Getbig2002 Olympia
Review & Reports

2002 Olympia After Party Comments
by Ron Avidan

    There was a number of parties going on after the official Mr. Olympia ended with an uproar, with Ronnie Coleman barely squeaking a win over Kevin Levrone, and Gunter becoming the darling of the Olympia weekend. Craig Titus did not do so bad himself either, surprising his critics, and placing in 11th place. Kelly Ryan, the night before, placed 2nd in the Fitness Olympia, also earning extremely high respects, considering that Kelly is blind in one eye (very few people know that).

    But what is a person to do on a Saturday night after the Mr. O? Go party. There was the VIP party in one of the ballrooms close to where the expo was, but that was for special people, IFBB officials, sponsors, athletes, and people who paid $600 to get the complete package. There was Chris Cormier's party at RA, right next door to the Mandalay Bay, where he was celebrating his birthday. There was of course, various nightclubs around the city, including the one of the Hard Rock Hotel, the one at the Palms Hotel (Rain in the Desert), and the one at the Rio (on the 54th floor, overlooking the city), but the one that sparked the most interest this year was the 'official' party sponsored by Craig Titus and Kelly Ryan.

    The party was held at Club Utopia, at 3765 South Las Vegas Blvd, on the strip about a mile away from the Mandalay Bay. It did take a while to get there, our friends taking a limo, but when we got there, we are amazed. Not at the place, but at the line to get in. There was easily at least 150 people in line, and just that sight almost made us turn back. But we stuck it on.

    I was not about to bribe the doorman $20 to get in first, but being a friend of Craig's, I wriggled myself and my friends into the club without the long wait. I tried to avoid the glaring stares from the people in line, but I wanted in. I talked to Craig about that, and he promised next year, there will be advanced tickets being sold at the expo, plus there will be two cashiers going a little faster. Also, there won't be any special tipping at the door to get in faster. In other words, this was the first time they had this party, and there was bound to have some glitches. Having so many people arrive at the same time proved overwhelming for them.

    Once inside, we immediately went to the bar for drinks. Ok, just kidding, we looked around to see who's who, and what's up. The place looked cool. There was a bar in the front, a bar at the corner, and a bar upstairs. The dance floor was a circular dance floor, with cages that housed dancing girls around the sides of it. No less than 4 cages were around with scantily dancing girls enjoying the music. Of course, the dance floor was very interesting to gaze at too, as you saw people slipping and sliding around, plus a little kissing here and there, just enjoying themselves.

    We also enjoyed the various outfits that people wore, and although I took some pictures of them, some were so outrageous and sexy that you definitely thought it could have the beginnings of a wild rave. Of course, there was a guy selling lighted and blinking fixtures in the corner, but no drugs. At least, not in front of anyone.

    We went to the VIP room, sponsored by Prolab, and said hello to everyone. Here we could sit, and relax, away from the crowds. It was extremely nice of Prolab to sponsor the room. After walking around in a few circles, we realized that there was an upstairs too. But you needed a special pass to go upstairs. Once upstairs, there was a balcony and a patio where another disc jockey was playing music, and lots of people just mingling , talking and enjoy the party. Inside, another bar where various people were conversing on the latest happenings. Still another section upstairs was Craig and Kelly's section, where there were egg shaped chairs, and a little sofa, where Craig and Kelly stayed with their special friends.

    There were, throughout the night, at least 2,000 people there, going in and out, and quite successful. It was interesting to see the people you know having fun, either from the expo, from the stage, or just from various gyms dancing quite interestingly. This one was definitely an experience to remember.