Q&A with Richard Lupkes, world champion arm wrestler

Minnesota can lay claim to having one of the best arm wrestlers in the world. Richard Lupkes of Rushmore -- located near the Iowa and South Dakota borders in the southwest Minnesota -- recently won the super heavyweight grand master world title in Nevada. The Star Tribune's Michael Rand caught up with the 54-year-old Lupkes, who checks in at 6-2 and 315 pounds.Q Outside of the world of arm wrestling, what do you do for a living?

A I'm a farmer, actually. We raise corn and soybeans. And in the winter months, I'm a personal trainer.

Q How do you become good at something like arm wrestling?

A Well, I guess I've just been kind of fortunate. I spend a lot of time in the gym, but I really don't practice. Nowadays, I would say 90 percent of the guys do practice. Really, the only the time I see an arm wrestling table is at a tournament.

Q What are some of the techniques or the inner workings of an arm wrestling match at a very competitive level?

A You have people say there is a lot of technique, and actually there is. But at the national or world level, it still comes down to power. Everybody is familiar with your style. There are really no secrets to it.

Q So you really don't practice? Just let technique take care of itself?

A I hope so. Sometimes it doesn't. I have a friend in Salt Lake City who says I have the worst technique he's ever seen. And he's probably right (laughs).

Q Looking at your picture, I can tell you have plenty of power. Is that from the gym, or are you just naturally strong?

A Well, I was born on a farm and I've always worked hard. I've always tried to train each muscle group twice a week. I'm in the gym a minimum of two hours a day. Between two and three hours. I'm not in there just going crazy. I'll do a set and then rest, take a break. That's how I've always done it. I do legs, too. I've found over the years that when you work your legs it helps your whole body get stronger.

Q The world title you won in December -- it was the largest arm wrestling tournament ever in North America with more than 1,300 participants. What was your approach going in?

A I was actually pretty confident. I had trained really hard. I would have been disappointed if I had lost. I thought I would at least make the podium for sure.

Q How long have you been doing this competitively, and what kind of opportunities has it given you?

A Actually my first tournament was in 1976. ... It was kind of fun, and it's a 1-on-1 sport so you don't have a team member to blame. And then after I won the worlds in 1988 and 1989, a guy contacted me and wanted me to try professional wrestling. There was a professional wrestling school in Chicago, and I wrestled for WCW for a few years. They wanted me to go over to Japan for months at a time, but I had a wife and family and I didn't want to be away from them for so long. So I gave it up and came back to Rushmore. It was interesting while it lasted (laughs).

Q You mentioned the sport is on the rise. What has gotten more people into it?

A Well, the Internet has helped communication and getting people together. The sport is growing well here. But in Europe it's huge. They watch arm wrestling over there the way we watch football here. They have weekly shows. I know in Sweden, when they have phy/ed in high school they have arm wrestling tables set up.

Q Maybe we can finally get a sequel made to "Over the Top," the arm wrestling movie from the 1980s?

A They actually had a big tournament for that movie. It was in 1986 and I was out there for it at the Las Vegas Hilton. That was about the biggest tournament until the tournament this year. It was to help promote the movie. They started wrestling at 9 in the morning and they were still going at like 7 the next morning. It was crazy.