in Asheville. On February 10, they wrestled The Olympian and Tony Prichard to a double-disqualification in Morristown, Tennessee. On February 26, at SSW's 5th Anniversary Show, The Beautiful Blondes lost the tag belts to Death & Destruction (Frank "The Tank" Parker and "Ruthless" Roger Anderson). On March 1, Golden successfully defended the junior heavyweight title against Scott Sterling. The Beautiful Blondes had less luck that month losing matches to Sterling with partners Steve Flynn and Danny Christian respectively. On May 3, 1996, The Beautiful Blondes wrestled Battering Ram and Ironman at a United Wrestling Alliance show in Hansonville, Virginia; the following night in Nora, Virginia, the two wrestled their opponents in singles matches with Golden losing to Battering Ram. On May 11, The Beautiful Blondes wrestled Medic Madness (Dr. Dan and The Orderly) to a double-disqualification at a Great American Wrestling Federation show in Asheville, North Carolina. The following year, Golden lost to Ricky Morton at the Sampson Center in Fall Branch, Tennessee. The bout was promoted as a "clean scientific match", however, Morton became frustrated when the younger wrestler kept successfully countering his moves. He then uncharacteristically used "heel" tactics against Golden and scored the winning pinfall only after using the ring ropes for leverage and pulling Golden's tights. He also unsuccessfully challenged Beau James for the SSW Appalachian Heavyweight Championship. Tennessee Mountain Wrestling (1996–1997) At the end of 1996, Golden began competing in Tennessee Mountain Wrestling where he quickly won the promotion's light heavyweight championship. On November 30, Golden defeated Chris Steelheart in Morristown, Tennessee. On December 7, 1996, he lost to Steelheart in a non-title match at Holston High School in Knoxville. He and Ricky Rockett wrestled to a double-countout at a TMW show in Johnson City the same month. On January 5, 1997, Golden suffered his first defeat in the promotion at the hands of Chris Powers in Knoxville, Tennessee. Golden formed a short-lived alliance with Chris Steelheart when he began feuding with Ricky Rockett. The two defeated Rocket and David Jericho in a tag team match on February 14, however, Golden was unable to win the TMW Light Heavyweight Championship from Rocket in their title bout at Holsten Elementary School. Two months later, Golden and Rusty Riddle were defeated by Ricky Rocker and David Jericho at the Johnson City Parks & Recreation Center. Independent circuit (1997–2000) Golden continued teaming with Stan Lee during this time.