Lonnie first appeared in Oregon on November 4th, 1966. He defeated Paul Diamond. Lonnie was quickly taken in by Tough Tony Borne, with the experience of Borne and the power and recklessness of Mayne they were a great team. They quickly won the NW tag titles from Pepper Martin and Shag Thomas on December 14th, 1966. Their style made them very unpopular with the fans as they would do anything to win a match. Most of their matches ended with either Mayne or Borne finishing off an opponent with the Bombs Away or as Mayne later named it the Arkansas Stomp. Both were quite adapt at this maneuver. The fans considered Mayne a “crazy nut” who would go out of his head and attack innocent wrestlers with a severe viciousness rarely seen. Their first reign as champions ended on January 27th, 1967 losing to Pepper Martin and Paul Jones. They started their second reign on March 9th when they regained the belts. During this time Lonnie became involved in a a heated feud with Shag Thomas. It was Thomas who handed Mayne his first singles loss in the Northwest area, but Mayne got even and more. On March 16th, Moondog pulled off a major upset and one of the biggest in his career, he beat the Original Sensational Destroyer who was at the time had just lost the WWA title. The very next night out, Mayne was wrestling Pepper Martin and broke Martins leg in another big win. The action caused Mayne to feud with Martin’s tag partner Paul Jones. They traded victories but Mayne ended the feud by beating Jones in a Texas Death Match.

When Martin was recovered he and Mayne met in a match billed as the Battle of the Century. On May 29th the battle took place and Mayne came out on top, via the DQ on an irate Martin. One month later Mayne finished this feud also with another victory in a Texas Death Match. 

Tony Borne, Lonnie’s tag partner remembers him in this way. “Lonnie Mayne was approximately 12 years of age when I first met him. I was surprised, even at this early age, I knew he had something a little extra going for him. Finally, after his father launched him on his pro wrestling career. Lonnie came to the area and Ken Mayne his father phoned me and said kind of look after him. Little did I know what a job this would be. I did know that Lonnie possessed much talent. Also he had strength that was second to none. Everything he did was different and this included his lifestyle. To Lonnie everyday was like Christmas and mornings when he awoke his eyes would sparkle like a little boy arising on Christmas morning. He was a guy with a big heart and couldn’t say no to anybody. At times I would get so angry with him I wouldn’t speak to him for days, but he would always win a person back with his unselfish ways.  I have met many people, good and bad, in my lifetime and I’ll probably meet many more. There is not one who could begin to compare to Lonnie. When Lonnie passed away a big chapter in my life came to an end. He is gone but not forgotten."

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More on the number 1 wrestler in the NW, Lonnie Mayne.