Fastest Falls (and other pinning particulars)

[ideamark]

Fall. Stick. Pin. All describe the same thing in amateur wrestling: The way to instantly end a match is to put both shoulders of your opponent to the mat for one full second.

There's a fascination with falls that goes beyond the college wrestling community. It's like the knockout in boxing; a win by pin takes on added significance beyond a regular decision. (In fact, in terms of team points, a fall equals six points, while a decision by 8 points or less is worth three.)

Here are some fun facts about pins...

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-7...ng-particulars

Mark

PS I've attached pics of two prodigious pinners: 1920s Oklahoma State heavyweight Earl McCready (portrait)... and Dan Hodge of Oklahoma (white trunks), about to turn and pin Iowa's Gary Kurdelmeier

[Wiltz]

Good stuff Mark.

[gg121and2]

2 questions?

Where does pinfall fit into the terminology?

What about Bruce Kinseth? In 1979 he pinned his way through Big Tens AND NCAAs.

[ideamark]

2 questions?

Where does pinfall fit into the terminology?

What about Bruce Kinseth? In 1979 he pinned his way through Big Tens AND NCAAs.

Hi Jim,

First, sorry that I missed Bruce Kinseth. I had seen a list of names of those who had pinned their way through the NCAAs, and worked from that. Some names were wrong (the guy hadn't accomplished that feat), and a couple were missing... including Kinseth. I will add him to my list. I guess this means I won't be able to count on that free night in one of his hotels. ;-)

(Seriously, thank you for bringing his accomplishment to my attention)

As for pinfall... it's a word I've seen in non-wrestling media, and in older student newspapers and college yearbooks. It does seem redundant, so I try not to use it, unless I'm quoting someone or an older publication.

Mark

PS Sorry I was so slow to answer -- is there a way to be notified when new posts are added to a thread I started?

[gg121and2]

Hi Jim,

First, sorry that I missed Bruce Kinseth. I had seen a list of names of those who had pinned their way through the NCAAs, and worked from that. Some names were wrong (the guy hadn't accomplished that feat), and a couple were missing... including Kinseth. I will add him to my list. I guess this means I won't be able to count on that free night in one of his hotels. ;-)

(Seriously, thank you for bringing his accomplishment to my attention)

As for pinfall... it's a word I've seen in non-wrestling media, and in older student newspapers and college yearbooks. It does seem redundant, so I try not to use it, unless I'm quoting someone or an older publication.

Mark

PS Sorry I was so slow to answer -- is there a way to be notified when new posts are added to a thread I started?

Mark,

No problem on the Kinseth thing. That's just something that most Hawkeye fans love to cite.

As for the "pinfall" question - that was meant to bait Dart Shark into a response. He HATES it when someone uses that term.

Jim