The Armwrestler's Bible.

[Las Botha]

The complete and comprehensive illustrated Armwrestling handbook.

A single-volume reference work wherein you can find all the beginner through intermediate to advanced answers to questions about:
Armwrestling rules and regulations;
Tecnique;
Training, on- and off the table;
Tournaments;
Formats;
Preparation;
Associated injuries;
Treatment;
Armwreslting history, organizations and promotion.

Why is there no such publication available yet?
If we can't get armwrestling more recognition/unification, how about taking the sport to the next level through what is historically the most effective medium:
The written word.

Like "The Lore of Running", by Prof. Tim Noakes, a sort of runner's bible, if you will.
We need the armwrestler's bible.

[Las Botha]

Now, before you staunch erm wrastlin' folk glower at me in militant disapproval quoting Lt. Kendrik from the movie: A Few Good Men:
"I have two books at my bedside, Las, the Marine Corps Code of Conduct and the King James Bible!"

...heck, if nobody wants to do it, then I'll do it, but then don't be surprized if you get a letter in the mail with a WAF header saying: "I are writing buk. Can I haz donashun, plox?" I mean, my first thread made it to the 2nd page. Whoohoo! I should write a book.

No, seriously now, isn't Engin Terzi an authority? Are there any plans in the pipeline for such a book that anyone knows of?
I'm surprized by the lack of material on the subject.
Is there no profitable market for such a product?
Do we not hear complaints about professionalism in the sport? Do we need to understand our potential target audience better?
Information is freely available and fragmentary, via the net.
But couldn't the world use an authoritative and final publication?
That way the Russians can stop stealing our ideas and publishing it in big, jagged cyrillic letters that nobody in the free world can understand. LOL, just kidding, peace.

Wasn't Eric Roussin said to be working on an exhaustive AW book?

[Las Botha]

(also this way we can save a lot of ink on the net from whiny beginners turning the message boards into their personal self-pity diaries, asking the same questions, getting the same answers.
Though some do need answering, it would be excellent and hugely beneficial, in my opinion, for all facets of the sports to refer any and all to a single, complete reference).

[Eric Roussin]

Sept 19, 2012 11:02:28 GMT -5 Las Botha said:

Wasn't Eric Roussin said to be working on an exhaustive AW book?

I started to aggressively research the history of the organized sport a couple of years ago, unsure of what the end result would be (a book, a website, etc.). Tomasz Wisniowski approached me late last year about the idea of putting together a website devoted solely to the history of armwrestling. At that point I had realized that if I was ever going to be able to put a book together, it would be several years away. I had collected so much information that it would take a long time to get everything organized and written in the way I wanted. I figured a website would be a way a good way to release articles whenever they were ready.

The Armwrestling History Channel is far from complete, but it does currently have lots of good information on the early days of the sport in North America. I have ambitions to eventually add tons more information to the site, but I've had to take a step back in recent months. With raising four kids under the age of six, working a full-time job, leading my provincial armwrestling association, and seriously training for two sports, something had to give.

For those interested in learning about the early days of the sport, here is a good place to start:

www.armwrestlinghistorychannel.com/2011/12/history-of-organized-armwrestling.html

Many histories of the major organizations of the past can also be found from here:

www.armwrestlinghistorychannel.com/p/events-results-champions.html

[Las Botha]

Hi Eric,

I favourited your page, the Armwrestling History Channel. I will return to it and read up on the sport's history.
I've just read the page on John Woolsey. Interesting note about his elbow injury that forced him to become a more defensive puller.
I applaud your effort.
I would love to see you write a book though.
4 Children under the age of 6 to step on your apronstrings?! You are truly blessed.
What other sport are you training for?


Tell me please, what did you intend to accomplish with this book, originally?
Where does your enthusiasm about the organized sport's history come from?
I love tradition and old time tales, but there is more to it than that for you?

Also, what do you think of the type of publication mentioned in the OP? (If it were possible)
Do you think it would help the sport grow in any way?
Of course with the right resources nothing is impossible.

I think that if ever there was a universal, easily accessible and globally recognized activity that finds itself shaped into an organized sport that could streamline such a product, it's armwrestling!

Of course there would be a substantial section on the sport's history in the armwrestler's bible.
Please provide us with some tales of Roman centurions armwrestling Germanic Barbarian chieftains over treestumps in the winter of 180BC. ;D
I really think the film Gladiator let us armwrestlers down on that one.
(Though it did seem that the barbarians were more into emissary head-slinging. Yeah, I think the United Nations would frown upon that these days. People are getting soft, is what I say! )

But anyway, I'm more interested in something practicable and technical, you know?
Thank you for taking the time out in your busy schedule to share though, much appreciated.

[Eric Roussin]

The other sport I train for is grip sport (aka grip/hand strength competitions). It’s an obscure sport that is still very much in its infancy, but it is slowly growing.

I got into researching the sport’s history because I felt there wasn’t much to be found online or in print about the sport’s evolution. Even the results of the major tournaments that occurred before the Internet became popular were almost impossible to find (e.g. Yukon Jack World Championships, WPAA World Championships, etc.). I felt it was a shame that this information could potentially be lost to time if not documented soon. Luckily, most of the major players/founders of our sport are still around and willing to share their experiences. But many are now in their 60s, 70s, and 80s and they won’t be around forever. Because the sport has given me a lot, I thought researching and writing about the sport’s history could be a fun way to give something back. Publishing this information is also a way to recognize and honour those who have accomplished so much for (or in) the sport over the years.

I think a publication like the one you describe could be very beneficial, but it would help if it were written or co-written by someone like John Brzenk. Think Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Encyclopaedia or Modern Bodybuilding”.

A major stumbling block is that these things take such a considerable investment of time. And without a guaranteed financial return, it can become difficult to justify for someone who must juggle a number of other responsibilities.

[jamesretarides]

I am actually working on such a book, focusing on the training and preparation more so than the historical elements.

[Las Botha]

Sept 20, 2012 20:15:15 GMT -5 Eric Roussin said:

The other sport I train for is grip sport

Ooooh, you had me thinking for a moment there that it was bobsleighing or something

Sept 20, 2012 20:15:15 GMT -5 Eric Roussin said:

I felt it was a shame that this information could potentially be lost to time if not documented soon. Luckily, most of the major players/founders of our sport are still around and willing to share their experiences. But many are now in their 60s, 70s, and 80s and they won’t be around forever. Because the sport has given me a lot, I thought researching and writing about the sport’s history could be a fun way to give something back. Publishing this information is also a way to recognize and honour those who have accomplished so much for (or in) the sport over the years.

I think a publication like the one you describe could be very beneficial, but it would help if it were written or co-written by someone like John Brzenk. Think Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Encyclopaedia or Modern Bodybuilding”.

A major stumbling block is that these things take such a considerable investment of time. And without a guaranteed financial return, it can become difficult to justify for someone who must juggle a number of other responsibilities.

I like your attitude, Eric. You have to consider that resources are not just time and money and many great volumes have humble beginnings.

Regarding Brzenk's input, I was thinking that exact same thing. (And not just John scribbling the forward, of course). Everybody loves John Brzenk, and as a bonus he can speak English
Well, I'm not sure what inclusion into the Olympic arena would do for the exposure and popularity of the sport, but if that picks up, then I think that the 1st edition of the armwrestler's bible could most probably be rolled out as a safe-enough investment, considering other, less accessible sport types.

I only found out that AW was a competitive sport 10 months ago, I'm very sad about that and yes, people simply need to be made aware for starters.

Secondly, people need to know what's unique about the sport.
Conditioning sets armwrestlers apart.
You can be elite when other sport's athletes are long retired.
It's an ancient sport that can be praticed anywhere, anytime, with no equipment (except ranked events, but that's obvious).
People need to see organization under a more unified global committee for their appeal.
(I'm not sure what this will do for politics in the sport, but it certainly would help with public perception, I believe).

[Las Botha]

Sept 20, 2012 20:18:20 GMT -5 @jamesretarides said:

I am actually working on such a book, focusing on the training and preparation more so than the historical elements.

It is likely that most beginners would just like a technical read that they want to help with improving their skills immediately, armwrestling is not an overnight sport.
As much as possible, novices should be warned against certain aspects of this attitude, and I'm sure you know what I mean without me having to delve into a lengthy explaination.
Charting progress is good, speedy improvement is excellent, no doubt, but I feel that a good way to steer away from ego is a more holistic approach that would introduce beginners in a balanced way.

I do support your book though 100%.
You see books and videos on "how to be a pro in 3 easy steps, take this pill, fastfood society".
But a book that compiles as much training and preparation methods as possible from various schools of thought and for the overall health of an armwrestler is sadly lacking.

Another thing to note is that, armwrestling is never changing.
The sport has a very shallow development ceiling (non-organizational point of view), therefore a final authoritative reference work on the matter would put to rest a huge range of issues from an individual perspective- the result of which could benefit the sport in the long term more than we could anticipate in it's conceptualization.

[Eric Roussin]

Sept 20, 2012 20:18:20 GMT -5 @jamesretarides said:

I am actually working on such a book, focusing on the training and preparation more so than the historical elements.

That's great to hear, James! With your experiencing in both coaching and writing, you'll do an excellent job!

[Tero Lampikari]

Sept 20, 2012 20:18:20 GMT -5 @jamesretarides said:

I am actually working on such a book, focusing on the training and preparation more so than the historical elements.

That's GREAT James I place my order right now!

btw. I read that Igor is also planning a book. Things are coming along for AW.

[P R O T O T Y P E - A.K]

Hi everybody,

well.... i searched the present worldwide accessible library ;D long time ago and still do from time to time.



As it comes to a written allround information for armwrestling in a "handbook" size that is the subject in this thread...i could not find many things so far that fulfill the whole spectrum that you are asking for above las B. .

What we have so far in English beside of all the armbender magazines from the past is:

Ernie Jeffrey's (" a competitive armwrestler and later a long-time referee") old school Armwrestling Book. you can find more info here: www.functionalhandstrength.com/oldschool_armwrestling.html

some other works are in preparation...slow but in progress as we gladly can read and hear so far. so a lot of pages are not written or not well-regulated to present it as a book.

Sept 21, 2012 7:16:46 GMT -5 Tero Lampikari said:

Sept 20, 2012 20:18:20 GMT -5 @jamesretarides said:

I am actually working on such a book, focusing on the training and preparation more so than the historical elements.

That's GREAT James I place my order right now!

btw. I read that Igor is also planning a book. Things are coming along for AW.

Agree...sounds strong and i am interested to read the finished work of James R. for sure.



BTW: here is a link with some information about the book from Igor M. that i saw last year en.armpower.net/article/en/a-must-for-every-armwrestler-2033.html. sounds very good too and will be useful for sure.

@las: i would not call that "desired" Book or any other so called sport-related Book, a "Bible" for many reasons even so i got your good point/intention here clearly my new Aw-friend. But i would very probably read it if you or someone else name it that way.

@all: --- all in all its true that there is a need existing for a long time now, that will hopefully & without much doubt be satisfied during the next years for all in & around the Armwrestling-circuit ---



One last thing.. ;D for Aw-Athlets it better needs a really good binding quality. ;D



A lot of constructive posts lately....i enjoy all your good contributions guys a lot...keep up the positive drive everybody and have a good time.

thanks.

A.K

[Tero Lampikari]

Sept 22, 2012 11:54:31 GMT -5 P R O T O T Y P E - A.K said:

Agree...sounds strong and i am interested to read the finished work of James R. for sure.

Thanks a lot A.K.! Maybe I will lend it to ya, since you quoted my post I guess I can't delete it and withdraw my order now.

[jamesretarides]

Thanks guys! I put together an extensive training packet for the armwrestlers in Korea. I have added more to it (and though it will take some time) I hope to have it completed by the end of the year.

[Las Botha]

Sept 22, 2012 11:54:31 GMT -5 P R O T O T Y P E - A.K said:

Hi everybody,

well.... i searched the present worldwide accessible library ;D long time ago and still do from time to time...

From www.functionalhandstrength.com/oldschool_armwrestling.html :

In 1977, Ernie put all he had learned into a book entitled Armwrestling: How to Become a Champion. It was the first book ever published on armwrestling, and remains one of the few ever published on the subject.

Armwrestling literature is less than a few decades old.

From en.armpower.net/article/en/a-must-for-every-armwrestler-2033.html :

However, the new generation of armwrestlers in Poland and in the world are slowly "growing up to the table". They need the knowledge from scratch!

I can gladly announce that the time put into practice the idea of Igor Mazurenko - a powerful book about armwrestling. I know that Igor nursed this idea for a long time, but other responsibilities were still in the foreground. But working on the publication has started at full blast for several months. The book promises to be a hit in the category of textbooks, reference books, sports guide, and it is graphically beautifully designed and diligently published. Parallel publication of Polish, Russian and English versions is planned.

See, that's what I was talking about, thank you A.K.
Armwrestlers and non-armwrestlers alike, regardless of their level of involvement in the sport need "knowledge from scratch" as Mazurenko put it.
And my favourite: "...in the category of textbooks, reference books, sports guide..."

Yes please.

Ultimately it makes sense to have the final word on the sport, since you really could compile it in one volume, and the sport is a social, but individual sport, and for the reasons that are given above in this thread.
This is what I envision, and in future, when newcomers clamper onto the boards as their only driftwood lifeline, we will be telling them; "The Armwrestler's Bible, kid. Look it up. Chapter a,b,c. Section x,y,z. End of."

Furthermore, armwrestling is depicted in all kinds of anthropological findings, isn't it? (as the article also mentions). Shouldn't armwrestling have been one of the original Olympic sports?
There is a lot of expanding that can be done in a sports infancy. Do we need the collaboration of sports scientists, so be it. One thing is sure, consulting legends like Brzenk and having their input is first prize.
Since the we live in an age of rapid globalization, there really shouldn't be a reason to not include material from every source the world over, and have it unified.
Why not?

Edit: by the way, this article is more than a year old.