Gladiator!
Since the dawn of civilization, lithe, oiled young men have been engaging in wrestling – the most manly of sporting pastimes. Now you can try your hand at pinning a writhing sweaty man to the floor at Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club, which holds wrestling sessions every Sunday and Tuesday at 5pm. Of course, you’re not expected to oil yourself up Graeco-Roman style – shorts and a T-shirt are sufficient attire – but it certainly does help if you have some sort of martial arts background. Coach Ryan Sergeant does his best to accommodate beginners, but warns that they need to remain committed and enthusiastic. If they manage this, then it should take just a few weeks before they have the basics of wrestling in a firm headlock.
For further info, call Ryan Sargeant on 050 660 2818. Sessions are free of charge.
After-session recreation: We recommend dropping in at Belgian Beer Café (InterContinental Hotel; 0800 423463; 5pm-1am), where tired muscles are pepped up with boiled mussels. On July 21 they have a four-course meal for Dhs150 to celebrate Belgium National Day. C’est magnifique!
Midfield Dynamo!
Duplays are gearing up for the football season with a series of oddly named leagues, mostly taking place at the Dome (Airport Road, opposite Zayed Sports City). By the time you read this, the Fifth Element III league will have begun its 10-week season, though you’re still more than welcome to join in. Aspiring Robert Greens should know that it’s a five-a-side affair, played out in the Dome’s air-conditioned bubble, with great prizes promised (butter fingers will not be tolerated). However, real men laugh at prizes; we’re only in it to scuff our knees and work off the previous night’s excesses. To join for the season, individuals pay Dhs450; teams pay Dhs3,250.
Contact football.auh@duplays.com to register. Duplays hosts a number of sporting activities across the city – see www.duplays.com for further details.
After-session recreation: You’re down near Al Maqtaa, so Cooper’s (Park Rotana; 02 657 333; noon-2.30am) has to be the nearest place to whet your whistle. It’s a gastro pub, don’t you know, but fish ‘n’ chips are guaranteed.
Fore!
The Yas Links golf course may seem like an unnecessarily long way to drive for a bit of man time, but it’s worth the trip, if only for the after-game spoils. Time Out Abu Dhabi – no Nick Faldo, it must be said – dropped in recently and was thoroughly impressed with the clubhouse restaurant, Hickory’s (02 810 7777; open daily, 6.30am-midnight) which has fantastic views across the mangroves, a wide and man-friendly menu, and just the right level of seclusion to ensure that it feels like you’ve escaped the normal world. Elsewhere, the Abu Dhabi Golf Club continues its popular Keep Walking series, which takes place on Wednesday evenings from 4.30pm. Not restricted to men, of course, but nine holes, your own golf cart, complimentary refreshments and the chance to win a trip for two to Gleneagles (Scotland) ought to be enough to get even the slovenliest couch potatoes up and striding.
Book on 02 558 8990. Dhs95 for club members; Dhs195 for non-members.
After-session recreation: At Yas Links, the aforementioned Hickory’s has the potential to make you forfeit the course altogether, while the bar to the side of Abu Dhabi Golf Club’s Cafe 37 is legendary in its own right (02 558 8990; open daily 6am-10pm).
