By Darrin Hill
When Pete Weber did his impression of the WWF's Rob Van Damm after winning the Great Lakes Classic, he showed a nationwide audience that most bowlers are huge wrestling fans. And vice versa. Just ask the person bowling with a 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin, The Rock, or 'The ninth wonder of the world' Chyna bowling ball.
The sport of professional bowling and professional wrestling is very simular in some aspects. Both require a certain amount of athleticism, training and skill to reach that next level. To survive, these athletes are blessed with tons of creativity and showmanship. But, these athletes have one thing that years of conditioning cannot provide. They all have heart. On December 1, some of that heart was showcased in order to raise money for those less fortunate.
Wrestlers from the World Wrestling Federation and the National Wrestling Alliance Great Lakes got together for a special charity event. The A.P.A., Faarooq and Bradshaw, along with the man-beast from Dearborn, Rhyno, and retired wrestler Tony Garea, signed autographs from 2pm - 3pm. A 5-match card including a battle royal was held soon after that in the ballroom at Sunnybrook Lanes in Sterling Heights. All proceeds for this event was donated to the NYC Fire Fighters.
The timing of this event was perfect. Athletes from the World Wrestling Federation will be in town for an evening house show at Joe Louis Arena with a 7:30pm bell time. "Fans attending our show would have plenty of time to make the WWF house show at JLA," said NWAGL owner/promoter 'Hard Time' Gene Austin. "We are hoping to make a huge donation sthanks to the A.P.A. signing autographs." Unfortunately, only 158 fans attended the show. According to federation officials, over $6,000 has been raised and donated to the 911 Fund including the $1,580 from this latest event.
The idea behind putting this event together is Bob Matlick, commissioner of the NWAGL and fire marshal for the Troy Fire Department. "I have been involved with many of the local independant wrestling federations here in Southeastern Michigan for years," said Bob Matlick. "I wanted to do something for our brother fire fighters in New York City after what happened on 9/11. Hopefully, with alittle help from the Sterling Heights fire department, Troy fire dapartment, the WWF and the A.P.A., we will be able to help out families devastated by this tragegy."
The relationship between Sunnybrook Lanes and the NWAGL has brought together fans of both bowling and wrestling. "For years, the Michigan Independants has had a select group of fans that follow the different federations from one venue to another," said Austin. "Following the NWAGL to Sunnybrook Lanes introduced our wresling fans to bowling and bowling fans to world of independant wrestling." Manager Randy Shank agrees. "My bar manager suggested the idea of allowing a wrestling federation to hold an event in the ballroom because her son George wrestles for them. I'm glad I did. With our new renovations, wrestling fans are coming back here to either open bowl, cosmic bowl, or join a league. It's great." The next NWAGL card at Sunnybrook Lanes in Sterling Heights will be on Saturday January 5 at 7:30pm.
Darrin Hill is a freelance writer. You can contact him at: motorcitybowling@hotmail.com
