By Dr. Thom Parks

I'll never forget the night I met "Cowboy" Bob Yuma. It was something that I had been looking forward to for a long time. Although my wrestling career started in the Southeast and Bob wrestled in the Southwest, I was still very familiar with and impressed by him.

In the early 1980s, I had started corresponding with author and Arizona wrestling historian Dale Pierce. Dale would keep me up-to-date with the wrestling events in the Desert Southwest. It was from Dale's writings that I first learned of "Cowboy" Bob Yuma. The way Dale described him, I pictured "Cowboy" Bob Yuma as a larger-than-life figure and when I finally had the opportunity to meet him, I discovered that I was right.

Even though I lived all the way on the other side of the country and never saw him wrestle, through Dale Pierce's writings I became a "Cowboy" Bob Yuma fan.

In 1990, my wife, son and I moved to Arizona. Unfortunately, we arrived just after the "Cowboy" had hung up his boots. It would be another ten years before the opportunity would arise for me to meet this legendary figure and shake his hand, but the night did come.

It was a December night in 2000 and my friend C.C. Starr had called to invite me to a wrestling card that he and "Cowboy" Bob Yuma were working on. They had revived the legendary Western States Wrestling organization and C.C. wanted me to see their efforts.

I made my way to the arena where the show was held. It was quite impressive to say the least. I had worked for various Arizona promotions in the ten years I had lived here, but many of these young guys were new to me, but they were all pretty good.

At intermission, I looked over and saw a man in cowboy attire standing next to the dressing room entrance. It was "Cowboy" Bob Yuma. I walked over and introduced myself, not quite sure what reaction I would get. Bob stuck out his hand and shook mine. He was very cordial and friendly. We talked for a while before the matches started up again.

Soon after, I started working for the Western States Wrestling promotion as well - first as a referee and then as a manager. While working there, Bob and I developed a friendship and he was very willing to share his knowledge of the business with me.

Today, I am very proud to call "Cowboy" Bob Yuma my friend. It's not everyday that you meet a legend, which's why I recall so vividly the night that I did.

Dr. Thom Parks is a former pro wrestling referee, manager and promoter. His career spans over 20 years and he has appeared at wrestling events from the southeast to the southwest with his early career taking place in Virginia and the Carolinas. You may write to Dr. Thom Parks at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it