Ric Flair Shuts it down....finally....

It's been a bit of a rough year for me. Not in the work sucks, life sucks kind of way, but in the all my favorite athletes shut it down kind of way. Just a little over a week ago on a monday night the wrestling, or wrasslin', world paid tribute to one of the all time greats. Now I know some of you are now saying to me, "Chris, how would you know, you retired from watching wrestling." Which you would be correct. I did not see it live, a friend at the CBC taped it and I watched it posthumously. Big word.
Apparently Ric over the past month has had a story line where Vince McMahon told him if he loses he has to quit. So apparently he has been winning for a month or two. I did see a match on a Monday where he wrestled Vince McMahon. It was, and I am sad to say it, the worst match I have ever seen Ric wrestle. It culminated at Wrestlemania where he wrestled Shawn Michaels. To whom he lost. Well on Monday night Raw the wrestling world bid farewell to the Man. It was quite a show.
Now I will tell you there were no man tears shed, because we all know that this was a 'Wrasslin'' retirement so he could be back in the ring next week. But I will tell you that it was pretty elaborate goodbye. Have a look courtesy of YouTube...





Now that you have seen it. You know that it was pretty cool to see the Four Horsemen all back together again in the ring. As I watched the whole thing I kept waiting for someone to come out and ambush the whole thing and turn it into a work. I am sure if Eric Bischoff had been in charge I am sure that that would have happened. It was respectful and very entertaining. Something Eric Bischoff has never been.

Speaking of entertaining, I have been watching this guy for around 28 years. Man that is a long time. I remember the first time I saw the Horsemen come out and beat the snot out of someone. It was AWESOME, and then, Ric Flair walked over to the NWA podium in the small studio, to Gordon Solie and cut a promo about limo riding, jet flying, and space mountian. It was incredible. I was sold. This dude is the man.

Now living in North Dakota, you don't usually get to see the world champ that often. In fact, never. I am not sure that Ric Flair, as NWA world champ ever made it through North Dakota. I wanted to see Ric wrestle so bad. In fact in 1996 I drove from Green Bay to Fargo to watch a WCW Thunder taping just on the chance that Ric Flair would wrestle. I was denied. It took until I went to Wrestlemania 19 in Seattle to finally see Ric perform. And even then he did not wrestle.

In Edmonton a year or so later Ric came back to town and it was awesome, but he still did not wrestle. Maybe that is good, because later in his life his skills were lacking. Still when he did his nose dive into the mat, it just got better like a fine wine. That is the thing about Ric Flair, he was always entertaining. Always. There were only a few ring entrance songs that you knew when you heard it there was a beatdown coming. The Freebirds, the Road Warriors and Ironman, Roddy Piper and the pipes, and Ric Flair with the theme from 2001. Everything about Ric was entertaining. His robes were second to none. I think he may have been the last one to wear a robe to the ring. Those things were awesome.

There is a story that I am unsure if it is true, but I hear that Steve Schoenrock, of the Minot Schoenrocks, in college had an old robe of his moms that resembled one of Rics ring robes. Apparently he wore it every saturday morning. It is also unconfirmed that he refused to eat breakfast until Tony Mutzenberger would give him a ring introduction. That is the stuff of legends.

He is the king of the catch phrases. The only other dude who is even close is the Rock. I still to this day use the Whooooooo! at all times. I have used many of his catch phrases much to the chagrin of Donna. ' In order to be the man, you have to beat that man, and right now I am that man.' is one of the all time greats. The airport story is great, and then there is the '60 minute man.' His stuff will be forever be in my dialouge. I guess it is plagerism but I don't care.

So to wrap this one up the world has lost two great ones this year. Number Four, and the leader of the Four Horsemen.

Get ready for the Podcast with the Nordic Man.