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Student
of the Month, February 2003 |
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by
Les Honig Seeing him going
through his paces during each Ultimate University class reminds one of
that classic old football film, “Rudy”…for here we have a guy
with unbounded stamina, incomparable heart and determination; who will
never stop competing no matter the size of his competitor till he
reaches his ultimate goal of finding success in the sport he has
savored since near-birth. A fixture here now
for nearly three years, the amazingly talented 16 year-old who fans
throughout the UPW universe have come to know and love as Lil’ Nate,
(real name: Nathan Nickerson, has made pro wrestling his one life goal
ever since his earliest childhood days when he would dive onto stuffed
animals off his bed and try out a variety of in-ring scenarios and
holds on them. “As I
got older,” he remembers, “my buddies knew that they were not to
call me out to play with them if wrestling was on TV. And we better
not be shooting hoops if a show was about to start because I’d drop
the ball and be in the house in front of the TV!”
Such fanatic devotion was to not only lead to his joining UU at
the record-breaking young age of 14, but to a personal progression at
an astounding rate, which most recently has caught the eye and deeply
impressed some of true greats within and without our fed. Growing up in Marina
Del Rey, Nate recalls having a close group of friends who helped
support each other all along the way, but for him happiest moments
were found collecting his many action figures and watching dozens of
rental tapes of classic pay per views and matches he’d rent from the
three video stores near him. And
this personal intensity translated at times to public moments as when
he remembers telling his classmates on a school career day, “I want
to be a pro wrestler” and have everybody laugh; but that did not
faze the determined kid. Finally in the
spring of 2000, his first big moment of dream realization arrived as
he attended a Fan Fair preceding Wrestlemania at the Anaheim Pond and
came across the UPW booth manned by several fed stars including Big
Schwag. “They were
having a contest to be a manager for one of the shows.” I told
Schwag, ‘I don’t want to be a manager. I want to be a wrestler. Do
you have a school?’ He
handed me this card but asked, ‘What, are you, ten years old? This
is pro wrestling. It’s bodyslams and clotheslines and backdrops;
really hard stuff.’ I assured him, however, ‘That’s no
problem.’ And I clung to that flier like it was gold.” Visiting the L.A.
Boxing Club the next week, he saw his first light show, “and it was
like a fire inside of me ignited.” Headlined by Smelly vs.
Prototype, Nate recalls thinking, “Man, it is so cool, but if I have
to get into the ring with them, it might also be very painful!”
Talking to a few of the guys that night, he was definitely bit
by the training bug, and returned the next week to test the ropes
himself. Not aware that due
to his small size and tender age, this was to be a try-out to see if
he could really survive working out with the bigger and older guys, he
persisted and soon met with success, despite the odds. “One of the
greatest and most inspirational teachers I’ve had, Maniac Mike Bell,
was the instructor that day and when I arrived he had Lisa Marie (aka
Victoria) in a waist lock. He was in full gimmick with his singlet and
long greasy hair and he yelled at the guys to get the hell into the
ring. I was very nervous and I guess it showed but he refused to
accept failure from me. He walked up, got in my face, and insisted,
‘If you say ‘I can’t’ one more time, I’m gonna smack you in
the face. Shut up and just do it and I bet you do it right.
You have two choices. You can either stay and wrestle or you
can get the hell out of my ring and it doesn’t bother me either
way.” Somehow such a challenge relit that initial inner blaze and
the young upstart then succeeded at one move after another, prompting
his teacher to tell Schwag after the practice, ‘Man, he’s a tough
little s—t!” After that it was non-stop training for the
then-scrawny novice; as he was exposed to a variety of outstanding
instructors from Damian Steele to Tom Howard to Chris Daniels to the
Ballards and to the guy who really has formed an amazing bond with
him, Spanky. Attending just about
every weekly practice and seeking to put pounds onto his small frame
by training with Smelly at Gold’s Gym in Venice, it was, however,
meeting the even more fiery, charismatic and determined Brian Kendrick
that was to truly change his life. “What was really cool was that
he’d teach the Tuesday and Thursday class and then train himself on
Saturdays and I got to have the best of both worlds because I got to
see him teach and then as a trainee watch how he applied what other
instructors asked him to do in his totally unique and absolutely
captivating way.” With
Spanky taking him under his wing, much as a big brother would, Nate
fondly remembers their weekly dinners with the other guys at Denny’s
after the sessions where they would talk about everything from girl
problems to how to execute moves better. “And just like with the other guys he was totally honest
with me, even if it was brutally honest. I really appreciated that
because of the respect I hold for him.” Becoming a light
show fixture himself with some young fans coming miles to watch him
perform and even bring their own signs to accompany their loud chants,
Nate soon moved on to Galaxy performances, but despite that new
recognition he continued to train religiously attending just about
every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday class. Because of that
he has formed a tremendous bond with the other older hardcore trainees
who he equally likes and respects.
Lately it is not uncommon to see him, James Lukash, Sam Culver,
Lamar Tinnin, Erica Porter, Van Ayasit and even one of the Ballards,
go out for midnight bowling or to a long post training meal but this
is just a manifestation of the side benefit of UPW training that they
all share. “People ask
me how many older brothers and sisters I have and I have to tell them
about 25; because training does that.
They all become like family to you.” A phenomenal capper
to his three years of ring growth came recently when Nate was chosen
to accompany Roddy Piper for a month on his national book tour.
Having met the living legend when he came to watch one of the
training sessions and light shows, Hot Rod was immediately drawn to
Nate’s inherent talent and inborn charisma; reminding him a lot of
himself when he entered the field as a young upstart. Before
long, Piper asked him to help with a now classic ring routine at a
Galaxy show and to Nate’s amazement, he was shortly thereafter
summoned to help out on the national tour which has literally changed
the course of the teenager’s life.
While the days were long; and he handled much of the
‘go-for’ work needed to help pull the trip together, a tremendous
feeling between the two formed and Nate now thinks of Roddy as a
“second dad”. And he
comes away with one of the greatest lessons from a man who has lived
it all. “Always be
yourself. Let your true personality come through in your ring
character and good things will follow from there.” |
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Previous Students of the Month: |
