Fitness:
1. Julie Palmer
2. Julie Lohre
3. Stacy Simmons
4. Heidi Fletcher
5. Sandra Wickham
You know I have to put in a word for my girl Susan Groshek. Now that she has her 45 second routine figured out I think she has great chance to beak into the top 5. It is a tough line-up but this is probably her last show for a bit and I know she is ready to put it all together.Susan will definitely be a contender this weekend. She has one of the tiniest waist-lines and great shape.
Good Luck to everyone competing this weekend, especially my buddy, Christine Wan!
Should be a great show. I retired after this same show last year, but I will still be backstage (minus the high heels!), helping the girls as needed, and possibly expediting.
See everyone on Saturday!
Good Luck to all the ladies, but I have to say I think the strongest competitor on the list is Sandra and I think this is her turn to Shine!!!!9 total posts and all about Sandra. You luv you some wickham. ;D
Air Wickham All the Way !!!!
I'm thinking Lift is probably almost right on the money. Although a bit high in hopes for Fletcher. I think she'll fall given the competition. Julie Palmer and Julie Loher are definitely top notch competitors and I wouldn't count out Angie Semsch either. Palmer did place top 6 in the O so she'll give them all a run. While I think Sandra is a solid contender for top five and it is a shame to read her story, I don't think she's quite the "strongest competitor on the list".
As far as Figure - I think unless you are dumb or blind the top 3 are right maybe a little out of sort though. I would not count out Christine in the top athletes to compete. Gina Aliotti has it in the bag - so to speak. Look for all others to be compared to how SHE comes into this show.
I am surprised that we are seeing more fitness than figure at this show. Good sign for fitness though.
Anyone covering the show?
Good Luck to everyone competing this weekend, especially my buddy, Christine Wan!
Should be a great show. I retired after this same show last year, but I will still be backstage (minus the high heels!), helping the girls as needed, and possibly expediting.
See everyone on Saturday!
9 total posts and all about Sandra. You luv you some wickham. ;D
Lift, cut Jo-Ann (aka mjsbroda) some slack. I'm sure one of these days she'll make a non-Sandra post :)LOL. Not bringing her down, just wondering if she'll show some of the rest of us some luv. ;D
All kidding aside, she's Sandra's 2nd biggest fan (next to yours truly) and a loyal member of Team Wickham. Welcome to the Boards Miss Broda, don't let that Getbig Expert LiftStudios bring you down ;D
LOL. Not bringing her down, just wondering if she'll show some of the rest of us some luv. ;D
Rx, there is a fitness division too ;D
I'm sure you're just keepin' us in suspense.
I've got my picks, but I think it best if I just keep 'em to "mah-sef" :)
Julie - Kick A$$ Babe!!!!
Sorry, shameless cheer plug for my wife ;)
Rick
Our prediction for figure top five, in alphabetical order :)
Gina Aliotti
Paola Almerico
Heather Green
Danielle Hollenshade
Latisha Wilder
You and Dani have a great time!Are you implying Stevie is sleeping with someone he "sponsors"?
Are you implying Stevie is sleeping with someone he "sponsors"?He can't help himself. He likes those chubby girls too. :-*
Here I thought he was one of those fruitcakes that only liked men.
I was hoping we could talk Famous Mavis outta retirement for this one....... maybe next year? :DBarbie would fly across the country and check out WPB for that one. By the way good luck to your bud Christine Wan today. It would be wonderful to see her qualify for the O.
Great show - there are 39 total pros. 19 in Figure and 20 in Fitness. Heidi Fletcher looked the best she ever has but based on the callouts will be outside the top 5. It's the Julie showdown tonight. Julie Palmer looks to be in the lead with Julie Lohre nipping at her heels. Stacey Simmons should also make a run at things and most likely end up in third. Lisa McCormick and Michelle Mayberry will most likely round out the top 5.
I'd have it:
1. Julie Palmer
2. Julie Lohre
3. Stacey Simmons
4. Heidi Fletcher
5. Michelle Mayberry
Figure has a great lineup. It's definitely the Gina show. She looked better here than she did at the Olympia. Second looks like it will be Latisha Wilder. The top 5 is very competitive and could go a number of ways. It's a battle for the third and final qualifying spot. Heather Green looks to be at her all time best and much tighter than at previous shows. Natalie also looks good and improved from the Olympia.
I'd have it:
1. Gina Aliotti
2. Latisha Wilder
3. Heather Green
4. Natalie Benson
5. Paola Almerico
Photos will be posted shortly on Bodybuilding.com
Mike - what's up with the no show dawg. I saw Laura and told her to say hello since you were getting maaaasive in day gym. :)
Night show starts at 6:30pm EST.
A few pics of my Julie ;)Oh, My!!!! ;D ;D ;D She looks fabulous!!!!! Got my fingers crossed for tonight. So happy about how she looks.
This weekend the fitness and figure ladies take the stage again. Who do you like? A few competitors will qualify for the 2008 Olympia and the pressure will be off them to qualify later on in the year.Not to shabby on the predictions. TOOT! TOOT!
Figure:
1. Gina Aliotti
2. Natalie Benson
3. Latisha Wilder
4. Heather Green
5. Paola Almerico
Fitness:
1. Julie Palmer
2. Julie Lohre
3. Stacy Simmons
4. Heidi Fletcher
5. Sandra Wickham
Great show...Thanks to John and everyone involved with putting this show on. Great location and perfect timing during the season.
Special thanks to Valerie Waughaman for supporting and lending a hand backstage to ALL the girls! You is a true CLASS ACT!
Rick & Julie
Great show...Thanks to John and everyone involved with putting this show on. Great location and perfect timing during the season.
Special thanks to Valerie Waughaman for supporting and lending a hand backstage to ALL the girls! You is a true CLASS ACT!
Rick & Julie
Hey Isaac! It was good seeing you yesterday. :)good seeing u 2. I don't have the NPV results but they will be on bb.com as soon I get them.
Do you happen to have the results of the Amateurs?
:)
good seeing u 2. I don't have the NPV results but they will be on bb.com as soon I get them.Thanks Isaac! :D
More photos and show coverage at:Isaac, do you know what place Shona Pryce came in?
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2007ifbbpalmbeach.htm
Isaac, do you know what place Shona Pryce came in?
good seeing u 2. I don't have the NPC results but they will be on bb.com as soon I get them.
Hi Laura,
Shona Pryce finished 8th in open figure class A, which is a travesty. She has a pro level physique and can hopefully find a way to get to nationals where she will excel. The NPC Palm Beach wasn't a national qualifier, but we're featuring her soon as our spotlight athlete for the NPC Southeastern Fitness & Figure which was on October 6th (LINK (http://www.figurerx.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=684#684)).
Hope that helps!
Stephen
Team FigureRX
I have to disagree on it being a travesty and her having a pro level physique. She was waaaay too hard for this show and would get the same response at the next level. She does have potential though, don't get me wrong. She turned my hea when I saw her at the pool shooting.
When the judges can see cross striations in your quads, in figure, you're not going to place well. A little work on her posing and toning it down on the hardness, she'll fair better.
The competitor we're speaking about:
We had her in the top five at this show, and maybe a little higher the previous weekend when she came in softer at her first NPC show. This was a local non-qualifier and she really stood out. Shona is a crossover athlete and was a "physique" (closer to bodybuilding) champion at Musclemania earlier this year, but at the same time in Musclemania "figure" she placed close behind well known names like Ava Cowan and Michelle Levesque. We were happy to see her make the move to the NPC!! She has some refinements to make, of course, but great athletes tend to rise to the top and we think Shona will .... beyond that we'll save the rest of our comments for her spotlight profile.She has potential no doubt, but stating she placed behind "known names" and that she stood out in a non-national qualifiers doesn't cast the best light. If/when she places ahead of "known names" and stands out at national-qualifiers and national shows then you have a case.
LOL!..................I wish i had a hard time getting soft???
Tell the girl to eat some ice cream (works for me!)
Too "hard" for figure too "small" for bodybuilding............ .......is that the knock on this girl??
Im not putting Shona down ...............i was seriously asking if this is what Isaac thinksI am a fan of that type of look, she reminded me of a Juliana a bit. She just needs a little polishing with posing along with the less hard look. It's a tricky balance and one that puts physiques like hers in limbo. The classic "too big for figure" and "too small for bodybuilding". More and more women are hearing this. Many women love to train but are told too big for figure and have to try and loose muscle. They also don't find female bodybuilding appealing and wish to get that size. It's like there is a new division forming unintentionally for those types. What the criteria would be, I have no clue but I know it frustrates a number of women.
i see this girl in the gym everyday 2-3 times (incredibly dedicated athlete)
i do think she competes too much and needs to figure out if it's figure or bodybuilding that she want's to focus on
(you can't make quality gains if your always in "pre-contest mode")
her and her husband are good people.........(id like to see her do well )
Mike
LOL!..................I wish i had a hard time getting soft
Tell the girl to eat some ice cream (works for me!)
Aren't there weight limits?LMAO. not so much
OMG her legs are CRAZY! If she wants to stick to figure she will have to stop all leg training and start marathon training instead (though this won't help her upper body)!!!
Maybe she should cross over to bbing :)
I Agree!....................(her body is obviously more genetically "suited" for bodybuilding)
why fight nature?!?!?!?!??!
We'll get video up on the NPC athletes sometime tonight, so reserve judgement until you see the clips as the competitors look a little different when you take away the stage camera lighting (which can exacerbate certain features) ;). We advise some athletes to make the move from figure to bodybuilding (not too often but it happens) but in this case we really think that Sonya can and will be successful in figure ....Actually FigureRX we know "Shona" personally and yes, she can most certainly be successful in figure, but like Jennifer stated she has to pull back from training her legs so much. I actually see her in the gym. She trains at the same time as I do. I know what she does and she busts her ass on her legs. They are unbelievable to say the least and she's worked hard for them, BUT if she is to continue she needs to back away from training them so hard.
We'll get video up on the NPC athletes sometime tonight, so reserve judgement until you see the clips as the competitors look a little different when you take away the stage camera lighting (which can exacerbate certain features) ;). We advise some athletes to make the move from figure to bodybuilding (not too often but it happens) but in this case we really think that Sonya can and will be successful in figure ....
Her name is Shona. Shona Pryce.
My bad I just saw what Figure RX typed :)That's ok. I just want to make sure if she is recognized SHE is recognized. :)
My bad I just saw what Figure RX typed :)
We'll get video up on the NPC athletes sometime tonight, so reserve judgement until you see the clips as the competitors look a little different when you take away the stage camera lighting (which can exacerbate certain features) ;). We advise some athletes to make the move from figure to bodybuilding (not too often but it happens) but in this case we really think that Shona can and will be successful in figure ....This woman has amazing wheels and they are every bit as ripped off the stage lighting.
This woman has amazing wheels and they are every bit as ripped off the stage lighting.
No offense Stephen as I know what you're doing is a lot of work and people appreciate it, but what qualifies you to advise women to do figure over bodybuilding?
We advise some athletes to make the move from figure to bodybuilding (not too often but it happens) but in this case we really think that Shona can and will be successful in figure ....
Who the hell is Figure RX? Is this some sort of management or training group.
I've never heard of them.
Amazing, only people I see on their site is Danielle Roulleau and Beth Horn. Does Beth even compete anymore?
Has this guy/group trained IFBB pros or NPC national level competitors for some time.
I just don't get how these folks just pop up out of no-where and become "experts".
Looks like another JC Schmuck-Fest site to me!
Sorry JC, you do actually post some good pics of competitors and do a good job of covering the shows...
Which brings me to my point...what the heck is FigureRX supposed to be????
Shmoe??........................ ........
This woman has amazing wheels and they are every bit as ripped off the stage lighting.
No offense Stephen as I know what you're doing is a lot of work and people appreciate it, but what qualifies you to advise women to do figure over bodybuilding?
Hi guys, you can read all about our corporate structure and our current and future goals in the "About Us" page on our site. Everything is laid out pretty clearly there. We have a team of trainers who help write our contest articles and of course there is always a mix of personalities and preferences as well, since figure tends to be a subjective sport. We're not claiming to be experts, we're just keeping at it and expressing our opinions like everyone else on the board. We just call it like we see it and hopefully we all learn more as we cover more. ;)
As far as Shona, as we said we think she can be an asset to the figure stage if she moves in that direction and we hope she will. Obviously we tend to support a little more muscle in figure as long as the other necessary qualities are there, and we know that some will not agree with that assessment. One of the athletes on our figure team, Lindsey Cope, will be somewhat of a test case next year as far as pushing the envelope at the national level because we think she has all the main figure qualities but she carries more muscle. Sometimes it's obvious when an athlete should move to bodybuilding ... but we also like to see some athletes stick to figure if their heart is in it and fight for the direction of the sport!!
Again no disrespect here, but it sounds like you advise women based on what YOU like. It's one thing to offer an opinion, but entirely different when "advising" others, especially when presented as a "potential sponsor". If that's not the case, I'd be curious to hear why you think Shona would do better in figure on the next level.
After seeing Shona in person, her wheels are that of a bodybuilder and if he brought up her upper body, she'd be a threat in bodybuilding. Plus she'd bring an attractive look to the female bbing stage. It's ultimately her call but she's an example of a woman who will most likely get frustrated with her placings or what she has to do to be successful in figure. What I mean by that is what someone else mentioned. She'll have to stop training her legs to bring a match to her uppper body. That defeats the purpose why most of us train. Who wants to compete and not spend time in the gym? I know two pros who are facing the same thing - they've had to stop training to try and loose muscle and bring what the judges are looking for.
Again no disrespect here, but it sounds like you advise women based on what YOU like. It's one thing to offer an opinion, but entirely different when "advising" others, especially when presented as a "potential sponsor". If that's not the case, I'd be curious to hear why you think Shona would do better in figure on the next level.
After seeing Shona in person, her wheels are that of a bodybuilder and if she brought up her upper body, she'd be a threat in bodybuilding. Plus she'd bring an attractive look to the female bbing stage. It's ultimately her call but she's an example of a woman who will most likely get frustrated with her placings or what she has to do to be successful in figure. What I mean by that is what someone else mentioned. She'll have to stop training her legs to bring a match to her uppper body. That defeats the purpose why most of us train. Who wants to compete and not spend time in the gym? I know two pros who are facing the same thing - they've had to stop training to try and loose muscle and bring what the judges are looking for.
I agree with you Isaac, no disrespect taken. We always lay out the pros and cons, and one of the first things an athlete has to ask about herself is how she wants to train, and how she feels about herself. Ultimately it's an individual decision. For our part, we are working toward acceptance of different types of physiques within figure and I think we are seeing more of that. More options for athletes to look like *they* want to look. I think there's more muscle at the top of the pro figure placings this year than there was last year at this time, and that's great to see. We're very pleased to see the trend since the Europa.It (muscle) is more accepted at the Pro Level, but all I am hearing from at the Amateur Level is less is more, which is proven time and time again at these competitions. Which is why I, personally, made the transition to bbing from figure.
Who the hell is Figure RX? Is this some sort of management or training group.These people are giving out advices on competing? A 20-something competitor who can't get herself into shape and her sugardaddy investment banker.
THat guy is Figure-R/X ?!?!??!?!?!?!
OMG her legs are CRAZY!
Maybe she should cross over tobbingcrushing :)
Sorry..................i lost interest in this thread alreadyand we care why? :P
........................ ........................ ..................
Report, photos and videos at:Very kewl. Thanks Isaac :D
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/2007ifbbpalmbeach.htm
More videos being posted throughout the day.
\
Jennifer, Shona actually did a bbing show (MuscleMania) where she took first place. I don't know why she has decided to pursue the figure side over bbing. It may be that she is having trouble putting on size, not sure. But she definitely has the legs of a bber.
\I'm not sure Jen, maybe she just can't get the upper body to match the lower. Or maybe she is just working back into bbing via NPC by starting ain figure. She took 1st place in the MuscleMania Female BBing this year.
I don't understand how she could go back to figure....no disrepect to the Figure girls but after doing both I could never go back. Bbing has allowed me to train how I like to train, come in lean and shredded and have more then 30 secs and 4 quarter turns on stage. This "sport" is too hard to not get a little stage time by yourself.
Maria, I think he is still upset with you yelling at him at the 2006 West Palm Show.
That's the bitch that was yelling at everyone (like she owned the place!) not to spray pam?!?!?!?!Be nice Michael. The "b" word is not necessary. But yes, she is the one who was the one who was yelling at the guys for spraying in the hall.
Be nice Michael. The "b" word is not necessary. But yes, she is the one who was the one who was yelling at the guys for spraying in the hall.
I think they should make an area (covered in something - a tarp perhaps) just for the use of oiling up. It is definitely needed for the bodybuilders, but unsafe for the girls in shoes.
I just wanted to say being back on stage after a five year layoff was nothing short of fantastic. I had soo much fun that night. I want to thank everyone who has supported me throughout my years of training. First off, my husband, Alan and my boys, Joey and Matty, Donna & Frank from Porky's gym, Kevin Creegan for being such a great friend and motivator, CJ for making such gorgeous suits, Grethel for my makeup, Betty for my hair and coaching, Evelyn, Mimi, JC, Joe, Brian, John, Jennifer, Alan, Kyra, Dom, Violet, Yamilette for all the cheers, and all my friends at the gym who have given me nothing but support throughout my prep for this show. As you can see it takes a lot of people to help get you ready for your shows and I believe they all deserve their props. I would also like to thank John Organ for such a great show, Peter Potter for all his years of support and Dr. Pete, Bill Nehlan, Matt the expediter and all my Florida peeps for their support as well. I'll see you again next year. :P
Maria Bellando