TCCW Finale |
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Note ... Recently, Monsignor Jason Sanderson was elevated to Bishop of his church. Here is a picture from the consecration event. Bishop Sanderson is the one on the right side. For many years in the Northeast, he was know as "Wolfman." Like a lot of others in wrestling, he has chosen to be a spokesman for the Lord. --Percival
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Bay City, Michigan is rich in history and has many great sights to visit while in the area. Bay City was first established in 1837 and was incorporated as a city in 1865. Twenty-five years after Leon Trombley became the first permanent settler, among the native Americans, to build a log-cabin along the river at what is now Fourth Street. Bay City became the largest community in the county and the location of the county seat of government. While Saginaw had the first white settlement in this area in 1819, larger ships had difficulty navigating the shallower water near the Saginaw settlement. Due to this fact, many of the early pioneers moved to Lower Saginaw as it became clear its deeper waters made it a better location for the growth of industry, which relied on shipping. By 1860, Lower Saginaw had become a bustling community of about 2,000 people with several mills and many small businesses in operation. In 1865, the village of Bay City was incorporated as a city. Rapid economic growth took place during this time period, with lumbering, milling and shipbuilding creating many jobs. The early industrialists in the area used the Saginaw River as a convenient means to float lumber to the mills and factories and, as a consequence, amass large fortunes. Many of the mansions built during this era are registered as historical landmarks by the state and federal government. Bay City is well known in the greater Saginaw Bay area for the numerous festivals and celebrations which take place during the summer months. The first of these events, known as the River Roar, takes place in June. In July, there is the annual Fireworks Festival, which features numerous events over a three-day period and nightly fireworks displays, which are considered by many to be the best in the region. In early August, the Labadie Pig Gig Rib roast features a rib cook-off and other entertainment. The River of Time living history reenactment takes place in September. These events all take place along one or more banks of the river, often in Wenonah Park on the east bank or the larger Veterans Memorial Park on the west bank. It is the contention of many local residents that the fictional lumberjack, Paul Bunyan , was based on an infamous man, Fabian "Saginaw Joe" Fournier, a lumberjack who frequented the Bay City waterfront. Bay City is being reborn as a wrestling capital of Central Michigan again. Two of its most famous citizens recently were honored by the city and given keys. Rick and Scott Steiner, who were known worldwide in wrestling and now residing in Atlanta, were honored as outstanding citizens of Bay City. They both were graduates of Michigan State. Tri-City Championship Wrestling is making a name for itself by giving fans a great new venue. It is setting the stage for growth and will, in the future, be going to a larger facility. The November 10 card showed me that they had all of the best talent available in the whole Great Lakes area. They picked the cream of the crop for their first card, and its success paid off with a winning event. I also did not see any fans flipped off by wrestlers. I didn't hear any cussing or see any amounts of flesh showing except the limbs that came out of the trunks. It proved to be an event that you could take your kids to without worrying about the after effects of adult six year olds that think it is a joke to berate people by cussing at them. Or by making obscene gestures with their bodies or hands. That's just a cheap way of getting people mad. The last three matches on the card had to be the most outstanding that I have seen in a lot of years of watching. "Too Tough" Tommy Titus, another young athlete that Bay City has produced, fought a hard battle against the "Prima-Donna Rock Star" Sebastian Rose. He was accompanied by his valet, Chase Miranda, a vivacious lady that kept things stirred up both in the ring and outside as well. She used a foreign object, behind the referee's view, to win the match for Rose. The controversial ending of the match brought officials to ringside to contain the fired up Titus. He demanded that he be given another chance to prove that he could, in fact, beat this "wanna be rock star." The match was made right on the spot for December 8. A super tag match was next as Keith Creme and Chip Daley known as the "Creme Team," fought Whiplash and Kris Korvis from Flint, Michigan. Even though they are all cruiserweights, these guys fought as hard as all of the heavyweights on the card. Sometimes harder. The match ended up outside the ring a lot, but referees contained the match from both teams. Whiplash and Korvis proved to the audience and to their opponents that they were the better team. The main event had 321-pound Magnum Conroy from Kalamazoo meeting "The Viper" Pete Christie. Viper originally was from Connecticut but has put roots down near Bay City and is a huge favorite on the mat. Viper won the match by disqualification as it ended up with J.T. Zorin and his two masked thugs coming out and interfering. Bull Wheeler, a fan favorite in Bay City, came out to help make the match more even and was confronted by Sebastian Rose. Then, Tommy Titus, Steve Amani and, finally, Daniel Sigma joined in the melee. It turned into a mini-battle royal before it was over. Zorin made a challenge to Bull Wheeler for a Gauntlet Match, and it was accepted for the next huge card. It is not certain how many guys Bull will have to face to get to Zorin. Even though I am not happy with some of the things that Bull has done in the past, I admire his tenacity for sticking up for his fellow wrestler and coming to their aid. Luck is not something he needs on December 8. He needs a lot of support to win this battle coming up. If you can't be at ringside, keep him in your prayers. If you are near Bay City on Friday, December 8, go to the Church Complex at 3430 N. Euclid Ave.; bell time is 7 p.m. Bring a toy (Help Toys for Tots) and get $2 off of your ticket. Hope to see you … RINGSIDE .
Percival A. Friend,
Retired
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