Strength. Weakness. Challenge. Practice. Improvement.
Victory. Defeat. Blood. Sweat. Tears.
Endorphins. Exhaustion. Breakdown. Comeback.
The game. Set. Match. Team. Solitude. Nature. Love.
Josh Todd
You’re in pictorial for running. What types of running do you do?
Do you compete? I run marathons mostly, have completed 4 and am
training for my fifth in Eugene this April. I compete, but only with
myself; that’s the great thing about running — you don’t have to be an
elite athlete to always push for better and faster.
Alyx Wynn
How does being out affect your playing (if at all)? Being out doesn’t
affect my playing at all. All my teammates, past and present, have no
problem with my sexual orientation. When I came out to my high
school teammates, they just chuckled and said, “well, duh.” And la-
crosse is a pretty gay sport (laughs), I’m pretty sure lacrosse players are
assumed gay until proven otherwise.
Kate Bergsgaard
For those who have little knowledge of how karate works — are you
part of a team or league? I studied Taekwondo and Karate. There are
different national “leagues” or “organizations” if you will, but I stud-
ied specifically at smaller local schools with about 50 - 60 students
per school. Some schools are accredited by different organizations and
compete in different sponsored tournaments within an organization
around the nation or world.
Will Doering
You are in the article for wakeboarding. How has it impacted your
personal health? The camaraderie that is around wakeboarding has
provided me the opportunity to be part of a sport that pushes per-
sonal development of mind and body. Every time you jump out of
the boat into the water your body reacts — muscles become tense and
your adrenaline levels jump. Wakeboarding takes concentration; your
mind is always thinking about waves, boats, speed, edge check, not
face planting. By the end of the run your legs, arms, abdomen and
back are tense and you get the feeling of self accomplishment that
mind and body experience like action sports so often provide.
Jamie Melton
You’re in the article for basketball. What team(s) do you play for? I
currently play small forward for the Portland Trail Blazers (see my
January 2013
jersey?!). That is a good answer, right? I am currently not playing on
a team. If that was a requirement, I didn’t get the message, but I have
played competitively and leisurely my whole life, in high school and
intramurals in college. In my ripe age, I mostly just play for leisure and
love of the game.
Lauren Harms
What league are you in? Is it friendly or serious, or perhaps a mix of
both? We belong to the nationwide women’s contact football league
— the Women’s Football Alliance (WFA). It’s a serious league with
around 65 teams nationwide.
Ben Nystrom
Is there anything special or unique for you when it comes to
the overlap of your identity and your sport? I think of myself
as a gay man about as much as I think of myself as a soccer play-
er. They are both important parts of who I am, but they certainly
don’t define me. They overlap in the way that all other aspects
of my identity have overlapped to create the person I am today.
Kenny Stachovich
You’re in pictorial for rugby. What team do you play on, and what’s
the league like? I play for the ORSU (Oregon Rugby Sports Union)
Jesters, Portland’s premier rugby club and one of the more storied
sporting organizations in the Pacific Northwest. We are able to field
two competitive teams that play in Division II and Division III of the
Pacific Northwest Rugby Union. I play for the latter side, which is a
mix of aged veterans and inexperienced younger players. I love this
mix, as it has allowed me to learn from some amazing players from
around the world that have decided to wrap up their careers with us.
Marco Melendez
You’re in pictorial for kettlebell lifting. Can you give us a brief descrip-
tion of what that is? The SKOGG system is a combination of cardio
and weight training in one workout that is all done by using kettle-
bells. This system allows you to increase your strength, flexibility and
power. I realized that I was burning more calories in an hour than any
other workout I tried in the past. §
Note: Not all models were available for this interview.
JustOut.com
21