almost 20 years ago I joined a bbding discussion board. in the early 2000s they were alive and well, discussing ifbb, steroids, and anything else was off topic. that is all gone now. even bbding.com is now a fitness site. Getbig used to be a hardcore bbding forum. And over at MD, on their bbding forum (no bull) pretty much one or two paid people start most threads.
So what happened? if this is an indication in the lack of interest in pro (ie mass monster, ifbb bbding not physique etc) bbding then maybe the sport is dying. I predict the mr Olympia will go the way of the miss Olympia - it will be cancelled. I give it 10 years and no pro bbding as we know it.
A good thing really for the health of those who decide to go down the path of steroids in ever increasing dosages, with no breaks, for years on end.
Bodybuilding is and was a very insular , cult sport.
The saving grace was the old muscle mags , when I first started.
Until the internet forums there were only 3 ways fans saw a real IFBB pro :
magazine coverage, TV contest coverage, guest posing/seminar.
1. Magazines are 1 way communication and the reader can only discus things in person with fellow gym rats.
2. TV contest coverage was rare and only showed the bodybuilders at their best.
3. It's hard to be rude and obnoxious when you interact directly with the pro in person.
I believe that anonymous nature of internet forums caused the decline of real fan interaction with pros.
Too many ego filled dickwads felt forums were a great place to fuk with pro bodybuilders.
Maybe it was jealousy, insecurity or just trying to get a laugh that causes it?
I dunno, but it's sad that it was abused and destroyed by the very people that could have benefited from it.
FYI, the Olympia and Arnold have bigger men's bodybuilding prize $$ then ever before.
It has a small but highly devoted fan base that faithfully supports the big contests.
I don't see that changing .
