Berg Ryman

Ok, good a question I know the answer to! So I brought this up in the pre-test call with Tyler and Michael about adding the products they sell to accompany the typical overspeed training sticks, like the squeeze, the C Stick, and the Force Pedal, and what their aims for the testing were or are with this round of testing. I know they talked about the Squeeze on the community call they did and some of the other products as well so I knew there was interest and I'm looking at trying whatever to make me faster, so I figured I'd bring it up. They said they wanted us to solely focus on the ten-week protocol with just the regular old Superspeed program for now. My hope is that this test gains the traction of the old thread from 2020, and we're still talking about it years down the line because I do potentially plan on picking up some of these other products once the 10 weeks is done and I can go over my thoughts with Tyler and Michael as to what I think I need to go even faster and keep this thread alive in that fashion.

Or maybe not, the air quality has shifted into the hazardous range for here and very unhealthy is the quality at home. Trying to come up with some alternative for tonight... hrrm

Well, I'm hoping to get started with Week 2 swings tonight, but a lot of that is dependent on Canada. As I'm sure you may be aware if you've been following news there are raging wildfires right now in Quebec, and all of that smoke is affecting air quality quite negatively in CNY where I am. As a former asthmatic child, I'm one of the types who probably shouldn't be out for that long in the open air. As such, we're thinking tonight might be masked-based outdoor swings, so just another potential hurdle tonight to get over. We will push on though to stay on schedule!

Btw, for those of you who haven't figured it out yet, @DrTstandy is Tyler, PhD in biomechanics who works with the folks at Superspeed in developing products and tracking data like the data you're seeing here to keep track of how the program works for golfers like you and me, as well as the tour staff and Superspeed ambassadors. Second straight day of rest here, but looking forward to getting back at it tomorrow evening. Goals for week 2 are as follows. 1: Going to hopefully be pushing closer to an average speed across all 5 swings of driver to 95 with maybe a top out closer to 100. 2: 1 Max out swing on the yellow stick at 108 or higher 3: All left swing regular swings for a session over 80 mph

Here's hoping 24 has an online component as 23 will not. If so, we'll meet up in the virtual sphere hopefully!

Same, Jaime, did you see the reveal for F1 Manager 23? Kinda lackluster, think I'm going to skip over this generation.

The week one sessions are in the books ladies and gents. and there has been some jumps, which is very very encouraging. First let's talk about the two sessions on Friday and Sunday. Friday was a super hot day and I was sweating just standing outside so I waited until the evening and went outside to take on the session, even at 90 plus in the evening. Do I think that helped keep the muscles loose, I do. I also think that led to some late fatigue as well as the session went on. Compare that with today's session. Temperatures much more moderate, but I also took on today's session after a big lunch, so full of food for energy, but maybe should have waiting until we fully digested in spots. Now, let's talk numbers. Speed are getting more consistent, and more importantly higher. Friday's Yellows were the first to hit 100 on non-max out swings, hitting one on a step swing. Today we hit that triple digit twice on regular right handed swings and once on a step. Greens got remarkably consistent averaging the same speed for all three swings on the right side in step and non-step, and Blue was up as well. Also, you'll note a jump in Friday's numbers for left handed swings from session one. I went to an interlocking grip with the left handed swing to make me feel more connected and it felt more like I could bet it moving. I went away from it today to try a full 10 finger grip, but that didn't work as well. So I'm trying to find the right way to keep speeds up and it looks like interlocking on the left is helping. So here's the raw numbers, and we'll be updating the spreadsheet at the top of the thread as well. Biggest things for me is maxing out on yellow at 105, and an increase of 1.8 mph after week 1, which works out as a 1.95% jump after 3 sessions. If we keep that up over the 10 weeks, that's crazy growth, but the good news is that it's working. Week 1:

There are very few people I am happier for when they get an opportunity like this than you Chuck. Once of the nicest and best-mannered golfers I've ever met. Here's hoping it finds you a few more acorns for my fellow blind squirrel in NC next week

Alright, so the first testing session was last night. I'm proud to report that it was a fun time! The swinging from the opposite side is something I know I'm going to have to try and figure out better because I didn't feel wholly confident trying to build speed there, but from where we were after the pre-session check at 92, I'm proud to announce we averaged across the five swings at the end 92.8! So a slight increase but maxing out at 95 on a 90 degree day after loading in an AC Unit and a long day at work felt really nice. Below is the rudimentary spreadsheet I had my loving wife help fill out for me. Loving those Max swings at the end of the protocol to see where you are. I hope the weather will break for my testing run on Friday, so slightly cooler temps and not as hard physical labor means some more gains, hopefully. But from the phone call, I'd note that the average over these 10 weeks is around 5-6 percent total, so goal then is to hit around 100 consistently after ten weeks. It's going to be a fun summer. Oh, a dynamic warmup video coming this weekend I think, or maybe tonight. Depends on my wife's schedule and mine, since we are crazy busy this weekend.

So I've done a ton of different grips, and what I've settled on is what's being called a ten-finger grip for putting by most outlets. It feels great on the putter grip for me and just allows me to feel very natural in the swing. I don't like to think of it as a classic ten-finger grip because that makes me think baseball or something, but it's an overlapping grip, without the overlap, so ten-finger is probably the right name for it.

Also, as an aside, if the videos for me doing the dynamic warmup thing week after week get good engagement, I promise that for the final week of the training I'll do it in a similar outfit to one Ms. Jennifer Fleischer. Is that a threat or a promise? Only you, the loving members of this forum may decide.

Excited to report tonight is the tester call with Superspeed Golf to get us all set up and questions answered before embarking on the test. That's right folks, we're so close we can taste it!

You wait until I bust out my yoga pants... oh boy oh boy, we'll have to age gate that one on the old Tube

Ok, for everyone's entertainment and against all good common sense, I've attached here the video of the Superspeed Dynamic Warmup as performed by Top 50 Golf Fitness trainer according to Golf Digest Jennifer Fleischer. I recommend you watch this video for watching the next video. Now, if you dare, please enjoy my video of me working my way through this dynamic warmup at the first attempt. Don't worry, I'm committed to doing this every Thursday for the next 10 weeks I assume we'll be talking about it in hushed reverence like we did The Office or Lost back in the day around your local water cooler. Also, after this warmup I took a few swings with the old driver to see where we sit right now... and good news. I'm exactly where I was expected to be. Long way to get back, but everyone starts somewhere.

Looking to get in some baseline swings tonight, and maybe film the dynamic warmup video for you. As someone with little balance the clock taps and squat twists should be something to see...

Alright, that is funny! Yeah, the color compromise on gray is a little... saddening. The things we do for love, and cooler sheets so I don't sweat through our new mattress

There's a reason I have it as a 2023 test... and beyond. I'm willing to go the distance here, even if the gains are slow at first. The road to better golf and more speed is never in a straight as a line as we wish sometime.

I see all you laughing, but this is a massive purchase for the wife and I. I was so excited to get this 200 dollar sheet set for 20 bucks after gift cards!

Yesterday I used a fair amount of gift certificates to land a sheet set for our new sleep number bed coming next week, very excited!

Alright everyone, unboxing and thoughts on the unboxing as well as some initial thoughts about why I got the set I got have been added to post 1. Also, everyone's favorite thing, photos added!

So, a note that my intro is now up and ready to be read by you fine people. But I also take this chance to jump into this thread before heading off on vacation add my .02 to this question I honestly have no concerns of this, Stroker. For me tempo is a natural rhythm and speeding up that rhythm doesn't change it in my opinion. I think of it in terms of musical notation, as a former music minor in college. If I have a bar of quarter notes (4 beats in a measure), it doesn't matter if that's 60 beats a minute or 240 beats a minute, 1 measure is 4 beats regardless. The speed of the measure changes, but what's in the measure doesn't. That was a very tortured analogy to say, I'm bringing what ever speed and whatever swing I have through the testing, no fear. I'm only coming to embrace that speed and learn to grapple with it on the edge of control.

TB1: Cut falls at +2 TB2: Spieth is E after two rounds

SUPERSPEED GOLF: The 2023 ... and Beyond Test Phase 1: The Introduction "If everything seems under control, you aren't fast enough." - Mario Andretti I admire Mr. Andretti if I'm honest. To be able to move through life, tempting danger at every turn and to do it on such an impossibly high level must be a thrill many of us will never experience in our lifetimes. To move outside of our comfort zones and stare the unknown and terrifying in the face and say... bring it on. Hello, I'm Berg Ryman, or Ryan if we aren't using code names. Unlike quite a few in this thread this is not my first rodeo in testing for the forum. I've been fortunate enough to test drivers, putters, irons, and even a driver demo program. I've taken every test seriously and fairly and this is arguably the biggest and most important test I've personally embarked on for this forum. We aren't just testing a new piece of equipment to see how it fits into our current game and swing, we're testing the ability to change something so fundamental to us, to retrain our brain and swing to go faster. A fearful change, but one that must be undertaken with proper care. Part of that care is realizing what you are, and what you can become. In that picture to your left I am 17 years old, I am an overswinging bomber of a high school player, averaging 270 off the tee but finding very few fairways. I have a swing speed measured in the mid 100's. As I've aged I have slowed down, as you do, but have added accuracy and consistency to the swing. Averaging now a smooth 230 at cruising speeds in the low to mid 90's. I used to be fast, I know I can be fast, I just need to remember how to be fast and that's very possible with the assistance of Superspeed. The other half of this equation is changing how you function. You can ask anyone who was on the Maryland trip last year, I'm not much in the way of a range rat, I don't properly warm up in the way I should and as such my game suffers a bit I'm sure. As far as fitness, I still feel like I'm the kid who was defined on a local golf forum as "the morbidly obese kid with the yellow driver." That's a true line from someone who later went to play D-1 at Penn State, and I had a Bang Mellow Yellow in the day, so I was the only person who they could have been referencing. I've always been stuck in that mindset and have battled my weight for years. I ballooned up to 419 lbs during law school, have dropped over 100 pounds to settle where I now in the 305-325 range depending on the time of year. My fitness program is minimal if non-existent. I play pickleball, I go to the Y to water walk and do some light cardio, and I carry my bag when I walk. I try my best for myself, but we're going to see what happens here. So, starting from basically square 1 on the fitness side and square maybe 1.5 on the golf swing side, what's the expectation here? I'm not expecting astronomical gains here. Hopefully I'd like to top out around 105 again. I think we'll see how realistic that is once we get an actual measurement on the PRGR as to where we're starting. I do want to learn effective warmup and do something golf fitness related to help me and try to fight off father time even though I'm on the younger side. I'm also hoping to make this entertaining and informative for all of you. This is a little different that most reviews and I hope you'll be there with us every step of the way. The nine of us are going to give you our best, after all it's what you all deserve. Phase 2: The Arrival Oh doesn't everyone just love when they get a notification that new stuff is awaiting at your doorstep? We all know the feeling, watching every notification, seeing things come closer and closer and then boom, the UPS box shows up and we're reverted back to being that kid on Christmas Day, unboxing the newest gift to add to the collection. You know though when it isn't as fun as possible? When you're in another state knowing you won't get to crack into that box until you return from vacation. So after a much needed vacation with the wife at the Von Trapp Lodge in beautiful Stowe, VT full of great food, better views, and long drives of the car type, we returned home to see the box from UPS brought in by my folks for me to rip open. I'll save you the boring part of me fanagling with tape and a black box and get to the beauty shots of the good stuff. First, the inbox and out of box of the PRGR So first thoughts on the PRGR, it's small! Like shockingly small for what I was expecting. It requires 4 AAA batteries to run, which I will pick up this evening to do a baseline of swing speed before our Zoom call with Kyle and the Superspeed team next week. Also, if you don't think I'm testing the soccer and baseball abilities of this for fun, you obviously haven't read one of my reviews. I love how compact it is, how easy it is to use, and the nice QR code-related card Superspeed stuck in there to assist us with set up and getting things going. In all, a really cool little monitor and a reminder that for all the GC3s or Trackman devices, you can get by with something no larger than an old flip phone... that's wild to consider. Now, onto the bigger box, the training sticks themselves. Again, from a branding perspective, I love these boxes. It's simple, it tells you exactly what you're getting into and it gets the three-color system right out there as the base of the Superspeed system. Again, I'll always appreciate the personal touch of a card thanking you for going on the adventure with them, and on the back is again a QR code to scan to help you get set up with the plan. The box is sturdy, well sectioned as you've seen before in @tommyb1683's pictures of the inside, and will be good for storage or reshipment if necessary. Alright, time for the money shots, the sticks themselves First off, let's talk about the build quality, the grips are fantastic and tacky, leaving me assured that they will withstand whatever force is put on them by my mediocre swing. The shafts are a beautiful shade of black that allows the colors for each club to pop so you won't possibly make any mistake as to what club you're swinging. The heads are well made and the paint fill is solid. On first blush, just feeling out the shafts and giving them a wave, they behave as a golf shaft does, so I'm not expecting anything weird to flair up in my swing over time, but it is going to be worth monitoring. Now, onto the most intriguing thing here, I do not have "La Baton Rouge" in my Superspeed set. That's right, the 3rd youngest person in this test has been sent a senior set of sticks from the folks at Superspeed. I'll admit, I was a bit taken aback when I saw the sticker on the box side saying senior and then opening up the box and seeing the yellow ultra light stick. Now, some of you might think it has something to do with my swingspeed, but actually it does not. Sure, if you head on over to the Superspeed website you'll see a bulleted point that says, "Choose the MEN'S set If you use a X, S, or R flex driver and/or swing over 90 mph." Now, this fits me to a tee, I use a stiff flex driver and swing over 90 mph, so what gives!?!?! Well, there's also a link to click to take a quiz to determine your best set, which I did as well, and here's where I found out why I got the senior set. First, you select a golfer category: men's, women's, junior (under 14), or senior (55+). Then you select whether you swing at over 90 MPH, below 90 MPH, or you don't know. But the third step is where I get moved into the senior category. The next step is to identify your driver, and the different spots there are men's length with a shaft 60 grams or more, or an ultralight driver, meaning less than 60 grams. As my current shaft is a 50 gram shaft (57.5 grams raw weight), to best fit the protocols and the weight difference, I move into senior at this point. So, that's where we sit at this particular moment. I do plan on doing a slight warmup and seeing where my speed sits over the next 48 hours before we get started. I've also watched the videos showcasing both the dynamic warmup of stretches and exercises to do before a speed training session and in my infinite wisdom, I'm going to have my wife videotape my first session of this every week, so we can see how my flexibility has improved from start to week 10. Get ready for a lot of pale wiggling and jiggling everyone... it's going to be a fun summer. Phase 3: The “Final” Review, September 22 by Berg Ryman. “Speed has never killed anyone. Suddenly becoming stationary… that’s what gets you.” - Jeremy Clarkson So, admittedly I was a Top Gear fan, BBC style, until the boys took off with Amazon. What’s also true that ol’ Clarkson can be, as the Brits say, a bit of a knob. However, this quote remains something that entered my mind during this testing. I’ve been tasked with reviewing in total a ten week program with SuperSpeed Golf, one that started with me at the very end of May, and given thought to this review and thoughts about the product technically concludes with this post. Also, before we start with the actual review, I’d draw attention to the use of quotation marks around the word final up there. Obviously, this is a choice, and maybe a spolier. As with the previous SuperSpeed thread, my aim here is to continue to update you as we work through phase two and longer with the program. I began my maintenance work last week and will continue to do it through the winter in New York before embarking on Phase 2 if we decide to in Spring 2024. It likely will come with monthly or bimonthly posts in the thread to answer more questions and show the impact continued maintenance is having on my gains from this testing. But alright, all that preamble to get to what you’re really here for, the actual review and my thoughts from the program. The Physical Product: 20 out of 20 Look, when you focus on one product as your main product it gives you time to design and develop something that is quintessentially yours and yours alone. Superspeed has done that here with their speed sticks for overspeed training. First, you know what it is from the outset when you see it, and you know why it is you’re hopefully buying it. It’s just the right amount of professionalism for the product without the potential fear or stigma that can come with other equipment brands in the golf space, or I guess here more appropriately, the exercise space. It’s non-threatening in that way, almost inviting you to learn about how to swing fast. The grips are great, although I do believe that as time goes on I mill remove them and replace mine with my grip of choice, the Lamkin Sonar Tour Wrap built +3, but likely not with the calibrate for the spine, but if you love that Tour Velvet style of grip, you know what you’re getting into. It’s also nice that the color codes make sense and are easily distinguishable so that way you won’t get confused. For the actual sticks themselves, they are properly balanced and feel like swinging a graphite shafted golf club, reacting in a similar way meaning so that it doesn’t feel like you’re swinging rebar or something not golf related. They can also take a beating if you do happen to hit them off a gravel driveway for instance… sorry yellow stick. The Program: 17 out of 20 Alright, let’s get into the actual meat of SuperSpeed, the program. It is laid out as a 3 phase, 5 level program, beginning with the 10 week phase 1, which we have completed here and contain both level 1 (the first 5 weeks) and level 2 (the second 5 weeks). The first 5 weeks is a 39 swing program with the sticks and between 6-10 with your own driver for 3 sessions a week. The second 5 weeks is again, a thrice weekly swing program with 57 swings of the sticks and 6-10 with your driver each session. Simply put, it’s a lot of swings during the week, regardless if you’re in shape, out of shape, playing once a week or every day. So, that’s something to be considered in taking on the decision to engage in the program. Now, I haven’t played much golf this year, but took this on as really my focus this year in my golf, meaning the feel of swinging isn’t all lost from not playing but once a week compared to the multiple times the last few years. It’s also important to take advantage of your rest days. I know the program says to take at least one day, but I was really happy to have those 2 days break after the end of the training set at the weekend. But we need to talk about something, and something I think is true of all exercise programs, golf or otherwise, and that’s the time commitment and need to commit to routine. Admittedly, that’s something that for me has never been a strong suit. I work long hours as an attorney, get home around dinner, and then to exercise after a long draining day mentally and emotionally is tough for me personally. For the first bit of the program, it wasn’t an issue. I was actually having fun with my routine. I was doing training in parking lots, my driveway, after rounds, at driving ranges with ice cream as a reward, etc. However, as I’ve admitted, I’ve ebbed and flowed throughout the training mentally and physically, and the injury/illness made getting back on the horse after that routine was gone difficult. Also, the time required may seem short when you think about the number of swings, but factor into it the stretching and warmup, getting everything set up, potential missed swings due to poor radar placement, etc, and it can be hard to cut out the necessary time. I understand that this will not be the same for every person and should solely be attributed to my issues, but it may be something to consider if you find yourself going through a similar situation. So, I guess what I’m saying is that for people of that ilk, maybe there could be something developed called “SuperSpeed Express”. Perhaps taking a shorter version of the protocol, maybe with only two sticks instead of three, less swings but similar fashion of exercises, and a lesser promise of a speed gain. Also, while I do enjoy that everything can be found on SuperSpeed’s free website for all the programs, having something more mobile friendly like app integration or a solo app would be helpful again for the professional on a time crunch. Lastly, this is something I think is important to note in who I think the SuperSpeed program may benefit the most. The design of this program is so much about working certain muscle groups, interacting with the swing in different fashions, engaging the kinetic chain and learning how to swing fast. Because of that, I believe that people who are taking lessons with a professional or already have a very functionally sound swing or an understanding of the function of the golf swing may see greater and quicker results than me, home taught and generally oblivious to those things. It’s why I think you see so much success with tour players with SuperSpeed Performance: 36 out of 40 I can hear you out there behind your computer screens or mobile devices, Berg, will it help my game? Well brave reader, I am telling you that it helped mine in certain ways, and had a less than positive impact in others. How’s that for a grade one tease? I mean, the numbers in the spreadsheet at the top of this thread do not lie. I started this test with a swing speed top out of the driver at 92 MPH,and at the end of 10 weeks, my driver speed measured 101 at the final session. In all that’s a gain of 9 mph with the driver, or 9.8%. When the numbers given on the box are between 5-8% the question as to the worth of the program makes it look like a slam dunk, but the question is really if that 9.8% is actually operational on the course. So this is where we’re talking about one of the dumbests posts I made in this thread. Stroker Ace asked us early on if people were concerned about tempo. Here is my exact quote. “I honestly have no concerns of this, Stroker. For me tempo is a natural rhythm and speeding up that rhythm doesn't change it in my opinion... I'm bringing whatever speed and whatever swing I have through the testing, no fear. I'm only coming to embrace that speed and learn to grapple with it on the edge of control.” So guess who hasn’t figured out the edge of control yet? That’s right, it’s your boy. My driver consistency has basically completely evaporated this season as to strike location. But, I will say that the speed has filtered down through the rest of the bag, meaning mid to short irons fly likely a half club longer, which I approximate as 7-10 yards of distance on a control even day. The other thing that is nice is that my 3 wood has turned into an absolute weapon off tess and off the turf. It is undoubtedly the best club in my bag right now and the speed training to send that bad boy launching into space is so nice. As I mentioned earlier in the thread with Tyler, the SuperSpeed program may have not raised my scoring ceiling by much, I do feel as if it’s raised the floor. If my range of potential outcomes has gone from 70-92 to 70-84 that’s enough of a marked improvement in my game to give this bad boy high marks in performance hence the score you see above, although the concerns about tempo can be a problem if you don’t play as frequently as you like. Keep it or Trade It: 20 out of 20 You see the number, you’ve seen the facts, you’ve heard my gripes. I’m keeping the program. I’m committing to the program going forward through this maintenance phase and hopefully into 2024. What I see myself doing is likely hybridizing the warm-up stretches into a format and style that I think works best for my body and what I know I need, while going through the program’s required levels. I also see myself continually using the SuperSpeed sticks as part of my pre-round routine as well. Lastly, there will be an order before month is out for the SuperSpeed Squeeze, so look for some content with that soon! As mentioned before, you should really look into SuperSpeed if you’re searching for speed. I think if it’s something you can commit to wholeheartedly and know that you can make it work, you’re going to see some dividends. If you have a solid swing or are working with a professional on some of the issues around swing sequencing, I think you might even see more of a benefit due to being ahead of the curve as to comes to some of the motions in the training. Who should pass? People looking for a quick fix, people who can’t commit the time necessary, people who are completely terrified to tempo issues. I think there are options and I think general training can help, but SuperSpeed works if you make the commitment and force yourself into that commitment. If you know you can’t or don’t want to try, you can pass. Final Summation: I loved my time with the product, even though it seems like I may not have. The frustrations I have are primarily with myself, the way my attitude can affect how I approach things, and just the bad luck of the back to back delay in testing, but those things happen. SuperSpeed works, the product is of high quality, and the program is set up to help you succeed if you put in the effort. Those who do will play better golf and have more fun, because who doesn’t love hitting bombs? As always, the pleasure was mine. FINAL SCORE: 93/100

Played the first round of the year and now home to shower up and attack the back half of the day... the round was full of mistakes and an awful day off the tee, basically topping everything, but enough good to inspire some hope.

So I don't drink, wife used to be part of a craft brew group in CNY for women, so she's excited to take on this trip for that reason as well as being a cheese lover as well. Really this is a dream trip for her so I'm pulling out all the husband stops. We're doing a tour of the Von Trapp brewery on site, and likely hitting Burlington Brewing Co on Friday. She's a big fan of their fruited line, with the Whale Cakes and what not.