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Let me start off by saying as much as I wanted, I did NOT get to attend Wrestlemania. I had several opportunitues, however the finances and my vehicle decided not to allow it (damn!)

I’ve been to Wrestlemania 21 in Los Angeles back in 2005. That year I only did ‘Mania and none of the events.
This year I did several of the events but not the actual PPV.

Friday night, I met up with my friends from the East Coast (Deleware and New York), and we went to a Ring of Honor show (ROH).There was
Before the show they had some of the wrestlers out there doing photos and autographs. My friends are very familiar with this wrestling company and even help with merchandising and web sites for some of the wrestlers.
We had a great time. The wrestlers interact with the crowd in a way that the WWE does not. I think this makes the fan experience that much better.
At one point we had to get up and move so as not to get trampled. The chair next to me was used to smash a wrestler over the head causing the chair to break. I of course took a picture of the broken chair.

A good time was had and I wish we had more independent wrestling companies out here. I would absolutely go and watch.

The next morning, I loaded up my 3 boys and we headed to WWE fan Axxess.
This was money well spent in my opinion! They had several stations around where we could get a photo and/or autograph with a WWE Superstar.

There were also things for the boys including a foam pit they could jump into and a rock climbing wall. Each of the boys also came out to the entrance theme of thier favorite wrestler and it was video taped. The boys had a blast!

We got pictures with Natalya, Hornswaggle, Finley, Jimmy Wayne Yang, Abraham Washington, Vicky Guerrero, Primo, Tiffany, and Dolph Ziggler.
We missed Sheamus and the Big Show. Also missed Cody Rhodes.
Seeing the looks on my boys’ faces was worth the lines though.

After I took the boys home, I headed back out to meet my friend and we went to the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony.
That was an amazing experience.
I watched wrestling back during the Hulkamania years but stopped and did not start again until late 2000. I’ve been hooked ever since.
I have a huge respect for what the wrestlers do to their bodies.
And before anyone asks, yes I know the matches are choreographed, that the winner is pre-determined.
I also still know that the beatings with chairs, and ladders, and just the ropes and the mat themselves take thier toll. These athletes are in for the most part amazing shape. They lay it all out there night in and night out. They are away from thier families more than they are with them, all to entertain us, the fans.
I have the uptmost respect for them and what they do.

With that being said, watching the Hall of Fame ceremony, I was struck by sadness and nostalgia all at the same time.
The first inductee was Mad Dog Vachon. Pat Patterson inducted him and remained onstage while “Mad Dog” was brought out. Vachon is now confined to a wheelchair. As he was speaking, it was clear that all of his mental facalites were no longer there. He told two different stories, twice.
I’m not sure if it was Alzheimer’s, or dementia, or old age, but it was sad to witness. You can tell that he loved wrestling and enjoyed the time he did it.

I will not go into detail on all of the inductees but will give an overview on a few of the ones I enjoyed the most.

Wendy Richter was inducted by Rowdy Roddy Piper (who by the way is hilarious) and at first I was not 100% sure as to whom she was. However, recognition soon set in. She was the Women’s Champ that in the 80′s helped usher in the “Rock and Wrestling” connection by having Cyndi Lauper as her valet/manager. Wendy appeared in several music videos of Laupers along with Captain Lou (RIP). She also had her own cartoon that I recall watching.
She spoke elequently about her time in the former WWF and gave thanks to the women who paved the way for her. They showed some of the women wrestling currently among them Melina and you could see they were soaking in her words of wisdom.

Stu Hart was a popular inductee. Unfortunately, the ceremony was marred a bit by an unruly fan who was sitting in the upper level of the theater. They had been warned about yelling out and decided to not heed that warning and was escorted out. The ironic thing is, they were holloring about respect, yet they showed a complete lack of it.
Bret Hart inducted his father and he shared several humorous stories about his father and really pained a complete picture of the man. The list of talent that came through Stu Hart’s “Dungeon” reads like a Who’s Who of WWE talent past and present.

Bob Ueker was inducted into the Hall of Fame next. Who would have thought 20 years ago that Bob Ueker would be inducted into both the WWE Hall of Fame and the MLB Hall of Fame before Pete Rose? Although Rose is also in the WWE HOF.
Ueker had key roles in both Wrestlemania III and IV. Listening to him tell the story of Andre the Giant choking him was classic! Also listening to the story of how with Dick Ebersol’s assitance Vince McMahan was able to get Ueker to do those Wrestlemania’s was also classic. For the record it involved Michigan football uniforms, jesse the Body ventura, a flight to Scottsdale Arizona, and lots of beer!

The last person inducted was Ted “The Million Dollar Man” DiBiase.
He told the story of being called to headquarters and told about this character they wanted to bring on. He was told he would have to start playing the part right away. While the other wrestlers would fly coach and travel by rental car, he would go first class and have a limo at all times-he was to always been seen in character. To quote him, “Someone had to do it”.

He spoke honestly about letting the lifestyle get the best of him and mistakes me made along the way. It is not an easy life and like other athlete’s that are tempted often, he gave in and had affairs and did drugs etc. Luckily he made ammends, got help and has turned to God. The Million Dollar man is now a preacher. He thanked his wife who sat tearful in the crowd. He gave advice to his boys who had inducted him. Ted Jr is currently on the WWE roster as part of “Legacy”.
At the end, he reiterated that everyone has a price and money was dropped from the ceiling. Our seats were on the lower level but off to the side. Unfortunately no money made its way to us, and quite a bit landed back on the stage. However there were shots of those in the crowd who did catch the money. There were 100′s, 20′s, and 5′s for sure dropped. Those were what was shown.

It was a night to behold as some of my favorites as a child were inducted, and a night to see all the current roster listening to the advice of those that came before them.

My only wish is that I could have attened Wrestlemania but the activiteis I did attend far exceeded my expectations. It was a fun filled weekend that I know my boys will also not soon forget.

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