B-17 Still Flying High?

[B-17]

Still Flying High?

By Scott Lawrence

 

When the man named B-17 invites you to join him for a workout you will vomit, no doubt. Therefore when I asked for an interview and was subsequently invited to join him at 7 AM on a Saturday I found myself remembering the the last time I interviewed him. I had left that last workout with an insightful, yet costly story.

 

“Sprints first,” he informed me.

 

It was an indication of how screwed I was when he pointed up a sandy hill as he said that.

 

“One sprint, one question,” was his rule.

 

The first question went well. “What are you current thoughts on Turmoil?”

 

“I’m enjoying what it is. Sure we could use some work here and there, but it’s growing pains and everyone has them. We’ve publicly acknowledge our viewership and ratings. We have a solid base and our merch is selling well, plus sponsorship has increased. We’re growing.”

 

My second question was still intelectual, with the added benefit of having to repeat myself due to gasping for breath.

 

“What about the added Unleashed?”

 

“Necessary,” said B-17. “It will cause some issue in the beginning but in the long run it will help mold stars out of the low card. They need a place to shine, they need a place to grow. I worry about the potential of it drawing viewership away but OCW has grown tremendously in the past few months. No reason for us to stop now.”

 

The third question lacked some thoughtfulness.

 

“Care to comment on your relationship with Blaine?” I asked.

 

“Not your business,” he put bluntly.

 

By this time I had begun to lose any semblance of pace and B-17 was waiting for me at the bottom of the hill. I was certain he stifled back a few laughs.

 

The question after the fourth sprint was worthless but afterwards he allowed for a bit of break. And gave me an opportunity to re-due.

 

“You said you were happy after your loss to Jackson Montgomery and Kassidy Hayes at Lution, can you elaborate on that?”

 

“First off, I never said I was happy. I was satisfied. I was satisfied to know that the winner was someone who had actually earned it. The only way that was possible is if I was there. The man who has fought every step of the way for Turmoil. I can respect Jackson for that. And I can respect that I was bested that night, but I will return, you can’t keep me down for long. I can enjoy some time with friends in the meantime.”

 

The final sprint before we were to move on was tortuous. My lungs were burning, my heart was racing. When I came to a final halt at the bottom of the hill, B-17 was sitting and waiting. As per rule he allowed one last question.

 

“You’ve always been willing to pull back the curtain, so to speak, when it comes to wrestling. There have been rumors of discontent and even a few no shows. Can you shed some light on that?”

 

In this moment it wasn't B-17 that addressed me it was Jacob Caine, who from my experience is a thoughtful person and always willing to tackle the tough questions. So it wasn’t a surprise to me that he took his time to consider his words. We sat there for a few minutes in silence before he responded.

 

“Recently a man asked for his release and it was granted, the media is well aware it was Dylan Graves. Now I won’t comment specifically on why he left. The point is he left, maybe he never reads this, maybe he does, but Turmoil was not hurt that day, we weren't weaked. No, on that day we were strengthened, because we lost someone that wasn’t dedicated, someone that couldn't thrive in this environment. And it goes without saying that this company is tough. You’ve got to be willing to make sacrifices and that goes for everyone in OCW. I could spend hours talking to you about the intricacies of wrestling but in one sentence I can summarize what you need to be successful around here, it comes from one of my favorite movies, Rounders.

 

Pause for dramatic effect.

 

“If you can't spot the sucker in your first half hour at the table, then you ARE the sucker. And of course to summarize what that means. If you’ve got a problem and you don’t know what it is, or if people are unwilling to work with you and you don’t know why. You’ve got to fix it.”

[Anthony Baker]

I wish I could mark out on this. Good stuff.

[Joe Zhivago]

I wish I could mark out on this. Good stuff.

 

Soon, Padawan.