I’ve been officiating for 16 years in the state of Ohio and 3 years in West Virginia. Over the years, I have had the opportunity to officiate in various tournaments, including Nationals Coaches Association Individual Championships as well as the Team Championships, as well as The Viper Pit, Round River Rumble, OAC Junior High States and Grade School States.

I have officiated The West Virginia High School State tournament as well as several district and sectional tournaments in Ohio and West Virginia. I have also had the opportunity to officiate the Tournament of Champions. I love to give back to the sport and have my hand in a lot of other projects that help local kids earn scholarships to local colleges. For the past two years, I have officiated college in Division II and III.

Tim Collins is looking forward to his first visit to the Freak Show, believing it will be an opportunity to see some different type of wrestling: “The West Coast style will be pretty different than what I'm used to seeing on the East Coast and Midwest. But at the end of the day, it's still wresting; control is control and near fall is at a certain point or degrees. Stalling might be the difference here; while I know it’s supposed to be the same, that's still a judgment call. Thus, I will try and be as consistent as possible.”

Wrestling has always been a fun sport for me. After high school, I thought that would be the last of it, but then my boys got into the sport: John Jr., Samuel and hopefully soon Franklin will show an interest in the sport. Originally for the sole reason of having the finances to let them compete, I became an OHSAA Class I wrestling official, but I have grown into this role. I believe officiating needs to be focused on preventing cheating or advantage, but the sport belongs to the competitor, not the official. Since 2011, I have seen not only my boys wrestling abilities grow, but I have also developed the skills needed to be an effective mat official. Being a coach, official and teacher has given me the best times of my life. I have also expanded my officiating to Football, Baseball, and Softball. “Youth sports promote a competitive edge needed to succeed in life.”

As a very young person, wrestling was not a prominent sport in my life. I was in junior high and the school day had ended. My buddy and I were roaming he empty halls after school. We were supposed to be out of the building when we were stopped and asked why were still there. Feeling anxious and facing a detention, I followed my friend in to the wrestling room and joined practice. The rest is history. I joined the team and fell in love with the sport of wrestling.

After a successful high school career, I received a wrestling scholarship to Cleveland State and continued at the collegiate level. I also wrestled for Ashland University. This provided an opportunity for travel and a try out for the Olympics. After competing at this level, I returned to my home community and began coaching. I enjoyed working with the biddy programs, junior high and high school athletes. Simultaneously, I received my officiating credentials but continued to coach for the next twelve years. I began officiating on occasion and have done this solely for the past four years. This continues to fuel my passion for the sport and I thoroughly enjoy my role as an official.

Wrestling is a sport like no other. This is evident in the fact that as a competitor, it pushes you to perform at your best and develop that competitive edge. As an official, you must keep yourself at the top of your game in knowledge and skill. And most of all as a human being, wrestling keeps things in perspective and creates the desire to succeed. The RMN organization gives me the chance to be involved with top athletes at a variety of ages and I look forward to being a part of events throughout the United States.

Hailing from the great state of Iowa, Jim Torvik brings 20 years of officiating to the Freak Show. Jim has officiated the past 4 HS State Tournaments in Iowa and worked some of the most competitive tournaments in the nation, including 12 years at USA Wrestling Folkstyle Nationals, Preseason Nationals, Disney Duals, Senior Nationals and many more. Jim has had the privilege of working The Clash for the past 3 years in Rochester, MN, arguably the toughest HS tournament in the nation. He officiated the dual pitting the #2 vs #3 teams in the nation.

Jim has 12 years of college officiating experience and has worked the past 3 JUCO National tournaments along with NAIA regionals. Jim is excited to work his first RMN event and truly enjoys the camaraderie amongst officials, working with some of the finest coaches and wrestlers in the nation. Giving back to this great sport is the most fulfilling aspect of being a wrestling official.

I began wrestling in junior high back in 1981, as a way to escape a lot of family pain going on at the time. Wrestling gave me a way to work out my frustrations, and learn some awfully good life skills as well. I couldn’t have had a better coach then, too, Mr. Charles Cheek, who seven years later became my officiating mentor. I love giving back to the sport that saved me as a kid. Through thirty-one years of officiating every possible level of folkstyle officiating, from pee-wee to Division I wrestling, I have enjoyed working with the kids, watching so many grow; officiating with guys from all over the country and learning and sharing different ideas and philosophies about reffing wrestling; being able to travel and see so much fantastic wrestling. I have been blessed beyond belief.

I have worked the NFHS National Duals, USAWrestling Preseason Nationals, NUWAY Nationals, Grand River Rumble, Indiana vs. Illinois All-Star Senior Duals, the Indiana state tournament series, and many of the top individual and team tournaments across our state. I am greatly looking forward to working my first RMN event at the Cosmic Clash, working west of the Rockies (okay, AT the Rockies, lol!) for the first time. I also plan on working more RMN events as they get assigned to me. It just provides a fabulous opportunity to share and learn, and ever improve on the hobby I love. As my mentor always reminded me: “If you ain’t learning something new when you go out there, ya ain’t improving, bub!”

I have been an official since 1998. I have refereed 10 junior state championships, 8 sectionals, 4 regional championships, 4 team state qualifiers, 1 PA state team championship and 1 individual PA state championship. Over the years, watching young wrestlers grow up to become great young men and women is indeed gratifying!

My perspective on wrestling comes from a portion of the poem “A Winner’s Creed”—“If you think you’ll lose, you’ve lost; for out in the world we find success begins with a person’s faith; it’s all in the state of mind.” Wrestling by its very nature teaches, facilitates and demands a belief in oneself to find success. Regardless of how an individual defines her or his success, it all starts with the proper state of mind.

Rocky Mountain Nationals (RMN) has done an exceptional job of facilitating a positive state of mind at the events I have attended. This has been a welcomed and respected attribute and sets the stage for a positive experience for the competitors, fans and officials. I currently preside in Bloomington, Indiana, and have officiated for nine years at the scholastic level and the past five years at the collegiate level. I’ve had the opportunity to officiate both scholastic and collegiate events at this location, as well at regional and national levels. This is my second Freak Show, and last year I officiated the RMN Championships in Denver, Colorado.

Dean Youngblut lives and works in Iowa. Dean has been officiating for the last 13 years after coaching for more than a decade at the high school level. He has been selected to work the last four Iowa State Tournaments, along with multiple years of the Disney Duals, Pre-Season Nationals, and Post-Season Nationals.

I enjoy being able to give back to the sport that has provided me with so many life lessons. The wrestling family is like no other sport there is and helping youth get the chance to experience the sport at many different levels has been fulfilling. I look forward to experiencing my first RMN event and growing my wrestling family even more.

In 20 years as an Iowa official, Lanny has officiated 16 individual state championships as well as 13 dual state tournaments; he’s also worked 7 years as a Disney Duals official. Recognized in 2013 as Iowa State Official of the Year, Lanny is a 4-time District Official of the Year. He’s served as president of his county officials association, an IWCOA committee member, and assignor of officials for many years. In addition, Lanny has coached junior high, high school, and college teams for a dozen years.

The pinnacle for any official is to be chosen to work the state tournament and the state dual tournament. I have been fortunate to have been selected to work the state tournament for the past 16 years, which includes 13 years working the state finals. I have also worked the state duals the past 13 years. I have very much appreciated these opportunities and never take them for granted. With a long admiration of tournament officials who have been so spot-lighted before me, I am also proud, like them, to possess both a love and respect for wrestling and a spirit that is rich and enduring – first as a wrestler, then a coach, and now as an official.

Another aspect I really enjoy is teaming up and working with new officials. I enjoy watching and being a part of the learning and maturation processes that takes place from the great calls to working them through their trials and frustrations. It is very rewarding when former mentees contact me to let me know they have been given a great assignment – from that first big meet to their acceptance of a postseason assignment.

But what is the best of all my years being involved in wrestling? The close relationships that have come from all of this is more than anyone could ever explain. I look forward to working national events and will join RMN events this year. I believe working events that bring in wrestlers, coaches and officials from around the county can only broaden your knowledge of the sport which in turn improves you as an official. The learning and teaching that transpires is phenomenal and can only better the sport of wrestling. Although this year brings a few new twists and turns, it is still wrestling and can only make us more adaptable in life's situations.

I have been involved with wrestling ever since I was a little boy. I have been a participant, coach, and official as long as I can remember. I was fortunate enough to be a varsity coach for 13 years before grabbing my whistle. The 20-21 season will begin my 8th year of wearing the stripes.

As a wrestling official, I have been lucky enough to work some marquee tournaments in my short career. I have become a regular at the Disney Duals, I worked the Nationals Duals in Virginia Beach, the Super 32 Challenge, NUWAY Nationals in Lansing, Michigan, and have worked the past two Iowa State Wrestling Tournaments.

Aside from these, I have worked several youth state championships for both AAU and USA wrestling, I have worked USA preseason and postseason nationals, and I have officiated at the Iowa State University team camp for Coach Dresser. Not only do I work as a referee, but I run wrestling tournaments as a TrackWrestling operator for many events each season. My claim to fame is that I personally worked as the TrackWrestling operator at the Iowa State Wrestling Tournaments for 8 years until I started refereeing that event the past two seasons.

My goal is to foster the sport and to see young athletes compete and have fun. My biggest thrill is to raise an athlete’s hand and see the joy on his/her face after EARNING that victory. Better than that, I go out of my way to look for those acts of great sportsmanship that I can share with those that ask me why I do what I do. As a tournament is in action, and I have a break, I look around with a big smile knowing that I am doing what I love.