It is estimated that 350 people packed the Cochrane Fair arena on Friday night (August 16) to see the premier professional wrestling event hosted by Canadian Wrestling Elite.

There was certainly no shortage of action for wrestling fans young and old as matches took to the ring in search of victory.

Spencer Tapley, Ringside Announcer, says the event was extremely well received. "I think for all parties concerned with bringing in Canadian Wrestling Elite for the first time to the Cochrane Fair were over the top. I think everybody had a great time and everybody that was in the tent on Friday night for the show was very enthusiastic, very loud, and they really enjoyed the matches." 

Six matches, including the legendary 'Ladder Match' took to the ring while wrestling fans cheered and heckled to their heart's delight. 

Many attendees thought the show could even become a serious contender for the Cochrane Classic Bull Riding event. "We would have to go a long way to rival the numbers that the Cochrane Classic bull riding event drew in, but it's a start. We hope that Canadian Wrestling Elite will come back, and I think with such overwhelming success, and how much everybody enjoyed the show, my bet is the fair would be happy to have them back."

Tapley, who has been involved with wrestling for more years than he cares to count, says, the wrestlers had a great time. "Many of the wrestlers who I am very close with over the many, many years that I have been involved with the wrestling industry across western Canada and in the legendary Stampede Westling promotion, were all very pleased with the reception they got from the Cochrane crowd. A lot of the guys and girls that were in Cochrane this past Friday night are veteran's of the Canadian Wrestling Elite's cross Canada tours, and a lot of them said for the size of the crowd it was, that it was one of the loudest crowd's that they have heard in a very long time."

While Tapley would have loved to see double the size of the crowd on Friday; unfortunately, Mother Nature held the upper hand. "I think wrestling fans will go out and see a show if it's 40 below out, but I think if we had really nice weather that night that there would have been more people on the Cochrane fairgrounds that would have come in to check it out."

In the end, not only was the show a success in the eyes of attendees but also in the eyes of the Girl Guides, as wrestler 'The Cheetahbear' Jude Dawkins, donated his entire winnings of the Ladder Match to the Cochrane Girl Guides for the rebuild of their park at Camp Jubilee.