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I've been involved in Armwrestling since 1994 How did you get started? The first time I armwrestled was against my brothers Darryl and Bobby. Darryl (180lbs of muscle) was right handed and Bobby (215 lbs of muscle) was left handed. They both beat me with no problem. Then I armwrestled a friend named Randy (200lbs and he qualified for American Gladiator) at Motorola and he beat me. I weighted about 160 lbs at the time. Randy invited me to go to a Yukon Jack Armwrestling tournament that was being held close to Chicago. What happened? I decided to go to the Yukon Jack Armwrestling Championship. When I got to the bar and was learning how to armwrestle, this lady said "Come over and warm me up.." I pulled with this lady who basically swung me around like a rag doll. Later I found out that she was Dot Jones. At 6'4 and 240 lbs and a 7 time undefeated World Champion, I was no match for this woman. I competed at the tournament and did a pretty good job. I went to this professional tournament and I beat a few guys in my weight class. My goal was to beat both of my brothers. Well, I can beat both of my older brothers now and I'm still going. What have you done since then? After competing in a few World Armwrestling Championships, I've realized the level of dedication to the sport of armwrestling. Winning at armwrestling takes a lot of training, strength, and thinking. I've dedicated myself completely to training hard just for armwrestling. I use to play semi-professional table tennis. I also made money traveling to various table tennis tournaments. I also played a lot of tennis and racquetball. Unfortunately, armwrestling took away a lot of my flexibility. Playing tennis, racquetball, and table tennis was like going through a weight lifting routine now that I've been armwrestling for so long. So I play very little now because it really hurts my armwrestling practices. I armwrestle twice a week. Sometime I armwrestle 3 times a week. In Chicago, there are a few small teams from different countries. I go to practice with them so that I can teach them armwrestling techniques. Everyone there really looks up to me when it comes to armwrestling, but I'm just doing something that I really enjoy doing. Well what exactly have you won all over the world? As far as all of the tournaments that I've won all over the world, here a few important ones: 1997 World Wristwrestling Champion Held In Wisconsin (Large Wristwrestling Association) Right and Left Handed 154lbs/70kg Class 1998 Hampton Iowa State Champion 80kg Right Handed and State Champion Left Handed at 165 lbs/75 kg 1998 Malvern Iowa State Champion Right Handed at 165 lbs/75 kg 1998 Nebraska State Champion Left Handed at 165lbs/75kg and 2nd Place 176 lbs/80 kg 1998 USA Nationals Held in Tauton, Ma. 2nd place 154 lbs/70 kg Right Handed and 2nd place 154 lbs/70 kg Left Handed 1998 WAF World Armwrestling Championships Held in Thunder Bay, Canada. Bronze medallist 154 lbs/70 kg class Left handed 1999 Roadhouse Indiana State Champion 176lbs/80kg Right Handed. 2nd place Left handed 198lbs/90kg 1999 Pull For The Hungry Regional Championships. Champion at 165lbs/75 kg Left Handed 1999 Hampton Iowa State Champion Left Handed at 75kg 1999 Indiana Wild Wings Armwrestling Champion at 176lbs/80kg 1999 Michigan State Champion 165 lbs/75 kg Right Handed and Champion at 176 lbs/80 kg Left Handed 1999 AAA National Championships held in Baton Rouge, La. 4th right and 4th Left Handed 154 lbs/70 kg 1999 USA National Championships held in Reno, NV. 165 lbs/75 kg National Champion Right Handed 1999 WAF World Armwrestling Championships Held in Tokyo, Japan. 4th Place at 165 lbs/75 kg Right Handed 2000 Arnold Schwarzenegger Armwrestling Invitational Classic Held In Columbus, Oh. Place To Be Determined in 80 kg Right Handed Class Armwrestling Workouts? My armwrestling workouts consists of armwrestling 2-3 times a week. I also run 5 days a week. I lift weights twice a week. I focus my routine on only the muscles that are used in armwrestling. Rope climbing, hand grippers, and finger pull-ups are also part of my routine. Recommendations For New Armwrestlers? Everyone is going to be different when it comes to armwrestling. So in order to get better at the sport, you will need to come up with your own workout. I started out copying everyone else's workout. But once I understood all of the muscles involved in a pull, I developed my own workout routine. I've always and will still continue to ask questions. I learn so much by talking to a lot of the armwrestlers. If someone has a move that beats you, don't be mad at the person, talk to him and find out how to do it. For example, I pulled Miles Wolko from Canada. He's an excellent armwrestler. He's got a move that is devastating. At a tournament, I talked to him and became good friends with him. He showed me so much about armwrestling. Not only a particular move, but also the why, when, and how part. So ask questions. A lot of armwrestlers are willing to go out of their way to help you get better if you ask. Learn from other people's experience.
There are so many people who have helped me to become a better armwrestler. Here are a few important people I would like to thank. First are the guys that I practice with week after week. Craig Wirth, Scott Golovon, and Jeff Bradley. Practicing with these guys makes me feel like I still have a long way to go! Jerome Moore who was the first person who taught me to think at the table and helped improve my technique even more. A few other really great pullers that were great trainers for me are Larry Geizer, John Grenman, Bill Sinks, and Troy Weeden. Thank all of you for helping me!!! There are so many other people that have helped. Denise Wattles, Dave Devoto, Ron Bath, Leonard Harkless, Steve Stanaway, Michael Barett, Miles Wolko, and Karen Bean are all great pullers to work with. Thanks for the help!! Email is gwilson67@hotmail.com Voice Mail is 630-536-2700 X7286 |
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ARMWRESTLING.COM- Dave Devoto (707) 537-7373 
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