My dad would always say the track marks covering his arms were from “working on cars.” To say I had a complicated relationship with him is both cliché and an understatement. My name is Dan Rice; his name was Dan Rice. That name has hung around my neck my entire life. Dan didn’t raise me, but I couldn’t escape him, because I had his name.

Objectively, he was a bad guy: drug dealer, woman beater, all-around criminal. Dan hurt people. He hurt me, and he hurt all the people I loved most. And yettttt, if you caught him on the right day, he could be the most magnetic person in the room, funny, charming, larger than life. Since his death, the outpouring of praise and sympathy for a man I knew to be, at times, an actual monster has been confusing and overwhelming.

Dan worked on cars his whole life. Not just in the “cover story for intravenous drug use” way, he really worked on cars. He grew up under hoods. He was a mechanic. He spent years as an over-the-road trucker, later becoming a taxi driver. Cars weren’t just his job; they were his identity. He gave up being a husband and a father multiple times before he ever thought about giving up cars. But then drugs ruined even that. First they cost him trucking, then taxi driving. Eventually, they cost him his license. And after several years and several run-ins with the law for driving without it, he was resigned to bicycles.

This includes the time he stole my car. (Did you know if your car is stolen and recovered with drug paraphernalia inside, the insurance company will total it?)

The man once affectionately known as “Taxi Dan” threw himself into becoming “Bicycle Dan.” He turned his addiction’s restless energy into repairing, buying, building, and yes, stealing, bikes. At one point the city literally asked him to keep fewer bicycles in his front yard.

All this is a lot of preamble to say: I’m fine. Dan Rodrick Rice the First passed away on October 16, 2024, and I’m fine. No weird feelings or heavy emotions about it at all. That’s why, when I was left with his prized possession, a Tom Free e-bike, I never once got on it. For months it just sat in my garage, tangled up in garage trash and emotions I didn’t want to deal with. I couldn’t bear to look at it, much less ride it.

Until Joshua Bishop came to town.

I’d had work responsibilities and figured I’d miss Appalachian Championship Wrestling when they were literally 1.5 miles from my front door. I’d sadly written it off. But, then work stuff fell through, the nieces and nephew had places to be, and suddenly everyone was gone. I was home alone( a rarity.) Honestly, I had forgotten about ACW, until I saw a Facebook post about First Friday, the monthly downtown event Ashland puts on, and ACW was the main draw this month. It started in 15 minutes. I could still go see my boy Bishop.

Except all the cars were gone. Between sports practices and one truck being out of commission, I was stranded. Except for Dan’s bike.

And that’s how wrestling helped me get over some weird feelings about my dad, and how I discovered I should’ve been riding this damn e-bike everywhere.

It was a blast. Zooming down the streets. Slipping past the “road closed” signs and into the heart of the festival, where ACW had set up a ring right in the middle of downtown Ashland.

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ACW Live 35: First Friday Fights 2025

September 5th, 2025

DDTrash(Ron Mathis & Bruce Grey) & Emily Rose vs. Point Break & Kolbe Max

I pull up, and the ring is set up in front of the Community Trust Bank building and Melanie’s Bowtique. The match is just starting. Bruce Grey and Ron Mathis are so, well… trashy, but they’ve got a way of getting fans behind them. It’s a fun, fast-paced six-person tag. Kids surround the ring, white-hot for the babyfaces. Mathis takes a sick bump on the apron he absolutely didn’t need to take. The finish is a triple submission. The crowd explodes, and then Bruce Grey grinds on an old lady.

I thought it was the perfect opener, until I found out I’d shown up late and actually missed a match, GenZ vs. The Apostle. Honestly? Having seen GenZ plenty before, I think I lucked out. This six-person tag was certainly a better match.

ACW Tag Champs Suplex Country (Cowpoke Paul & Corey Sparks) vs. War Hoss

Around this time, I spotted a buddy and his family just a few feet away. He’d literally just closed on the purchase of two buildings on the same block the show was happening. I congratulated him, and he immediately started buying me drinks from Kel’s Tavern. I started with a Jameson and ginger ale. Why? No idea. What I do know is that from here on, the road report becomes less and less reliable.

I’m a big proponent of Cowpoke Paul, he’s one of those ACW guys who I think could get over in a bigger pond. The best parts of this match are Paul mixing it up with the fat guy in War Hoss. I wish I knew his name, he’s good and even better, he’s fat. His partner? Not so much. On top of that, he’s way too small to be in a team called War Hoss.

Suplex Country scores the win with a lung blower/sunset flip combo. My buddy’s kids, who had never seen wrestling before tonight, were celebrating with the tag champs like they’d just won themselves. You love to see it.

Anthony Catena vs. Zaiden Kayne vs. OK vs. Drew Hernandez vs. Dustin Jackson vs. Lifeguard Ross

By this point, I’m firmly posted up in front of Kel’s Tavern for easy access to drinks. Somehow, my friend had just made a million-dollar purchase, and he’s the one buying. I wasn’t about to argue. Bonus: Kel’s is right behind Bobby Blaze’s merch table, which is its own show. 

Bobby, Smoky Mountain Wrestling belt proudly displayed, tried his best lines on my friend’s wife: “Do I know you from somewhere?” and “Can I get you a drink?” Just playing the classics. Somehow, she turned him down, belt or no belt. 

The match itself? A six-way scramble that never found its rhythm. The crowd, so hot for the first two bouts, lost steam here. It was finished up with a swinging DDT from Catena, though I couldn’t even tell you who ate it.

ACW Super H Champion Nick Hamrick vs. Troy Parker 

Handsome Nick Hamrick has his own personal ring announcer, which the crowd absolutely despises. He’s also seconded by a woman in a glittering dress, and that alone is enough to make Ashland hate him more apparently.

Troy Parker is one of the hardest-working guys in ACW, making more towns than most of the roster. Nick’s great as the cocky heel. He recently turned on Shane Douglas and is basically the lead heel in the company right now.

This match delivered exactly what you want: Hamrick cheating, stalling, and only getting ahead by being a total shithead. His manager added interference whenever possible. Eventually, Nick bailed when things turned against him, intentionally drawing a DQ with a belt shot in front of the ref. This really worked for me. I just hope they run the rematch somewhere I can get to.

I was going to update y’all on my drink situation, but I realize I have to end my road report by telling you all that I rode my e-bike home, so for legal reasons, this is where I switch to coffee and water.

Josh Bishop & Tyler Jordan vs. Canaan Kristopher & Gorgeous Gregory

This was the big one, the reason I came. My friend started yapping about his during the introductions, and I had to tell him to shut the fuck up because we were in the presence of the Intense Icon.

This was a stacked main event: a former ACW heavyweight champ (Bishop), the current champ (Kristopher), Gorgeous Gregory (one of their rising stars), and AIW standout Tyler Jordan. Heavy hitters, all of them.

As the storm clouds rolled in and the streetlights flicked on, the whole scene took on a true big time vibe. This was the main event.

The match worked exactly as you’d expect. Tyler Jordan played the babyface in peril, taking a long beating before Bishop finally got the hot tag. When he came in, it was…INTRENSE. This is another reminder of just how good he is, even if he’s criminally underutilized. I’ve been saying it for years, but get the man on television. 

It felt like they wrapped earlier than planned, maybe out of fear of rain. Still, Bishop picked up the win with a massive chokeslam, setting up another Bishop vs. Kristopher title clash. No complaints here.

Afterward, I grabbed a meatloaf from Kel’s to-go and started saying my goodbyes. Bobby Blaze is fully using my bike to stay standing. I ask him politely to move so I can head home. He wants to know why I’m not helping tear down the ring. Bobby thinks I’m a worker apparently. I explain that despite having a beard and wearing a tank top, I am in fact a civilian. He apologizes and I hop on my bike and ride like hell.

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I got home in time to watch (thanks to Pat and the Violent People Discord) Necro Butcher vs. Hotstuff Hernandez from SVN. All in all, a magical night of wrestling.

I took so long to update this that its already uploaded to YouTube, so check it out and support local indies, or don’t.