My time in Professional Wrestling!

 This comes to no ones surprise but I am a major dork! But believe it or not, I was once about of one of my favorite things in life and that was professional wrestling.

For five years, I got to be apart of something I never thought I could be and yet, I did. Going through a lot of self reflection lately and looking back on my time during those years has helped put a lot of things into prospective for me.

We are going to have to back track a little bit before I go into it. I have always been a fan of professional wrestling ever since I was little. But it was when I got into high school I got to meet some amazing people. 

I got to meet guys like Chris Dubler, Andy Hoar, Jimmy, TJ and Matt Silks who were at the time were running a backyard promotion. Well at least during the summer, it is pretty hard to run a backyard promotion when it is cold outside 😆 lol!

Fast forward a few years, I got to witness these guys create a local promotion around Lewistown and it was one of the greatest experiences in my life. What many people may not realize is how popular Pro Wrestling is around Mifflin County.

But after one show, I wanted to see if I could somehow become a part of this. To say I was scared to death to walk up and ask, would be a major understatement.

One of the reason I was scared was I wasn't sure if my body could handle it. But I wanted to try and see how it went.

That is where I got to meet guys like Rob Noxious, Zarb, Mark Mest, J Money, D, Jeff Grant, Jamal, Mike and plenty other amazing people.

I really did not think I would have lasted for as long as I did and I thank God for it. 

Of course during my training, it didn't take them long to figure out that I had absolutely no confidence what so ever lol! 

Yet as time went on, I slowly started feeling like I could do this and I forever grateful to these guys for teaching me ways to help protect myself and more importantly, protect others in the ring.

The next thing I know I started working shows and getting to meet some incredible people in several different towns.

I was mainly used as a referee while I was training to wrestle and I got to learn so much from some of wrestling's big names that I never even thought I'd ever meet. Guys like Stevie Richards, Gangrel, Al Snow, Rock N Roll Express, Maven, Sean Waltman, etc.

One of my personal favorite memories was having my big brother Cody and our friend Justin watch me referee a match between J Money and Al Snow. I am very thankful that he got to see me in a ring. Another amazing moment was getting to work with Stevie Richards which to be honest, I can write a blog on that itself.

I was having an amazing time, but sadly the good times came to an end. To be honest with ya'll there was a number of different reasons why I had to leave, a lot of which I had no control over but it still hurt nonetheless.

But ultimately, it came down to the simple fact that I was losing money even though I was working two jobs. I always tried my best to keep track of my money and when I realized I was losing money, I had to call it quits.

I remember it like it was yesterday, it was a snowy down so unfortunately we didn't have a practice, however, I got really depressed because I was really hoping to talk to the guys about it. Even worse, we had a show coming up in Marysville so I had to wait a whole week to tell Rob.

On a positive note, I found out about there being no practice because of Jeff who had called me. But it was while we were talking on the phone and he just knew that something was wrong. Jeff then asked me and I explained to him my situation and he told me that everyone would understand.

Then the night of the show, I was so nervous because I knew that this was going to be my last show. I was so scared to face Rob and have to tell him that I had to move on. Every single one of them were extremely supportive and I am forever grateful for it. I just remember the night ride home, I was fighting tears the whole way home because I still felt so ashamed.

But enough about me, I also wanted to write about how I think we as a community should continue to show some support for the guys and girls out there on the indy wrestling circuit. People have no idea the grind that is professional wrestling and what wrestlers go through on a daily basis.

Most of them are just everyday people like you and me and are simply living out their dreams and hopefully one day move up to the next level. A lot of them also work regular jobs and also are active members of the community. What amazes me about all of this is that there are still how many people who have no clue how much these local pro wrestling shows do for their local communities.

I remember when I had an opportunity to cover the wrestling shows here for Hometown Sports, I jumped all over it. I really hope and pray that people are enjoying those articles because I really like to show everyone here how much these shows have impacted peoples' lives.

Whether it is 7MW or HWF or even both! Please everyone out there wherever you live. Please! Go and support them because these people have gone out of their way to help provide so great entertainment. And you may never know, that one person could get noticed and maybe sign with one of the big name companies.

And to all the guys and gals that I had the pleasure to know. I love every single one of you guys and I pray nothing but the best for you. God Bless and Be Safe Out There!