AG Domain: What was your favorite event?

 

Vince Granger: Powerball was a favorite.  It was one of the only events where the Gladiators didn't have an experience advantage.  Most of the events were skills that they had practiced, and the contenders were at a disadvantage. But Powerball was something that leveled the playing field a little.

 

AGd: Did you enjoy watching yourself "kick butt" on TV?

 

VG: It was cool seeing myself on National TV with commercials and everything, but it was kind of disappointing knowing that I could have done better if I had taken it more seriously.  For me, it was just something fun to do and a once in a lifetime experience.

 

AGd: Who was the greatest all-time competitor (in your opinion) as far as contenders go?

VG: Without a doubt, Cliff Miller, and Cheryl Wilson (the champions of my season) were the best ever.  I watched AG for all the previous seasons, and there were some very good athletes who competed, but Cheryl and Cliff dominated every event.  Both were very quick and went mostly untouched in the physical events, and they were supremely confident and cool in the skill events.  I think the way the show picked the Contenders for our season brought out much better athletes than previous years, and I would put money on Cliff and Cheryl (if she was still here) against anyone before or since. Cheryl could have beaten a lot of the guys on the show.

AGd: What did you think of your competitors, Jayson Yao, Bernie Miller, and Marty DePaoli?

VG: They were all great guys who I'd love to see again.  Jayson was one of the first people I met when I got to the hotel where we were staying and we became friends.  He had a great perspective on the whole competition.   Bernie was a fun California guy with a layed back, "don't worry" type of attitude and we had some great fun during the month we were there.  And Marty was a successful Chiropractor who commuted from San Francisco down to LA to compete.  He was a serious businessman who took time away from work to compete and have fun.  I have great pictures from our stay and a lot of great memories about all three of these guys, as well as many others.  I've seen Carlton Fluker, Spenser Street, Cliff Miller, Kevin Weber, and Julie Padelford since the show, and stayed in touch with Tony Bettendorf and others by mail for a couple of years after the show.  Weber and I even played rugby together once.

AGd: You are the only contender to lose three times, yet still make the semis.  Did you learn to take every event for granted?

 

VG: I take a little pride in the fact that I made the semis without winning a show, but as I said, I know I could have done better if I had put in more concentration and effort.  At that time, I was totally focused on playing rugby.  My club, the Maryland Old Boys (MOB) had won the 7-a-side Rugby National Championship a couple of years earlier, and we were poised to make another run that summer.  So while at the Gladiators, I spent most of my free time training for Rugby and having fun.  I really didn't concentrate on winning the Gladiators.  Another hurdle that people who haven't been on the show don't realize is that between events, there is about an hour (sometimes more) of set up time.  During that time, the Contenders had to remain in a SMALL (about 18X18) room that was set up to look like a locker room for the backstage shots used of the contenders.  We couldn't go outside or anywhere where the crew couldn't find us, so it got pretty crowded and boring between events.  That little room usually had about 12 to 15 people in it at all times.  Because 2 shows were taped at the same time, there were the 8 contenders, plus various people on the crew in that room at all times.  It was cramped, and hot.  So all of this caused a lack of concentration and focus in some contenders (myself).  Between events, I would get bored, stiff, hot and sleepy, so the performances were disjointed and inconsistent.  The best Contenders like Cliff, Cheryl, Tony, and Spencer found ways to stay focused and sharp. And the competition was more serious for them.

 

AGd: You faced Bernie Miller in the quarterfinals, but was later his alternate in the semis.  How did you go from competitors to allies in such little time?

 

VG: I think just about everybody there (contenders) liked each other, so it was usually looked at as us versus the Gladiators.  Even though everyone knew we were competing against each other, there was a fraternal feeling.  Bernie and I hung out together some out at the pool and at a couple of parties, and just about everyone ran into each other at the gym, so we all got along.  Bernie had the misfortune of getting hurt during the semis, and I was called up to finish for him.  I was one of the few who didn't get injured during the month of taping, and I think that might be part of why they kept me around for so long.  The guys called me Teflon because I never really took a solid hit.  Usually once a contender had lost their show, they would have plane tickets in their mailbox at the hotel by the time they got back.  They would be out on the next thing flying, but I guess I was lucky.

 

AGd: People often say that your season was the best ever.  Do you agree?

 

VG: Absolutely.  Because of how the producers chose the contenders for our season, they guaranteed that the athletes would be more versatile and committed.  Before our season, I think that just Californians and those who happened to want to travel to Cali to try out were used.  For our season, the producers mounted a 100 city tour with tryouts that led to a local live show.  When I heard about the tryouts in the DC area, I knew I wanted to give it a shot.  But the day of the tryout, I was playing in a Rugby tournament.  As luck would have it, I had time between the 2 morning games and the afternoon game, so I hustled over to where the tryouts were being held.  The tryout consisted of: 50 fingertip push ups in under 60 seconds, 18 behind the neck pullups, a sub 4.8 second 40 yard dash, a powerball like run and tackle set up, the hand bike from the eliminator, and a round of pugil stick scrapping.  If you made it through the tryout (pushups blew out about 75%) there were interviews, then they cut it down to 4 contenders and a couple of alternates.  After that, if you won the live show, and you were one of the 24 best from the 100 cities, you MIGHT be picked for the actual TV version.  There was also a live tour championship held in Atlantic City, and won by Mike Small on the men's side.  I was an alternate for that. So what resulted was getting a wide variety of quality athletes who would provide "good TV".

 

AGd: Do you feel the quality of competition increased or decreased after your season?

 

VG: Decreased, without a doubt.  They couldn't possibly provide the quality of Contenders as they did during my season.

 

AGd: What inspired you to do so well in AG?

 

VG: Again, I don't feel I did my best because my focus was elsewhere.  While I was in Cali sitting by the pool and living the good life, my Rugby teammates were playing week in and week out to try to qualify us for the national championships.  I think the producers kept me around because they knew that at any time I might provide some spark to the show.  I wasn't in awe of the Gladiators, and I was used to contact sports, so I was not as likely to get hurt.  I think they knew they could count on me to provide an acceptable performance with the potential to explode at any time.

AGd: If you could do it all over again, what would you have done differently?

 

VG: I would have not followed ALL the rules, like staying in that little locker room.  I would have put more concentration in to how I would approach the events instead of just going out and doing them.  I would find a way to stay focused during the long periods between events.  I would put more importance on my performance.

 

AGd: What kind of fame has AG brought you?

 

VG: Nothing that has really gotten me anywhere.  But for a while after my shows aired, I was recognized here and there.  And I got some strange phone calls and letters from fans.  But it's great because even now, if the shows repeat, I'll get a bunch of calls from old friends who've seen it.

 

AGd: Do you have a favorite moment on AG?

 

VG: Yeah.  It was when Carlton Fluker who's 5' 7" tall and weighed about 130 lbs, PICKED UP and carried Tower, who was the biggest Gladiator at 6' 5" and 275, out of the conquer ring.  It was the ultimate David v. Goliath moment, and what the show was all about.

 

AGd: Which male or female gladiators did you like the best?

 

VG: Sabre was the coolest male Gladiator.  He was not wrapped up in the whole thing and didn't think he was better than anyone else just because he had a little fame.  On the women's side, I really liked Sky and Elektra.  Both were extremely beautiful and were down to earth and not there to gain fame.  They were there to compete, make a few bucks and try a new experience.

 

AGd: Easiest event? 

 

VG: The Maze

 

AGd: Hardest event?

 

VG: The Wall

 

AGd: If AG were re-created, would you be interested as a contender or gladiator?

VG: Neither.  Been there, Done that.  Besides, I was one of the oldest contenders at 30, and I'm 44 now.  I'm trying to quit playing Rugby, but can't seem to stop.

 

AGd: Relating to the last question, if you could have a say on one thing in a new American Gladiators, what would it be?

 

VG: Keep it fair.  There were some decisions on competition that were made in the interest of "good TV" that may have effected outcomes.

 

AGd: When did you first grow interested, or hear about American Gladiators?

 

VG: I watched it from the first show, and felt that it couldn't possibly be that tough to beat a huge bodybuilder who couldn't move very fast.

 

AGd: What have you been doing lately?

 

VG: I am a personal trainer and sports performance professional in the DC area.  I play Rugby 2 or 3 times per year and try to have as much fun as possible.

 

AGd: Anything else you'd like to say?

 

VG: Somebody should put together a reunion show.  I know where some of the people who I made friends with are, but I'd love to see many more of them.  A kind of where are they now thing would be fun.

 

AGd: Time for some word association. I'll say a name or phrase and you give me the first few words that pop into your head-

 

AGd: Powerball

 

VG: Need more space

 

AGd: Cliff Miller

 

VG: Chilly, Smooth, Calm

 

AGd: Joust

 

VG: Fun, but stacked against contender

 

AGd: Turbo

 

VG: Wants to win

 

AGd: The Eliminator

 

VG: Hate the net

 

AGd: The fans

 

VG: Kids enjoying the spectacle

 

AGd: Tower

 

VG: All American Boy

 

AGd: Larry Csonka

 

VG: Hilarious

 

AGd: Sabre

 

VG: Explosive, giving no quarter

 

AGd: Mike Adamle

 

VG: Great party buddy.  Actually KNEW Walter Payton (as close as I'll ever get)

 

AGd: The idea of Skytrack

 

VG: Idiotic

 

AGd: American Gladiators

 

VG: Opportunity, Friends, Great Memories, wish I could do it again.

 

AGd: Now finally, give us a run-through of a day in the life of season four contender Vince Granger during the American Gladiator tapings-

 

VG: No sleep the night before. Get up around 6:00. Stretch. Go to hotel restaurant and not eat. Off to studio around 7:00... wait, wait, wait.  Perform. Regret not taking more time and focusing. Wait, wait, wait. Perform. Regret not taking opportunity.  Wait, wait wait. Etc.

 

AGd: If there's anything you'd like to add (i.e. stories, memories, etc), feel free to do so-

 

VG: I've got about 10,000 stories and memories from that time.  It was a great experience that I think of often.  But one I tell often is of the day when I faced Bernie Miller.  The day before I had been sitting in the stands next to Jason Yao's girlfriend, Kim Churchill.  While watching Jason have his way with the Gladiators, I commented (repeatedly) on the ineffectiveness of Viper and joined in when the crowd chanted "Viper needs a Diaper".  I think I even used the phrase "Viper is a professional victim.  He's getting his ass kicked".  What I didn't know was that Kim had a mic on her and everything she (and I) said was being recorded by the sound guys.  Well, the next day when it was my next show, I noticed that the Gladiators had an extra bit of violence pent up, and that they were ganging up on me in some events.  If you watch the Atlasphere event, you'll see a couple of the Glads pin me up against the boards and keep me there for most of the event, while Bernie runs wild.  During that time, whoever it was (not Viper) is saying "You're not getting anything today buddy!"  During Powerball, you can see that 2 glads shadow me; sometimes coming into the dark part of the playing field (which is a no-no) to tackle me as soon as I get a ball.  You can even see me throw up my hands in disgust with ref Larry, and if you could read lips, you might blush.  Well, that night after a couple of drinks at the hotel bar, Mike Adamle and Larry Thompson (ref) revealed that the sound guys had played my comments about Viper to the Gladiators, and they had put a little extra into defending me.  The beauty of television.

 

Another memory which is not so entertaining is of Cheryl Wilson, who's husband murdered her a couple of years after our season.  I still remember being at the pool when she returned from her first date with the man who would become her husband and murderer.  I have video of Cheryl talking to all the other girls about how the date went, how nice the guy was, etc.  On the video Cheryl is so alive, happy, and excited at finding this man, and looking at it now, knowing the aftermath of that date, is a sad reminder of a huge waste.  Cheryl was a very nice and fun girl and a phenomenal athlete who might have accomplished anything, and it's sad to know she isn't around anymore.