Social - October 2003

1-2-3

Wrestlers pin down a following in western Lincoln County

By DIANE TURBYFILL, Staff Writer

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He strides through the door into the open arena at Howards Creek Community Center.

Fans jump to their feet and scream.

The adrenaline rush draws him into the ring time and time again.

“It’s the absolute pop of a crowd,” says Chris Stowe, a wrestler and manager with the Millennium Wrestling Federation.

Stowe, 28, spends a lot of his spare time working for the MWF. He wrestles twice a month and partners with Jeff Roberts and David Hayes to run the organization.

Stowe says the hard work in wrestling is his hobby.

“To me it’s kind of like playing golf,” he says.

His hobby kicks into high gear on Saturday nights. Stowe’s all about business. He and the other wrestlers convene in a common room to prepare for their matches.

Each competitor dons his own theme.

Sycho Supastar provokes the crowd as he enters the room wearing a flashy set of sunglasses, a feather boa and silver-lined outfit.

“Thank God I’m a Country Boy” floods from the speakers as Bo Dean Sawyer enters the room wearing overalls and a smile. Fans offer up high-fives and snap the long-haired wrestler’s picture as he passes by on his way into the ring.

But even crowd favorites aren’t guaranteed to win the match.

Matches are “refereed.”

The men in black and white call out points and determine the winners, for the most part. But on occasion, an unruly wrestler may sneak up and take advantage — knocking the referee out and cheating to win.

Still, Stowe says the wrestling matches are family-friendly.

Wrestlers are prohibited from using profanity or inappropriate gestures. During intermission, they walk into the crowd to talk and sign autographs.

“The wrestlers are very accessible. The fans like that,” says Stowe.

Tom Weese attends the matches to watch his son, Brandon Powers. Weese and his family fill up a row at the center during a recent match.

“I like watching Brandon win and watching Sycho beat up on the referee,” he says.

Melinda Evans recently brought her 11-year-old son, Jonathan, to see the wrestling event in western Lincoln County.

“He loves it,” she says. “I haven’t seen him this excited in a long time.”

The wrestlers love it, too, Stowe says. Dedication and desire is a must to be signed on with the MWF.

Stowe says each wrestler with the federation goes through a tremendous amount of training. Although the outcomes are often predetermined, wrestling is not all pretend.

“People don’t realize how tough and athletic you have to be to do this,” he says. “We’re performers, but we’re athletic performers.”

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The MWF holds matches every two weeks — alternating between Howards Creek Community Center in Lincoln County and Armory in Gaston County. The next match will be Saturday, Nov. 8 in western Lincoln County. Admission is $5 per person.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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