Miles outside of Klawock in a garage-turned-gym, four men stood around a waist-high table with elbow pads and hand pegs. Fueled by a slice of pepperoni pizza, Jeff Andis challenged his buddy John Arnce to a match.
The men stepped up to the table and linked hands. There’s a momentary struggle, until Andis went for the win.
The bridge construction manager from Thorne Bay is the brainchild behind Prince of Wales Island’s new arm wrestling club, POW Armwrestling. He started a Facebook group earlier this year to recruit others, and so far, up to a dozen people from across the island have shown up to the group’s weekly meetups. Andis said they gather in a different town each week to mingle, talk arm wrestling techniques, and of course, face off.
“The best way to understand arm wrestling is that it’s a combat sport,” Andis said. “You’re just limiting the combat to your hand. They should really call it hand wrestling, because it’s probably 80% hand strength, and 20% arm strength.”
Andis said that because of the anatomy of the hand, mastering the sport is more complex than you’d think. Hand grip and elbow placement have a lot to do with it, as well as your body’s posture. He said that honing your technique is a never-ending prospect – even the pros are still improving.
And arm wrestling isn’t just a physical activity; it’s a social one. Andis said that’s important for mental health, especially during the dark winters on the isolated island. He said the weekly meetups are something for the group to look forward to.
“One of the cruxes of humanity is relationships,” Andis said. “There’s very, very few people who can function well mentally without relationships with other people. We find all kinds of things to build those relationships on, and I suppose arm wrestling is just one of those things.”
The sport is what brought Andis and John Arnce together. They live about 40 minutes apart and didn’t cross paths before their first arm wrestling meetup. Now, Arnce said they’re pretty good friends.
Arnce used to arm wrestle in Kake, near Petersburg. He said while there, he was mentored by late world championship arm wrestler John Parton. Arnce liked how the sport promoted a healthy environment and brought people from all walks of life together.
“I like hanging out and having something to do that’s physically active and it’s strenuous,” Arnce said. “It’s non-violent, it’s just a good time. Good folks meeting new guys.”
Although Arnce isn’t new to the sport, he hadn’t done it for years before stumbling upon the new Facebook group. He said that some people may associate arm wrestling with bars and drinking. But the group on Prince of Wales Island promotes a sober environment.
Andis, the group’s founder, said setting that tone is important for newcomers. He also said that part of the greater arm wrestling culture is leaving your ego at the door.
“That’s a big deal to me, because I want it to be a positive environment,” Andis said. “I want it to be something just good for one another, and sobriety is a big part of that.”
To Andis’ knowledge, there isn’t a single established arm wrestling group in Alaska. He said much of the state’s arm wrestling activities are sporadic and in bars, like the post-Iditarod competition at a watering hole in Nome.
So, Andis and his group hope to put together an Alaska league. He said representatives from the World Armwrestling League have looked for people in Alaska to form a group to compete internationally, although that hasn’t come to fruition yet.
For now, though, Andis’ main goal for the group is growing it. As more members join, he hopes to host a tournament on the island next summer and take part in local fundraisers. Later on, he’d like to host a Southeast-wide competition in Juneau.
Hunter Morrison is a Report for America corps member for KRBD. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one. Please consider making a tax-deductible contribution.
