Coverboy First Runner-Up: Rich McPherson
This bear-lovin' cub makes his own way, one disciplined step at a time
Rich McPherson
(Photo by Julian Vankim)
Rich McPherson tends dance to his own tune. He’s got the drive and the discipline, matched by an independent streak. Does it come from bouncing around a bit – California, New York, Oman – when he was growing up? Or maybe from his military family?
Rich doesn’t necessarily know. He can, however, share what those qualities sometimes look like. In high school, for example, he was a diehard wrestler.
”I placed in state,” Rich says of high school wrestling in North Carolina, his last stop before D.C. ”I was also doing cross-country and track, but that was just to get into shape for wrestling. I’d have to make weight, go whole days without eating. I couldn’t wait to have that gulp of Gatorade at lunch.”
Obviously disciplined. And definitely a jock, right? Not so fast.
”I wouldn’t say ‘jock,’ because I didn’t hang with a specific crowd,” Rich counters. ”I got along with everybody. The nerds, the geeks, the football team, people in band – everybody.”
Support Metro Weekly’s Journalism
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
