 Triathlon
– Easy on the Eyes. Triathletes are special
people – willing to get up obscenely early for a
brutal race that demands proficiency in no less
than three separate sports. One being not
drowning. Of course I must admit that the black
numbers they write on your arms and legs are
pretty damn sexy. And it’s a chance to show off
your tight ass and flat stomach. If you’ve been
training hard, that is.
If you liked your
men in Speedos, then this was the race for
you. Beefy, chiseled guys made for nice eye
candy. The women were easy on the eyes as well,
in their tight triathlon outfits. I’ve always
thought that triathletes are some of the fittest
athletes out there, they have to be – simply to
meet the rigors of the sport.
This race was
dominated by Chicagoans. There was a strong
showing from Chicago’s two vibrant triathlon
groups, Chicago Tri Women and Chicago Razors. It
was harder to find the international
participants, though. If you weren’t informed
that this was an international competition, you
might have not known this at all. After some
searching, I did find two Germans and a
Brit. Where was everyone else, I wondered.
The heat was
simply unbearable, one of those infamous Chicago
muggy days. The sun seemed to burn through
everything, especially the participants as they
embarked on the long, unshaded run. Lee Moran,
medical chair informed me that there were five
heat related cases, mostly dehydration and one
person who had to be taken to x-ray a knee
injury. The folks all got excellent care, as
there were four ambulances on standby, two
doctors, and a ton of other medical folks.
Some of more
masochistic participants were also little sleep
deprived, having stayed for the entire opening
Ceremonies the previous night. A small, but
dedicated crowd of spectators braved the heat to
cheer on the runners.
Adeline, a tow
headed 7-year-old cheered and waved a
multi-colored rainbow pom-pom as athletes
crossed the finish line. She was part of a
closely-knit group from Oak Park comprised of
two straight families, two gay families, and all
their kids. Ellie, another seven year old from
the group had made a rainbow bracelet for her
gay father that said “Papa.” He wore it in the
race. Too cute for words.
Tricia Sulita ran
the Gay Games triathlon on her forty fifth
birthday. She was happy with her race saying,
“my goal was to not drown. ” Simply surviving
the swim was a nice birthday present. Tricia, an
organizer with the Chicago TriWomen, cheered on
her fellow group members as they crossed the
finish line.
Most Dedicated
Award:
You think you have lots to do before the
race? Kris a mother from Oak Park had to pump
her breast milk for her baby. She had just given
birth two months earlier, and her baby was at
the race. Kris looked fantastic and it was
amazing that she could go out and race so soon
after having a child.
Quote of the
Day: One
of the guys on the Chicago Razor’s triathlon
team told me that they stand “for men who like
to shave time and shave their legs.” - Ronit
Bezalel
Hot times at
football: Cyd and I spent eight hours out at
flag football, where it was in the 90s and
humid. I have never appreciated the shade of a
tree or a bottle of water more and I know I
speak for players from all 15 teams. They were
brutal conditions to play under and made me
long, at least for an afternoon, for a bit of a
Chicago winter.
Team Outsports went 1-1 on the day, losing a
thriller to Boston, 21-20, and beating San
Diego, 25-7, in a game that ended at 7 p.m. The
action in all the games was spirited and it sets
up what should be fun playoffs starting Tuesday.
Former NFL player Esera Tuaolo plays for
Outsports and it was terrific seeing him on the
field with other gay players, no longer having
to hide.
Another former NFL player, David Kopay, was
there and he provided my most memorable moment
of Day 1. It was at the end of the Boston game
and Outsports players were calling for water at
the other end of the field. I knew I was going
to go back out on offense and there was no way I
was running 40 yards to deliver water. Corey
Johnson, our center, felt the same. What do we
see next but Dave Kopay, more than 30 years
after his last game and someone who has had a
hip and a knee replacement, running down the
sidelines with bottles of water in his arms to
give to the team. It was a classy move by a
great guy who has never forgotten what it's like
to be athlete. -Jim Buzinski
Hot times in the shower: Sorry I missed
the doings Sunday night at Spin, where the West
Hollywood water polo team presented quite a
show. Our spies say they had five totally hot
guys in an on-stage shower, naked except for
strategic small pieces of cloth. They moved to
the beat and bumped and grinded as customers
went wild ogling them. Where a camera when you
really need it. -JB
10k Road Race:
The weather continues to be the story at the
Chicago Gay Games, as the fiercest challenge is
surviving the heat.
“We need extra water. The race is about to
start, we need extra water for the 10k,” an
organizer announced into her walkie-talkie
before the 10k road race began. Monday.
The 10k road race was delayed half an hour until
the water delivery truck arrived. There wasn’t
any ice and the Gatorade ran out. One person
mentioned that the 10k seemed to be the most
disorganized thing she’d seen. In the true
community spirit, some spectators jumped in to
help volunteer where they were needed.
“You’ve got to give props to Chicago, they only
had two years to organize this,” said runner
Annette Wachter from Germany. On organizing
committee for the 2010 Cologne games, Wachter
was paying close attention to how things were
being run.
The 10k race seemed much more international than
the other competitions. Both male and female
winners were European – Stefan Henricksson, 41,
from Sweden led all competitors with a
blistering time of 36:07. Katrin Lange, 29, from
Germany was the first woman, with a time of
44:31. Lange was amazingly buff, with one of
those dream bodies. “She’s got a nice ass,”
commented Steve, my gay male friend. Lange was
fresh off an Ironman competition that she
finished only two weeks earlier.
The heat was too much for Italian participant
Cosimo Bamonte, who collapsed shortly after
crossing the finish line. He was immediately
swarmed by the medical staff who cooled him
down. After about ten minutes, Bamonte was
helped up and escorted to one of the ambulances.
I spoke with Bamonte afterwards and he was fine,
except for suffering severe dehydration.
The biggest applause went to competitor Darryn
Dunbar, the last person to finish the race. He
crossed the line as the medal ceremony was
underway. “I got a late start” he said, having
overslept and begun the race half hour later
than everyone else. -Ronit
Bezalel
Off Road Riding: As I’m mountain biking
Tuesday, I’m nervous about racing at noon in
this sweltering heat. “Will there be enough
Gatorade tomorrow at the mountain bike race?” I
asked one of the volunteers.
“I’m not sure.” He said. “You’d better bring
your own supplies to be safe.”
You can betcha I’m stocking up on Gatorade.
Heck, I’ll probably have to bring enough for the
47 other riders as well. Ronit
Bezalel
Best Quote: An Chicago tennis player
quipped, “Being used to the heat isn’t much of
an advantage. me. I need Tonja Harding to come
and bash my opponents’ knees if I’m ever going
to have a chance to win.” Ronit
Bezalel
Memphis Email.
A member of the Memphis Express basketball
team took issue with my note
yesterday that they were in the wrong
division and sent us the email below. I'm sure
they're wonderful guys and I'm sure they're
trying their hardest. I was simply saying that
they are in the wrong division. You decide.
"Our
Memphis team is one of people from across the
country. We are true basketball lovers in every
sense of the word. Using the great technology at
our disposal in today's modern society, we
scoured the country looking for teammates and
friends. We are in a building process that
started at Chicago's tournament last year where
we played on a team with a great group of guys.
We continued to work on our skills and faired
better in the Atlanta tournament last year. This
year we improved by leaps and bounds, however
the results are obvious.
"I think it is fair to note that our team was to
consist of eight players. Our big man at 6`7 had
to pull out 2 days before the tournament for
personal reasons. One of our other players, a
guard, has been unable to play with us. With two
of our players not being at the game against New
York or the other games we have played thus far,
we are short-handed. Many players have had to
step up into roles that we were not expecting.
"Like any other team in history, there is a
building process that is leading to the results
we want. The same holds true for gay sports in
general. I was not around for the first Gay
Games, but I would place a wager that states it
is nothing near what it is now. You have to walk
before you crawl. We are not here to play for
second best. Right now we are a team striving to
become a good team and then a great team.
"As we sit, we are 0-4. While I would prefer to
have a better record, I would not change the
experience for anything in the world. This is
where I want to be. As with the other
tournaments I have played in, I have developed
great friendships that will last forever.
However, it is demoralizing when my teammates
came to Chicago to have a great time and we end
up in front of the firing squad otherwise known
as outsports.com.
"Freedom of the press is a great right that we
have in this country. But with this right, there
comes great responsibility. When a "writer"
decides he has a story to write, he must make
sure to research every aspect of the story. We
are a great group of friendly guys and would
have been more than happy to talk with you.
"The
Gay Games is supposed to be an event of great
fellowship for all Gay, Lesbian, Bi-Sexual, and
Trans-Gender people. Your attack on our team was
unwarranted and unprovoked. We will continue to
have a great time and enjoy the fellowship of
all those people that wish to be our friends and
get to know us despite those that wish to cast a
shadow over our time here." -Cyd Zeigler jr. |
Gallery: Various Sports
(40 photos)
Gallery: Wrestling
(21 photos)
Gallery: Official Gay Games photos
(20 photos)
The Diary of a Gay Games Virgin
Gallery: Competition Starts
(24 photos)
Gallery: Opening Ceremonies
(116 photos)
Gallery: Registration
Saturday
(18 photos)
Gallery: A look back at Sydney 2002
(200+ photos)
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