‘There’s no slowing down for us’: NSA Wrestling makes a memorable debut to Alaska State Fair

PALMER — NSA Wrestling athletes stepped into the ring at the Alaska State Fair for the first time in the organization’s history Monday, Aug. 31 inside the Events Tent off the Yellow Trail.

“It’s a really proud moment. The exposure we can get out of this is incredible,” NSA wrestler Tim Hulke said.

NSA wrestlers were met with an enthusiastic crowd with curious ongoers cycling in and out of the tent throughout the Fair-Fair event, which featured a visiting professional wrestler from the Lower 48, Shannon Ballard.

“I think through just this Fair show, they’ve gained a whole new slew of fans,” Ballard said.

NSA is a Valley-based operation that’s been training local wrestlers and putting on shows to entertain the public with a colorful cast of characters for the last six years. Ballard said that he thoroughly enjoys working with NSA and feels confident their efforts will continue moving Alaska’s wrestling scene forward.

He said they’re really good at walking a fine line between entertainment and athletics, putting on high-quality shows that engage audiences members of all ages.

“This is like the best crew you can come across,” Ballard said. “NSA is building their own homegrown talent… The people that come and watch... they just want to be entertained. They want superheroes and they want villains… I think we gave them all of that today.” 3:30 4:30

Anchorage mother Chantelle Martin said that she had a great time watching the Fair-Fight with her son, Nehemiah.

“I loved it,” Martin said. “It was very family-friendly. They were very engaged with us which is what made it exciting… I would definitely come back.”

Wrestlers “good” and “bad” interacted with audience members throughout the show, building up emotional investments in the action, particularly among the wide-eyed children rooting for the heroes and jeering the heels.

“I think the fan interaction was the biggest thing we were going for,” NSA co-founder and showrunner, Sean Coleman said. “I think we did something right.”

NSA co-founder and showrunner Mitchell Helps said it was a unique experience to break into the Fair for the first time. He said that he had a lot of fun showing off what they do and putting all their hard work on full display, granting them a lot of validation and encouragement at the biggest entertainment venue in the state.

“I think it went wonderfully. Today was a really good opportunity for us in the future. It’s a big thing for us, and a big thing for the Fair. It seems like they want us back. It seems like we can keep this going,” Helps said. To pull the crowd we did… I think today we prove that we belong. There’s no slowing down for us.”

Hulke said that it was incredible to make it through the hardest parts of the pandemic to this point. He said this is a huge accomplishment and positive step forward, not just for NSA but independent wrestling as a whole in Alaska.

“I feel like wrestling in Alaska is really big right now,” Hulke said. “It’s like a dream come true

NSA Wrestling is putting on a show at the Palmer Train Depot in October. For more information, visit their official Facebook page.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com