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Dusty's Blog: Making It In Indy Wrestling

Posted: Apr 28th 2010 By: mikeiles

My friend James Beard replied on a thread over at wrestlingclassics.com(cheap plug) about rasslers that can make a living on the indy scene today. James mentioned me as an example of a man that could do just this. Decided I would reply over here for a number of reasons.

First, James is a friend and I don?t want some shit stirring nimrod taking away from that fact with mindless bullshit. James and I don?t stay in touch like we should, but I know James is a friend. And I appreciate his kind words. Second, this is my site, and I can explain the rasslin bidness without being told how wrong I am by some panty sniffer that hasn?t left the house since the first Reagan administration. I have no problem with a differing opinion. I have a HUGE problem being told what I lived by someone who knows better because they can subscribe to the scandal rags and buy/burn pirate copies of shoot videos .

James mentioned me as one of a few that makes a living off indy rasslin. And I did until early 2009. I did this by knowing all the promoters and staying in constant contact with them. I not only went overseas time and time again, I booked many of the tours. I know a man that always did the job for 6 years with the WWF isn?t supposed to be that smart, but oh well. I wasn?t supposed to walk again either, but that?s in my book.

James writes about being a road warrior and giving my life to the rasslin bidness. James is so right. I can remember James just shaking his head at me when he?d hear how many miles I put in since the last time we saw each other. Not looking for any sympathy here, because I made adult decisions, but I can?t begin to tell you how much I missed with family. I have no idea how many pieces of my body and soul I left behind in some ring in some Godforsaken town. When guys today on top fuss about 3-4 days a week in their schedule, I just shake my head and know how big a pussy it takes to bitch about 6 figure salaries in a short work week. I laugh IN the face of a man that bitches about his 3 hour drive home after his 1 show that month.

2009 was the cutoff point for me. For a number of reasons. Almost like a convergence of circumstances and the final rotting out of the indy rasslin barrel. One of the posters in James thread talks about guys treating indy rasslin like a hobby. Well?.do you really need to know more? More, as to why paydays have gone to hell on the indy scene? There are other reasons, but this attitude captures most of these reasons in a nutshell. Combine this attitude with rasslin schools pouring out even more hobbyists. Which creates the multiplicity theory I explain in my book. The schools create all the loudmouth cowards AND bullies that strangle off decent promoters. Add in physical limitations being realized, illness in my family, and then top all that off with two faced bastids showing their true colors after the only man that could get them accepted in the rasslin bidness did just that. Everything surrounding what I knew just became too much last year.

And even when I do make towns, I find out even once decent men like Ken Valiant get caught up in the shitty attitudes that have destroyed what was the rasslin bidness. When a guy that has been stand-up strong for 15 years goes south and takes the same low road as the bastids, there?s not much left.

Hopefully, with my return to college, I can do as my friend James mentions. Make what I can in the rasslin bidness a little while longer, and then leave with what little dignity I have left, with my head held high, knowing I did it my way for 30 years. 30 years in a business I was never completely accepted in, hell, 30 years in a business I loved, but should have never been in.

Tags: Dusty Wolfe, WWF