We've got only one fighter going down to Indy this week, Steve "The Biscuit". Biscuit is a young guy so he'll be fighting in the Junior category, heavyweight division. He's been looking sharp and I think he has a real good chance for a win. As always, a lot of it will be how well he maintains his composure. Every one gets nervous in front of the crowd. As soon as you learn to feed off the energy of the crowd, however, things get a lot better.
The fans at Indy are very knowledgeable and know good fighters when they see them. They root on both contestants in a match and if the outcome is at all questionable, they let the officials know. Many of the fans will congratulate the fighters as they return from the ring, regardless of whether the fighter won or lost. It's a nice size venue and a great place to fight.
Lets all wish The Biscuit good luck tomorrow night.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Joe and Josh
Josh - Army Strong
Joe - Bazooka Power
I wasn't able to get a picture of Joe at the fights the other night but here's one taken by Surly Camera at our last exhibition. I did manage to get a picture of Josh right after he finished up. As you can see, Josh is looking a little worse for wear but not too bad for a guy who just tangled with a buzz-saw. As you can also see in the photo of Joe, not an ounce of fat on that boy and you'd better have your gloves up when he turns the bazooka power loose.
Surly came to the gym today and shot some more photos for us. We're trying to work something out to get some photos of all of our fighters to have for publicity work both here on the blog and in the local paper. We're also putting together a display to recognize all of our champions.
Congratulations to both fighters on their performance the other night.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Bazooka Fire
It was a good night for "Bazooka" Joe at the Golden Gloves. When we walked into the Armory, the security guard asked if we were carrying any knives, guns or mace, to which Joe replied, "I've got a couple of bazookas". The guard played along and asked him where he was keeping them and Joe told him up his sleeves. He wasn't kidding, though. Joe was about 8" taller than his opponent and was able to take command of the fight right from the start. His opponent wasn't in the best physical condition and Joe always is. It was pretty clear how this one was going to turn out and by the end of the first round, the other guy was already gassed out. Joe turned it up the second round, pinned his man in the corner and started throwing some big leather. He landed three big right hands to the guy's body and the ref stepped in and gave the guy a standing eight. When the action resumed, Joe pinned him in the corner again and just exploded on the guy. I turned to Jimmy and yelled, "he's firing the bazookas!". It was definitely something to see. The ref stopped the fight at that point and Joe was declared the winner. Joe's next fight will be in the championship round in a couple of weeks, I believe.
Josh didn't have quite the same results. He lost a hard fought decision to a really tough opponent. Basically, he ran into the proverbial buzz-saw. His opponent came out throwing and never let up. I didn't figure he could keep up the torrid pace but he sure did. Josh made a fight out of it landing some nice left hooks and a couple of straight rights but he was just a little rusty and let the buzz-saw get off first. Josh has so much going on right now with school and the Army, it was amazing that he found the time to train at all. He's a fine young man and we're all very proud of him. He'll probably be deployed next year at this time so he won't be able to compete in the Golden Gloves, but rather than boxing as an amateur, he'll be fighting as a professional soldier.
Next year the National Golden Gloves will be held in Indianapolis as well. The event will be held towards the end of April. If you're looking to see the best amateur fighters in the country, this will be your chance. I've been to the Nationals a couple of times and the fights are excellent.
We've just got one fighter going next week.
Josh didn't have quite the same results. He lost a hard fought decision to a really tough opponent. Basically, he ran into the proverbial buzz-saw. His opponent came out throwing and never let up. I didn't figure he could keep up the torrid pace but he sure did. Josh made a fight out of it landing some nice left hooks and a couple of straight rights but he was just a little rusty and let the buzz-saw get off first. Josh has so much going on right now with school and the Army, it was amazing that he found the time to train at all. He's a fine young man and we're all very proud of him. He'll probably be deployed next year at this time so he won't be able to compete in the Golden Gloves, but rather than boxing as an amateur, he'll be fighting as a professional soldier.
Next year the National Golden Gloves will be held in Indianapolis as well. The event will be held towards the end of April. If you're looking to see the best amateur fighters in the country, this will be your chance. I've been to the Nationals a couple of times and the fights are excellent.
We've just got one fighter going next week.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Thursday Night Fights
We have two guys fighting tomorrow night in the Golden Gloves, Bazooka Joe and Josh B. Josh will be defending his title. I'm a little concerned about Josh due to his lack of sparring. He's going to college, is in the Army Reserves and has moved away from our gym. Obviously, he's real busy but he's been going to another gym. He hasn't been getting any sparring to speak of there, though. He's looked good when he's been able to get to our gym, however. He's also real cool when he gets in the ring. His punches are sharp and he hits real hard, so I probably shouldn't be overly concerned.
I was hoping to have some big news about Jimmy tonight. He was in the running for a big fight in Vegas April 3rd after the originally scheduled fighter pulled out but, unfortunately, he didn't get the fight. It was to be a 10 rounder versus Sergio Mora. It would have been the opportunity of a lifetime and what Jimmy has been looking for ever since he started boxing. That's why we call him Mr. Lucky.
I'll post our Golden Gloves results Friday morning. Hopefully we'll have two wins. Wish us luck.
I was hoping to have some big news about Jimmy tonight. He was in the running for a big fight in Vegas April 3rd after the originally scheduled fighter pulled out but, unfortunately, he didn't get the fight. It was to be a 10 rounder versus Sergio Mora. It would have been the opportunity of a lifetime and what Jimmy has been looking for ever since he started boxing. That's why we call him Mr. Lucky.
I'll post our Golden Gloves results Friday morning. Hopefully we'll have two wins. Wish us luck.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
1.7 Million to Choose From
After giving some thought to the number of participants in this year's Golden Gloves, here's a little bit of what I came up with. I checked the Indiana Census numbers from 2008 and there are about 1.7 million people between the ages of 24 to 44 in Indiana. That should be roughly the number of those eligible to compete between 14 and 34 as well. Lake and Porter counties compete in Chicago so we'll eliminate them and go with the nice round number of 1.5 million. So if we do the math, 160 divided by 1.5 million, we get .01066%. Roughly one hundredth of a percent. Not all that great a number. So why is that?
When I was sparring back in the '70's, boxing had been on an upswing. This was partially due to the '68 Olympics plus it seemed as if everyone was doing some sort of physical activity - running, bicycling - I ran the first Hub Run with my boxing coach, a 10-1/2 miler in 1976. I don't know the actual numbers but the Chicago Golden Gloves, where my club competed, was much bigger then than now. The prelim's were held at St. Andrew's gym and the finals were at the International Amphitheater. It was a big venue and the crowds were big. Now all the fights, including the finals, are held at St. Andrews. I'm not sure of the capacity at St. Andrews but it's less than the Tyndall Armory where the Indiana tournament is held and the finals in Indy are usually a sell out. So Indiana actually looks to be doing a little better than Chicago but neither of them are doing what they once were.
So here's my take on the whole thing. There are a lot of things for young people to do. They can sit on the couch, watch television, be a "friend" on Facebook or text message their friends. None of these things can be done with boxing gloves on, unfortunately. You can't even pick up the remote, let alone push those little buttons on your phone with boxing gloves on. Young men no longer feel the need to "prove themselves" as they once did. There is no right of passage to becoming a man. Many of them do not have a father living in the house with them so they aren't exposed to the good natured rough-housing that once was standard father/son fare. Likewise, they aren't exposed to boxing as they once were. Most televised boxing matches are on a pay for view or premium channel and Mom isn't going to be sitting around on Saturday night spending quality time on the couch with little Johnny watching the fights.
Boxing is a sport that basically asks people to get punched in the head. It's a contact sport that has a history of being associated with corruption, cauliflower ears, guys walking around on their heels after taking too many punches to the head and the rare but unfortunate death. Not an easy thing to sell to kids who are big, lazy sissies to begin with.
Amateur boxing is relatively safe as long as the people running the gym keep an eye on their people. Headgear and big gloves are a definite for sparring and it must be emphasized that sparring is not clubbing each other for all you're worth every time you get into the ring. Good sparring partners are tough to come by, but even then, you're going to get hit. It is possible to fight for a long time with no long term damage but the coach must protect the fighter and the fighter must protect himself.
The Indiana Golden Gloves doesn't do much to promote the contest. There isn't much that comes up if you do an internet search. Most of the officials are older men and women, which may present another problem in the upcoming years. The Indianapolis Star and the Lafayette Journal Courier do a nice job of covering the event on a week by week basis but probably not enough to generate interest in young men and women to actually participate, especially since most young people don't read a newspaper. Most boxing clubs are run on a shoestring, so they don't have much of a promotional budget. Our local paper is always looking for news items to fill in some space, so they're always there for us. For the most part, however, amateur boxing is suffering from a lack of good exposure, among other things.
So what does all this mean? Not sure. Whatever the solution, clubs like ours are going to have to be part of it. Amateur boxing is a tremendous sport and I'd like to see it grow. I'm sure I'll have more to say on the subject in the future. I welcome your ideas and comments as well.
When I was sparring back in the '70's, boxing had been on an upswing. This was partially due to the '68 Olympics plus it seemed as if everyone was doing some sort of physical activity - running, bicycling - I ran the first Hub Run with my boxing coach, a 10-1/2 miler in 1976. I don't know the actual numbers but the Chicago Golden Gloves, where my club competed, was much bigger then than now. The prelim's were held at St. Andrew's gym and the finals were at the International Amphitheater. It was a big venue and the crowds were big. Now all the fights, including the finals, are held at St. Andrews. I'm not sure of the capacity at St. Andrews but it's less than the Tyndall Armory where the Indiana tournament is held and the finals in Indy are usually a sell out. So Indiana actually looks to be doing a little better than Chicago but neither of them are doing what they once were.
So here's my take on the whole thing. There are a lot of things for young people to do. They can sit on the couch, watch television, be a "friend" on Facebook or text message their friends. None of these things can be done with boxing gloves on, unfortunately. You can't even pick up the remote, let alone push those little buttons on your phone with boxing gloves on. Young men no longer feel the need to "prove themselves" as they once did. There is no right of passage to becoming a man. Many of them do not have a father living in the house with them so they aren't exposed to the good natured rough-housing that once was standard father/son fare. Likewise, they aren't exposed to boxing as they once were. Most televised boxing matches are on a pay for view or premium channel and Mom isn't going to be sitting around on Saturday night spending quality time on the couch with little Johnny watching the fights.
Boxing is a sport that basically asks people to get punched in the head. It's a contact sport that has a history of being associated with corruption, cauliflower ears, guys walking around on their heels after taking too many punches to the head and the rare but unfortunate death. Not an easy thing to sell to kids who are big, lazy sissies to begin with.
Amateur boxing is relatively safe as long as the people running the gym keep an eye on their people. Headgear and big gloves are a definite for sparring and it must be emphasized that sparring is not clubbing each other for all you're worth every time you get into the ring. Good sparring partners are tough to come by, but even then, you're going to get hit. It is possible to fight for a long time with no long term damage but the coach must protect the fighter and the fighter must protect himself.
The Indiana Golden Gloves doesn't do much to promote the contest. There isn't much that comes up if you do an internet search. Most of the officials are older men and women, which may present another problem in the upcoming years. The Indianapolis Star and the Lafayette Journal Courier do a nice job of covering the event on a week by week basis but probably not enough to generate interest in young men and women to actually participate, especially since most young people don't read a newspaper. Most boxing clubs are run on a shoestring, so they don't have much of a promotional budget. Our local paper is always looking for news items to fill in some space, so they're always there for us. For the most part, however, amateur boxing is suffering from a lack of good exposure, among other things.
So what does all this mean? Not sure. Whatever the solution, clubs like ours are going to have to be part of it. Amateur boxing is a tremendous sport and I'd like to see it grow. I'm sure I'll have more to say on the subject in the future. I welcome your ideas and comments as well.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Opening Night
We had two fighters entered in the Indianapolis Golden Gloves last night. The brothers Dan and Joe were both scheduled to fight but Joe's opponent couldn't make weight, so Joe won in a walkover. He's now scheduled to fight on the 25th. Dan looked every bit the rookie that he was and lost when the referee stopped the contest in the second round after Dan recieved a punch to the throat. Dan's opponent looked like he was put together from parts of a big oak tree and had a punch to match the size of his arms. I'm glad I didn't have to fight the guy. While Dan was disappointed with his performance, he's got what it takes to be a good boxer and should show considerable improvement with some more sparring time in the gym.
It looks like we might have to scratch one of our fighters for the tourney. I took Robert to the emergency room Wednesday evening after he lost partial sight in one eye. It turns out that he broke a blood vessel while sparring. He was scheduled to see an ophthalmologist yesterday morning and I would imagine the doctor is going to tell him to lay off for a while. It's too bad, he won his division and was named Fighter of the Tournament for his division last year. You definitely don't want to take a chance with you eyesight, however. In a sport that is based on hitting people in the head, you definitely need to minimize the risks. He isn't scheduled to fight until the final night, however, so he may be able to compete.
Just a little item in the "food for thought" column: We have 12 fighters entered in a tournament with 160 contestants. If my 1:00 am math serves me correctly, that's 7.5% of the fighters from our little gym. The Indiana Golden Gloves covers the whole state except for a couple of counties but does include a couple of counties from Kentucky, if I remember correctly. If seems rather odd that you can only find 160 people of the ages roughly 14 -34 who are dedicated and tough enough to try their hand at amateur boxing. This is something I'll probably be commenting on in the future. I need to think about this a little more.
It looks like we might have to scratch one of our fighters for the tourney. I took Robert to the emergency room Wednesday evening after he lost partial sight in one eye. It turns out that he broke a blood vessel while sparring. He was scheduled to see an ophthalmologist yesterday morning and I would imagine the doctor is going to tell him to lay off for a while. It's too bad, he won his division and was named Fighter of the Tournament for his division last year. You definitely don't want to take a chance with you eyesight, however. In a sport that is based on hitting people in the head, you definitely need to minimize the risks. He isn't scheduled to fight until the final night, however, so he may be able to compete.
Just a little item in the "food for thought" column: We have 12 fighters entered in a tournament with 160 contestants. If my 1:00 am math serves me correctly, that's 7.5% of the fighters from our little gym. The Indiana Golden Gloves covers the whole state except for a couple of counties but does include a couple of counties from Kentucky, if I remember correctly. If seems rather odd that you can only find 160 people of the ages roughly 14 -34 who are dedicated and tough enough to try their hand at amateur boxing. This is something I'll probably be commenting on in the future. I need to think about this a little more.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Golden Gloves Starts Thursday
The Indianapolis Golden Gloves starts this coming Thursday and runs for six consecutive Thursday nights. We have two fighters scheduled for opening night and a total of twelve fighters entered for the tournament. It's always a lot of fun and there's always a lot of good amateur boxing. Tickets are cheap, so if you're a boxing fan and are close to Indy, check out the Tyndall Armory. The DeMotte Boxing Club will probably have at least one fighter entered every night of the tournament.
Hope to see you there.
Hope to see you there.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Change of Days
Starting the 10th of March, we will be open on Wednesday evenings instead of Thursdays at our regular hours and will continue that way for the next six weeks due to the Golden Gloves. Twelve of our fighters will be competing in the tournament in Indianapolis. Next Thursday we have three fighters on the card: Anthony, "Bazooka" Joe and his brother Dan. Anthony and Joe have both fought previously and are both tough guys. Dan is a pure rookie but a "gamer". He has very little gym time and almost no sparring time. Indy has a sub novice class for fighters with five fights or less, so he shouldn't run up against anyone with a lot of experience. If he does, it'll be a quick night for him. Depending on the draw, Anthony and Joe both stand a real good chance of advancing to the next round. Regardless of the outcome, their opponents will know they've been in a fight.
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