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I've gotten several emails regarding an open letter Tracy Smothers' ex-girlfriend wrote and posted on his official site. I'm not going to reprint it here because I'm not able to confirm any of it, as it's her word against his, and unlike other sites I'm not going to reprint something that assassinates the character of someone.
I do however have a little knowledge about one of the subjects in the open letter, which is mini-strokes. Tracy's ex-girlfriend states that Tracy has had recurring mini-strokes since Christmas. A mini-stroke is also known as a Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA) and are similar to strokes but are brief, usually lasting less than an hour. I had the unfortunate luck of suffering from one in 2005 and it was not fun at all. The idea that someone is suffering from them on a regular basis is peculiar, to say the least, and I find it hard to believe that anyone could go that long suffering multiple TIAs without suffering a genuine stroke. When suffering a TIA your risk of having a stroke increases dramatically for about a year, so I could only imagine what multiple ones would do. If he is suffering from something, I would be shocked if it were constant TIAs.
As far as Tracy having these issues at shows, I've asked several people who have worked on shows with him and no one said that he was acting any different than usual. I'd also like to think that someone as well liked and respected as Tracy would receive help from his peers if he were in any real danger, and knowing a couple of his closer friends in the business I think they probably would. Tracy's friend Beau James, a wrestler and promoter from Tennessee, has also gone on record as saying that Tracy spent Christmas with him and that Tracy didn't have any problems other than he ran out of his blood pressure medication. I've known Beau for close to ten years and consider him a friend, and he's a straight shooter so I trust him. It'd be hard for me to imagine that Tracy could suffer from a TIA without someone noticing something was very wrong, so it's definitely something someone would pick up on.
As far as other claims being made, those are between her and Tracy. She, by her own admission, is writing a book, so who knows what her true motivations are? I think it's unfortunate that it's been so easy for people to put her allegations up on their websites without being able to substantiate them, or at the very least contact Tracy for his part of the story before doing so. I think I speak for everyone when I say that if Tracy is in fact having troubles that we hope he gets help, but even if that is the case I don't think going public and create more stress for someone is the way to help them.
Thanks for reading and supporting Indy Wrestling News,
Adam
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