Tying Ty

Ty Alexander vs Ray Naylor, Learning the Ropes the Hard Way! (BG East)

I suspect Ray Naylor is part spider. He rigs whatever fight space he's in with ropes. Then, with the noiseless patience of a spider, he waits for some unsuspecting lout to approach and wrestles him to a place where he can immobilize him, wrapping and trapping him in knots and loops. Years and years ago, I received the Naylor treatment - twice. In my fondest and strangest memory of the events, we were sitting on the sidelines watching two other guys wrestle. With barely perceptible moves he took my hand and strung my fingers and thumb together. Rendering new acquaintances inactive is his version of parlor card tricks.

Ty Alexander's style is different. He's not loud exactly, except in his tastes in gear, a firm believer in the adage "Frill speaks louder than words." Beyond the costuming, Ty is the more traditional of the two wrestlers: a legit ring wrestler, who does not usually rely on foreign objects. The classic holds he's mastered are perhaps his one nod to convention. He scolds Ray for decking the ring and rafter with white nylon ropes. Ray calmly pushes him aside, only infuriating his opponent more. The two lock up, and Ty backs Ray to the turnbuckle and delivers two stiff and dramatic gut punches, then pulls him by the head to the center of the ring and drives his knee in, dropping Ray down on all fours.

Ray is quick to turn on Ty, treating the heel to a ring-corner beatdown, then flipping him on his back. Ty lands hard. Ropes aside, Naylor is a terrific wrestler. The give and take that follows focuses on grappling, crotch-grabbing, crotch-kicking, and bear hugs before Ray turns his attention to the ropes, about a third of the way through the match,  He hogties Alexander, then sits on the back of his head and spanks his ass with a loose end of rope. He works up a fine glistening sweat (another Naylor hallmark) as he finds new ways to bind and torment Ty. Don't be fooled by Naylor's calm affect and serene style. He's a master of the death-by-a-thousand-small-cuts approach to dismantling an opponent, as Ty learns the hard way.

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