The Canadian Death Tour or Northern Hell Tour, and sometimes just known as the "Death Tour" is a

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

tour of the northern territories of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

promoted by

Tony Condello Tony Condello (born August 8, 1942) is an Italian retired professional wrestler and promoter most known for founding International Wrestling Alliance in Manitoba, Canada. Professional wrestling career Early career Tony Condello began his career ...

annually for over 30 years during the winters. The tour takes wrestlers from all over

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

and drives them around the

Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...

communities which are rarely exposed to wrestling. The tour derives its name from the fact that many wrestlers who participate in it found it to be a

near-death experience A near-death experience (NDE) is a profound personal experience associated with death or impending death which researchers claim share similar characteristics. When positive, such experiences may encompass a variety of sensations including detac ...

due to how harsh and difficult it was to complete. To complete a death tour is considered a

badge of honour The Badge of Honour, accompanied by the King's Certificate and Badge of Honour, is a civil award previously presented by the governments of British colonies and protectorates, and now by British Overseas Territories, to recognise loyal and valua ...

and evidence of a wrestlers toughness, similar to having been trained in " the Dungeon".

History

Each tour is three weeks long and is held from January to February. As there are no hotels in the areas which the tour appears in wrestlers are required to bring their own sleeping bags with them on this trips and sleep on gym mats in the school gymnasiums where they had performed hours earlier or find a place to room in on their own. Wrestlers are also required to buy their own food. Many of the younger people who have participated in the tours have elected to change profession after returning home. It is widely regarded as an honor to be offered a spot on the tour, and completing it grants the wrestler a high status for their tenacity. Condello himself has expressed that "this tour is not just a tour; it is an exercise in mind and body". Wrestler and historian

Vance Nevada Vern May (born December 31, 1975) better known by his ringname Fat Pasty Mark is a Canadian professional wrestler, author, professional wrestling promoter and wrestling historian. Professional wrestling career Since his earliest matches in 1993, ...

has stated that he had always wanted to do the tour because it was such an important piece of Canadian wrestling lore; with its alumni reading like a "

who's who ''Who's Who'' (or ''Who is Who'') is the title of a number of reference publications, generally containing concise biography, biographical information on the prominent people of a country. The title has been adopted as an expression meaning a gr ...

" of the business greats. Wrestler

Tony Kozina Tony Kozina (born October 23, 1970) is an American professional wrestler who is best known for his work in the Pacific Northwest especially in Extreme Canadian Championship Wrestling and National Wrestling Alliance. He has also made appearances i ...

has expressed that touring in Canada in general is painful and that the experience of it does not have to come from a Death Tour for you to be tough. The tours are the main subject of the

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

'' The Promoter''.

Wrestlers to complete a death tour

Canadians

Foreigners

References

External links

Stories on the Death Tour
archive of stories concerning the tour on StormWrestling.com *
Images of the Death Tour
archive of images of the tour on StormWrestling.com Professional wrestling in Canada Professional wrestling in Manitoba