NEW GAY LONDON WRESTLING CLUB BUILT

January 7, 2008
IAIN SCOTT, publisher of an alternative gay wrestling magazine, Wrestlers' Contact, in Glasgow in the 1990s, moved to London later where he founded the Speedo-Wrestlers Club.
    At first they used the wrestling facility at Hendon. They then moved to Woolwich Rugby Club which was also used by the gay rugby club "Steelers". Unfortunately, an impromptu orgy in the showers which Iain describes as "accidental" meant they were no longer welcome there.
    They moved to the gay sauna at Limehouse which they felt had excellent facilities but it was not acceptable to all the wrestlers. A common complaint was that, "My boy-friend doesn't mind me joining a gay wrestling club but not if it's meeting in a gay sauna!"
    Indefatigable Iain decided that the solution was to build his own wrestling clubhouse, and this is what he has done adjacent to where he lives in Grove Park, S.E.12, south-east London.
    The wooden building is now up and the mats measuring 4m x 4m x 40mm (13' 6" x 13' 6" x 1½") are laid. Work towards completion is still going on and a toilet and showers will be added in the next two
months as a side building. Electrics, soundproofing and insulation will be added soon.
    The mats are already in use but visitors will only be admitted after the middle of January.
    Three group coaching sessions per week are planned of which one will be at the weekend and separate sessions for wrestlers over 200lbs. The premises will be available for hire for private bouts and coaching will be provided for small groups or individuals for a small charge.
    Their first international wrestling event is already planned for January. A Germany-versus-England 6-man tag bout.
    The British team training kicks off on Wednesday, January 9th under the watchful eye of coach Iain Scott.
    As Iain does not want to publicise his address everyone meets at a pre-arranged spot before going to the clubhouse. "This", Iain says, "gives people a quick opportunity to introduce themselves to each other and get acquainted before going on for the wrestling. This seems to make people more relaxed meeting each other in a public place rather than undressing among strangers with whom they have not spoken before now."

The brown-timber façade of the Speedo-Wrestlers Clubhouse at night


The mats are laid but electrics, insulation and sound-proofing are still to be installed.     TOP




A WRESTLER'S THANKS

Thanks for the bruises, scrapes and strains
The leg work, cockslaps, chronic back pain

For the chance to have a nice, friendly tussle
While slowly groping every firm muscle

Have a fun and stimulating 2008
For I have certainly loved wrestling you, mate
copyright 2008 Richard (welcomeboy GF) used with permission
    TOP



4-DAY WRESTLING BOUT
December 20, 2007

ROCHESTER, N.Y. wrestler RuffnTuff (GF) reports having a wrestling bout with a friend who "flew in especially" for the event lasting four whole days. The identity of his opponent is shrouded in mystery.
    RuffnTuff, no mean wrestler is a Gay Games wrestling medallist. With those credentials it is not surprising that he claims he came out on top. More details awaited.
    He is due to visit Britain in the summer so line up your challenges NOW!    TOP
RARE CONFRONTATION IN GAYDAR CHAT ROOM
         
Donald Black, 63-year-old veteran wrestler
and author of Wrestling for Gay Guys
Barrie, 42-year-old Brazilian Jiu Jitsu student

December 20, 2007

A RARE exchange took place today in the Gaydar chat room between Barrie, 42-year-old Brazilian Jiu Jitsu student and Donald Black, author of Wrestling for Gay Guys.
Barrie: I've read your book.
DB: What did you think?
Barrie: We had a good laugh at it.
DB: How's that?
Barrie: I showed it to my Brazilian Jiu Jitsu club.
DB: Oh. I see.
Barrie: How did you manage to invent all that rubbish?
DB: I didn't invent it, I lived through it.
Barrie: The book is nonsense.
    This highlights the schism that exists between the 10% of gay men who do not repress their anger and the 90% of gay men who do. The 10% who, it seems, run the wrestling clubs as they have wrestled




from schooldays, think: if you want to wrestle why don't you just get on the mats and wrestle? But for the 90% who repress their anger it is not so simple for they are often alienated by the 10% and driven out of wrestling clubs, as unintentionally as it may be, as a consequence.
    In his book Donald Black explains how those of the 90% who take up wrestling can easily become enmeshed in a classic guilt complex and if the 10% could simply understand this, they could keep gay wrestlers who are frightened of "violence" or "accidents" happening from leaving their clubs.
    Too often the 10% consider psychology to be "rubbish" and fail to understand the problems that beset the 90% when taking up a sport like wrestling.
    To see what others think of Donald's book visit FULL REVIEWS     BRIEF REVIEWS     TOP


DONALD BLACK RETURNS TO MATS
December 24, 2007

DONALD BLACK, founder of the first gay wrestling club in Britain and author of Wrestling for Gay Guys and Escape the Gay Straitjacket was forced to retire from wrestling and weight-training in December 1980 due to high blood pressure. This meant closing his Gay Wrestling Group and giving up weight-training instruction which he had been doing for the Inner London Education Authority for 10 years.
    Since then he had developed angina and when, in 2005 he discovered a new way of training with weights that gave results as good as, or even better than, steroids but without using drugs he put on 20 pounds of muscle within one month and the strain that this put on his heart meant his angina became acute.
    The doctors advised him to have a heart by-pass operation but he drew a line at that.
Instead he began a course prescribed by Dr Dean Ornish in his book Reversing Heart Disease together with other known and unproven remedies such as red wine, raw garlic and vitamin C. The results turned out to be remarkable and Donald said he felt a younger man every day. Where would it end?
    In 2006 Don found occasional regular wrestling bouts in Bristol with Joe (gmuscles GF) and a year later in Herne Bay with Lance (redcloud2 GA). His doctor had advised him to wrestle only with opponents of his own weight. Gradually he climbed up the weight ladder with Alan (wrestlehunt GF) and Richard (welcomeboy GF)
    Donald's ambition is to bulk up on his new system without compromising his heart. The date for that is set for Feb-April 2008.    TOP



JOHN HARRIS DIES
November 17, 2007

JOHN HARRIS, well-known referee of professional wrestling and Master of Ceremonies, seen in many of World of Sport programmes being constantly re-run on television, died on May 25th this year in Spain where he had retired. He was born on 16th November 1927.
    John worked as a professional-wrestling referee for Devereux Promotions during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s working in Guildford, Camberley, Farnham and Farnborough.
    A Memorial Service was held today at St John the Baptist's church in Eltham High




Street, south-east London. Pro-wrestlers Mal Sanders, Lee Bronson, and Mendoza, and referee Joe d'Orazio were in the congregation.
   Stephen Harris, husband of John Harris, was reduced to tears when making his address.
    Not so well known was the fact that John Harris ran the Symbic Wrestling Club at William Penn School in Red Post Hill, Dulwich, south London in the 1950s and 60s where many wrestlers were trained in the professional style, among them Bobby Barnes and the twins, John and Peter Cortez.    TOP
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