At the World Championships in Azerbijan!!

Wow...it's been a while since I posted. I am currently in Azerbijan for those who don't have a clue where that is, its in the middle east bodering Iran. I know it may sound pretty scary to most but I have been here for a week and the people have been great to us. I am here helping Lindsey Durlacher get ready for the world championships. We arrived here in Azerbijan on 8th a week before the tournament starts to get the guys use to the time change and familar with the environment. Lindsey weighs in on the 17th along with Joe Betterman and Harry Lester. they all look great and seem to be ready to battle. I am excited for the tournament to start to see how well my teammates will do and to see some good wrestling. I will keep everyone posted on how the guys are doing and also tell you more about Azerbijan. So tune in later!!! Willie

Kauai Trip

Hello,
My trip to Kauai was great! You haven’t really seen true beauty until you have experienced the Island of Kauai. I was greeted with a warm welcome from the coach and some of the wrestlers. The clinic went really well. I did two sessions a day and between sessions I tried to see as much of the island as possible. Saturday they had a small Greco tournament with freestyle on Sunday. I watched the tournament and was very excited because the kids were working the moves I showed. Brandon Slay came in on Saturday and did a clinic so I got an opportunity to meet him. He is a great speaker and a wonderful person. He showed his powerful double leg and I was amazed. Well, I just want to say thanks to West side wrestling club and coach Mack for the trip to Kauai. I will post some pictures soon so check them out.Will

On my way to Kauai!!!!!

I am leaving today to do a clinic on the Island of Kauai! I am very excited and grateful for the opportunity to go over their and show my moves. You can’t beat wrestling in paradise!!! I will keep you posted on how the clinic went and hope to put some pictures up to share my experience with you all.
Take care

World Team Trials

Hello,
I’m just giving you all an update on how I did at the World Team Trials. The bracket wasn’t as competitive as usual with some good guys missing the tournament. I felt great going into the tournament and was very positive. I finished off with a second place finish in the mini tournament and later won a true third match to seal the deal for national team. I know this is a big accomplishment considering I only been on the mat for 4 months after a full year off and a serious surgery. Me being my biggest critic could only see how many mistakes and things I could have done better to be excited about taking third. I am really looking forward to the up and coming season to be able to start from scratch and build through out the year. I would like to thank the guys from the OEC for having me back up there before trials to train. It really was super beneficial to me and I am going to try and implement a lot more visits to the OEC in my training. I also would like to thank all my coaches, family and friends who have supported me through this rough year. Congratulations to the ones who made the World Team, wishing you the best of luck! My plan for the summer is to train and hit the weights as much as possible. Thanks for reading. willie

In Marquette

Hello,
I am currently at the Olympic Education Center. So far training is going very well. I felt like I needed a different environment so I decided to go back to Marquette to prepare for the trials. It's been 3 months since i been cleared to wrestle. My come back has been a long road of ups and downs trying to figure things out again. After a year off it seems like im learning how to wrestle Greco all over again. Every day in the room im improving getting a little stronger, faster, smarter, and confident. Coming back from neck surgery and being able to compete againg has made me a stronger person mentally. I am training hard and smart and i am excited about the trials . Thanks to you that have been keeping up with me. Wish me luck in Vegas!! willie

I'm going to Vegas!!

Hello,
I have some good news. I qualified for trials this passed weekend in Iowa. I felt pretty good on the mat but i still got some things i need to work on. Im looking forward to Vegas and im going to try and train hard and most of all smart, so i can be in the mix of things. Well, thanks for reading.

Still in Serbia

Hey, everyone
Today was a very interesting day for me. I woke up this morning and headed to practice. I had a good drill and my first to live goes went well also. My third match was with the 1# Serbian at 60kg. This guy has been a bully to some of my team mates all week but today he met his match cause i wasn't having it. He went to smacking me in the face so I smacked back and we traded stuff back and forth. Smacks turned to punches and head bunts but I kept coming. I'm not saying that my behavior was the right way to handle the situation, but I just felt like battling. Before, practice I was complaining about how sore I was and how it has been hard for me getting back into things. This little fight got me excited about getting back on the mat and competing again. I actually was looking forward to the next practice to see if the battle would continue. The next practice things had cooled off and things were back to normal. Friday we will be leaving Serbia and heading to Hungary were some of the guys will compete in a tournament. The town we are in right now is actually Momir's the coach for the OTC child hood home. We had a great welcoming at a nice restaurant were they prepared a fest for us. Most of the people in the town have been great, but their is one guy who say's some nasty things to us about America every time we pass him on are way to use the Internet. We look at him and just keep walking. When I get back to the States I am going to do some research on the relationship between Serbia and the U.S. I have heard many stories since i been here and i am looking forward to learning more. I should have looked in to it more before i came but it didn't cross my mind until this guy started saying things to us. Two weeks away from home seems like forever. I can't wait to get back. Thanks for reading my blogs I hope they are interesting to you all. Willie

In Serbia

Hey, everyone
I just want to thank everyone that visited my site. Right, now I am currently in Serbia. Last week I was cleared to ease back in to wrestling. So, I am not wrestling in the tournaments but I am training and watching. So far the trip has been pretty nice. We had a dual against the Serbia national team and we ended up winning 5-4 to a packed house. Right now the guys are getting ready to wrestle tomorrow in the tournament. I am looking forward to seeing some good wrestling. They have some power house wrestling teams like Bulgaria, Russia, and the Turkish team. On are way to the city that the tournament is held, we seen a slum right when we entered the city. It was something that I have never seen before and was very touched. It was unreal to me that people lived like that. It made me realize how many things I had to be thankful back home. Well, thats it for now. Well, thanks for keeping up with me. To my friends, girl and family I love you all and ill be home soon. Willie