Gold can't buy you beer in Baltimore

From Friday's Baltimore Sun:

With Michael Phelps' face plastered on the cover of Sports Illustrated and boxes of Frosted Flakes, you've got to wonder: Did he lose the chance to live a normal life when he won all that Olympic glory?

The bouncer at a Fells Point bar provided a reassuring answer to that question the other night, when he turned away the swimming sensation because he didn't have his ID.

Phelps is no underage Chinese gymnast. He's 23.

But all the bouncer at Max's Taphouse knew was that some tall, young-looking guy with a group of friends had come to the door. Some of the friends didn't have IDs either, said owner Ron Furman.

"Hey, guys, no IDs here, I can't do anything about it," Furman said the bouncer told the group.

Considering that an alcohol license is a basic necessity for operating an alcohol establishment and considering that Liquor Control boards around the nation routinely send out underage agents to entrap otherwise law-abiding businesses, this was a prudent and correct action by the doorman at Max's.

Furman said he'd love to have the Olympian, who just moved into a waterfront condo in the neighborhood, stop by again. <..>

"I respect the hell out of what he has done. His mother - it's a family to be proud of," Furman said. "And if Michael shows up with his ID, I'll be happy to buy him a beer."

Come back, kid, when you can show ID
by Laura Vozzella
Baltimore Sun
September 26, 2008

After all, what's 14 Olympic gold medals between friends?

• I was alerted to this story by a Twitter post at Musings Over a Pint.
• Max's Taphouse recently offered a three-day festival of German beer.