Mat Memories Part 1

Professional wrestling has always been a big part of my life. Several of my friends are pro wrestlers, my best friend was a pro wrestler, I even dabbled a bit in it myself. My memories of pro wrestling date back to as far back as I can remember. My Father and I were never really what you would call close. We loved each other, I certainly had a great deal of respect for my Father, but we never had the close relationship that most father and sons have. He was a war veteran and country boy, I was a nerd and never really understood him or his way of thinking. There was however one thing we both loved: pro wrestling. My weekends were spent watching WWF Superstars of Wrestling on Saturday Morning and then watching WCW Main Event on Sunday nights. It was some of the best times of my life.

Watching wrestling with my Dad was fun because back then, no one knew it was staged and that made it more fun. My dad took it very seriously, he hated the bad guys and loved the good guys. Watching my dad was often more fun then watching the shows. He would really get into it. When Rick Rude would cheat, my dad would freak out. His favorite wrestler was Jake the Snake Roberts. A grizzled mountain man who had the famous DDT finisher. He was rough, rugged, and when he came on TV my dad would sit on the edge of his seat and throw punches in the air and throw tantrums when his opponent would cheat and win. It was great. Often, especially in WCW, wrestlers would bounce back and forth between being a "good guy" and a "bad guy". Most famous for this was Ric Flair. He would be good one week and bad the next, and my father fell for it every time.

"Ric Flair is a no good cheatin' son of a.." he would yell one night. Then the next week Ric Flair would come to the rescue of Sting and suddenly be adored by all.

My father would then say, "you don't mess with Ric Flair, he will put a beatin' on ya."

Then a month later Flair would turn on Sting and my father would scream, "I never trusted that no good son of a..."

[my father had a love/hate relationship with Ric Flair]

Looking back on it now, that was what wrestling was all about. It toyed with your emotions. It was a roller coaster of excitement that always kept you guessing, and my dad was the poster boy for what wrestling promoters wanted as a fan.

Then in the mid 90's the news broke that wrestling was indeed staged and that the matches were pre-determined. It was like a big punch in the gut. The magic was gone. My father stopped watching it around that time because he no longer had any one to cheer for or hate. Anti-heroes like Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock came on the scene and cheated just as much as the bad guys did. Plus, you knew who was going to win before the event happened.

Maybe, it was like that back in the 80's, but I never knew. I was a kid and didn't care. It was quality time I got to spend with my dad. Wrestling was still more like a sport back then and not like the crazy stunt show that it is now. Some say it was boring back in those days, but I will never be convinced of that. All I will remember is sitting on the couch every Saturday and Sunday watching my favorite wrestlers battle it out on screen with my dad, wrestling's realest fan.

[My dad's favorite wrestler was Jake the Snake Roberts]

#wrestling #WWF #WCW #wresltingmemories