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E-mail StoryArm wrestlers muscle up for fundraiser tournament
| Wednesday, May 14 2008 11:12 AM
Last Updated: Wednesday, May 14 2008 11:05 AM
It takes three things to be an arm wrestling star: speed, technique and strength.
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Men’s Weight Divisions:
Up to 155 Lightweight
156 to 179 Middleweight
180 to 205 Light Heavyweight
206 to 230 Heavyweight
231 and over Super Heavyweight
Women’s Weight Divisions:
Lightweight and Heavyweight
(dependent on number of entries)
• $500 and trophy to overall winner
• $300 to first place in each division
• First-, second- and third-place trophies for each division
What: 6th annual Ryan Sheets Memorial Arm Wrestling Tournament
When: Saturday, competition noon to 6 p.m., participant weigh-in 9 to 11 a.m.
Where: Norris Road Veterans Hall, 400 Norris Road
Admission: $5; $20 fee for all entrants.
Details: 399-1155 or 301-2477
Photos:
Donald Ray, left from Little Rock, Ark., matches up with Scott Hohrath, right, of Jacksonville, Fla., in an early round of the 30th annual American Arm Wrestling Association National Championships held at the Holiday Inn Select in 2000. The referee is Steve Stanaway.
Oh, and one more thing, says champ Richard Toland:
“You gotta be a little bit off your rocker,” he adds, laughing like a wild man.
This Saturday, the sport that moved out of the intoxicated huddle of macho guys at the neighborhood bar and into the world of extreme sports will draw hundreds of spectators and participants to the Norris Road Veterans Hall.
The 6th annual Ryan Sheets Memorial Arm Wrestling Tournament has grown into one of the largest arm wrestling tournaments on the West Coast, Toland says.
The memorial tournament began in 2003 to celebrate Toland’s friend, Ryan Sheets. The North High champion wrestler injured his neck at Cal State Bakersfield, and the injury contributed to his death after an auto accident in 2001.
“Me and him arm wrestled dozens of times,” says Toland, a 2001 arm wrestling champ. “We’d have a couple of beers and arm wrestle once a week just to see who’s toughest.”
The tournament raises money for local high school and college wrestling programs. Last year, the group raised more than $12,000, and the organizers have given away $43,000 in the past five years.
The event grew from 60 arm wrestlers and 100 spectators in its first year to more than 110 participants and 500 to 600 fans last year. Sheets’ friend, Stephen Neal of the New England Patriots, and Jeremy Williams of TV boxing show “The Contender” have turned up to watch in the past.
A few participants have walked into the tournament out of curiosity and ended up champs.
“Everybody started arm wrestling when they were little kids, and everybody wanted to arm wrestle and then everybody grew out of it,” Toland says.