Growing up in the business in Canada, I had so many insane trips. Trips were if it was in the winter we drove across frozen lakes, or if it was in the summer, we took four-seater pontoon planes and landed on the same lakes we usually drove across. I’ve had to drive for hours through parts of Canada with no signs of any real civilization.

There are a million times, but some of them stick out for me. This one time we were in a van with like half a dozen or so guys and it broke down. We all got out to see what the deal was and this other van came driving by and offered to help us, but this one could only fit two guys.

It had these gas tanks in the back where they could fit the two people who could sit on them. Somehow, Christian and I got voted to go in the van and ride to the next town. Well, the next town was four hours away and they’re these winter roads, so it’s not even regular roads. We sat on the gas tanks and got a total contact high from inhaling all the fumes. It was a brutal trip. When we finally get to the next town, we’re freezing cold and light-headed – and we had to find someone to go right back to where the other guys were stranded to fix the van. It was just one of those nights.

There was another night where we got chased off a reservation by cars of Indians with hockey sticks. I still don’t know what happened, maybe it was a mix up with the promoting deal where someone didn’t get their money or whatever. All I know is a bunch of us are in the back talking and all of a sudden someone yelled to us to run to the truck right away. We all took off and good thing we did. A bunch of the natives from the reservation where we did the show were coming after us with swinging hockey sticks. It also could have been that someone had gotten too much heat in the ring and it carried over a bit too far, I don’t know. We had to go as fast as we could on those roads, which wasn’t too fast, but we did make it off the reservation and away from them.

Back when all of this stuff was going on, I never got depressed about thinking the rest of my life was going to be one insane road trip after another. Deep down I always told myself I was going to make it to where I am now. That was never a doubt. It wasn’t cockiness, but confidence, which I thought I was going to need to make it to the WWE.

I knew that these trips were all of a test for me to pass and get the experience I needed for where I wanted to get to. I just kind of looked at it as a set of challenges that would lead me to my dream. That’s why I could keep a good sense of humour while it was happening.

I knew these stories would be the kind that I’d be able to look back on, even in thirty years, and laugh about.

If I looked at it any differently, I would have given up. I was wrestling in front of twenty Indian kids, sleeping on blue mats in a gymnasium, and making Kraft macaroni and cheese dinners in the home economics room. If I had sat back and asked myself, “Am I going to do this for twenty years?” I’d be so depressed I’d probably would have quit.

Special thanks to Carolyn for typing this up for me!
 
 
 

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