When Someone Mentions The SI Swimsuit Issue, What Is The First Cover You Think Of?

Yesterday, an elite blogger here at Barstool wrote about the cover girls for the SI Swimsuit being announced despite not even knowing the swimsuit issue was still a thing. Outstanding journalism in every sense of the word.

Anyway, as one of the resident Olds that remembers when the swimsuit issue reveal was a legitimate event, it got my brain thinking. When someone mentions the SI Swimsuit issue, what is THE cover your brain immediately pulls out of the archives? 

My pick was easy:

I was a teenager at the time who was no stranger to the female body (thanks to hours grinding on the internet through slow dial up speeds and age verification checks). Yet despite all that, I had a Larry David reaction to this cover.

I was quite comfortable in assuming I was heterosexual before that swimsuit issue. But that Tyra Banks cover hammered that point home like a Pete Alonso swing to the face along with the lowkey extremely 90s twist of the issue being Nothing But Bikinis.

The late 90s to early 00s just hit different.

Bringing it to the new school, I feel like Kate Upton's covers would probably be the answer for some of the young'ns reading this blog considering she was on three times, with each time her going distinctly away from swimsuits to literally any other type of clothing to finally what appears to be an old hammock.

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Bar Rafeli is another one that moved more than a few magazines despite the print industry slowly tapping out 

You guys think the Scranton branch of Dunder Mifflin is still open or you think they shuttered as the world continues to go digital? You know what? That's a bad thought to have. Lets move on

Brooklyn Decker also fit the look of this era.

I feel like a lot of people would say the Marissa Miller cover but may not remember Marissa Miller's name since she went from the biggest supermodel in the universe to off the map in the blink of an eye to raise a family.

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But those that remember her reign remember it fondly.

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Speaking of someone that settled down after landing the cover, Hannah Davis taking down Jeets may be the most incredible feat someone who made the cover of SI, let alone the swimsuit issue, has ever pulled off.

I'm sure the OGs like Large and RA that waited at their mailbox like Adam Sandler on nudie magazine day when the Swimsuit Issue was rumored to be in the mailman's truck have the covers starring legends like Kathie Ireland and Elle MacPherson on their list.

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I think Heidi Klum is a pretty common choice for people closer to my age.

Beyonce is clearly the answer for every member of the Bey Hive, who will not be slandered one iota in this blog because I'm not crazy.

Nina Agdal, Lilly Aldridge, and Chrissy Teigen formed a hell of a Big 3 somewhat recently.

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I don't wanna hear the old heads complain about SI forming super teams since they had a Big 3 back in the day too, thye just called it something different.

So back to the question in the headline. Which cover do you think of when you hear someone mention the SI Swimsuit cover?

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And THAT'S how you get multiple blogs out of a story you didn't know even know was coming until this morning that hits the sports, smut, and nostalgia trifecta in the middle of a global pandemic that has dried up the content well.