At that juncture, I had to abandon my comrades and head over to the media pit in front of the meadow of a stage, where the Figure pros were getting ready for prejudging. Arm wrestling was wrapping up its last matches and I was pleasantly surprised to see women competing. And a few of them had the goods that would have done well in the pro Figure class. Wonder if they crossed over.
Thirty minutes later, with the stage cleared, the Figure pros strode out one by one on heels that would cause nose bleeds for the average woman. To the woman, they were pictures of perfection. Setting my hottie radar aside, I marveled at any judge who could differentiate between the winner and runner-ups. It really came down to genetics. And I was pleased to see lean, hard bodies without some of the muscularity that has won previous shows. In fact, some of the girls could’ve crossed over to Bikini.
Nicole Wilkins stood out immediately. Tall and lean, she had a combination of feminine muscularity and soft curves with a perfect shoulder/waist/hip ratio. If there is the magic “X” frame in Figure, Nicole possesses it.
Erin Stern looked to be a close second, but didn’t have the calf and thigh shape that Nicole had. She too, has a nice “X” frame proportionality and when she fills out her lower body weaknesses, will give notice that she’s in it to win it.
Ava Cowen was spectacular and stood with Erin somewhere in the second position in my opinion. If her upper arms had a little more shape (i.e. size), it would’ve been a coin toss for first. Lots of leg and great calves on this girl.
The fitness girls followed, and again, the field was very close. And again, they were lean and hard without being overly muscular. How does one pick a winner from the 2-piece round? A lot of weight is placed on their routines which won’t be seen until the evening.
About the Author:
Rick Woodbridge has been in the bodybuilding culture for over 36 years. His unique perspective has grown out of his experience as competitor, National Physique judge, promoter, trainer, and writer. Rick has lived, breathed, and eaten bodybuilding.
An architect and cigar store owner, and the father of six children and grandfather of 10 grandchildren, he still gives bodybuilding the 100% it takes to succeed, continuing to compete in Masters over-50 classes. His knowledge is highly respected and sought after on several bodybuilding forums and has been published in Muscular Development and Examiner.com. He also offers his extensive knowledge through personal training and contest prep coaching.
For more information, contact Rick at muscularmaster@gmail.com
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