Posted by Wahoo1000 on 8/8/2004, 2:33 pm Things got started as they always do- with bad sound system squelches and static pops ( hey, it is an inaugural show so one has to expect a glitch or two). Eventually the microphone hic-cups were overcome, and new commisioner Joe Wheeler brought out the new ( see- everything is new ) PPCW Heavyweight Championship belt to explain the process behind this year's tournament to see who will be the one to wear the strap. Cue Lodi. In runs Lodi to politely explain to the commish why he should naturally be the one just flat out given the belt because ... he carries a sign that says so. Cue Stro ( also known as Maestro in the WCW days). Stro objects to the belt give away, the fans object to the belt give away, Commisioner Wheeler objects, and The Barbarian -in street clothes no less- objects rather forcefully as well. Lodi cheap shots Stro, the commish wisely takes a powder, Barbarian smacks Lodi out of the ring, and the show is under way. Nice. [1] The first match saw Johnny Blaze take on Leo Allure. If there is another wrestler in the area with more of a smart ass attitude than Johnny Blaze, I have not seen him. Blaze pretty much got away with low blows and thumbs to the eye at will, but eventually the more athletic Leo Allure got into the match with a series of body slams and snap suplexes that took their toll around the ten minute mark, with Leo pinning Blaze for the win. [2] Next up, Deon Johnson matched up against Dave Renegade. The crowd was really getting into this one, as the wrestlers traded insults and barbs to one another in rapid fire sequence. Johnson brought with him a hefty manager who's name pretty much escapes me right now, but the manager knew his job- distract the ref while Deon Johnson pulled some old school eye and back raking to frustrate The Renegade. Back and forth action ensued with clothes lines and stiff looking shots to the head and shoulders being the norm. At around the twelve minute mark, Dave Renegade landed the Rebel Splash on a prone Johnson for the pin, and thats the match. [3] K C Thunder strolled out (yep, strolled!) for the next match to take on the always buff Flex Phenom. Man, can Thunder work a crowd or what? The crowd really hated that man. Cool. After a few false starts, the match got under way with Thunder giving a lesson to the younger Flex Phenom on how wrestling used to be done- thumbs to the eye, low blows, and my favorite- use of a foreign object. After decking Phenom ( with help from a weighted object ), Thunder rolled him up for the three count. But wait: while strutting around the ring with his apparent win, the ref sees the weight fall onto the mat from K C Thunders arm pit ( ewwww! ), motions to ring the bell to re-start the match, and while Thunder is having a fit, Phenom comes up behind him and rolls up Thunder for Phenom's own three count! Great match to head into ... Intermission: For authgraphs- the wrestlers were great on sharing their time and energy with the crowd. For merchandise- got my handy dandy plastic Palmetto Pride soft drink cup and T- shirt. A nice intermission showcasing the promotion's intent on bringing the family atomoshpere back to the indie wrestling scene. Did I mention Hooter Girls? Okay, that one was for the dads, but everyone enjoyed the freebies they were tossing into the audience- nice. [4] Tag team action took place next with Chris Chance and Leo Allure ( pulling double duty from the first match ) taking on a team who's name I cannot remember for the life of me- Ice & Fire? Snow & Lava? Something to do with hot and cold running water- sorry guys, I'll buy ya a beer next time we meet at Icy's. The action flowed fairly evenly, with Leo taking a serious bump off the top rope onto the hard tile floor below ( ouch! ). The fast action hit a higher note when Chris Chance rolled up Ice ( again, just guessing here ) for the roll up pin from out of nowhere. Good tag team action that really worked the crowd up. [5] Sonny Landell fought big man Tommy Gunn in the next match. While Sonny was obviously the superior grappler, Tommy was just too freaking big and nasty to let anything like wrestling skills get in the way of a pin fall. Hard elbow drops and mean looking body slams were on the menu for Tommy Gunn to serve up on Landell in large part throughout the match. A minor comeback for Sonny took place around the ten minute mark with a series of arm drags that flustered the big man, but a clotheline from left field put Sonny out for the count. Tommy Gunn wins with an awesome display of power. [6] The Main Event. Stro comes out rocking to cheers and high fives from just about everybody in the place. Let there be no doubt- Stro is clearly the crowd favorite! Eventually, Lodi's music is hit, and the cheesy sign toting man himself saunters out into the audience so as not to be out done by Stro in the crowd management game. Little girls and screaming moms were letting Lodi know they did not appreciate his signs or attitude! I was damn near in tears from laughing so hard! GREAT entrance from both men! The wrestlers finally square off in the ring, and the action begins in ernest. A snap suplex and a few arm drags ensue, with Lodi going for the sleeper at the seven minute mark of the match. Stro powers out and tries the sleeper on Lodi as well- seems only fair. Both men wind up outside the ring trading chops to each other, with Stro clearly getting the upper hand in that game- seemed like everytime Lodi would take a chop at Stro, Lodi would try to shake the sting from his hand after chopping the iron slab known as Stro' chest. After working their way back into the ring, Lodi almost lost his tights from a not so well executed roll up attempt by Stro. Yep, everybody in the Tri-County Leisure Center was MOONED by Lodi. Priceless! At around the fourteen minute time frame, Stro hit what looked like a modified power bomb, followed by a high and strong suplex, and got a hard won victory over Lodi with a clean three count in the center of the ring. A great match to close out the night with, and Palmetto Pride Championship Wrestling is on it's way. More digressing ... It appears like the Palmetto Pride Championship Wrestling people are serious about bringing back quality indie wrestling to the Columbia area. While any indie show has it's share of errors and mistakes (a poor sound system, a few no shows), this promoton is looking pretty good. Strong management, and a sound work ethic, were evident at the show. The paying customers seemed especially pleased with the interaction between the wrestlers and the audience themselves. Hope it works out- I know I am looking forward to attending more of their shows. Wahoo1000
12.76.216.254
The Palmetto Pride Championship Wrestling inaugural show took place on Saturday, August 7th, 2004 with a little over one hundred in attendance at the Tri-County Leisure Center in Lexington, South Carolina. The new promotion is based in Columbia, and is dedicated to bringing back the tradition of wrestling to the Palmetto State. I know this because that is what it says in the program guide they were selling, but I digress ...
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