
“He trained in bare feet, no gloves, no chalk,” DeBernardo said. Gym members who arrived early enough could catch him training. That wasn’t Dave, at all.”ĭraper continued to work out well past his competitive days.

When people are that big, you’d expect to hear arrogance or showboating. You wouldn’t expect him to be as kind as he was for that size the two don’t seem to go together. “I’d never seen anyone that big in person,” DeBernardo said. (Contributed)ĭeBernardo, echoing the sentiments of those who knew Draper, said the larger-than-life figure was quiet and soft-spoken, yet friendly and inspirational. “I never knew how much he impacted that timeframe until I heard it from Arnold,” said Soquel’s Frank DeBernardo, a gym member there for nearly a decade, “how important he was to the whole scene that was just evolving.”ĭave Draper, left, an iconic, world-class bodybuilder, during the early ’90s with one of his World Gym members, Santa Cruz’s Curtis Busenhart. Schwarzenegger spoke glowingly about the man who pushed him and the sport to greater heights. Schwarzenegger was in attendance when Draper opened World Gym near Harvey West Park in 1990. “Believe what you want, but that’s my story…” His faith helped him pull through, he wrote in a post on his webpage in 2012. He used a multitude of media platforms to discuss his alcohol and drug addictions, the former led congestive heart failure, and his sobriety since 1983. “A Glimpse in the Rear View,” “Brother Iron, Sister Steel,” “Iron on My Mind” and “Iron in My Hands” are among the highly regarded books he authored. (Frank DeBernardo – Contributed)ĭraper also penned books, columns, and blog posts on his website,. My thoughts are with Laree and the whole family.”Ĭlients at World Gym in Santa Cruz pose with owner and world class bodybuilder Dave Draper, third row up on the far right, in 1990. I will miss the Blond Bomber, but his memory will always be with me. He was an amazing writer and a great family man. He couldn’t have been more welcoming, and he was a fantastic training partner who always pushed everyone around him in the gym to be better. Can you imagine meeting your idol and becoming his training partner and traveling all over the world together? I was in heaven. He even hand-built my first furniture when I moved to Santa Monica, and let me tell you, he was talented. “When I got to America and finally met Dave, I learned his heart was as big as his pecs. In Austria, I kept his cover of Muscle Builder magazine on the wall above my bed for motivation, and when I saw him starring in “Don’t Make Waves,” I thought, “My dreams are possible.


“Dave Draper was an inspiration to millions of people all over the world, including me,” Schwarzenegger wrote. Olympia titles, paid tribute to Draper on his Instagram page. Schwarzenegger paid tribute to Draper on Instagram on Tuesday, hours after Draper died at the age of 79. He also appeared on “The Beverly Hillbillies” and was a guest on “Pat Boone in Hollywood” in ’67 and “The Merv Griffin Show” in ’71.ĭave Draper, left, and Arnold Schwarzenegger, right, were friends and training partners during bodybuilding’s golden era.

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It, as his doctor told me a little while ago, was a good death.”ĭraper, born April 16, 1942, appeared on nearly a dozen TV shows and in multiple films, including “Lord Love a Duck” in ’66 and “Don’t Make Waves” in ’67. I was with him and it was calm and peaceful. “Hi, friends, as the word’s getting out, I wanted to let you know so there’s no confusion,” she wrote, “Dave died early this morning. Santa Cruz County resident Dave Draper, an iconic, former world-class bodybuilder, dies at 79 Close Menu
