New York's toughest fight it out among themselves
Posted on: Thursday, 17 November 2005, 17:03 CST
By Ellen Wulfhorst
NEW YORK (Reuters) - In a city where strong-arm tactics may be commonplace, scores of New York's toughest on Thursday turned the practice into a spectator sport.
Grunting and grimacing, contestants battled their way through New York's annual arm-wrestling championship, staged before a crowd in the center of the giant Port Authority Bus Terminal.
While nearly everyone has tried arm wrestling, although generally not since childhood or maybe a late night in a bar, these contestants said it's harder than it looked, and it looked hard.
David Milburn, a burly 35-year-old security guard, said the key is attitude. His tactic was wearing dark, mirrored sunglasses to intimidate his opponents.
"It's like playing poker. You hide your eyes," he said. "It's a mental thing."
The day's champion, Shaun Freeman, 24, said: "It's all about technique. The trick is you've got to practice."
Winning for a third straight year, Freeman won his super heavyweight class, for those weighing more than 225 pounds, then went on to defeat the winner in each of the other seven weight classes below his.
Nathan Berdugo, also 24, who works as a food deliveryman, found out about technique the hard way. Having only heard about the contest two weeks ago, he quickly lost.
"That's my problem," Berdugo said. "I don't have any technique at all."
Bob Santalucia of Troy, New York, learned his lesson an even harder way. His match ended with a loud snap as he clutched his wrist in pain. As onlookers agreed among themselves that he surely broke some arm bone, he left in an ambulance.
Not everything about arm wrestling is hard, players said. One contestant said he trains on bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches, while another admitted the staple of his diet was candy.
More than 70 arm wrestlers, including two women, competed in the afternoon-long event sponsored by the New York Arm Wrestling Association. Winners took home medals and plaques.
"It just feels good that I can tell people I'm the arm wrestling champion of New York," said Freeman. "And the girls like it."
Source: REUTERS
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