Dude, you look incredible, especially in the side tricep.
LOOKIN GOOD DOOD! I’m impressed!
you messed up tho…
once you compete… you’ve been bitten by the BUG… now you’ll never be able to give it up 
lol
good job again man, steppin onstage after all that hard work is priceless isn’t it? lol
DG
Holy Crap! Cortes, you look phenomenal! It looks like you put those others to shame, even from their partial shots. Absolutely great – you should be proud.
What does your wife think of your physique?
Proud of you Cortes. You look marvelous 
Well done, my friend. All of that hard work paid off. Remarkable for your first show, I think. Glad to hear you’ve caught the bug;)
Awesome work, is was fun watching you transform.
Proud. So proud!
Well done mate - KAHUNAS springs to mind.
jj
Holy cow big C!
I don’t see how you could have been expected to do ANY better on your first contest than this! I am really, really impressed at your fortitude and dedication to getting here buddy. Wow, I can’t get over it. You look fantastic all the way around. Color even looked superb in the end also.
Sure you are going to be able to nitpick yourself for getting even better next time and so forth, but from where I’m sitting, you look very big, symmetrical, ripped, and very, very good. Whatever flaws and weak points you may determine that you have, are trivial when compared to how good you did, and how very far you came in a relatively short amount of time, to get here.
Excellent job, and way to represent, my good friend.
ToneBone
I wish I could reply to each of you individually and tell you how much each of your comments means to me, but I have to go out of town for three days and I’m leaving shortly, so I hope that it will suffice for me to say thank you, sincerely, one more time, to all of you for your very appreciated support. You guys are really terrific and I am blessed to have such a great group of friends.
Oh, and I’ll be bringing an even prettier package to the stage next year, so get ready
Great job Cortes. Can’t wait to see what you do in the future.
Good Job buddy. Congrats on all the hard work. It surely shows.
[quote]Cortes wrote:
And Mr.Zsasz: Yes, I think the $120 tab for just me and my (tiny) wife alone is testament to what went on at that Mexican food restaurant afterward ;)[/quote]
Now that’s a victory in and of itself. And, of course, congrats on your transformation. Hey, how much weight did you gain back over the days after your competition?
One of the girls at work was really impressed. I mentioned that you were going to compete and she said “Is that the guy with the big legs”, which it was, and she couldn’t believe the change.
From my perspective, you used to have what I would call a fighter physique. You looked like someone who was used to doing damage. But now you look like, dare I say it, a bodybuilder! Your symmetry has come up, your posing looks greatly improved, and your v-taper looks tight. I will be interested in seeing where you go from here.
Take a well deserved bow Cortes you deserve it.
Also, to all the people who have contributed to this post, you have made it the best post I have read on T-mag - by far!!
I’ve been a member since 2002 and never felt the need to post until now which surely says something.
Good luck in your future comps mate.
*Note to self - Must Sort Out Avatar ;o)
Wow Intersweat that does say something about our boy Cortes 6 years and now you come out. Nicely done
Kick ass thread! cortes you’re a classy guy, lots of respect for ya not only in your training/competition but by the way you conduct yourself and contribute to our forum
jam up!
thats not an ass kiss either
that was with sincerity
[quote]saps wrote:
Wow Intersweat that does say something about our boy Cortes 6 years and now you come out. Nicely done[/quote]
Double the Wow. That does say something indeed. I mean, not as much as the macaroni art trophy I sent him for his efforts but still, I don’t need to get jealous…
[quote]Intersweat wrote:
Take a well deserved bow Cortes you deserve it.
Also, to all the people who have contributed to this post, you have made it the best post I have read on T-mag - by far!!
I’ve been a member since 2002 and never felt the need to post until now which surely says something.
Good luck in your future comps mate.
*Note to self - Must Sort Out Avatar ;o)[/quote]
Holy crapoly Intersweat! I think you have just paid me the biggest compliment that I could possibly be paid. Awesome, man! Thank you, seriously, so much, for posting your support here. Now if we could get you to keep doing so…!
[quote]5.0 wrote:
Holy Crap! Cortes, you look phenomenal! It looks like you put those others to shame, even from their partial shots. Absolutely great – you should be proud.
What does your wife think of your physique?[/quote]
You know what, man, my wife could pretty much not give a damn what I look like. I mean, she appreciates the fact that I am a good looking guy (yes, I am), but she really doesn’t give a damn about the muscles.
Funny thing is, I am the envy of almost all Japanese men, from whom I constantly hear the word “macho” as I walk by; and I get aggressively (very much so) flirted with by Japanese women. It’s funny. Just being a Westerner here will get you labeled as “kakkoii” (cool), but if you are a guy with big muscles and have a pretty face, you positively become Superman. I’m not joking.
The great thing for me is that I seriously feed off of it, and my wife is completely cool with the fact that I am so “desired.” Heh. The irony lies in the fact that she loves me for me sense of humor. She’s super hot, too, as MsM can back up, so I guess I am married to a real Jessica Rabbit.