2008 Arnold Blog

There are two competitors riding a mountain of momentum going into the Arnold Classic. Heather Policky in her first year as an IFBB pro won her first show and now goes into the Arnold as a near lock at the top 5. I ran into Heather yesterday as she was getting fitted for her new suits, she looked great. Expect an even better Heather this weekend at the Arnold.

The man who many want to see either prevail or fail is Phil Heath. I can assure all of you Phil will not fail this weekend at the Arnold he will be challenging the top pros for the Arnold title. Phil was fitted for his posing suits yesterday and looked simply ridiculous. When he steps on stage Saturday at the prejudging people will be shocked. Take it to the bank.

As I’m sure you know if you have been reading any of these posts you will for sure have fun while at the Expo. I thought I would share with everyone a couple of things that I have found makes the expo more enjoyable for me.

Get there Early
You have to get there early so that you can get a close parking spot and beat the rush. When the doors first open there are less people there so there are less lines. Go to the big booths first the ones that will have lines later in the day and you will be able to get through without to much waiting. The only bad thing about getting there early is most of the Celebs will not be there right away.

Make trips back to your car
If you get there early you can get a parking spot in a garage or lot close to the expo. The bags of freebies that you receive at the expo get very heavy, and even the strongest bodybuilder’s shoulders and hands will get tired from carrying them, (last year my girlfriend was lugging around over 20 free protein RTDs in a backpack, it was very heavy). Make trips to your car to drop off your bags, you can get back into the expo with your wristband.

Take a Break and Go Eat
During the busiest times of the expo is a good time to take a break, drop your stuff off at the car and walk somewhere to eat. There is some eating within walking distance and a break will do you good. Get some food, hyrdate, rest, regroup, rec-energize, then get back into the expo and start having some more fun.

Allright everyone thats my advice for your arnold trip, have fun everyone!

Animalpak.com’s booth at the Arnold Classic Expo is less of a booth and more of an "experience". As the representatives of Universal said themselves, this year’s Cage is going to be the biggest and best ever. The Cage features "promos", educational seminars, lifiting exhibitions, and lifting contests, among other things. You will be able to see and meet many animals, such as Jeremy "Wrath" McGrath, in the Cage.

If you are attending the Expo, be sure to stop by "booth" #419. I am sure it will be an interesting experience for all of you.

What should I wear? What do I bring? Where is everyone going to be? Where are my favorite athletes?

These are by far the most popular questions I get everyday from anxious fans, friends and fitness enthusiasts. So on that note I thought I would write a quick tip list for you all, especially for the Arnold 1st timers:.

Tips: PLAN PLAN PLAN!

Pre Plan your expo days

I don’t think you realize how hectic the Arnold really is! If you think you are just going to “meet up with people, think again! It is sooo packed, good luck just trying to find the people you are going with. Make sure you schedule “lost points if you loose your friends, especially for Saturday where the true circus is. Have cell phones and numbers readily available.
Whatever you do, give yourself  extra time to do everything, including getting there. Taxis are hard to come by so expect to be waiting this time around.

Find your favorite celebrities and icons ahead of time.  If you want to see your favorites athletes, icons or a certain booth ahead of time.

Do your research before you get to the expo. Find out what booth your favorite icons  will be at and find out where that booth may be. It will save you a lot of time. Bring your favorite pictures or magazine appearances with you so they can sign them personally.

What to wear?

Okay ladies, I think this was your number 1 question. Yes you all want to look hot, men and women, but the key is COMFORT!!! Trust me when I say, you say “oh, as long as I look good:but you will suffer and be miserable!

Ladies, bring comfortable shoes. You will be walking all day. Yes you want to wear high heels to look “fly by also bring an alternative pair of shoes to switch to. Trust me when I say you will be fatigued and dying with blisters if you don’t take my advice.

Ladies again. Wear anything you want. Yes it’s a fit expo:whether you want to go sporty, or a bit sporty dressy (which is what I like to wear personally), just make sure you are comfortable and present yourself in a respectable way. Remember you are meeting people you have been dying to meet for the longest time so they image you want to present of yourself should be clean and respectful.

In other words, don’t be “hutchie mamma looking. You never know who you may run into, what celebrities, what magazine editors, promoters etc. Have respect for your presentation. Same for the men. Men:where a shirt please! The most looked down upon thing is thinking you are at the beach and have no shirt on. Cheese!

What to bring?

Here are some quick things for your checklist for your long day:

If you are a competitor or in the industry, bring business cards or sample images.

- Money:  lots to purchase and lots to buy, tickets, food, clothing, autographed pics, tickets etc.

- Food: bring shakes, chicken or good protein sources if you want to eat healthy. There isn’t much to eat there other then all the freebees such as bars, shakes etc and one eating venue…

- Camera: a definite! You will be taking pictures everywhere and like I said you never know who you will run into! Stallone, the Wayan brothers… other celebs:  Video is fine too!

- Extra bags/luggage:  there are so many give always and items for purchase you will be bombarded with a million things to carry if you don’t bring a bag to put everything. And, extra luggage space for the trip home without your luggage being overweight at the airport.

- Bring directions to and from the venues, hotels either through Mapquest or your navigation system.

- Warm travel clothes:   Columbus is freezing this time of year: waiting outside for a taxi in club wear isn’t friendly. Bring your coats!

Hope this helps and be sure to catch me on the Friday night Ladies Webcast with Bob Cicherillo, or at the Bodybuilding.com booth on Saturday March 3rd! I will be selling my autographed pictures and taking candids.

Miss Nancy

I just received word that I have press credentials for the UFC fight on Saturday night. It should be interesting trying to be in two places at once. I will hit the men’s finals and then haul butt to get to the UFC fight and cover that. I’ve covered a couple MMA fights before but never a UFC fight. It should be an interesting time photographing this event.

From the Arnold Classic website…

The Ultimate Fighting Championship© is coming to Columbus the same weekend as the Arnold Sports Festival. What luck.

“The Arnold Sports Festival is pleased to welcome 18,000 devoted UFC fans to Nationwide Arena on Saturday, March 3 to coincide with our annual Weekend. The incredible momentum of the UFC will add tremendous energy and excitement to the city of Columbus and the Arnold Sports Festival. - Jim Lorimer

Thurs Mar 1
55°/37° 40% chance of rain

Fri. Mar 2
Mostly Cloudy / Wind
42°/33°

Sat Mar 3
Few Snow Showers
36°/28°

Sun Mar 4
Mostly Cloudy
32°/28°

Mon Mar 5
Partly Cloudy
35°/29°

The After Parties thrown by Jason Dhir are always a great time.

Here’s a shot from last year…

Info on this year’s parties:

The Charity After Bash Party IV
“Armageddon 2007 - The Mecca of the Midwest Returns

Warm-Up Party: Friday March 2nd

After Bash Main Event: Saturday March 3rd

Times: 9pm … 2:30am (Both Parties)

Location: Friday @ Sugar Bar
525 Park St.
Downtown Columbus

Saturday After Bash @ Karma
303 South Front St.
Downtown Columbus

Expected Attendance: 6,000 Freaks

Promoter: One crazy bastard

Set-UP: 6-8 Private parties within the Bash. Heart palpitating beat and intense vibe. Raw and primal energy
Media: You name it.

Pro-Athletes attending: More than you can imagine

Gear: Arial stunts, pyro, beams, celebrities and a 75,000 watt sound system just in the main room that will blow your pants off.

CHARITY AFTER-BASH IV TICKET (VIP PRE-SALE PRICE) $100.00
CHARITY AFTER-BASH IV TICKET (GENERAL ADMISSION PRE-SALE PRICE) $25.00
FREQ’D FRIDAY WARM-UP PARTY TICKET (PRE-SALE PRICE) $10.00
http://www.nutritionforumonline.com/osCommerce/catalog/index.php

Wanna win some free Gaspari Supplements?  Think you know who the Top 5 will be at the Arnold?

Well, make your predictions on Gaspari Nutrition’s MySpace blog, and the first person to have predicted the Top 5 wins themselves a month’s free supplements directly from Gaspari!

Vote for your Top 5 here:
http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=101884691&blogID=233198817

There are a few things you need to guys should remember to bring to the Expo…

- Wear Comfortable shoes
- Dress Lightly
- Bring a camera with plenty of film/space
- Bottled water (it gets hot in there)
- Cash (lots of companies with great deals)
- You might want to pre-order your tickets from ticketmaster online to avoid the long line
- A folder (you get lots if autographed pics and and folder helps keep them safe)

I caught up with Phil Heath one week out from his Arnold debut as he was doing a photoshoot with FLEX Magazine. I’ve seen Phil compete in every bodybuilding show he’s done and I never cease to be amazed by this guy.

You will see a bigger and better Phil Heath this coming week. He’s added thickness through out his physique. Most noteably in his back, hamstrings and calves. Many people are doubting Phil as they have in the past. One thing people should learn is never underestimate this guy, he will be top 3. I can see him beating Dexter Jackson and if Victor Martinez is off even a little bit, look for him to move past Vic.

The prejudging at the Arnold is going to be one helluva show. This will be the best match up of the year without a doubt. If you aren’t going to be in Columbus for the show, catch the FREE webcast here on bodybuilding.com

Big shout out to Heather Policky for winning her pro debut. We provided exclusive content on Heather’s prep for the Sacramento show here on bodybuilding.com leading into the show.

Heather is now qualified for the Olympia later this year. She has one more show in her sights before heading to the Olympia stage though. Heather will get a bigger test in the pro ranks when she heads to Columbus this weekend. I look for Heather to be in the top 6 at this show but she will definitely have her hands full!

Congrats Heather!

I posted a few days ago that these two guys deserve a special invite to the Arnold and they’ve been rewarded exactly that.

Their performances at the Sacramento Pro show this weekend propelled them into the limelight and promoter Jim Lormier has rewarded them with a special Arnold Classic invite.

Congratulations to both of these bodybuilders and good luck at the Arnold!