Saying Goodbye To A Way Of Life
‘Evan Jordan’ (ring center) during last months CEW show at Bradbury Hall.
Oskaloosa, Iowa – Times change and so do people, and when local independent wrestler ‘Evan Jordan’ steps into the squared circle this Saturday night at Bradbury Hall, on the grounds of Nelson Pioneer Farm, it will be the end of an era for him.
Professional wrestling takes its toll, and the independent or otherwise known as Indy Wrestler does it because they love it, and certainly not for the money. Many times, an independent wrestler can spend more money in gas and food to do a show than they actually make.
The injuries, as well, can become costly, and with no medical insurance covering an independent wrestler, a broken arm, shatter ankle or concussion comes out of their pocket. But they do it because they love it, it’s their passion.
But Harold Evans Jr., also known as ‘Evan Jordan’ in the ring, has been inactive in the sport after his life changed. Things like getting married, having a child and being a part of a family have taken priority for Evans. So after working the business for nearly 6 years, “I’ve met a lot of cool people, and I thought maybe this is the time for me to go away without saying, Hey, I’m done.”
Since that point, Evans didn’t even watch wrestling on TV, nor attend any of the shows, “cause I know if I did, I’d want to get back, and I’m trying to get away from it.”
A reunion of sorts brought two long time friends, that use to be rivals, together and with it an idea was spawned. After some peer pressure from another friend in the business, Evans caved, and Austin Bayliss, the owner of Central Empire Wrestling and long time friend of Evans, helped to make this one last match possible.
Austin Bayliss and Harold Evans have a friendship that is built upon their love of the sport. A wrestling match in Ames, Iowa in 2002 would show that destiny was on the side of these two.
A chance photo taken that day, would show how life has a strange way of bringing people together.
Bayliss was wrestling in a match in Delta one evening and won his first match that night, but one person wasn’t so happy for him as Bayliss describes, “An angry fan in the front row shook his head angrily in frustration with my win. That person was Evan Jordan. I didn’t know him, but he knew he didn’t like me.”
Wanting to take his wrestling career even further, Bayliss started CEW in 2006 while still in high school. In order to help fund the new company, he held training sessions. “So a few details later, my biggest hater showed up to my parents house to train to become a professional wrestler. Before long, Evan Jordan and I hit it off. We were buds because we both loved wrestling. We didn’t know exactly what CEW was at the time, but we knew we loved it and we wanted it to succeed.”
Bayliss continued, “Years went by. We would travel the roads together, just to give a bodyslam and hear the noise of the crowds. I know we both felt that we had made it. We knew we were small time, but that was good for us. We won a few championships together as a team. Evan did better than I did when it came to winning gold as a solo star. He held every championship in CEW by 2009, if not sooner. He was the star of CEW in his hometown. He was CEW. I know that every minute of every day, he lived CEW. I was lucky to have been in his shadows.”
But wedding bells were in the future for Harold Evans, and of course Austin Bayliss would be there by his side. Bayliss talks about finding that chance photo, “As Evan’s wedding date approached, I decided to look at an old wrestling album. The two shouldn’t be noteworthy together, but ended up being something that we both smile about to this day. I found a picture from 2002, with a replica belt and a stranger. For some reason, I stared at the stranger, and I felt as if they were not so strange after all. It didn’t just dawn on me that it was Evan.”
‘Evan Jordan’ never had the opportunity to have that one last match in front of his hometown. A few appearances at the local shows have helped to build confidence and the desire to settle a few loose ends, and, along with that, a ‘frog splash’ against an arch enemy ‘Mic Meyhem’ two months ago sealed the deal. “It was awesome!” says Evans.
So, Evans decided he would prepare and once again train for this opportunity to say goodbye to CEW and wrestling fans alike, and it would also give him a chance to settle a score with a long-time foe, Tim Rhodes.
The match is set. It will be a tag team match, with best friends ‘Evan Jordan’ and Austin Bayliss versus Rhodes, and… an unnamed person of his choosing.
Bayliss is contimplating this final match with his friend. “As I sit looking forward to Saturday night, and what will be Evan Jordan’s last match, I contemplate a lot of things… like what will I say to him before we go out to the ring… I know that answer already. “Evan, you go first.”
“I’m lucky to be in Evan’s shadow on Saturday night for the final time. This isn’t a publicity stunt. This is it. This is more than a match in May. This is the wrestling legacy of my best friend coming to an end. I hope that Oskaloosa is ready to send Evan out in style.”
There are just a few tickets remaining for Saturday night. You can purchase those at Precise Imaging and Summers Car Credit in Oskaloosa. You can also purchase them at the door on Saturday night. The bell rings at 7pm, this Saturday, May 11.
