Ted Bundy.
Most serial killers have to be athletic to some extent to maintain their occupation. No one killer takes a life the same way, but there typically is some sort of athleticism utilized during the capturing of a victim and the taking of their lives. Ted Bundy had a very hands-on method that did require some physical prowess. What did those methods require? Did one of the most notorious serial killers of all time have a gym membership? Find out Bundy’s sports background below!
Bundy and Organized Sports
Most serial killers are loners with maladapted social traits. That typically doesn’t blend well with the collaboration required for team sports. Needless to say, Bundy didn’t have a strong skill set on the field. He was always a bit more brain than brawn. One of the many ego blows to the young teen was being rejected after trying out for his high school’s baseball and basketball team.
If you listen to Bundy speak about his childhood, he will tell a grand tale of playing football with his many guy friends in high school. Other people at his school remember him quite differently. He didn’t have friends, was “girly,” and had a speech impediment that made communication difficult. There was no street ball for the young Bundy.
Recreational Sports
One thing many people don’t know about Bundy is his aptitude for skiing. It is believed he did ski on the weekends as a child, often opting to hit the slopes on Snoqualmie Pass in Washington. As an adult, he remained an avid skier. One of his best-known photos shown above was of him and his long-term girlfriend Elizabeth sitting in front of a fire at the Snowbird Ski Resort in Utah after a day of fun.
One of the serial killer’s victims was a ski instructor, Julie Cunningham, in 1975 in Denver. He reported that he lured her into his car by pretending to be an injured skier who needed her help. Criminality and skiing went hand in hand for the young man beyond just murder. He was also known to steal equipment that he couldn’t afford as an adolescent, as well as forging lift tickets. He was arrested more than once with equipment he could have taken with him on the slopes. For example, he utilized ski masks quite a bit to conceal his face, and he was arrested once with a ski guide in Colorado. An odd thing for a wanted man to have.
Serial Killing Athletic Requirements
It’s no secret that men can physically overpower most women. It doesn’t require an Olympian to prey on unaware young ladies. However, it does take some physical prowess that even a man like Ted Bundy could muster. He cheated a bit though, as his typical shtick to lure young women into his vehicle was usually related to being injured and in need of some help to lift something. Talk about taking the easy way out in terms of catching his victims. Carry your own books, Bundy!
However, Ted Bundy wasn’t always lazy. He had an aptitude for hitting young ladies over the head with heavy equipment like crowbars, which requires some upper-body strength. An average crowbar weighs roughly 5 to 16 pounds. The young man also had a tendency to break into young ladies homes, which definitely took thought and athleticism. He often broke into homes to take money as well, so it was one of his most frequent athletic feats. Although it appears that sometimes ‘breaking in’ consisted of him walking through an unlocked front door. Stories from his childhood ring more true as we go along.
There are many other things that Bundy did to his victims that we won’t be diving into today that also had to be physically difficult, even with the size difference. One for working smarter, not harder, Ted Bundy would also drop the bodies off, usually in the woods. Although digging a grave would be much harder on his arm muscles, throwing grown women around couldn’t have been a walk in the park either. Before he can get too proud of himself, it’s worth pointing out that men much older and out of shape were able to do the same thing as Ted Bundy. Take that, Ted!
Ted Bundy As A Sports Fan
The notorious serial killer did have an appreciation for the sports teams from the state he was raised in. The Seattle Mariners lost more than their average season when Bundy wore a shirt repping the team in Florida while going pro se in court. At the time, the Mariners were brand new in the MLB world, so this definitely put the team on America’s radar.
One of the most infamous sports stories surrounding Ted Bundy involved his watching of the Rose Bowl in 1978 in a Michigan bar when the University of Washington and the University of Michigan faced off. It’s complete lore, but rumor has it that Bundy either got into a bar brawl or narrowly avoided one in Michigan when he upset all of the fans by supporting the team of the college he attended. What a cringey story for all of the Washington Husky fans out there. It comes with the territory of being from Washington, something the author can personally vouch for as a native herself.
