push press (max. 20rpm)

You can view the original rule video HERE. 
Below is footage from last years challenge!

You probably don't know this man, but his name is Yutaka Hagiwara, and his sport is sumo. 

In the dohyo, he is known as Kisenosato Yutaka.  I know him just as Kisenosato.  Today, Kisenosato was awarded his first Emperor's Cup, the most coveted prize in professional sumo.  This comes after 15 years since his professional debut, 97 upper division tournaments, and about 1,455 individual bouts.

It was this time last year that the first Japanese born rikishi in a decade had won the prize, fellow Ozeki ranked wrestler Kotoshogiku.  Kisenosato is the second in a decade to win.  The sport has been more or less dominated by Mongolian yokozuna, but could we be witnessing a turning point?

More exciting still, if Kisenosato keeps up this momentum, he could become the first Japanese born rikishi in 19 years to earn the rank of yokozuna.

For the month of January, clients can bring a friend or family member new to Ballistic Strength Gym and BOTH TRAIN FREE**

**Free pass redeemable on date of attendance only, one free pass per person from Jan. 1st - 31st