Nearly five dozen arm wrestlers top-rolled, hooked and pinned at the Tilted Kilt Bar and Restaurant, 3017 Erie Blvd. E., to compete for a chance to flex their muscles in the 2015 regional championship coming up in Las Vegas.
Male and female contenders in the “the everyman’s sport” were joined by nearly 200 noisy spectators during the March 21 event. Chalk dust, used by wrestlers to better their grip against their opponents, floated through the air, as contestants waited for their chance at the arm wrestling table, flanked by two officials judging each match.
Matches often take less than 10 seconds, with much of the time spent positioning the player’s hands into the approved grip. The arm wrestling table is designed with elbow cushions, hand pegs that players are required to grip with their free hand during the match, and a single black string on each side.
Pinning your opponent’s arm to the string ends the match.
Watch the video: Get A Grip – (story continues below):
VIDEO
The professional World Armwrestling League WAL Tournament Director, Travis Bagent.
Travis “The Beast” Bagent CNY Arm Wrestlers walunderground.com Hand-to-Hand Training
CNY Arm Wrestlers coach, Chris Myers, gives tips and pointers during Battle of Arms III: Judgement Day.
CNY Arm Wrestlers Over The Top as the influence that spurred him to enter his first tournament at age 14: “I was sitting at home one weekend flipping through the TV stations and watched Over The Top . I told my mom, ‘I want to try that,’ and entered my first tournament. I was hooked ever since.”
Nagy has been arm wrestling on and off for more than a decade, but he has been more focused on the sport during the last five years. “Back in 2003-2004 I went to Columbus, Ohio, to watch a professional arm-wrestling tournament,” Nagy said, “where I met good friend Scott Latella from Schenectady, who later started to train me. Then he turned me to Chris Myers, who has taught me a few new tricks and techniques that have helped me along the way.”
Christopher Myers Christopher Myers.
Nicole Roof placed first in the Women’s Amateur Right (0-135 division) during the Syracuse qualifier.
‘Pulling’ from History
Wrestling is one of the world’s oldest forms of combat, dating back to 15,000-year-old French cave drawings. Egyptian tomb paintings from 2000 B.C. depict various wrestling positions, including an arm wrestling contest.
During the 1500s, Spanish explorers observed Native Americans using “arms, legs or whole bodies to unbalance or pin their opponent.” In the 19th and 20th centuries, settlers of the American frontier began copying the indigenous style. They called it “Indian wrestling,” which pitted specific body parts against one another including back wrestling, balance wrestling, thumb wrestling, hand wrestling and arm wrestling.
“I Scout, so-and-so, challenge anyone in Indian hand wrestling.”
article in a 1936 Boy’s Life magazine An Intense Routine
When Steve Hale isn’t working on restoring classic cars and motorcycles with his company, Steve’s Restorations and Hot Rods, the Clinton resident focuses on arm wrestling. Hale, who competed in the WAL’s first Las Vegas tournament in the open/professional class in 2014, explained that arm wrestling “inspired me to stay healthy and have some big goals.”
Steve Hale explained that arm wrestling “inspired me to stay healthy and have some big goals.”
VIDEO
Michael Grimaldi Michael Grimaldi.
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