The strong woman By Brent My skeptical friend and I visit the circus sideshow and learn how strong a woman can be Hank and I were buddies in college. Hank was 6 feet tall 190 pounds, the athletic type and quarterback on the football team. He was also a bit of a know-it-all but he was my best friend. One day we went to the circus in hopes of picking up girls. The main show would not start for some time so we visited the sideshow. At each attraction Hank felt the need to tell me how fake everything was. According to Hank, the bearded lady was fake, the rubber man was fake, the fire-eater was fake, the sword swallower was fake, etc, etc. Eventually we came to an attraction that had a large crowd gathering around it. As we looked and listened we quickly figured out that this was the strong woman's show and it was about to start. Hank scoffed at the very idea of a strong woman and said no woman could be that strong. However, I had always been attracted to athletic women so I convinced him to stay for the show. The stage wasn't a stage at all it was actually a wrestling or boxing ring. It was slightly smaller than the real thing but otherwise very authentic. Behind the ring was a curtain flanked by large paintings. They were standard circus paintings showing a very muscular and scantily clad woman performing feats of strength. In one she was lifting a huge barbell. In another she was wrestling a giant snake. There was an announcer standing in the ring talking up the show through a loudspeaker. He talked about the amazing girl discovered by explorers living in a remote jungle in the Philippines. Hank thought it was strange that they chose the Philippines of all places. The two of us stood near the back of the crowd and waited for the show to start. Finally, the announcer introduced the girl as "Tara of the Jungle, strongest woman in the world." The star emerged from behind the curtain and climbed through the ropes into the ring to applause and wolf whistles from the men in the crowd. When she reached the center of the ring next to the announcer she smiled and waved to the crowd then waited with her hands on her hips. Tara was difficult to describe. She was not exactly what I expected. She was Oriental and very attractive. She was wearing a very authentic looking leopard skin two-piece loincloth outfit that looked like it might fall off at any moment. She also had narrow armbands around her biceps. She did not look at all like a bodybuilder with huge bulging muscles. She did not look like one of those lean sinewy fitness models either. Still she did look strong. She had thick broad shoulders and strong looking arms much like a swimmer's physique. Her breasts were medium sized and filled her leopard skin bikini top very well. Her legs were shapely and muscular. He stomach was smooth and flat. She was not sucking in her stomach like models do when they pose and there was no visible six-pack but no fat either. Her middle almost looked a little soft. Her skin was very tan, her dark hair fell just past her shoulders and her eyes were black and seemed to dance as she smiled. She was about 5 feet 6 inches and must have weighed around 135 pounds. Overall she looked like a very attractive, strong, healthy, Asian girl next door. Hank laughed and said, "She doesn't look that strong to me. She's definitely easy on the eyes but she can't be very strong. She's probably wearing those arm bands because she has no muscles." I just said, "We'll see I guess." The announcer was talking non-stop. He asked Tara if she was ready. She told him to wait a second. She left her left hand on her hip and raised her right arm out straight and began to bend her arm and flex her bicep. When her arm reached 90 degrees the armband snapped and fell off her arm revealing a fairly impressive bulge on her upper arm. She put her right arm back on her hip and flexed her left arm in the same way snapping the armband off. Hank pointed out that the bands had to fake and rigged to pop off. The announcer held up a steel bar that looked to be about half an inch in diameter. He asked for a volunteer to test the strength of the bar. A young man raised his hand and was invited into the ring. Of course Hank told me the guy must have been planted in the audience. The volunteer tried to bend the bar. First he held it in front of him and tried to bend it with his hands only. When that didn't work he tried to bend it over his knee. He tried several different angles but the bar remained perfectly straight. The guy said he was convinced and handed the bar back to the announcer and left the ring. The announcer handed it to Tara. She held it over her head with both hands and lowered it down behind her neck. She then pulled on the ends. The muscles in her arms and shoulders tensed as she strained against the bar. Slowly the bar began to bend. It was bent just slightly when Tara lifted it over her head and held it straight out in front of her. Again she strained against the bar. The muscles of her arms, shoulders, and chest flexed and shook as the ends of the bar slowly but steadily moved closer together. Soon the two ends met and Tara raised the bent bar over her head with one hand and flashed a smile for the applauding crowd. Next, the announcer held up a pair of police handcuffs and asked for another volunteer. A second guy was pulled from the crowd and invited to inspect the cuffs. He pulled and yanked on them for a while then gave them back to the announcer convinced that they were real. The announcer then cuffed Tara's hands together in front of her. She held them overhead for the crowd to see then brought them down in front of her. She took a couple of deep breaths and then twisted her wrists and began struggling against the steel handcuffs. She strained for several seconds and sweat began to form on her golden flesh. Her bicep swelled as her right arm pulled up and her left pulled down. Finally, the cuffs broke with a loud snap. She raised both fists into the air in triumph as the chains dangled from her wrists. She was breathing heavily but still smiled. Hank said both the cuffs and the volunteer were phonies. The barker removed the cuffs. The next part of the show was starting. Two very big burley stagehands lifted a very heavy looking barbell and rolled it under the bottom rope into the center of the ring. Yet another volunteer was chosen and invited to lift the barbell. The volunteer was big and looked very strong. He squatted down and grasped the bar as Tara looked on. Using his legs the big man stood up with the bar but was completely unable to jerk it up to his chest. He tried for about 5 seconds then dropped the bar to the canvas with a boom. The announcer thanked the man and he climbed out of the ring. Tara stood behind the bar and waved to the audience with both hands. She squatted down and grasped the bar with both hands. She took several deep breaths. Suddenly in one motion she stood and jerked the bar up to her chest with a groan. Two more breaths and she began to slowly press the bar over her head. Her teeth were gritted and she growled as she pushed with all of her might. Her arms shook and sweat ran down her curvaceous body as the bar slowly moved higher. Finally her arms were fully extended and the crowd let out a cheer. Tara looked at the crowd. You could see the intense strain on her face but still the cute smile managed to appear. After several seconds she slowly lowered the bar back to her chest and then to the mat. She stood up and thrust both fists overhead as the crowd roared and began chanting her name. I asked Hank if he really thought all these volunteers could be plants. He scoffed and told me he could prove it. He told me that the next time they asked for a volunteer he would raise his hand and he guaranteed that he would not be chosen. The announcer was now holding up a wad of cash and making a speech, "I have in my hand $500 for anyone, man, woman, or beast who can defeat the magnificent Tara in a fair wrestling match. Is there anyone among you brave enough to step into this ring and match your muscles against the strongest woman in the world in personal combat? If anyone here can pin Tara for a 3 count or make her submit before she does the same to you I will hand you this $500. Are there any takers?" Hank said, "Now I'll show you that this is all fake. They'll never pick me to wrestle her." Then he raised his hand. Instantly, the announcer pointed straight at Hank and said, "There, the big brave man in the back step right up here sir." Hank had a look of utter shock on his face. He turned white and began to stammer. "Go get her. Remember she's a fake." I said. Hank knew he had no choice and made his way towards the ring. He climbed in and looked nervous as he got his instructions. The rules were simple. It was straight wrestling, no hitting, no kicking, no hair pulling, and no eye gouging. You could win by pinning your opponent's shoulders for a 3 count or making them submit. The scene in the ring looked like a total mismatch. A muscular 6 foot 190 pound man in shorts and a tank top against a 5 foot 6 inch 135 pound Oriental girl in her early 20's and wearing a leopard skin bikini. However, this girl had just performed some amazing feats of strength. Suddenly, the nervousness left Hank's face and he said to Tara, "You're a fake." Tara responded in perfect English, "Bring it on big man." The announcer assumed the job of referee. He asked both if they were ready and then said, "Wrestle!" Tara and Hank went into a crouch and began to circle each other. Hank moved in closer and locked up with Tara. The match appeared even for about 5 seconds then Hank began to lose ground. Tara slowly pushed him backwards into the ropes. She continued to push until his upper body was bent over the top rope. The ref ordered them to break. Tara let go and moved back to the center of the ring and stood there with her hands on her hips. The ref told them to wrestle and Hank went into a crouch and began to circle but quickly noticed that Tara hadn't moved a muscle. She just stood there, hands on hips, looking Hank square in the eye. "Take your best shot." She said. Hank approached her from the front and grabbed her around the shoulders. He tried to twist her upper body and pull her down to the canvas but she didn't budge. The football player yanked, pulled, and pushed for almost 10 seconds but Tara did not move an inch she just stood there like a tree with her hands still on her hips. Finally, with Hank using all of his weight, Tara began to move. As soon as she started to be pulled off balance she sprang into action. In one motion, she bent slightly at the knees, wrapped her arms around Hank's waist in a tight bear hug, straightened her legs lifting Hank into the air and turned his body almost parallel with the ground. She dropped him hard to the canvas and stood over him. Hank had the wind knocked out of him but recovered quickly and rolled to his feet. Tara went back into a crouch and they circled again. Hank reached for the muscle girl with both hands but she caught both his hand with hers and it turned into a test of strength in the center of the ring. The two wrestlers strained against each other; his arms against her arms, his muscles against her muscles. At first Hank managed to push Tara down an inch or so but then she stopped his momentum and the tied turned in her favor. Slowly she bent his wrists back and straightened up. Then she began to force him downwards. Hank's knees began to bend. However, before his knees hit the mat, Tara changed tactics. She jerked him up and twisted him around still holding on to his hands. Hank ended up in a straightjacket position with his own arms wrapped around his body and held by Tara behind him. Tara placed one knee in Hank's back and yanked on his hands causing him to cry out in pain. She jerked again bringing another scream from Hank. Suddenly, she let go sending Hank flying into the ropes. He bounced off and would have fallen flat on his back but Tara got underneath him and hoisted him high in the air across her powerful shoulders in a backbreaker. Hank moaned in pain and his arms and legs struggled weakly in an attempt to free himself. Tara carried him to the center of the ring and faced the crowd. Then she put Hank into and airplane spin. She spun him around 3 or 4 times coming to a stop facing the crowd once again. Next she jerked him up overhead and dropped him to the canvas on his back. Hank writhed in pain on the canvas holding his back. By this time I had worked my way through the crowd to the ring. I looked at Hank under the bottom rope and began to cheer him on. "Get up, get her, come on you can do it Hank!" Hank slowly climbed up the ropes and turned to face sexy champion. He leaned against the ropes as he caught his breath. Then he launched himself off the ropes at Tara. He bent over and hit her hard driving his shoulder into her stomach. Then he wrapped his muscular arms around her body in a tight bear hug. He even lifted her off of her feet for a few seconds but the pain in his back forced him to set her back down. When her feet touched the canvas Tara reached around Hank's head with her right arm and twisted him into a side headlock, breaking the bear hug. Her solid forearm was pressed against his throat and the firm bicep pressed against his carotid artery. The flow of air and blood to Hank's head was being cut off. He pulled on her arm and pushed on her body but could not free himself. Hank began to feel woozy and he went weak in the knees. Slowly he sank down to his knees. As soon as that happened Tara slipped around behind him and moved from a side headlock to a rear chokehold. She put all of her weight onto his back and began forcing him down to the canvas. Hank went to his hands and knees and Tara draped her muscular body across his back putting her full weight onto him and continuing to choke him out. The man's arms and legs slowly slipped out from under him and he was flat on his face on the canvas with the nubile circus performer lying on top of him. Tara switched to a two handed chin lock and pulled back as hard as she could raising Hank's upper body off the mat bending his spine backwards. The pain snapped Hank out of his state of semi-conciousness. "AARGHH!" Screamed Hank. Tara pulled him back even further and asked, "Do you give?" "Yes! I give up! You win!" Hank squealed out his surrender. But Tara of the Jungle wasn't quite through with him yet. "Who's the strongest woman in the world? Say it!" She demanded. Hank yelled as loud as he could, "Tara is the strongest woman in the world!" Tara released him and stood up. Hank pitched forward on his face. The invincible Tara placed one foot on her defeated challenger's back and flexed her mighty muscles for the wildly cheering crowd. She held the double bicep victory pose as the referee announced, "The winner and still undefeated champion, Tara of the Jungle, strongest woman in the world! Next show is at 3:00." The Asian beauty waved to the crowd with the same cute smile across her face, left the ring, and disappeared behind the curtain. The crowd was breaking up and Hank was crawling under the bottom rope. I helped him off the ring apron and to his feet. He was very unsteady and I wrapped his arm over my shoulders to help hold him up. As we started to walk away I asked him, "What do you say now?" Hank only had one thing to say, "She's for real."