All wrestlers have to start somewhere. Contrary to popular belief, the warriors of the squared circle don't magically appear buff, bad, and quick with the mic. Although some ride the tail of a comet to quick success, many toil in the trenches seemingly for eons awaiting their chance. They wrestle in flea markets, fairs, VFWs, YMCAs, and any other place a promoter can set up a ring.
Perhaps the highest level of "minor league" pro wrestling is Florida Championship Wrestling, the WWE's training school. Recently relocated around the corner from my crib in beautiful, sunny Tampa, Florida, FCW is the starting point for many wrestlers, male and female, trying to make it to the absolute pinnacle of their profession.
Needless to say, being that wrestling and the Afro-Squad go together like lamb and tuna fish, the Snowman and myself have been frequent patrons to FCW's weekly events.
So now, without further ado, I bring to The Serious Tip the first appearance of the Snowman. Hopefully this goes better than "Hercules in New York".
The FCW show last night was a lot of fun. In fact, this may have been the most enjoyable show that I've seen to date.
The Afro-Squad Army was in full force, and the crowd was a blast. A group of fans known as the Bourbon Street Mafia have joined alliances with us, so our posse is getting bigger.
I am finally getting to know some of the spouses and family in the audience. Big Titan's wife Desiree sat next to me for a while. I haven't seen him wrestle yet, but he is billed at "7 foot tall and 340 pounds." He is recovering from surgery, and should be back in a couple weeks.
Afa's match was a blast too. The ringside announcer Bryan Kelly (WXJT Channel 4) was also a lot of fun. He interacted with the Squad a lot. It was his birthday, so we got a happy birthday chant going.
Since it is a small crowd, we were able to interact a lot with in-ring announcer Angela Fong and Dusty Rhodes. We cheer when Angela bends over to get into the ring. We also cheer when Dusty sits down. (Wait for it… - Shhhhh - Yeah!) Dusty, Angela, and Bryan were a lot of fun. Interaction is part of the game.
We've also figured a way to make Eric Perez's matches "interactive." "Oh Yeah" is said whenever he hits somebody.
D.H. Smith (Davey Boy's son), Eddie Colon (Carlos's son), Joe Hennig (Curt's son) and Afa Jr. are some of the organization's second generation wrestlers. Nattie Neidhart (Jim's daughter) and Ted DeBiase Jr. are recent second generation folks from there.
"Extreme Dan" and FCW Andy (AKA Original Jet) sported 'fros throughout the night. They made that stuff look good. "Electric Cami" also looked smashing with her long curly dew.
At the end of the show I got to meet Diana Hart and Georgia Smith. Diana is Davey Boy Smith's ex-wife (and Stu Hart's youngest daughter) and Georgia is their daughter. They just moved to town from Calgary, and will be attending the shows from now on. I gave them an invitation to join the Afro-Squad Army at ringside. They were also accompanied by another Hart daughter, but I missed her first name.
Anyway, that's it for this week's report. Please check out the pictures and leave comments. Hopefully some of the spouses and wrestlers won't be too shy to comment.
Thanks, Snowman. Wait, no mention of the Great Jordi? Maybe next time.
And oh yeah, Mr. The Man, we haven't forgotten about you. Quit holding people down or else.
