For a while, I had been looking for some kind of athletic activity for my son to do occasionally, something that was not just yelling at other kids on Roblox, and something structured that would help avoid some of the issues we have had with neighborhood kids that I am not particularly fond of. I was already aware that KCXW offered youth programs, and since I try to attend all of their shows and occasionally sponsor matches, I had seen their advertisements over time. I have also come to know and trust much of their staff, so I knew they would not be doing anything shady. Even so, I still had reservations.
I will be honest, I was somewhat wary of allowing my son to take part in any kind of professional wrestling training for safety reasons. Given what professional wrestling is, I think that caution was warranted. I have seen advertisements for out-of-state companies, which I will not name to avoid drawing attention to them, that allowed children to participate in worked wrestling matches in front of live crowds. When my son asked if he could attend one of the youth programs, specifically a yearly winter XWC camp, I was quietly concerned that it might resemble that kind of setup to some degree.
I wanted to share this as a testimonial from someone who initially approached the idea with skepticism. What the camp actually was, compared to what I had been worried about, could not have been more different. The children were not wrestling each other in any way, unless they were older kids already training officially, and everything was handled in a very safe and structured manner. I stayed for the entire session and observed everything closely, and at no point did I worry that my son might be injured. The camp functioned much like a youth karate class or a similar organized activity.
I will now go over what these camps are like and why XWC will very likely see my son again later in the year.
Upon arrival and after checking in, the staff and children introduced themselves and received their T-shirts. Not long after, everyone was in the ring beginning rudimentary wrestling training, covering basics such as lockups, running the ropes, tumbling, and simple drills. After some time, more complex moves were introduced, though most of these were highly controlled techniques such as headlocks and bulldogs. These moves largely required the person receiving them to do much of the work and selling.
For this portion, the kids were paired with staff members, including adult trainees and full-time wrestlers, and each child was given the opportunity to try every move several times. This continued for several hours until lunch, which was provided for the kids, after which they returned to learn a few additional skills.
The second portion of the camp was where creativity came more into play. The kids were allowed to grab a microphone and cut a promo on one of the wrestlers, challenging them to a match. They also got to choose a walkout theme and a gimmick name and began preparing for the finale of the evening, a match against one of the staff members. After more training and practice, the kids were paired with their wrestlers and the matches were planned out. Younger kids and first-timers were given fewer things to memorize for obvious reasons, while older and more experienced participants were given matches that more closely resembled real bouts.
My son was paired with a wrestler named Elijah Love, and it was genuinely cool watching him work to help get the match off the ground. Now named “The Terminator”, and sporting sunglasses and a bandolier of toy bullets left over from Halloween, my son was ready. Parents, grandparents, and anyone else who wanted to see the final showcase gradually filled the chairs, and then the matches began. All sixteen kids had short matches lasting three to five minutes, and everyone involved was clearly having a blast. My son, completely breaking character as a hardened assassin or whatever he had been aiming for, had a huge smile from ear to ear the entire time, which alone made the camp well worth the cost.
I was glad that my concerns were way off base, and honored my son’s Christmas wish to do this. What KCXW and the XWC camp actually offered could not have been further from those fears I had. Rather than a hardcore training regimen or anything exploitative (like a child fight club), the camp functioned as a carefully structured, creative, and genuinely fun experience that emphasized safety, learning, and imagination. Watching my son light up from start to finish made it clear that this was not about turning kids into wrestlers overnight, but about giving them a chance to step into the world of professional wrestling in the same way a music “dream camp” lets kids play alongside famous musicians. It was an experience built around inspiration and joy, and one that we would happily return to.
For more information CLICK HERE, they also offer adults camps like this:
