'That Was The Longest Trip'

They looked at my size, surprised by how big I was. The first thing they did was bring the strongest guy over to arm-wrestle with me, the highest ranked and one young one who was really strong. I put their arms to the wall, to the floor. They were just testing my strength and using me as a clown while they could.

Your lifestyle changes to reflect the level you're at. I get more time to myself, I

get a separate room, I get to eat first, sleep first, washed down, everything in your life changes.

I enjoyed it, to tell you the truth. In the first 10 years the pressure of not knowing you would win, not knowing you wanted to win, made you strive. After that I just want to do the best I can. I was trying not to push it too much and get injuries because I was getting bigger and heavier and scary. But I did have fun, different fun. Just being there was fun for me.

There's not much big change. They are talking about the bubble, but did prices change? No. The cost of living here in Japan is still high. At a certain level of business, that's where the trouble is. The people that made it at that time didn't know how to handle themselves, the pocketbook. But in Japan, the youngsters now, they're learning how to survive on their own. They don't care how they look or what they're eating. They're more into "I want to be this," and they set a goal. I see this in the youngsters now.

© 1999