SHIMMER Women Athletes debuts 11/6

[Guest daveprazak]

SHIMMER - WOMEN ATHLETES 10/13/05 NEWS UPDATE

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Headlines:

* Two more names announced, bringing the announced roster to fourteen!

* Tickets now on sale for live taping on 11/6 in Berwyn!

 

Two more women have been added to the list of competitors announced thus far for the SHIMMER - WOMEN ATHLETES debut event, which takes place on Sunday, November 6, 2005 at the Eagles Club (6309 26th Street) in Berwyn, IL.

 

Added today (Oct. 13) to the talent roster for SHIMMER - WOMEN ATHLETES...

 

SHANTELLE TAYLOR - Height: 5'3" Weight: 115 lbs. Toronto, Canada. Debut: June 2003. With just over two years of professional experience, Shantelle is already one of the most talented women to come out of the Ontario scene in recent years. Trained under Rob Fuego, and having also competed in Mexico, Shantelle mixes elements of lucha libre with a high flying North American style.

 

LEXIE FYFE - Height: 5'4" Weight: 160 lbs. Tampa, FL. Debut: August 1995. Lexie is the wrestler with the most ring experience out of those announced for the SHIMMER roster. Having competed in 29 states, and in 10 different countries, Lexie brings a veteran knowledge of the game to the table. Fyfe is known for finishing off opponents with the Attitude Adjuster (TKO) as well as the Figure Fyfe submission hold.

 

Shantelle and Lexie join the following previously announced stars in comprising what will now wind up being an EIGHTEEN woman roster for SHIMMER's debut on 11/6...

 

SARA DEL REY - Height: 5'10" Weight: 160 lbs. Martinez, CA. Debut: Early 2001. After breaking in on the California independent scene, Sara became the top female product of the Inoki Dojo in Los Angeles. Del Rey spent the majority of 2005 competing in Japan for both the AtoZ promotion and All Japan Women during its final days. Since returning from Japan, Sara has resumed a schedule on the West Coast, as well as appearing for Lucha Libre Femenil in Mexico.

 

MERCEDES MARTINEZ - Height: 5'7" Weight: 148 lbs. Waterbury, CT. Debut: November 2000. Mercedes got her start on the New England circuit after training under Jason Knight. Martinez mixes an impressive power based repertoire with sound scientific skill.

 

ALLISON DANGER - Height: 5'7" Weight: 130 lbs. Belmont Hills, PA. Debut: May 2000. Allison has been a staple of Ring of Honor since the promotion's very first event, and has also wrestled across the North American independent scene. Danger has has international experience with AtoZ in Japan, as well as a recent tour which promoted events in Guam, Korea, and Japan.

 

BETH PHOENIX - Height: 5'7" Weight: 160 lbs. Buffalo, NY. Debut: May 2001. One of the strongest athletes on the roster, Beth made a name for herself on the Northeast independent scene before relocating to Louisville in 2003 to join Ohio Valley Wrestling. The addition of Phoenix to the mix of typical indie talent on the roster makes for some exciting match possibilities.

 

LACEY - Height: 5'6" Weight: 135 lbs. Minneapolis, MN. Debut: August 2000. Trained by Eddie Sharkey in the Twin Cities, Lacey got her early experience on the Upper Midwest independents before relocating to the east coast and becoming a part of Ring of Honor. She has gained notoriety for her scientific wrestling prowess while traveling the indies in recent years.

 

CHEERLEADER MELISSA - Height: 5'8" Weight: 142 lbs. San Francisco, CA. Debut: August 1999. Melissa broke in on the California independent scene, and has earned a solid reputation as one of the best American female pro wrestlers during the past six years. Melissa toured Japan for the ARSION promotion in 2002, and returned in 2005 for the M's Style organization. She has also wrestled in Europe, as well as in Mexico for LLF.

 

DAIZEE HAZE - Height: 5'4" Weight: 110 lbs. Forest Park, IL. Debut: March 2002. Daizee has rapidly developed over the past three years into one of the most versatile competitors in the Midwest, despite her small frame. Mixing a submission style with a great deal of aerial offense, Haze was added to the roster of Ring of Honor in early 2004. Aside from traveling the U.S. indie scene, Daizee also competed for LLF in Mexico during 2005.

 

NIKKI ROXX - Height: 5'9" Weight: 145 lbs. Boston, MA. Debut: November 2001. Nikki got her start at the legendary Killer Kowalski's training facility in Boston. Though based in New England, Roxx spends much of her year competing internationally, mainly Mexico's LLF, where she has participated in several tours and had tremendous success.

 

MsCHIF - Height: 5'7" Weight: 135 lbs. The Inferno. Debut: July 2001. One of the most unique personalities to sign on for SHIMMER competition is the mysterious MsChif. Based in the Midwest, MsChif is an athletically gifted and agile wrestler, who also likes to utilize a vast array of submission holds. Sporting black and green hair, and known for blowing the green mist in the eyes of her opponents, MsChif is one of the most dangerous women in wrestling today, and is sure to be a powerful force in the SHIMMER ranks.

 

ARIEL - Height: 5'2" Weight: 130 lbs. New Bedford, MA. Debut: July 2001. A native of the New England wrestling scene, Ariel has turned into quite the international star during the course of the past two years, while continuing to wrestle across the East Coast. Ariel made her debut in Japan during 2004, wrestling for the Jd' Star promotion. She also has become a staple of Mexico's Lucha Libre Femenil, with several lengthy tours for the organization under her belt.

 

CINDY ROGERS - Height: 5'5" Weight: 140 lbs. Hartford, CT. Debut: March 2002. Cindy got her start by training at the Monster Factory in New Jersey, and competes across the Northeast region. Having appeared for Ring of Honor, Rogers is known for wrestling a technical style -- often utilizing her unique TCB submission hold to finish off her opponents.

 

RAIN - Height: 5'5" Weight: 121 lbs. St. Paul, MN. Debut: October 2001. This veteran of the Upper Midwest independent scene established herself early on via an intense feud with fellow Twin Cities native Lacey. The two have in recent years become one of the most dominant tag teams in U.S. women's wrestling. Rain is also among the athletes that have had the opportunity to compete in Mexico for LLF.

 

Look for the remaining four additions to the SHIMMER talent roster to be announced during the next week. Eighteen competitors in all!

 

 

*** TICKET INFORMATION FOR 11/6! SHIMMER VOL. 1 & VOL. 2 TO BE FILMED! ***

 

Tickets are now on sale for the 11/6 SHIMMER debut DVD taping in Berwyn! Fans there live will see two DVDs worth of matches, with over a dozen bouts scheduled! Alcohol is available at the venue with Photo ID. Reserved front row ringside tickets to the taping are available at a cost of $20. General admission tickets to the event are $15. Fans who will be attending either the 10/22 All American Wrestling event at the Eagles Club in Berwyn or the 11/5 Ring of Honor event at the Frontier Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge will be able to obtain discount general admission tickets for just $10!

 

We are currently accepting mail orders for tickets to 11/6. For those ordering reserved front row ringside tickets, we ask that you please send us an E-mail the day you postmark your order to let us know it's on the way. We will hold your seats temporarily, until we receive your order. If front row tickets are no longer available, you will be informed. For those wishing to purchase general admission tickets, you may do so by mail, but they will also be available at the door on the day of the event. Make checks and money orders payable to Dave Prazak, and send to: PO Box 3294, Lisle, IL 60532.

 

An announcement was made on the SHIMMER Forums at http://shimmerwomen.proboards50.com/ that BRYCE REMSBURG has been named senior official by SHIMMER management. Bryce is one of the most traveled and respected referees on the U.S. independent scene, and will certainly maintain order during SHIMMER matches. Additionally, it was decided that,  as the company is a women's promotion, several female referees will be appointed to the referee crew as well. Look for more on this subject soon.

 

Each event promoted by SHIMMER - WOMEN ATHLETES will be filmed for release as part of a DVD series, available through Ring of Honor at www.rohwrestling.com. Additionally, fans will be able to check out SHIMMER matches online at www.clickwrestle.com. The Berwyn Eagles Club is just ten miles from the ROH event on 11/5 at the Frontier Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge -- an easy trip for those fans looking to take in a full weekend of live wrestling events in Chicago.

 

Fans who are interested in hearing more about SHIMMER - WOMEN ATHLETES, and would like to be informed of all of the latest news and updates concerning the promotion, are encouraged to sign up for the free SHIMMER Yahoo Group/Newsletter. Simply send an E-mail to [email protected] or visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/shimmerwrestling/ to sign up on the web.

 

I, along with all of the talented women athletes involved in the SHIMMER project, look forward to giving the fans some exciting wrestling action. Make your plans now to join us for the first SHIMMER DVD taping on Sunday, 11/6!

 

Dave Prazak

E-mail contact: [email protected]

 

 

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Call the SHIMMER Hotline!

630-585-3958

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Visit the RING OF HONOR web site!http://www.rohwrestling.com/

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Visit the SHIMMER web site! http://www.shimmerwrestling.com/

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[Corey_Lazarus 0]

I think we all know by now why I'm interested in THIS promotion...HINT: her initials are MM.

[King Cucaracha 0]

Bah.

 

Lacey > All.

[Youth N Asia 0]

MsChif > you and you're God.

 

And You Know This, MAAAAAN!

 

Welcome to the board DP.

[CanadianChick 0]

Yeah, I'll be buying these DVD's for sure. DP man, get me some Rebecca Knox though! I'm greedy.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

Is this a nudie fed? If not, pass.

[Carnival 0]

Anything like Women's Extreme Wrestling? which is lame btw

[Youth N Asia 0]

Do you know much about indy wrestling today? These are honestly the top female workers in the US right now. Trust me, it won't be lame.

[Slingshot Suplex 0]

Dave Prazak has been pushing women's wrestling in the States as a viable, respectable product. For fans of women's wrestling, this is going to be really good.

[Carnival 0]

well i figured it wasn't a glorified nudie fed like WEW. thats why i asked. I heard of 1/2 the names.

[King Cucaracha 0]

We should get Dave on Dangerous A's radio thingy to hype the show, hype ROH and stuff.

 

I'm assuming Mickie Knuckles won't be involved, as it's a ROH (or, is that an ROH?) based project. Which sucks. Although, maybe, hopefully I'm wrong. Because with her, you've got pretty much the entire IWA Women's roster of old involved.

[Youth N Asia 0]

I imagine Mickie will be around. It's midwest

[Guest Biggles]

Guess what? Women's wrestling, in the US, couldn't draw flies if they rolled around in shit and honey first. Waste of time even talking about it. I'm not flamebaiting. Someone show me that womens wrestling can draw.

[Smartly Pretty 0]

No Mickie Knuckles? I'll have to e-mail Prazak.

[Youth N Asia 0]

Guess what? Women's wrestling, in the US, couldn't draw flies if they rolled around in shit and honey first. Waste of time even talking about it. I'm not flamebaiting. Someone show me that womens wrestling can draw.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

A couple years ago I wouldn't have been high on the idea. But with Prazak booking, ROH doing the DVDs, and the roster they have, my hopes are high.

[Guest Biggles]

Hey, to each their own, but don't be shocked when they are shut down after only a few shows.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

I didn't realize this was a serious venture. In that case, good luck.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

So I assume they didn't call the promotion "Glitter" because of the connotations it has with Mariah Carey movies.

 

RRR: Still pushing for the Russ Meyer-style fed.

RRR: Favourite promotion is a womens fed.

[CanadianChick 0]

What is your favorite promotion RRR?

 

Guess what? Women's wrestling, in the US, couldn't draw flies if they rolled around in shit and honey first. Waste of time even talking about it. I'm not flamebaiting. Someone show me that womens wrestling can draw.

Well, that's a bit like saying show me the cruiserweight division can draw in WWE. There has never been oppertunity. If this thing fails, then yeah, that's an indicator. But has there ever been a serious (AKA not T&A based) women federation in the US?

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

I don't like to make generalizations (Ok, I LOOOOVE to make generalizations), but every womens match this side of Japan that I have seen has sucked (well, the Glamour Girls vs. Jumping Bomb Angels didn't suck, and Bull Nakano vs. Alundra Blayze didn't suck, and some of Jungle Grrrls matches in WOW didn't suck). The only thing worse than indy wrestlers pretending to be real wrestlers, is female indy wrestlers pretending to be real wrestlers. Hell, take out the indy and apply it to WWE womens wrestling as well. To think you can get by on wrestling alone in this day and age is absolutely foolish (to those that say ROH, I think ROH is awful), so you need to do something more. And that especially goes for the ladies. The current wrestling atmosphere doesn't lend itself well to wrestling in general, let alone womens wrestling. Who is going to be the main demographic this promotion is targeting, and does that demographic necessarily want what they're offering?

 

My favourite promotion is The Real Catfight that airs on the fight network. You take one part MMA, one part pro wrestling, one part whacky japanese game show host, one part playful, drunken lesbianism, and one part naked asian chicks dressed in fetish costumes, and mix them together and you get the greatest promotion goin today (or yesterday... I have no idea when it was filmed). It's the closest thing you can get to my Meyerian view of pro wrestling. I don't really see the need for chicks in the ring if they aren't getting naked and fondling each other, and this promotion makes no illusions to be anything but. Plus, there's fantastic matwork in it.

 

RRR: Male Chauvinist or Wrestling Realist?

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

Btw, If I'm offending anyone, it's all in good fun. My main issue is against generic wrestling, not womens wrestling. I'm dying for something different. Hell, I found old Memphis wrestling interesting when I was watching it yesterday. I was listening intently to a Jackie Fargo interview. I never would have found that interesting a few years ago. Challenge your view of professional wrestling; what it is, and what it could be. I don't think a promotion where all the women look the same in the poster is going to do that.

[CanadianChick 0]

Chauvinist. Definately chauvinist.

 

EDIT: Rudo, the thing is, this actually is different. It is different to see serious female wrestling and that is part of it's appeal. And girl fans, even those who just go to indy shows because they think a guy is cute, eat this stuff up. That's a group that is targetted here.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

A promotion that has "serious female wrestling" isn't effectively different. That's like saying a promotion that has "serious midget wrestling" is different. So what? Just because you make something serious, it's all of a sudden different? Damn, I should walk into the Coca Cola head office and propose my new idea - "What I propose is a can of coke - the same great taste - but in a PINK can." I'd be a guzillionaire. Basically, the only thing that differentiates Glimmer from ROH is that this is with women, and the wrestling -if it's possible- won't be as good? But hey, I bet they'd get even more "respect applause" and the WWE will be brought up A LOT more than ROH, so there's one thing that will make Shimmer stand out.

 

Maybe your personal experience suggests differently, but to me, the indy shows that I have seen have had maybe 20% female attendance. It's not exactly a big target market, especially since half those girls were just there to appease their boyfriends. In the end, unless this show comps huge and invites various All-Girl Catholic Private Schools to the show, the majority of the audience will be guys just checking it out because it's affiliation with ROH. I could be wrong, of course.

 

Is the idea of an all-womens fed a good one? As a theory, yes. If you are able to reach the target market of women ages 8-18 (and therefore their parents, boyfriends, etc.) then you are receiving a very high-spending demographic. I don't imagine women over the age of 18 will be all that interested in it simply because women at that age tend to take themselves a lil too seriously - and the women over that age that do go to wrestling shows and that aren't with their boyfriends... odds are they're there for more than just the wrestling. But there certainly is an openning to give positive role models to that group of females.

 

But, realistically, womens wrestling in america? Has it ever really been successful on its own? Maybe there's a reason for that.

[World's Worst Man 0]

Myself, I'm an Allison Danger kind of guy.

 

But women's wrestling has its own special appeal. If it's done well and the girls are hot, then it has that appeal. If it's not done well, it doesn't matter how good looking the girls are, because without good wrestling, I'm not interested. From what little US women's indy wrestling I've seen, it seems like the girls were trying to focus on wrestling rather than just being eye-candy. Granted, most of the matches I've seen haven't been all that good, but it was mostly due to them just not getting a whole lot of time, along with the placement on the card. I'd be interested in seeing the girls work main event style matches, going 15+ minutes and seeing if they could produce any high quality matches, so I'm looking forward to seeing this show.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

The womens matches that I have seen, it appears they are more concerned with going from one move to the other without fucking up rather than telling a good story in the ring. But then again, that's the case with most indy wrestling. That there isn't a hint of sex appeal given off from Shimmer boggles the mind. It's the one thing women have over men and it goes ignored? Maybe I'm old fashioned, but...

[World's Worst Man 0]

I never said there was no sex appeal. I said the sex appeal doesn't matter if the wrestling isn't good. Why would I watch bad wrestling just because the women are hot? I can watch porn for that. But if the wrestling is good, I have some incentive to watch, and if the girls happen to be attractive, it's a bonus.

[RavishingRickRudo 0]

The sex appeal comment was more of a general comment than anything directed to you. That this group thinks that having sex appeal would compromise their "legitimacy" (or so it appears) is just silly. "She's hot and she can wrestle" is better than "She can wrestle". I can see wrestling anywhere, why should I watch this stuff? Then again, I can see hot women anywhere. But the combination of the two? Well, I can see that in my favourite promotion, but let's not consider that for a second. Hey, throw in some well defined characters and storylines. So now we have a wrestling promotion full of hot women who can wrestle, whose storylines and characters are notches above everything else out there. Hey now, you got something interesting and different.

 

So far, the depth of this promotion is "A buncha average lookin white chicks in their mid-20's from various parts of the world, who want to be taken seriously as wrestlers and have wrestled in different parts of the country between 2-5 years and won various titles." Well, I'm lit on fire, hows abouts you?

[World's Worst Man 0]

The sex appeal comment was more of a general comment than anything directed to you. That this group thinks that having sex appeal would compromise their "legitimacy" (or so it appears) is just silly. "She's hot and she can wrestle" is better than "She can wrestle".

 

Alright, I agree with that. That's kind of a vibe I get from all of women's sports, where it's somehow taboo to mention how attractive the girls are, because it somehow takes away from their abilities. Which is bullshit, because if I'm saying "Yea you're a good wrestler and you're also attractive", I'm giving them props on their abilities along with their appearance. It's surely different than somebody saying "Who cares about the wrestling, I just want to see hot chicks".

 

So far, the depth of this promotion is "A buncha average lookin white chicks in their mid-20's from various parts of the world, who want to be taken seriously as wrestlers and have wrestled in different parts of the country between 2-5 years and won various titles."  Well, I'm lit on fire, hows abouts you?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

There are people who don't mind seeing great wrestling with no strings attached. Me included. If they can produce shows with a few good matches, and even the odd great match (and keep in mind, I'm talking about my own opinion, and I'm a rather harsh critic of wrestling matches), then I'll watch it. If they run good angles to go along with it, hey, icing on the cake. But I don't really care if they don't.

[CanadianChick 0]

I'm not a fan of the flyer, because as Rudo is sorta saying, there's no sex appeal on it. Whether or not a female wants to be a sex symbol, in wrestling, they do have to be somewhat sexy to get fans intially interested. After a couple shows, Shimmer can totally rely on good wrestling and characters. However, on the flyers intially, they have to have appealing images.

 

The flyer should feature maybe 4 girls, and when the fans come see the shows, they'll see the rest of the dozen. And the pictures should be attractive, but not girls in string bikinis or mini skirts or whatnot. Have them in their (assumingly) tight ring gear, and that's fine. Put Rain, Lacey, Melissa or Daizee or Danger and Ariel (need a little non-white bread in there) on the flyer and have them as your main selling points. They're attractive and they can wrestle. RRR makes a good point: the reason why someone like Trish is so popular is that she's a good (WWE) women's wrestler and a pretty girl. It makes women's wrestling different but not degrading.

 

I personally know of most of this roster, so I need no coaxing to be interested, and I don't think too many females would either. You do need to attract males though. The sex appeal may bring them in, but the content will keep them there.

[Guest Biggles]

But has there ever been a serious (AKA not T&A based) women federation in the US?

 

GLOW