From that point on, I was determined to get more exposure. I decided in 1996 to only do shows where I could get some national exposure. I did the NPC Team Universe placing 7th, and a WNBF show placing 12th. Then I finished the year with the Muscle Mania winning the heavy weight division. As you can see I did a few shows that year and did get some good exposure. But I really got my break when I went to California with a couple of friends who I helped train for the 1996 Ms. Galaxy. To my surprise, I was asked by several photographers to shoot with them that weekend. I guess it was just because I was a new face and never had any exposure before.

The rest of 1996 and 1997 I was getting exposure in all the magazines. I had seven or eight covers and many articles written about me. All this exposure really helped my personal training business, and helped make me a role model for natural bodybuilders. I was surprised because just one year earlier, no one knew who I was. I was saying to myself that I could be like Mike O'Hearn if I just had the exposure. I have to admit that Mike was my role model. I thank him for opening the doors to the natural bodybuilding world.

Now my problem was that I couldn't find a way to generate enough income from the exposure I was receiving. The only money I was generating was my personal training business. You see, the magazines don't pay you for your images. Once you shoot with them, they basically have the pictures to use as much as they want without ever paying you for your time. The exposure is great, but it is not like the modeling industry, where you get paid big bucks every time someone uses your image. I would do a few guest appearances here and there, but nothing consistent enough to count on. My biggest problem was I lived in Florida, and I needed to be in California to make things work. However, I did not want to get lost in the rat race out west, so I decided to stay in Florida and do what I could from there.

After winning the 1997 Mr. America, I decided to try and hook up with some modeling agencies in Florida to see if I could get some bigger paying jobs. I did get some interest, but the problem was the agencies needed me to come cast for jobs. I had to decide to either go sit at a casting all day, and hopefully book a job, or I could make guaranteed income from my personal training business. I chose to do the latter. My training business is doing so well, that unless companies pay me in excess of $1000.00 per day, it is not worth me leaving town.

In 1998 I decided to take a break from competing because my girlfriend, Cynthia Berkley, wanted to compete in the Ms. Galaxy competition. I figured one in the house competing is stress enough, especially since it was going to be her first time. I actually enjoyed this year off and decided to train with Cynthia in obstacle course training. This was a blast! It was so much fun to be out of the gym on a regular basis climbing walls, sprinting, hurdling, all the things I did as a kid, but stopped as I got more involved in bodybuilding. This made me really think about the sport of bodybuilding. What good is it if we have a ton of ripped muscle, but it isn't functional? I decided to prove to myself, and to the world, that bodybuilders can be athletic as well as look good and feel good year round. Instead of competing in bodybuilding in 1998 and 1999, I decided to compete in obstacle course events. I had a blast and am glad I did them. Not only did I get to spend some quality time with Cynthia (by the way she won the Galaxy finals in 1998), but I also was able to help develop the sport of obstacle course contests for men. I believe these events will be very popular in the next few years providing men an opportunity to take their bodies to the max, not only from a physique standpoint, but also an athletic standpoint.

Now I have to decide what's next for me. I still have the urge to compete in bodybuilding, but I need a purpose to compete. I stay lean year 'round, so there is no motivation for me to compete just to get into shape. I've had enough exposure to establish my name in the sport, so pictures in the magazines don't motivate me. I feel I can compete with the best natural athletes in the sport, so maybe if there was a show which would bring all the top name natural bodybuilders together on one stage, that might motivate me. However, all the time and training spent on getting ready for a show is really not worth it if there is no monetary reward. So I need to develop a plan which will motivate me to get back on stage and show the bodybuilding community I am still a top contender. If you have any ideas please feel free to e-mail me.

So there you have it. A brief bio on my past, and a somewhat unclear game plan for the future. I look forward to working with East Coast Muscle and my fans. Please feel free to e-mail me with questions, comments, or ideas on anything dealing with natural bodybuilding or obstacle course training. I will be writing articles providing you with information on what you want to hear about. So please, send your comments and suggestions. Between my personal training business and East Coast Muscle, I'm kept pretty busy. So, I may not have time to answer all your mail, but I will have time to read it all.