Mr. Aries’s BodyBlog

I had the privilege of visiting the Europa Supershow this year held at the Dallas Convention Center held this past weekend. Having been to this show the previous year, I can honestly say that the show is bigger than it’s ever been. Not only is it now held at a bigger venue (Dallas Convention Center vs. Arlington Convention Center), it’s also hosting more events than ever (MMA, power lifting, car show, bike show). Overall, I was quite impressed.

As usual, for me the main attraction was the expo. Let me tell ya, it was biiiiiig.. Not quite the size of Arnold in terms of size or turn-out, but there are a lot of companies showing up to this event. The booths were also more spread out, so there were generally more room to move around (compare that to the Arnold, where you barely have a place to stand, let alone walk on). This lighter, more laid-back atmosphere gave the spectators a better chance to talk to the individual vendors. At the same time, it also gave the vendors a better chance to talk to the consumers. As a result, I was able to meet a lot more people at this event than the Olympia and the Arnold.

Two of the most impressive people I met yesterday was Troy Johnson and his wife (a lovely pro competitor who was beautiful in person with a personality to match). Troy is a semi-retired natural pro who’s making a comeback into the game this year. He was working the ALR booth with his wife and welcomed me with open arms. I was quite taken back by his kind gestures and ended up spending the majority of my time at the ALR booth. I was not disappointed either, because everyone there (including ALR and wife) made me feel very at-home.

Also had the honor to meet Rich Gaspari, the old-school legend who’s still in great shape. He was very intelligent (along with Tom Hoops from Gaspari) and we chatted for quite a while. I think the new product Plasma Jet will be a smashing hit.

The Palo Alto Labs crew was also very nice. Their booth was right next to the ALR booth. The VP of the company recognized me and talked to me for quite a bit, explaining thoroughly the way many of their products worked. He was very warm and knowledgeable, and gave me a bottle of ResetAD (adrenal support) to try.. He also asked me if I wanted some ASPIRE36 (their very potent sex aid), lol… I told him I heard about the potency of this product but had no one to use it on at the moment, haha…

The AllMax booth was very nice. The representative Mike actually PM-ed me a couple of days before the show to stop by. With this kind of invitation, I knew I had to pay a few visits to the booth throughout the day.. Mike was very kind in person (as well as on the internet) and is definitely a family man. He showed me his baby (very cute), but didn’t bring any pics of his wife, a Swedish blonde…hehe.. Mike, what a lucky man huh? Anyhow, AllMax is an up-and-coming company in the US with their roots in Canada, so I have no doubt most people will hear of them soon.

Flex was present at the show, reppin’ Natural Freak. Kevin Levrone was at the show (small but in great shape). Old school Gary Strydom was at the show as well as a few other old-timers who still manage to be in sick shape.. Phil Heath was walking around and I was super-impressed with his physique. His arms remind me of the way Flex Wheeler’s used to be.. Sick, just SIIIICK..

At the end of the night, I met another competitor that made me take a second look. She’s a fitness competitor who took second place at her very first show just one day before. I met her while sitting with Troy and his lovely wife at the Hyatt bar at about 1 in the morning, lol.. She’s a Chinese girl from Vancouver, and to be honest, I had no idea she was Chinese at all until she told me her last name is “Lee”, the same as mine. I suppose the pro-tan she had on confused me, heh.. She certainly had facial features different from most Asian girls I’ve known, and that is a good thing. Anyhow, she sat down for a moment before leaving to gobble up her pizza. Afterwards, Troy and wife had some jokes for me (punks )..

Ended up leaving the venue at 2AM. For anyone wanting a true fitness experience, this show is a “must-go” every year.. I was very impressed with everyone there and I’m very proud that it’s right here in my backyard.