2016 Wings of Strength Rising Phoenix

I wish I had a lot to say about this.But it's like a shadow passing through the Bodybuilding world.
Did they even hold it?
Yes they did.Here are the results.
Margie Martin won it again for the second time.
The only video I've seen from the event was taken by a spectator in the audience during the prejudging.It was adequate.I could get some idea of the condition of the competitors.But it was also an amateurish failure on the part of the promoters.I would have watched a live steam if one had been available.Maybe their was one.I don't know?I do try to follow what's left of women's bodybuilding.I may not be doing a very good job of keeping up.But There's not much out there.
Why don't they try to get Amazon to stream it next year like they're doing with the Olympia competition.
And yes,it's disgusting that they basically decapitated Women's Bodybuilding out of the Olympia.They could easily have it before the rest of the contest.On the prior weekend,or on the Thursday before the weekend.But AMI is a business.They don't actually value bodybuilding for it's own sake.Honestly some of the women now on the Olympia stage look like they could be working in Las Vegas,and not as personal trainers.That's what sells to the masses.But the amount of respect I tend to have for common tastes might fill a thimble.I really don't think the object of bodybuilding is to be conventional,and unthreatening to ordinary people.It's for people to push their personal limits,and achieve something awesome.But that's a complicated subject which I may return to in the future.( If I can find time to sit down and klutz at the keyboard )

Now my feelings about the results.And this will be mostly about feelings.I've discovered I don't really watch bodybuilding like a usual sporting competition.It does seem more like a display,performance,or pageant.I don't want to see them run like beauty pageants because that wouldn't be the intent of the sport.It does have to keep the ideal of development.Actual muscle building.Though having different divisions,and weight classes is legitimate.
But I don't enjoy looking at people I don't find attractive.Who does? That's the problem.I try to be a good sport about it though,and not degenerate into cheap meanness.
I'll be honest.I never watched the years of the Ms Olympia that Iris Kyle ( or Kim Chizevsky ) won except for maybe 2013/14.I didn't pay very much attention to Kyle.I may have run a Google image search once,or twice.
Alina Popa is the one I like.I follow her media,and look for pictures of her.She is beautiful,and inspiring.
She came in second a few times to Kyle.Then she got injured in 2014.That was the year the contest was dropped so she couldn't have competed anyway.Terrible luck because she probably would have won.She deserved it.
So Margie Martin ( a woman I had never even heard of ) won in 2015.I thought Popa would have a good chance at it this year.She came in third behind Martin,and Sheila Bleck.
Well expletive deleted that,and the horse it rode in on.
I think they made the wrong decision.She has a polish,and beauty that women's bodybuilding is desperately in need of.I sometimes think women's bodybuilding is trying to commit suicide.Maybe it's just shortsightedness.They see a woman with bulk,and an X frame and give her the trophy.But she doesn't make you gasp,and say Wow!She isn't beautiful,or very interesting.But big.
That's were women's bodybuilding has gone off the track.Cory Everson,Lenda Murray.Anja Langer and others were amazing looking women.Larger than life,and heroic looking.But also truly beautiful to look at.Exciting.Inspiring.

You have to respect Margie Martin .She's a USMC vet,and the mother of four children.She does have the desired X frame.Wide shoulders,and well developed quads.She's not unattractive either.She seems like a nice lady.If you're a fan,fine.Good.She's impressive.

Margie Martin

Now here's why I can't put her in first place.Right to left symmetry is unacceptable.To be blunt,I hate breast implants.They never look better than real breasts.But hers are just wonky.The right goo bag is lower than the left one.I don't know what boob of a surgeon did this work,but he's a hack.But she's responsible for them.She paid for them.That should be a huge deduction.
I think the above picture(pink suit ) is from 2015,or earlier 2016.
I found a few from the contest.(there aren't many online ).So here she is this year.

Margie Martin Rising Phoenix 2016.

Margie Martin.

You can clearly see she still has the problem with the fouled up implants.If bodybuilding has any self respect left,you don't overlook something this glaring.
Now we move on to her lower abdomen.What is going on there? A tattoo? Scars?
It's a mess.
Scars are not someones fault,but...This is bodybuilding.A lot of flaws may not be somebodies fault but they don't get overlooked.I notice that in an instant.Again it should be a deduction.
If it's a tattoo, then 100% the fault of the contestant.And yes I think it matters.Tattoos are a distraction from the muscles,and skin.If they're large,or poorly placed it should count against the person.
We should have higher standards than this.Too many noticeable problems.

Sheila Bleck placed second.A very fine bodybuilder who has had a long career.Great muscle density,and nice symmetry.

Sheila Bleck at the 2016 Rising Phoenix.

She has the kind of high quality physique that should earn top placings in women's bodybuilding.
Some people may find the facial signs of Androgen usage,and low voice bothersome to their sensibilities.That's kind of par for the course in bodybuilding though.
I do think she's a worthy high level competitor.

Alina Popa.No apologies I think she's the best.She's the perfect package of muscle maturity,polished lines,and genuine beauty.She really does embody my ideal for a female bodybuilder.I've seen others I can put in that top tier.But she's the pinnacle.If I have to choose one female bodybuilder I would most want to have the physique of,it's her.

Alina Popa at the 2016 Rising Phoenix.

Alina Popa at the 2016 Rising Phoenix.

Her back was looking spectacular.Great shoulders.Great skin tone,and hair.Her conditioning is very good though the judges may have preferred a more ripped look.I personally feel that can go too far with women.I don't like the skinned chicken look.
The criticism I could make is the left calve.I may be seeing the effects of the left Achilles tendon tear ( And right bicep tendon tear she suffered when she fell on the stairs after her Achilles tear surgery.Painkillers and stairs are not a good combination. )
Her calves have never been her best body parts.They look adequate,but not extraordinary.But honestly it seems to be common to give great bodybuilders some mercy on the calves.I love deep diamond calves.It's a notoriously hard body part to force into growth.
Anyway;I do hope that women's bodybuilding isn't foolish enough to fail to award this amazing women the top trophy soon.

I am going to leave the review here at the top three.If I feel like it I might make a post on the lower finishers.

Book Review:Strong and Hard Women by Tanya Bunsell.

Rene Campbell on the cover of Strong and Hard Women

This book was written by an ethnographer about the female bodybuilding scene in the UK.
I've read a number of academic oriented history books.So I do know the approach to the content to expect.There has to be a consideration of weather or not a book is being written for an insider or general readership.This book is very much written for the ethnographic academia department.It has very little appeal to a general reader.
It's written in academicese.Insider language.It's the kind of book where you know you're going to find the word liminal.I hit it on page 133.I'm surprised she held out that long.
You could make a drinking game out of how many time she uses the word hegemonic,but I'm afraid you'd knock yourself out..The problem with this approach is that it's all in group communication on in group mutually agreed upon concepts.Which could be a bucket of self satisfied academic hogwash for all the average reader would know.I do suspect a certain amount of twaddle emerges from the ivory towers.I had a little groaning,and eye rolling workout trudging through some of it.And no,I'm not an inarticulate idiot who just doesn't 'get it'.I just take it with a grain of salt.
But we'll grant this writer,Tanya Bunsell, means well.

The first problem is she's not a good writer.It's very awkward.Does anyone actually use the word 'Whilst' anymore?It's pretentious,and slogging.Filled with constant references,and quotes from other ethnographers.Most of the beginning of the book is little more than a defense,and apologia of her attempt to study the subject.You could scan through the first 50 pages,and you wouldn't miss much.If you can't affirm it's valuable to study something,and get on with it why waste so much paper?
She doesn't seem to quite know how to position herself in the writing.She admits she has weight trained.And injured herself doing so.She's faced some negative comments from others.She became a personal trainer before she pursued her career in academics.Dated some guys who lift.She's laying out her gym rat cred.But it also feels like she sees herself above it.
Then it's on to the issue of how the ethnographer treats the  subjects.Yes it's a genuine ethical issue of how people should be treated during research,and journalism.Stay detached,or go native?
How do you understand people without becoming immersed?Can you?
And how do you treat them with concern,and protect their privacy.Make sure they don't experience negative consequences by participating in a study of their lives.I do think she's trying to be considerate.She does seem to be using pseudonyms in most cases.Though you may be able to figure out who the women are if you tried.

Bunsell is looking at Women's Bodybuilding from a Feminist philosophical,and political viewpoint.
Do I have to say it doesn't pass their sniff test.Quelle suprise as the French would say.
Of course many feminists have decided that it's a beauty contest  pandering to the male gaze,and compromised by commercial concerns.Many things are.
She also presents the question of whether bodybuilding is a deviant subculture.I don't think that's a fair way of describing it.I'm not saying the author thinks that.But the word subculture gets tiresome.
Bunsell does try to point out the way women are using bodybuilding to achieve a greater sense of self determination.To control,and create their own bodies.We all know the business of bodybuilding is hard on women.But that doesn't mean that most female weight trainers aren't committed lifters who genuinely enjoy the process.Including bodybuilders who have to go through all the difficulties of diet,and stage presentation.I do think that voice is allowed to get across.
There is the real strong point in the book.The voices of the female bodybuilders themselves.Yes,there are statements from the same old braying boys bashing female muscle.And some of the male fans too.But the women are speaking about standing up for themselves,and pursuing their ambitions to gain a muscular body.Their information is worth hearing.It's good material.There's just not enough of it.The two main informants are 'Sarah' and 'Michelle'.They,and others, talk about their attraction to bodybuilding,and the repercussions to their lives.The process and gym work,and the environment It follows 'Michelle' through a contest with the accompanying miseries.
She does go into the dreaded dark side,spooky steroids! And into the private wrestling sessions that some female bodybuilders make income from.(Which is spookier)
Of course she was going to cover these subjects.It's the usual.Maybe a little better informed than most.She was nervous when someone came into her flat,and deposited her growth hormone in her refrigerator.Luckily the fuzz didn't bust down the door.There is also discussion of the brutal labor of the gym.The risk of injury.The sacrifice of dieting.The general scene of macho body violence.
I don't think she's giving in to much sensationalism on these subjects to give her credit.
There's the issue of this being written in England.It feels much more insular,and behind the times in the bodybuilding world.I think that impression is accurate.It's sure not California.Maybe Brits are more shocked by these women.There aren't that many high level competitors from the UK.
Bodybuilding is more limited there.So is the whole fitness scene.Many of the basic life issues are the same of course,but I did notice the difference.

The book isn't very long.166 pages including the notes.Unlike bodybuilders,it doesn't have much meat on it's bones.There's it's main weakness.It's simply light in content.Not much that's fresh,unique,or especially insightful.It could be considered valuable to have an ethnographic study of women's bodybuilding.I'm sure it would be to ethnographers.So thanks for that.I don't happen to be one.But at least that angle has been covered now.
( Let me take a moment to compare it to the work done in the book "Caught in the Pulpit" by Daniel Dennett,and Linda LaScola. Dennett is a professor of Philosophy,and cognitive studies.LaScola is a qualitative researcher.That's not the same thing as an ethnographer.But they are approaching a similar set of issues of research into the life processes,thoughts,and feelings of their subjects.Which happen to be ministers leaving their vocation.There's not as much political analysis.But they do a fine job of bringing the voices of the people through to the reader.It's a more engaging human study.)
There aren't too many visuals.A striking photo of Rene Campbell is on the cover.But there are only a few black,and white photos inside.I have to admit one of the subjects is difficult to recognize as female.I think she's since gone into strongman/woman competitions.So there's the aesthetics conundrum again.

Recommendation:Don't bother buying it unless you're really intrigued by the ethnographic approach.
Most of this material has been better covered in other works.You could get it from a library,and read the sections quoting the women themselves to get the best out of it.
But I'm not saying it's without value.It's an addition to the limited number of serious works on women's bodybuilding.