Let's Try Wrestling
While I did have some older relatives that wrestled, wrestling was not a big thing in my family. My Dad did wrestle in 7th & 8th grades, but his loves in life were baseball & motorcross. My great Uncle Greg wrestled throughout most of high school, but I didn't even become aware of it until many years later. Same with my Uncle Larry. The real reason I got started in the sport was because I was getting bullied & my Dad was looking for a way to toughen me up.
I was a goofy, weird & awkward little boy. My parents had decided to start me in Kindergarten at age 6 & as a result I was bigger & heavier, than most of the boys in my class. I was also super sensitive. I cried easily & as a result I made a good target for bullies. Three in particular. Ian Popejoy, Dru Glandon & Greg Allison. All three two years ahead of me in school.
Truth to be known, Dru didn't scare me. I wasn't afraid of him. Ian on the other hand I was. Ian was big, he was mean & he was tough. Later in life he boxed, and was semi-successful at it. To this day, I wouldn't want to meet Ian Popejoy in a dark alley. Greg Allison? Rabid wolverine. Pure honey badger. He wasn't very big, but he is honestly one of the toughest kids I've ever known. While you were afraid of what you thought Ian could do to you, you at least thought you'd come out of it alive. With Greg you didn't know. The dude was nuts.
The three of them liked to mess with me at recess, but I had some protection there as my 1st grade teacher Mrs. Fritchen wouldn't put up with their shit. The walk home from school was a different story. While Dru would occasionally shove me, push me or poke me, Ian & Greg never actually touched me. They were pure intimidation. It was the fear of what they could do, that had me often in tears and shaking in my shoes.
One day, just outside of Suzi Fowler's house right across the street from the school, the three of them surrounded me. Greg threw a punch right past the side of my head. The wind blew back my hair. It scared the Hell out of me, and I froze right there on the sidewalk.
"If I had hit him," Greg laughed. "He'd have brain damage."
"Probably have to put him in special ed," Ian laughed.
"Isn't he already in special ed?" Dru asked.
With tears running down my cheeks, I was to too scared to move. Then I heard a voice come from behind us.
"Yo!!" It was a dark booming voice. "That's enough of that."
It was Nathan Cobble. He was a tall, big kid. Three grades ahead of me & a grade ahead my three bullies. He challenged them and wanted to know if any of the three of them felt like calling him a retard or trying to make him cry. None of them were interested. As the three of them walked off, Nathan told me that from now on I was going to wait for him after school & he was going to walk with me. It was one of the first times I ever heard someone other than my Dad use the F word.
"They won't F with me," Nathan said.
Ian, Dru & Greg gave me shit at school that I was a wimp because I needed Nathan Cobble's protection. Even a few other kids gave me crap about it, so I acted like I was a bit embarrassed by it, but truthfully, I was very thankful for it.
When Nathan Cobble moved away, that's when the whole fiasco started up again. It got even worse & more intimidating. I wished that Nathan was still around, but he wasn't. In fact, I wouldn't see Nathan again for close to 30 years. Took me a long time to track him down, but I finally did, drove a couple of hours to meet up with him & thank him for sticking up for me all those years earlier.
While my Dad hated Ian, Dru & Greg bullying me, I think he hated how much of a wimp I was even more. He couldn't stand that I'd just stand there and take it. That I'd cry so easily. I remember him pacing back and forth in the kitchen asking himself, "What do I have to do to toughen this boy up?"
Our first idea was Taekwondo. The Nelsons, a family from Alaska had moved into town and they had turned our old movie theater into a dojo. My mom drove me up there one day & began to sign me up for Taekwondo lessons. As she was talking to the woman who ran the joint, I went into the room where the lessons took place to look around. That's when I spotted a pair of Sai. Now like many kids in the early 1990's, I was a TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES fanatic. Raphael, who happened to use the Sai, was my favorite ninja turtle. I went up, grabbed the Sai off the wall & began to dance around like I was Raphael beating up the evil foot soldiers.
That's when my Mom & the woman walked into the room. The woman was furious. She yelled at me and then yelled at my mom. I handed her back the Sai & she royally chewed me a new one. Then she turned her attention to my mom and whatever ass my mom had gained from having two children, she chewed off right then and right there. That was my first & last day of Taekwondo.
During this time, things were really bad between my mother and my father. I don't know when they were officially divorced but dad was out of the house by November of that year. I remember that very well because I can remember getting really angry at my mom's side of the family Thanksgiving, listening to people speak ill of my father. I also remember having two separate Christmas's, one with Mom & one with Dad. My Dad during this time lived with my Grandpa Harry.
One day at school, during P.E. class our teacher Mr. Mateer had all of the boys line up as he passed out LITTLE SAVAGE WRESTLING flyers. We were told to put these into our bookbags and give them to our parents when we got home. I didn't think much of it at the time, but I do remember what Mr. Mateer said to me when he handed me the flyer.
"This is REAL wrestling Steve!!" He shouted at me. "Not the WWF"
At the time along with TMNT, another love of mine was WWF (WWE). I was obsessed with both WWE & WCW. The shows, the magazines, the action figures, the video games, you name it. It got to be problem when we'd go to rent a video from the video store, cause I always wanted a WWE video.
When I went over to my Dad's the night and showed him the flyer, I have to say it is the first time I can ever remember my Dad getting excited about something that involved me. He thought it was great and he really wanted me to be a part of LITTLE SAVAGE WRESTLING. I didn't care one way or the other.
Weeks went by and honestly, I forgot about LITTLE SAVAGE WRESTLING. My Dad worked for Kinder Morgan, a large natural gas pipeline & he had gone to Texas for a few weeks to help build a new line down by Houston. When he came back, he had gifts for my sister Sara & I.
I unwrapped my present to see an action figure of Scott Steiner. I couldn't read real well yet, so my Dad turned it over and read the packaging to me.
"Before becoming one half of WCW's hottest tag teams, Scott Steiner was a standout amateur at the University of Michigan where he earned All-American honors."
Amateur was a word I never heard before, so I asked my Dad what it meant. He told me that amateur wrestling was what LITTLE SAVAGE WRESTLING was & that all of the best pros, like Scott Steiner did amateur wrestling before getting into WCW. If I wanted to be like Scott Steiner, I needed to do amateur wrestling. Good enough for me, I was sold.
My Dad was very excited about the first practice coming up. He told my Uncle Jim that I was going to try wrestling & Jim, who had not wrestled, but played football for Wapello high school thought it was a good idea. Wanting to encourage my interest in wrestling, Jim took me to my first High School dual.
I had never seen high school wrestling before. I had no idea what was going on. I remember Jim buying me a Mountain Dew & we shared a bag of popcorn together. I'd occasionally hear Jim shout encouragement to one of the Sigourney wrestlers, and I'd watch him clap his hands. I clapped when he clapped.
It wasn't until the last match of the night when I found myself really having fun and enjoying the matches. Our HWT, Derrick Miller was in action. Miller who would go on to great success both on the gridiron & on the mat was very exciting to watch. Watching him was as close to WWE as it was going to get. He picked his opponent up into the air and threw him across the mat. That looked like fun. I wanted to do what Derrick Miller was doing.
My First Practice
It seemed to take forever but the night of the first LITTLE SAVAGE WRESTLING practice finally came. I was over at my mom's waiting on my Dad to come pick me up. For some reason I thought it'd be a good idea to get into my mom's makeup drawer and paint my face up like the Ultimate Warrior. When my Dad came to get me, he was not amused. We went back to my Grandpa Harry's place & he washed the makeup off of my face. Then we got on the living room floor & he showed me a few moves he remembered from junior high. One of which was the half nelson, but he called it a chicken wing.
Going to the High School at the time was a really neat thing for me. It's funny to think, but when I was little I thought of the High School as this huge, extremely important building. I remember walking into the wrestling room & meeting the coach, Larry Bird for the first time. I liked Larry from the second I met him. He reached out shook my hand, & told me he was happy to have me there.
I don't remember a whole lot about that first practice. I do remember the Black (as in their last name) kids were there, Ross & Kolby. I also remember Trevor & Tyler Rash being there too.
I know that night it was all about stance and position. Larry showing us how a wrestler stood & how a wrestler moved. Why you stood the way you did, why you moved the way you did. Then he taught us about the referee's positions of up and down. How that was to be conducted.
After about 40 minutes, the high school wrestling coach, Tong Uk Yi came into the room. For those of you that are familiar with STAR WARS his entry was similar to that of Darth Vader. Coach Bird told us that Coach Yi was now going to demonstrate some techniques. We sat in silence as Coach Yi walked into the room.
He told us he wanted to see how much we learned tonight. He started asking us questions about stance.
"Do I want my hands and elbows in or do I want them out?"
"IN!!!!"
"Why?"
Kids shouted out answers left and right. I had been too nervous and intimidated to say anything, but I wanted to show Coach Yi that I knew things too.
Coach Yi put a half nelson on a volunteer and asked what the move was.
"Chicken wing!!" I yelled it so loud that everyone in the room could hear me.
Unfortunately, I was wrong. It was actually a half nelson, but I do think Coach Yi appreciated my enthusiasm.
I went to wrestling practices the next two weeks. My main practice partner was Darren Miller, Derrick Miller's little brother. To say that I was mainly Darren's practice dummy is a pretty fair estimation. Years ago I found a journal that Mrs. Fritchen had us keep during that time of my life. I had written about wrestling practice with Darren Miller.
I went to Savig restlan. Larhe Bard is my cooch. I prktys with Droon Miller. Droon is very storoong
Droon Miller was very storoong. He was very storoong in high school & I'd imagine he's still extremely storoong today.
Going to the High School at the time was a really neat thing for me. It's funny to think, but when I was little I thought of the High School as this huge, extremely important building. I remember walking into the wrestling room & meeting the coach, Larry Bird for the first time. I liked Larry from the second I met him. He reached out shook my hand, & told me he was happy to have me there.
I don't remember a whole lot about that first practice. I do remember the Black (as in their last name) kids were there, Ross & Kolby. I also remember Trevor & Tyler Rash being there too.
I know that night it was all about stance and position. Larry showing us how a wrestler stood & how a wrestler moved. Why you stood the way you did, why you moved the way you did. Then he taught us about the referee's positions of up and down. How that was to be conducted.
After about 40 minutes, the high school wrestling coach, Tong Uk Yi came into the room. For those of you that are familiar with STAR WARS his entry was similar to that of Darth Vader. Coach Bird told us that Coach Yi was now going to demonstrate some techniques. We sat in silence as Coach Yi walked into the room.
He told us he wanted to see how much we learned tonight. He started asking us questions about stance.
"Do I want my hands and elbows in or do I want them out?"
"IN!!!!"
"Why?"
Kids shouted out answers left and right. I had been too nervous and intimidated to say anything, but I wanted to show Coach Yi that I knew things too.
Coach Yi put a half nelson on a volunteer and asked what the move was.
"Chicken wing!!" I yelled it so loud that everyone in the room could hear me.
Unfortunately, I was wrong. It was actually a half nelson, but I do think Coach Yi appreciated my enthusiasm.
I went to wrestling practices the next two weeks. My main practice partner was Darren Miller, Derrick Miller's little brother. To say that I was mainly Darren's practice dummy is a pretty fair estimation. Years ago I found a journal that Mrs. Fritchen had us keep during that time of my life. I had written about wrestling practice with Darren Miller.
I went to Savig restlan. Larhe Bard is my cooch. I prktys with Droon Miller. Droon is very storoong
Droon Miller was very storoong. He was very storoong in high school & I'd imagine he's still extremely storoong today.
My First Tournament
After two weeks of wrestling practice it was finally time for my first competition. Uncle Jim road with us over to Montezuma to participate in the Litte Braves wrestling tournament. My Uncle Chris had wrestled for Montezuma & he had been a very small wrestler. So, believe it or not, the shoes he wore in high school fit me as a first grader. I don't remember where we had gotten it from, but my Dad had an old red singlet that I wore as well. I'd like to tell you that I was somewhat confident, but truth was, I was 100% scared.
"Two rules," My Dad said to me. "Sportsmanship. You will show good sportsmanship. No matter what. Rule two, you will give your absolute best."
I trembled as I went out onto the mat to wrestle my first opponent. Brian Flynn of South Tama County. We shook hands and before I knew it Brian had me up in the air & on my back before I could blink. I had never been manhandled like that in my life. Breath knocked out of me, I laid there for a second, frozen in fear. Then suddenly I heard the voices of my Dad & My Uncle Jim.
They were right next to the mat & I mean right next to the mat.
"Don't give up!" My Dad screamed at me.
"Bridge, Stephen!" Uncle Jim shouted. "Bridge!!"
I remembered how Coach Bird had showed us how to bridge off our our backs. How to use your head & your neck muscles to get your shoulders off the mat. I immediately began to try and bridge.
I kept trying to get off my back. I kept fighting. I had never been that tired in my entire life. My lungs burned, my entire body ached. I wanted it to be over, but my Dad and Jim kept yelling at me to fight.
Towards the end of the third period, I was completely spent. I didn't think I had anything left. As my Uncle Jim lay on the mat a few feet from me, I thought I might die right then and right there. I went limp and just lay there.
"No! No! No!" The referee yelled at me. "You've gone this long, you ain't giving up yet. Not now, not when you've fought this long. Not yet."
"Yeah," Brian said as he held me on my back. "Keep bridging! Keep trying!"
It's funny to think about now, and even back then I found that so peculiar. Here was this kid that had thrown me to my back multiple times, and yet even he was sincerely & genuinely encouraging me to keep trying.
I thought that whistle would never blow, but finally it did. I got up and blood began to run down my nose. The referee gave me a nose plug & Brian gave me a hug. I walked off the mat and both my Dad & Uncle Jim said they were very proud of me. I found that to be rather weird, as I had lost 13-0.
Even stranger to me, as I sat with my Dad & Uncle Jim in the stands awaiting my next match, Brian came up to me & wanted to know if I wanted to see his toy car collection. Next thing I knew, I was down on the floor playing cars with Brian, the same kid who had just kicked the shit out of me about 10 minutes prior.
My next two matches, the referees I had weren't near as generous as that first one had been. A black eye and pinned him about 15 seconds sums up match #2. Another bloody nose & stuck in adequate time describes match #3.
A ribbon that read, "every wrestler is a winner" is what I received for finishing 4th out of 4 that day.
I looked in the mirror on the way home. Black eye, scratches on my face. I looked like I had called Mike Tyson a sissy.
"What did you think of today?" My Dad asked me.
I thought it sucked. I liked making a new friend in Brian Flynn, but other than that I hated it. I could hardly move. I hurt all over.
"I'm done wrestling," I said to him. "I don't want to do this anymore."
"Two rules," My Dad said to me. "Sportsmanship. You will show good sportsmanship. No matter what. Rule two, you will give your absolute best."
I trembled as I went out onto the mat to wrestle my first opponent. Brian Flynn of South Tama County. We shook hands and before I knew it Brian had me up in the air & on my back before I could blink. I had never been manhandled like that in my life. Breath knocked out of me, I laid there for a second, frozen in fear. Then suddenly I heard the voices of my Dad & My Uncle Jim.
They were right next to the mat & I mean right next to the mat.
"Don't give up!" My Dad screamed at me.
"Bridge, Stephen!" Uncle Jim shouted. "Bridge!!"
I remembered how Coach Bird had showed us how to bridge off our our backs. How to use your head & your neck muscles to get your shoulders off the mat. I immediately began to try and bridge.
I kept trying to get off my back. I kept fighting. I had never been that tired in my entire life. My lungs burned, my entire body ached. I wanted it to be over, but my Dad and Jim kept yelling at me to fight.
Towards the end of the third period, I was completely spent. I didn't think I had anything left. As my Uncle Jim lay on the mat a few feet from me, I thought I might die right then and right there. I went limp and just lay there.
"No! No! No!" The referee yelled at me. "You've gone this long, you ain't giving up yet. Not now, not when you've fought this long. Not yet."
"Yeah," Brian said as he held me on my back. "Keep bridging! Keep trying!"
It's funny to think about now, and even back then I found that so peculiar. Here was this kid that had thrown me to my back multiple times, and yet even he was sincerely & genuinely encouraging me to keep trying.
I thought that whistle would never blow, but finally it did. I got up and blood began to run down my nose. The referee gave me a nose plug & Brian gave me a hug. I walked off the mat and both my Dad & Uncle Jim said they were very proud of me. I found that to be rather weird, as I had lost 13-0.
Even stranger to me, as I sat with my Dad & Uncle Jim in the stands awaiting my next match, Brian came up to me & wanted to know if I wanted to see his toy car collection. Next thing I knew, I was down on the floor playing cars with Brian, the same kid who had just kicked the shit out of me about 10 minutes prior.
My next two matches, the referees I had weren't near as generous as that first one had been. A black eye and pinned him about 15 seconds sums up match #2. Another bloody nose & stuck in adequate time describes match #3.
A ribbon that read, "every wrestler is a winner" is what I received for finishing 4th out of 4 that day.
I looked in the mirror on the way home. Black eye, scratches on my face. I looked like I had called Mike Tyson a sissy.
"What did you think of today?" My Dad asked me.
I thought it sucked. I liked making a new friend in Brian Flynn, but other than that I hated it. I could hardly move. I hurt all over.
"I'm done wrestling," I said to him. "I don't want to do this anymore."
"One of My Favorites"
I knew it bothered my Dad that I didn't want to do wrestling anymore. Yet to his credit, he never pressured me and he never brought it up again. For two weeks I did not attend practices. At school both the Blacks (again last name) and the Rash's questioned why I wasn't at wrestling practice anymore. I didn't see what the big deal was. People tried things all the time, and quit if isn't wasn't right for them.
Then one night I was at the grocery store with my mother. Coach Bird was there with his wife Mary. As we went through the aisles getting stuff, Larry came up to me and asked why I hadn't been at wrestling practice the last couple of weeks. I told him that I wasn't going to do wrestling anymore.
"Oh," He said as he looked me in the eye. "I hate to hear that. You were one of my favorites."
Now whether he actually meant that or he was just saying that, I do not know. What I do know is what it meant to me to hear him say that. I had never had a non-family adult tell me that I was a favorite before. I figured to myself if I was on of Coach Bird's favorites, then I had to go back. I remember going home and asking my Dad if I could give wrestling one more try. We were back at wrestling practice the next night.
34 years later, here sits JT1Wrestle.
Then one night I was at the grocery store with my mother. Coach Bird was there with his wife Mary. As we went through the aisles getting stuff, Larry came up to me and asked why I hadn't been at wrestling practice the last couple of weeks. I told him that I wasn't going to do wrestling anymore.
"Oh," He said as he looked me in the eye. "I hate to hear that. You were one of my favorites."
Now whether he actually meant that or he was just saying that, I do not know. What I do know is what it meant to me to hear him say that. I had never had a non-family adult tell me that I was a favorite before. I figured to myself if I was on of Coach Bird's favorites, then I had to go back. I remember going home and asking my Dad if I could give wrestling one more try. We were back at wrestling practice the next night.
34 years later, here sits JT1Wrestle.
The End of Bullying
Can't say wrestling went all that great in my first year. I somehow managed to win one match, as I went 1-13 that season. If I remember right, I think the kid I beat was just as scared of me as I was of him & after scrambling around a bit, I somehow ended up on top of him getting a pin.
As to my bullies, it was wrestling that finally put an end to their torment. At wrestling practice Coach Bird had told us that if we were ever in trouble & needed to defend ourselves, that we could use wrestling as self-defense. I trusted everything Coach Bird said like it was gold, so when the time came, I used it.
Ian, Dru and Greg had cornered me on the playground. They were once again intimidating me and trying to make me cry. Dru had this thing he would do where he would shove his thumb as hard as he could down in between your collar bone & your neck. It hurt, but it was more annoying than it was painful. I let him do it once but when he went to do it again, something snapped inside of me. Coach Bird had taught us the double leg takedown & when Dru reached out to shove his thumb on my collar bone I was in on his legs. I picked him straight up into the air & dropped him right on the blacktop. He lay there, stunned and out of breath.
I got up off of him, fearing the worst. I knew Ian & Greg were going to immediately start beating the ever lovin' Hell right out of me. Much to my surprise, Ian laughed at Dru, making fun of him for getting his ass kicked. Greg slapped me on the shoulder and gave me a nod of approval. Not at all what I thought would happen.
Dru never bothered me again & Ian left me alone. Ironically enough one day after school, we were having a boy scouts meeting. I saw Greg getting chewed out by a teacher. When the teacher left, he round house kicked a locker leaving a huge dent in it. Don't ask me why I did this, because it could have ended in disaster, but I walked up to him.
"Hey Greg," I said to him.
"What do you want?" He said to me.
"You want to come over and have some snacks with us?" I said to him. "We have soda and candy bars."
Trying to make peace among enemies hasn't always worked for me, but it did that day.
Greg took me under his wing that day. For the rest of the school year he was always wanting to show me different fighting moves. He was very knowledgeable about how to defeat someone in a fight. Far more knowledgeable than a kid his age should have been. To have been honest, the dude would've made a great wrestler.
One day he brought me home with him. He lived in low rent apartment housing. The entire building was run down & dirty. Reeked of cigarette smoke. He didn't have a Dad. Didn't even know who his Dad was. His mom wasn't home. He wasn't sure when she'd be home, or if she'd be home. I remember that night he really wanted to give me a knife. I knew better than to take it. I knew my Mom would throw a fit & my Dad would raise Hell if they caught me with a knife. Nonetheless Greg wanted me to have it and was very disappointed when I wouldn't take it.
He disappeared a short time after that. I've wondered now for three decades whatever happened to him. As rough of a life as he had, I can't help but fear that things probably didn't go good for him. Drugs, prison, he might not even be alive anymore. He had a mean streak in him, that was obvious as he started off my bully. Yet I think that was more of a defense mechanism that it was anything else. I think he learned at a very young age not to trust anyone. That everyone was a snake, ready to bite you. It was only when he knew for sure that you were a friend that he'd let his guard down & show you the good side of Greg Allison. Some say that Life treats us all the same, just with different chapters. I don't know if I buy that. I think Greg Allison was dealt a shit hand in life, and while it goes against logic, I'd love to learn that his life did turn out good. That he did turn out ok.
8 months into 2026 & here you have my first year of wrestling, some 34 years ago.
As to my bullies, it was wrestling that finally put an end to their torment. At wrestling practice Coach Bird had told us that if we were ever in trouble & needed to defend ourselves, that we could use wrestling as self-defense. I trusted everything Coach Bird said like it was gold, so when the time came, I used it.
Ian, Dru and Greg had cornered me on the playground. They were once again intimidating me and trying to make me cry. Dru had this thing he would do where he would shove his thumb as hard as he could down in between your collar bone & your neck. It hurt, but it was more annoying than it was painful. I let him do it once but when he went to do it again, something snapped inside of me. Coach Bird had taught us the double leg takedown & when Dru reached out to shove his thumb on my collar bone I was in on his legs. I picked him straight up into the air & dropped him right on the blacktop. He lay there, stunned and out of breath.
I got up off of him, fearing the worst. I knew Ian & Greg were going to immediately start beating the ever lovin' Hell right out of me. Much to my surprise, Ian laughed at Dru, making fun of him for getting his ass kicked. Greg slapped me on the shoulder and gave me a nod of approval. Not at all what I thought would happen.
Dru never bothered me again & Ian left me alone. Ironically enough one day after school, we were having a boy scouts meeting. I saw Greg getting chewed out by a teacher. When the teacher left, he round house kicked a locker leaving a huge dent in it. Don't ask me why I did this, because it could have ended in disaster, but I walked up to him.
"Hey Greg," I said to him.
"What do you want?" He said to me.
"You want to come over and have some snacks with us?" I said to him. "We have soda and candy bars."
Trying to make peace among enemies hasn't always worked for me, but it did that day.
Greg took me under his wing that day. For the rest of the school year he was always wanting to show me different fighting moves. He was very knowledgeable about how to defeat someone in a fight. Far more knowledgeable than a kid his age should have been. To have been honest, the dude would've made a great wrestler.
One day he brought me home with him. He lived in low rent apartment housing. The entire building was run down & dirty. Reeked of cigarette smoke. He didn't have a Dad. Didn't even know who his Dad was. His mom wasn't home. He wasn't sure when she'd be home, or if she'd be home. I remember that night he really wanted to give me a knife. I knew better than to take it. I knew my Mom would throw a fit & my Dad would raise Hell if they caught me with a knife. Nonetheless Greg wanted me to have it and was very disappointed when I wouldn't take it.
He disappeared a short time after that. I've wondered now for three decades whatever happened to him. As rough of a life as he had, I can't help but fear that things probably didn't go good for him. Drugs, prison, he might not even be alive anymore. He had a mean streak in him, that was obvious as he started off my bully. Yet I think that was more of a defense mechanism that it was anything else. I think he learned at a very young age not to trust anyone. That everyone was a snake, ready to bite you. It was only when he knew for sure that you were a friend that he'd let his guard down & show you the good side of Greg Allison. Some say that Life treats us all the same, just with different chapters. I don't know if I buy that. I think Greg Allison was dealt a shit hand in life, and while it goes against logic, I'd love to learn that his life did turn out good. That he did turn out ok.
8 months into 2026 & here you have my first year of wrestling, some 34 years ago.
