Iron On My Mind
Preface of
Iron On My Mind
Dave Draper
In December of 1998 my wife, Laree, thumbed through the pages of Websites for Dummies and by February of ’99 we had our very own. We were — how do you say it? — on the cutting edge.
We stared at our three-page internet contribution in awe and proudly exclaimed, “We’re out there; we’re in cyberspace.” Now what? I yawned; she shrugged her shoulders. So much for cheap thrills.
By the end of the first week floating around in un-chartered territory, we received thirty-seven email messages. What’s this? A few friends and acquaintances announced their approval, thank you, but who were these folks from Oklahoma, New Mexico and New Delhi? One young guy from Indiana cried out that he’d been training for over five years and still couldn’t get a peak on his biceps. He was desperate, “What should I do?” Other emails probed dietary issues, overtraining, aging and training methodology and some offered thanks and encouragement.
The silent, static and spare web pages stirred with life.
“I’ve been following you since I saw you on the cover of a muscle magazine in the mid-’60s. Keep up the good work,” signed, Louie from Hoboken.
“Me? Following me? Gee!”
“How do I bulk up? Arnold, Zane and you are the best! How do I trim down? I miss the good old days! How do I get huge and ripped?”
The email kept coming in, from New Zealand to Uzbekistan, Maine to Peru.
I responded to the notes directly and answered questions when asked. “How considerate,” I thought, “of this small loyal group to write.”
Before the second week had gone by, Laree counted 125 messages from strangers saying hi and looking for help. We decided to glean through the stack and present the most informative and motivating Q ‘n’ As online for all to share. Very popular.
Week by week the mail grew, the page content expanded and the website evolved, as healthy living things do when under structural pressure. A free weekly newsletter called Draper Here became the solution to the ever-increasing, ever-fascinating email load. It’s been going out for seven years to everyone who requests it and we haven’t missed an issue yet.
The subject matter ranges from sets and reps of exercises to build muscle and might, to the complex yet simple process of aging. What does one do if he or she has never before entered a gym or performed fitness exercise and what does one do the last weeks before bodybuilding competition to exhibit maximum muscle size and definition? The theme of the newsletters is encouragement — to train hard, consistently and positively and to eat smartly; the rewards are extraordinary and the price is right. Be consistent, stick to the basics and there are no secrets.
Iron On My Mind is a collection of sixty-two newsletters from the 350 published over the years. Each chapter is a trip of its own. And throughout the book what I call blasts, bombardments of info, energy, caution and reprimand, are periodically inserted to affirm your purpose, aright your direction and challenge your performance. There is no theme, the articles follow no order. They can be ingested randomly when the spirit moves you, like a shot of wonder protein before a workout. Sip or slug, I hope they satisfy and you never grow full.
Who's the Bomber, you ask? The bomber is the guy who flies the craft at the head of the fleet. You do fly, don't you? No problem; you'll learn.
Dave Draper
Santa Cruz, California
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