JAY SMITH, right, owner of the Fat Moose, stands with Derrek Amburgey beside the bar’s namesake sculpture.
The Fighting Superstar will be there. So will The Ideal Reflection with his bodyguard, The Ideal Protection. And don’t forget the 6-foot-4, 285-pound mountain of muscle called Exile.
They’re all scheduled to take the ring Sat., Aug. 23, at the Fat Moose Bar and Grill in Woodland for wrestling matches culminating with the “Lewis River Rumble” – the headline showdown whose winner will get a big championship belt.
It’s the last in a series of the special events Fat Moose owner Jay Smith has put together this summer to spike interest at the watering hole. Wrestling begins at 6 p.m. on Saturday and should last until about 8:30 p.m., said Smith, a former Woodland High School wrestler.
A ring will be set up in the parking lot, with bleachers where children may sit. A beer garden for adults will surround the ring on other sides.
Admission is free, and spectators will see a rousing show, both Smith and promoter/wrestler Derrek Amburgey predict.
“People will be wearing silly little costumes and they’ll be flying around,” said Amburgey, who will appear under his ring name Caden Mathews. “When they come walking out people will know who the wrestlers are.”
The former World Wrestling Entertainment participant has lined up male wrestlers from as far away as Everett, but that’s not all. A special women’s match pitting Mary Jane Payne of Olympia against Lovely Lyla of Louisville, KY, also is on the card.
Amburgey explained that Payne has family in the area and when she heard about the Fat Moose event she decided to travel here for both reasons.
The Lewis River Rumble will begin with two men in the ring, with another competitor entering every minute. The last man standing from the multi-wrestler event will take home the belt.
Smith said that person will be known as the “Woodland Pro Wrestling Champion.”
Each of the wrestlers to appear this weekend are, or have been, competing as professionals. Amburgey will be among them.
“I was always interested in wrestling,” he said, adding that his sister got irritated because he would turn off her TV programs to watch wrestling when it was on.
Amburgey used to train with Playboy Buddy Rose at the former Straight Blast Gym in Portland. He was one of 20 to 30 students Rose tutored.
“He knew way more than I will ever know,” Amburgey said. “He was a good mentor and friend.”
Those who climb between the ropes Saturday won’t be wrestling for a pot of money.
“Their prize is exposure and getting ring time before a crowd,” said Amburgey, 39, who grew up in Woodland.
For more information, contact Smith at (360) 225-7944 after 11 a.m. any day or find the Fat Moose on Facebook.
