COSMOPOLITAN MAN

In the past month, Anthem area resident Kenya Piper has received 2,000 e-mails to his Gmail account.

His inbox was flooded with admirers and old friends he hadn't talked to in years.

The hooplah over Piper was generated after he appeared in Cosmopolitan magazine's "Man Hunt 2006," which profiles 50 single men from each state. The article was in the November 2006 issue, which can be found on Cosmopolitan's Web site.

Piper was chosen as the representative bachelor from Nevada after being nominated, unbeknownst to him, by a friend.

"I got the call on a Saturday afternoon. At first I thought it was a modeling agency. Then I found out it was Cosmo magazine," Piper said.

The nomination has landed him appearances on "The Today Show" and "Rachel Ray." The magazine also set him up with his own e-mail, Nevada.bachelor@gmail.com, so interested women could try to contact him.

So far, Piper said, he hasn't had any luck locating Ms. Right.

"No dates. I'm still single," he said.

Piper, 30, moved to Henderson three years ago from South Haven, Mich., after his mother asked him to join her in the area. He works as a bartender at Kennedy's Tavern in The District.

Piper's friend Cilicia Teal sent in Piper's photos and a short essay without telling him. Teal and Piper have the same personal trainer.

"I think that he's an awesome guy. He's really good-hearted. He's one of the nicest guys I know," Teal said.

She said sending in the photos was no problem because they had already had some taken for their personal trainer's portfolio.

Teal said she's seen no change in Piper's personality since he appeared as Cosmopolitan's Nevada pick.

"He's so down to earth. I'm always the one taking him out and saying 'This is hottest bachelor in Nevada.' He just puts down his head and laughs," she said.

Piper said his co-workers gave him a hard time at first about the feature in Cosmopolitan.

He said he has not noticed any flux in the number of single women showing up at Kennedy's, but his boss and longtime friend Sam Dash begs to differ. Dash said women brandishing Cosmopolitan came in looking for Piper's autograph while he was in Chicago for the nomination.

"A lot of people notice him. I don't tell him because he's shy," Dash said.

Dash said a lot of people were impressed that Piper received the award.

"He's a great guy. Shy. He deserves to be Nevada's bachelor," he said.

But, Dash said his friend is more than just what's on the outside.

"He's a lot more than just his looks," Dash said. "He's not just a pretty face."

Piper said being featured in Cosmopolitan has given him a lot more confidence. He said he might consider m

odeling once more, something he had given up because he thought he might be too old.

He also got the chance to travel to New York City, which he had never done before.

Piper said he was never able to figure out how to enter the Internet dating scene before, although he doesn't rule it out as a way to meet people.

"I'm used to meeting other people through friends," he said.

Piper is looking for a funny, athletic woman who can make him laugh.

"I'm not picky," he said.

Piper said he enjoys the outdoors and the beach.

"I grew up near Lake Michigan," he said.

Right now, Piper's No. 1 woman is his mother. He said she loves that her only child is Cosmopolitan's Nevada bachelor for 2006.

"She's more excited than I am," he said. "I'm a mama's boy."

Piper said he feels added pressure in the dating scene now that he has been featured in Cosmopolitan.

"I'm very shy," he said. "Some of my friends say I should be meeting women left and right.

"But it's hard to date in Vegas. What happens, happens."