One of the most disturbing trends in the world of competitive bodybuilding over the last 20-30 years is an alarming drop off in talented teen bodybuilders. Decades ago, a variety of incredible teenage bodybuilders would battle it out at various national level competitions. Today, the teenage division in bodybuilding is lightly contested at best and often completely neglected.
Apparently bodybuilding isn’t the only sport experience a drop off in younger participation. A similar drop-off is now taking place in one of the most popular sports in America, football. According to recent data, football has seen players between the ages of 6-14 decline by a massive 27.7 percent in the last five years. Many football experts are worried that, unless they can reverse this decline in players, the future of the most popular sport in America may be in jeopardy.
Although there is no comparison in popularity between bodybuilding and football, the downward trend in participation among younger competitors raises similar concerns. If there are no more younger bodybuilders interested in the sport, what does that say about the future of bodybuilding? Where will our future superstars come from?
Many of the bodybuilding Legends that we continue to admire today got their start as great teenage bodybuilders. Arnold Schwarzenegger developed an incredible physique as a teen, placing second in the prestigious NABBA Mr. Universe contest at only 19 years old. Arnold sported massive 20 inch arms at that age and was so impressive that he was brought out for an unprecedented encore at the evening show. Arnold went on to win the Mr. Universe one year later at only 20 years old, a record that still stands today.
Check out this list of future bodybuilding superstars who got their start competing in teenage bodybuilding competitions –
Ron Teufel – 1975 Teenage Mr. America, won the Short Class in the Mr. America in ‘76 (at only 19 years old).
Shane DiMora – 1986 NPC Teenage National Champ, won his class at the ‘86 NPC Nationals (at only 19 years old!).
This list does not even include the myriad of great teenage bodybuilders who did not win the Teenage Mr. America or Teen Nationals but either won their class or placed high in this prestigious national level event. Men like Harold Poole, Tom Platz, Lance Dreher, Mike Mentzer, Lou Ferrigno, David Hawk, Rich Gaspari, Eddie Robinson, Bob Cicherillo, Chris Cormier, Jay Cutler, Jose Raymond – to name few.
When I began competing in teenage bodybuilding contests in 1979, the competition was extremely tough with many talented and impressive teen bodybuilders competing in every teenage event. Growing up in Chicago, the most prestigious teenage bodybuilding contest you could win was the AAU Teenage Mr. Illinois. This competition was wisely divided into age groups instead of height classes. The different divisions included the 14-16 year old age group, the 17-18 year old age group and the 19 year old class. The first year I competed in the Teenage Mr. Illinois at 17 years old, I was competing against 40 other teenage bodybuilders. That’s not a typo, there were 40 teenage bodybuilders competing in a state level show in only one class! The total number of competitors in the Teenage Mr. Illinois that year was over 80 teens.
This trend continued throughout the 1980’s. In the 1981 Teenage Mr. Illinois, there were over 100 teens competing in the contest. Just to make the top ten in your class was an honor. To win the Teenage Mr. America in that era was a tremendous accomplishment! It’s no surprise that many of those winners of the Teenage Mr. America went on to become some of the best bodybuilders in history.
What this tells me is that there was a large number of teenagers in the 1980’s who loved the look of the top bodybuilders in the sport. Just as athletes like Hank Aaron, Muhammed Ali and Michael Jordan inspired millions of kids to start participating in sports such as baseball, boxing and basketball because of their incredible performance and charisma, Arnold Schwarzenegger similarly inspired a large number of teens to start pumping iron and get onstage to compete for teenage bodybuilding glory.
When the movie “Pumping Iron” was released in 1977, most of the country was in the dark about the joys of experiencing a pump or building up the muscles. It was largely because of Arnold’s great physique and magnetic personality that opened the door for the sport to be exposed to the general public.
Another big factor in the popularity of bodybuilding amongst younger competitors in the 1980’s was the look of the top bodybuilders in the sport. Bodybuilding superstars like Arnold, Frank Zane, Robby Robinson, Mike Mentzer, Samir Bannout, Lee Haney, Bob Paris and Lee Labrada had “The Look” that inspired thousands of teenage bodybuilders around the world to attack the weights in an effort to look like their idols. The best bodybuilders in the world in the 1980’s had big muscles, great symmetry and shape. They looked heroic, handsome and magnetic. Looking like real life superheroes, the top bodybuilders of the 1980’s looked like they could save the world, turn heads and attract women all at once. Who wouldn’t want to look like that?
As the sport of bodybuilding evolved, the top competitors got bigger and freakier. The judges became enamored with this new, never before seen freaky bodybuilder and began awarding the top prizes to the biggest and most ripped physiques. Shape and symmetry took a back seat to size and hardness as Mr. Olympia competitors broke previous boundaries in massive development and proportions.
This look was far less admired by the youth of our country who soon abandoned bodybuilding for other interests. Teenage bodybuilding competitions began to dwindle down until we reached the current situation of only one or two teenage bodybuilders competing in each local show. The inspiration of heroic bodybuilders like Arnold and Mentzer has given way to freaky, out of this world bodybuilders who seem to be too unattainable to inspire today’s teen.
Perhaps the new division of Classic Physique will bring back some of the heroic physiques that inspired so many young men to begin pumping iron thirty years ago. Muscles, shape, symmetry, proportion. All good things come back around eventually. Here’s hoping today’s youth finds a reason to start building their physiques and get onstage to compete for top honors. Our sport needs you for the next generation of bodybuilding!
Wolfenstein: The New Order is no rote shooter; it’s a meaty game that delights with its oddball story and well-designed play.	
It’s around the time that B.J. Blazkowicz drops acid with an afro-wearing, battle-scarred guitarist and starts pondering the nature of the human soul that the weirdness in Wolfenstein: The New Order shines through. This latest Wolfenstein might not bring about the design revolution that its increasingly distant id Software-developed progenitor did, but it’s a helluva fun ride all the same.
And for a game built around snuffing out Nazis, it applies a surprisingly delicate touch to character building. There’s a raw unevenness to this MachineGames title that, against all odds, works again and again in its favor.
In The New Order, MachineGames ditches the series’ trademark fantastical World War II setting for an alt-history post-war set in the 1960s. The Nazis won and freedom-seeking haters of fascism around the world are forced underground into resistance cells. In a clever inversion of real world crises that leans on one of history’s greatest villains for justification, The New Order’s knights in shining armor (male and female) are effectively terrorists.
The game opens on a familiar World War II setting, albeit one in which the Nazis employ squadrons of jet fighters and giant, mechanical robo-hounds. B.J. Blazkowicz and his multi-national comrades-in-arms are off on a mission to take out longtime series antagonist Wilhelm “Deathshead” Strasse. Things seem to be going well… until an unfortunate run-in and a difficult choice send the game’s story spinning off into the future on one of two slightly different paths.
The “who lives and who dies” moment that creates a split timeline in the story doesn’t amount to much of a difference on the gameplay side of things, but it speaks to the thought MachineGames put into developing a human soul for this war story. The characters populating B.J.’s adventure – and there are differences, depending on the timeline you occupy – bring tragic, believable backgrounds to their interactions, and the result is a diversity of surprisingly human character moments.
B.J.’s drug-fueled head trip is but one example. His relationship with Anya, the female lead, is convincingly built and frequently reinforced with quick pecks on the cheek and nooners in the supply closet. The writing is hardly bar-raising, but it’s at least a complete package. The script and the plotting never loses sight of the fact that the passive viewer of cutscenes needs concrete links to the relationships that help define Captain Blazkowicz.
All this talk about the story, but what of the gameplay? Wolfenstein: The New Order brims over with it, amounting to a surprisingly beefy 15-hour(ish) play time for just one of the two storylines. It’s justified, too, with B.J. making war on the Nazis in a dazzling array of locations, from more traditional warehouses and political prisons to forced labor camps (think Escape from Butcher Bay) and a handful of other out-of-this-world settings. Even the more genre-familiar locations feel unique, a product of the post-war Nazi supremacy. It’s something that the story smartly accounts for at one point, yet another example of the care MachineGames put into crafting a complete experience.
It also helps that there’s variety in B.J.’s corridor shooting. Running and gunning is a perfectly viable strategy, especially when nearly every weapon in your arsenal can be dual-wielded, but large sections of the game allow for a stealthier approach. Unlockable perks reward you with bonuses like increased ammo capacity or quieter sneaking, and they’re earned by completing challenges related to the activity they boost. Stealth perks won’t unlock if you spend most of your time gripping a machine gun in each hand.
Level design elegantly supports these different approaches. It’s easy enough to waltz into any new location with your guns blazing, but there are also plenty of vents and other crawlspaces tucked just out of sight that allow for stealthier play. It’s only in the final moments of the game that a quieter approach proves unwise, with a handful of big battle encounters that require a lot of noise and destruction.
No matter how you choose to approach Wolfenstein: The New Order’s challenges, there’s a satisfying feedback loop that comes from gunning down that many Nazis. It’s almost a back-to-basics appeal when you go loud, a flavor of action that taps directly into what was so appealing about Wolfenstein 3D in 1992 (which makes an awesome surprise appearance for thorough explorers). Even the stealthy play satisfies, as you seek out hidden paths and use them to chart a course for your knife into an oblivious Nazi commander’s neck.
There’s even replay value, which is practically unheard of in a single-player only shooter these days. The campaign story doesn’t change significantly between the two timelines, but that along with the promise of taking on a different play style makes a repeat playthrough more appealing. Collect enough Enigma Code collectibles and you open up a collection of unlockable modes. It’s a neat bonus, though the collectible hunt required to get them might be too much for some players.
MachineGames delivers on the “new order” in the game’s title with this first effort for the studio in the Wolfenstein series. For all that’s familiar and comfortable, there’s an undeniably fresh take here, one that brims with personality and a distinct sense of style. Wolfenstein: The New Order is more of the same in some ways, but MachineGames capably toes the line between fan service and thoughtful reinvention.
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It is with great sadness that the family of William “Dwain” Miller announces his passing on Saturday, October 27 at the age of 89 years in Fort Collins, CO.
Dwain will be forever remembered by his wife and best friend of 62 years, Doris and his children Mark (Karen), Blake, Valarie (Peter). He will also be forever remembered by his grandchildren Noelle, Hailey, Colin and Lindee, and by his niece Cindy Butler (Mitch), nephew Rick Hurt (Margaret) and great nephew Brady Hurt.
Dwain was born in Mereta, TX and raised on his parent’s cotton farm. He attended San Angelo College before joining the Army and fighting in the Korean War. While serving as a medic, he was wounded in action and received the Purple Heart as well as the Silver Star for bravery. Upon returning home, Dwain attended Texas Tech University, earning his bachelors in Horticulture and Park Administration.
In the summer of 1955 while working as a seasonal ranger in Yellowstone National Park, he met and fell in love with Doris Ruth Sandsmark, who was also working in Yellowstone Park, and the rest, as they say, is history. They married in 1956 and eventually settled in Boulder, CO where Dwain was hired as Boulder’s first Parks and Recreation Director. During his time in Boulder he was instrumental in establishing the boundaries for the Boulder Mountain Parks, preserving Boulder’s trails and open spaces for all to enjoy today. His outstanding accomplishments earned him the prestigious Everly Award for environmental stewardship from the President of the United States in 1967.
In 1968, Dwain took a teaching position at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins and earned his doctorate in Parks Planning. He was very popular with his students, creating the infamous “Spring Trip”, a six week bus tour designed to visit and learn about National and State Parks throughout the western states. As one can imagine, there were many stories. He also helped establish the Landscape Architecture degree program at CSU before retiring in 1987.
Realizing that he wasn’t quite ready for retirement, Dwain took a job with the BLM in Fairbanks, AK. He and Doris lived there for 5 years before returning to their hometown of Ft. Collins in 1998 for the “actual” retirement.
Dwain was well known for his sense of humor and his hilarious story telling. Those that knew him and traveled with him on his many fishing, hunting and outdoors adventures were always in for a good time no matter the conditions. He loved gardening, golf and playing cards, but most of all he loved people and had an amazing number of good friends of all ages.
Perhaps Dwain’s greatest passion in life was fishing and hunting in Alaska. From his first trip, driving from Texas to Alaska just out of high school, to his many excursions while living there, the Alaskan adventures and stories were endless. In the summer of 1973 the Miller family took an epic road trip (with camper in tow) to Juneau, Alaska. The kids left town kicking and screaming, and came back a closer family with memories to last a lifetime. In 1985 Dwain started an annual trip to Yakutat, Alaska with family and friends and made the trip 32 years in a row.
A Funeral Service in memory of Dwain will be held on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m., at the First Presbyterian Church in Ft. Collins, CO. Those who so desire may make memorial donations in memory of Dwain to the Southwest Parks and Recreation Training Institute, of which Dwain was a founding member.	
To my children, Dwain, is known as the "Pear Man." Every year, for many years, we received a lovely package of fresh pears to enjoy around the Thanksgiving /Christmas season. To me, he will always be remembered as a compassionate human being who showed trust in me, a single mother with 3 children, barely employed and struggling to make ends meet. First, he trusted me as a worthy renter and later as a worthy buyer of the Kenroy Court house. I am aware that Dwain and Doris raised their family for many years in the the same home that I got to raise mine in. Thank you, Dwain, for recognizing my potential and giving me this jumpstart with my first home!!! In my business, raising kids, going to school and working, I probably never expressed enough how grateful I am to you and Doris.
Dwain Miller influenced my life and probably didn’t know it. I’m saddened by his death and extend my sympathies to his loved ones. I am profoundly sorry I didn’t know he was again living in Fort Collins because I lost touch after I graduated from CSU and moved out of state for graduate school. I now live in Fort Collins. I was one of the students on his first (1969) spring bus trip to national parks. It was a very memorable experience and his leadership made it rewarding and educational. It influenced my decision to go on to grad studies. He applauded our race out of the Grand Canyon, let us sleep on the outfield turf at a California baseball stadium (until the sprinklers started), and he lost $20 on my behalf in Las Vegas. Dwain was the one faculty member I most remember from my years at CSU.
Love this picture of 00Dwain - James Bond! Dwain was a real character like no other I will ever meet. He starred in a lot of his own stories, and every one was great.
When I was a kid, every story Dwain told would make my imagination run wild. Hearing one was like reading a great book. He told "Huck Finn" tales of himself, growing up in Texas, stealing watermelons and electrifying the hood of a buddy's car to shock him on a date. He talked about Alaska and suddenly became like Jack London reciting a chapter from "White Fang".
When he talked of his time in the Korean War, I was surprised, but it reminded me of comedy in the TV show "Mash". That's the part I appreciated most about the stories of Dwain's life. No matter how serious or dangerous the adventure became, there was always a part that made you laugh - just like James Bond.
So sorry for you loss. Lance and I have many wonderful memories of Dwain! We still talk about ‘Dwain Rules’ ever time we play a game! 😁 He had a way of never quite explaining ALL the rules at the beginning of a game and then telling just the ones during a game so it was in his favor! 😂 I adored that man! 😢
I am so sorry to hear this. I have so many good memories of Dwain. I know he is up in heaven throwing the dice and playing rummy. God bless to Doris, Mark, Blake, Valerie and all the grandchildren.