So Far, So Good

The winter session has begun, and most of the kids who were showing up during the fall have disappeared.  I gave Princess' mom a new registration form to fill out.  However, I haven't seen hide nor hair of Princess since that time.  It could be due to the weather -- Chicago is currently in the midst of a deep freeze.  It could also be that Princess has convinced her parents that boxing is not her cup of tea.  Wishful thinking. . . .

Another kid, eight year old Li'l T, has shown the potential of being another version of Princess.  I haven't seen him since his mom signed him up, either.  I have four kids, two in the 12 and under class, and two in the 13 to 17 year old class.  Li'l T was being disruptive when they all were there (I allowed the teens to come in early due to the frigid weather).  Recently, only 11 year old Curly, his 14 year old brother Marine, and 15 year old Angel have been showing up with regularity.

I like the three that have been going to the class.  Angel is in the class because her dad wants her to know how to defend herself.  But unlike Princess, Angel actually wants to be in the gym.  She's developed a quick friendship with both Curly and Marine.  They all have their moments when they don't want to train, but it doesn't last long.  I walk around to check their form and to give suggestions and tips.  I also do a bit of a workout alongside them, something I wasn't able to do with the crowds that were there during the fall session.  I think it's a good idea for the students to see the coach exercising too, even if I can't move all the ways I used to be able to do.

Marine seemed interested in competing in the park district boxing shows that are coming up in about six months from now.  Angel and Curly aren't so sure.  All of them are too young for the Chicago Golden Gloves.  Looks like I won't have anyone competing in that this year.  Well, at least I renewed my boxing license so I can help out at that tournament if needed.

There was a peace in the gym that had not been there last session.  Partially that is because I have a small group of kids.  Only ten students are allowed now in both of the classes I have.  That is a blessing because that gives me a little more control in keeping order.  All I have to worry about is keeping out the kids who just want to hang out and get a freebie, but who don't want to sign up.  Also, I have a group of kids who are actually interested in the sport.  That helps out in a big way.

More Unforeseen Challenges

I had just come out of the field house.  The building closed early because of the New Year holiday.  One of the kids runs up to me and asked if the gym was open.  There have been signs all around the field house with the holiday closing schedule up for weeks.  Apparently, no one but the staff has paid attention to them.  A couple of teenage boys went past me to go into the building.  "They're turning the lights off and closing up," I told them.  "We wanted to see if the basketball gym was open," came the reply.  What does "closing up" mean?  I guess the teens' minds were so stuck on b-ball that they didn't get what I said.

What I don't get is why it appears that no one -- youths and parents alike -- don't keep up with the field house schedule.  The kid who asked me about the boxing gym had just got out of his mom's car.  She could have avoided wasting gas money by making a simple phone call.  I don't know. . . .I grew up in a household where my late mother was on top of everything.

Then it appears that a lot of the kids don't know how to tell time.  I don't get that, either, considering most of them are playing on their cell phones non-stop.  Cell phones do display the time on the opening screens.  Some of the kids strike me as being a little too old not to know how to tell time.  Is that not being taught in school anymore?  Are parents not pointing out the clock to the kids at home?

Now that ropes are finally up around the ring, the youths are coming to me with more questions about what they can do in the ring.  I sincerely wish they'd stop watching professional wrestling and mixed martial arts matches on television.  I know boxing is not shown on network TV anymore, but it is shown on HBO, Showtime, Versus, and ESPN.  Most of the kids have told me they have cable at home, so why don't they watch the boxing matches and study those moves?  I'm preparing for the first time they lose a Chicago Park District Boxing Show fight and come crying to me.  "Coach Hillari, they gave the trophy to the other person!" the kids will cry.  "Didn't I keep saying that spinning back fists, jumping off of the top rope, hitting people while they are down on the canvas, doing drop kicks, etc., were illegal moves?" I'll snap back.

Don't Fight Angry

This is a photo of the ring with ropes around it.  Next month, I hope to fill out the gym with extra equipment based on what will be available in the field house's budget.  The kids keep asking me about putting in another Cobra bag or two.  Since the kids kept treating the old one like a toy, I can't justify putting another in that will come up broken as well.

Thinking back on a sparring session between a pair of twins in the gym, I see that I have to double my efforts to communicate to the youths that fighting while angry is not cool.  In fact, that's not cool to do either in the ring, the cage, on the mat, or in a street fight.  Too many mistakes get made when emotion is behind the hits.  People lose fights, and a lot of times, become seriously hurt.  Having a cool head in order to think is a big advantage during any fight.

Unfortunately, a lot of the kids are used to schoolyard squabbles and sidewalk beat downs. In that neighborhood, few kids can take the stance of  "I'd rather talk it out than fight", "Fighting doesn't solve anything", "I'm too ladylike to slap someone", and other similar pacifistic statements. I grew up over there, so I understand.  Often, I hear some of them say they had to take on two or more people at one time. Most of my fights in grade school consisted of me against several attackers.  However, being calm and logical is the difference between getting away and being laid out on the ground.

Another Week, Another Fight

A couple of the kids spar as two other kids look on.

Had to break up yet another real fight this week.  Princess was at the center of it again.  I couldn't understand it. . . Princess had just sparred with the girl whom she was picking on.  The other girl got the best of the situation because Princess does next to no training when she's in the gym.  The other girl made fun of Princess for not throwing punches back.  Then Princess exacted revenge by insulting the girl.  The other girl, who is taller than Princess and not afraid to throw punches, got one lick in on Princess before I stepped in to stop it.

Princess gets on my nerves -- and those of the other kids -- most of the time.  But when she chooses to act right, she's not a bad kid.  She told me she no longer wanted to spar with the other girl.  Under the circumstances, it would not be a bad idea to keep those two apart for awhile.  But I ran punch mitts drills with Princess and told her she can't freeze up like that in the ring.

A new 14 year old girl came in, and as her mother described her, she is a bit on the shy side.  However, her punches aren't bad at all.  She was the only person in the teen class -- as all the other teens have disappeared for the moment -- so I got a chance to take my time and work with her.  I would have liked to move around more with her, but my left knee has really been painin' me, like my grandmother used to say.  My lower back has been acting up as well.  I've kept my knee taped up, and Mineral Ice slathered on my back, in-between soaking in hot baths.

The gym will be open earlier on Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas.  But hardly any kids showed up around Thanksgiving, and I'm expecting the same next week.  If that's the case, I'll have extra time to think and plan what I'm going to do during the winter session that begins in January.

"Hey Coach!"

One of the guys in the teens' class called out "Hey Coach!"  I think that was the first time any of the youths in the gym have referred to me in that way.  That particular guy wants to be in the Golden Gloves.  Unfortunately, he's got to wait awhile; the guy is only 13, and people have to be at least 16 years old to enter.  But hopefully, with hard work, we'll get there.

The teens (13 to 17 year olds) have been sparring since day one.  I had to make an adjustment in my lesson plans to accommodate their energy.  While they spar, I act as referee and give pointers.  Right now, that seems like an easier way to keep their focus as opposed to just having them line up and practice punches.

I wish the younger kids (8 to 12 year olds) had more focus than most of them do.  For example, there are a few kids there because their parents/guardians forced them to take up the sport.  It shows in how they barely listen to me, the constant distractions they keep up in the gym, and the near-zero interest they have in wanting to learn.  Some kids are just hanging in there because their friends are there.  One 12 year old girl announced to her buddies that she didn't want to learn how to box because she didn't want anyone thinking that she was a man.  I was surprised when she returned to the gym on another day, but she clearly doesn't have much interest in boxing.  She didn't sign up, and I'm going to start clearing out everyone who hasn't.  I'm open to letting youths come in to try it out, but using the gym for a hangout spot every day?:  No, I don't think so.  Especially when I've got a few participants in there who are a little more serious.  I don't need the others who are not signed up in there creating distractions.  There are other activities in the field house they could participate in.

During the teens' class, the boys were doing some fast circuit training, running from bag to bag, and flipping over the lone tire in the gym.  One of them asked me to do it, after another of the boys had stopped in the middle, complaining about being tired.  After I went through it a couple of times, the other boys told the boy who stopped, "She did that better than you!"  Of course, my left knee paid for that later, but I was surprised I could still sprint.

I passed out fliers again at Young, an elementary school not far from the field house.  A lot more enthusiasm was displayed by both the girls and boys for the boxing class than it was among those I passed out flyers to at Lewis.  I still have to go to Hay, another nearby school, to pass out flyers. DePriest, the grade school I attended from the early to mid 1970's, is on my list, too.  It's in the area, but not very close to LaFollette.  I'm still debating whether it would be worth it to pass flyers there.

Today, while visiting one of the churches I've been checking out, I ran into Michael, who's Montrell's brother.  Montrell was the star of Loyola Park's youth boxing program.  Montrell recently competed in a USA Boxing tournament, but Michael hadn't heard if he had won or not.  "You're still competing?" he asked me.  "I would like to, but between my insurance job and the coaching job, I don't have much room to train for fights," I replied.  It got me to thinking -- maybe there could be an "old timers" boxing match for charity.  I need to start thinking about fundraising for the gym anyway.  That could be an idea.

Selling Boxing To The Girls

I found another Cobra bag at the field house.  The base is filled with water.  I pushed it out of the storage room where it was located into the gym area.  Only three youths showed up, and they had fun knocking the bag around.

Yesterday, I received the boxing fliers, so I hurried over to Lewis, the closest grade school to LaFollette Park, to hand them out.  Most of the boys were happy to get the fliers.  A few of them showed up in the gym not long after they got a flier.  The girls were a different story.  One girl's eyes widened in terror.  "Oh, no!  I don't want to box!" she said, as she rushed away.  Another girl said smugly, "I already know how to fight."  "Not in the ring you don't," I told her.

I never liked fighting with girls when I was in grade and high school.  Most every girl fought the same -- wild windmill and round house punches.  Then came the scratching and hair pulling.  I remember some girls taking off their shoes and hitting people with those.  I didn't know how to box back then, but I would wait for an opening then, boom, try to knock them to the ground.  I cut one girl's chin open with my fist back in third grade.  We're currently friends on Facebook.  I don't know if she remembers the fight.  After all, that was 44 years ago.

Looks like I'm going to have a boxing program that is filled predominately with males.  Currently, there are two girls in the 12 and under class, but I wish there were more.  It's tough to get the girls interested.  But I know this -- the females who are involved in boxing and stick with it have an edge to them.  A lot of them are tomboys.  Unfortunately, boxing is a tough sell to "girly" girls and women.  Nothing wrong with being very feminine.  However, it seems that the females who are very feminine don't last long in the gym, if they sign up.

I guess the best way to convince the girls to come in is to talk up the health benefits of the sport while assuring them that they do not have to spar if they don't want to spar.

The Twins and the Football Team

I was hopping at the gym.  Three moms came in to sign up their kids for boxing.  I'm particularly looking forward to coaching three of the kids, two six year old boys and their eight year old sister.  The two boys were very animated, while their sister, the voice of reason, smiled, looked at them and shook her head.  I felt like I was in a comedy show with the two boys, who were proud to show me their various scars.  After they all left, I looked at the sign up form and wondered why their mother listed both of her sons as having the same birthday.  Then it dawned on me that the boys were twins.  But I could tell them apart.  That will be helpful when they come in next week.

The teenagers returned, but not the 15 year old girl who was in the other day.  It was all boys, and all they wanted to do was spar, so I let them.  But at the same time, the football coach brought his team in for conditioning exercises.  It was quite a juggling act, keeping an eye on the teens while giving exercises to the team.  I ran out of exercises after awhile, so I taught them the punches.

Looks like the word has gotten out, and now, I'm getting a rush of kids and teens in.  I still don't have the boxing fliers, but Steve, the supervisor, promised he would pick them up for me tomorrow.  I have to alert the parents that the current times are only for the fall and winter sessions.  By spring, an adult session will probably be added.  Unfortunately, the younger kids time will have to be cut by at least a half-hour when that happens.  But the more I work with those under age 12, the more I realize that an hour is really all they need.

The teens will need the hour and a half, especially since most of them have expressed an interest in getting matches.  A couple of the teens who came in will be 16 years old before the end of the year.  I told them it was a little late to try to get a fight at the park district tournaments, which are happening now.  But then can set their sites on next year's Chicago Golden Gloves.  However, they have to start training for it now.

The adults, even though most of them probably will not compete, are going to need to have an hour and a half.  They are going to want to feel that they've received enough time for whatever fee they will have to pay.

Here Come The Teenagers

In this photo that was taken back in 2008, Barry (in the blue shirt) works with Edward in the ring at Loyola Park.

I think one of the little girls in the boxing class is gone.  Her mother no longer works at the field house, having found another job.  The other girl, an eight year old, showed up, but the two boys, aged eight and ten, did not.  Near the end of the kids' class, three 15 year olds, two boys and a girl, walked into the gym.  They wanted to spar despite not being signed up for the class.  I was glad to see some teenagers, so I obliged them.

Turns out that the teenage girl knew more than the teenage boys.  She knew all of the punches, and while sparring light with one of the boys, she caught him several times.  "I used to take boxing at my school, and I also took boxing at a school I used to go to in Milwaukee," she explained.  I sure hope she comes back to the gym.

The boys then lightly sparred with each other, and quickly found out that boxing is not as easy as it looks.  The eight year old girl kept trying to tell the older boys what to do.  I acted as referee, but the little girl was also in the ring.  Finally, I had to tell her she couldn't be in the ring while others were sparring.  After the boys got tired out, the little girl asked me if she could spar with one of the teenage boys.  "Oh, no," I said, explaining to her that she has to spar with kids her own age.

Alan called me last night.  I took the opportunity to ask him how to keep kids under age 12 focused while they are in the gym.  "Keep them busy with exercises and drills," he said.  I've got to constantly be on the lookout for activities to keep the younger kids interested, especially since I don't have all the equipment I need.  It would also help to have more younger kids in the class.  The boxing fliers are coming soon, so hopefully, that class will become full.

Yay! The Boys Came In

For the past few weeks, I've only had two girls who show up to the eight to twelve year old boxing class on a fairly regular basis.  The girls have a slight interest in boxing, and it's been tough to keep them focused.  "If only I had some boys in here who would show a little more interest than the girls," I kept thinking to myself.

Two answers to my prayers happened.  Earlier this week, I learned that the fliers for the boxing class are finally done.  I received a copy of what they will look like.  The should be in my hands next week so I can distribute them to the schools.  Then two boys, aged ten and aged eight, walked into the gym.

I had been a little tired all afternoon.  I was nodding off on the bus on the way to LaFollette Park.  When no kids had showed up at all, I figured it was going to be a slow time.  I was sitting alone in the gym, ready to nod off again.  Then the two boys came in with their mom, and I perked up immediately.  The boys were in the middle of learning the punches, when one of the girls ran in late.

She has been the only kid in the gym for awhile, and she had become used to doing what she wanted to do, most of which has nothing to do with boxing.  I just rode it out because eventually I knew other kids would show up.  In fact, I had told the girl that more kids were on the way.  The two boys were very interested in learning the basics, while the girl jumped from one thing to another.  Then, after only having been in the gym for about ten minutes, the girl left to go to cheer leading practice.

I went through all the six main punches with the boys, including some pad work.  I also showed them footwork.  We went kind of quickly, but the next time they come in, we will review the punches again.  I also want to start them on learning combinations in the next class. Their mother was concerned about them sparring.  I promised her that would be a few weeks off, and only if her sons wanted to do it.  No sense in me putting kids in the ring too early.

Reunion at Loyola Park

I helped out at Loyola Park's annual boxing show.  I had been in the "war room" during previous shows before, but it was different being there as a coach.  I walked in the room, and Tommy introduced me as the new coach at LaFollette.  There were surprised looks all around with the exception of Alan, Barry, and Bill, who said, "I knew you would make it."

Kitchens, who I hadn't seen in a long time, was there, along with Sean.  Kitchens was on a cane.  "I just do the Park District shows now.  I don't go to the Golden Gloves or the pro shows anymore.  I don't take pictures at the shows, either," he told me.  He and Sean have known each other for over 50 years.  I told Kitchens I saw a photo of him when he had won a championship back in the early 1960's.  The photo was in a book that Sean wrote about Chicago boxing.

The coaches on hand were Pat, who is at Brooks Park; Sims, who is at Bessemer; Tommy, who is not only the head of the boxing program for the parks, but also coaches at Portage Park; Ernie, who is the coach at Fuller; and Johnny, who helps Bill out at Hamlin.  I learned from them that Clarendon Park, where Alan used to coach at was once the jewel of the Park District boxing program.

This is a photo of a couple of Barry's boys before the show started.  The boy in the back near the ring is Gus.  I didn't recognize him at first.  Gus has got to be about seventeen years old now, and Gus has muscle.

Gene, who is Anthony's dad, was there.  Haven't seen Anthony in a long, long time.  I think he's training at another park.

Meg was there, and I'm so sorry that she and Geniece did not get to fight.  Alan was disappointed as well.  They were ready to go, but Bill was concerned about the weight difference between the two women.  There was talk of them perhaps doing an exhibition match, but that idea was nixed, too.  I have no doubt their fight would have been the highlight of the evening.  Hopefully, there will be a next time.

Meg wants to really advocate the idea of more girls in boxing, and so do I.  We talked about maybe having a girls' boxing day at some point, perhaps at LaFollette.  As soon as I get an idea of how many youths I will have, I would love to help make that happen.  I still don't have any youths yet, even though the fall session has started.  Bill gave me some encouragement.  "When I started at Hamlin, I spent three months there drinking coffee in the kitchen because I had no fighters.  But don't worry, the kids will eventually show up," he said.  Adrian, who was the DJ at the boxing show, told me it will take some time to build up the program as well.  I'm ready to work with the kids, so I will continue to do more promoting to get them in the gym.

Collette, who is part of the famous O'Shea family of boxing, was at the show.  She was very pleased to hear that I was a coach.  "We've got to make some strides," she said.  She is willing to send some kids over my way as she comes across them.

Tommy (in the red shirt) talks with Ernie in this photo.  Tommy was busy weighing boxers in and making the matches.  During the show, Tommy had to be in the corner with his fighters, so I was the timekeeper.  That was the first time I had done that; I'm always happy to pick up a new skill.

Pat sits in the background, Johnny stands behind Bill, and Bill talks to Ben, one of Hamlin's fighters.  Ben won his match.

I had to keep my eye on the stopwatch, so I didn't catch very many details of each fight.  John fought with Gus in an exhibition match.  Gus didn't seem to be throwing heavy punches, from what I could tell.

Justin fought with a guy who came out of the corner throwing wild punches.  Justin kept getting smothered, and lost the match.

Barry warmed up Jeremiah before his fight.  Jeremiah won a clear victory.

This was the fight announcer, who was cool on the mic.  He mentioned JJ's upcoming fight in Brooklyn, New York.  The announcer said JJ was an alumni of Loyola Park.

Keith, Alan, and John have a conversation after the show.  John invited Keith and I over to his and his wife Jinn's apartment afterwards.  "We miss you at the gym, Hillari.  It's not the same without you there," he told me.  It's nice to be missed.  I miss all of them, too.  When the program is up and running, John, Keith, Colonel (who was at the show videotaping the matches), want to come up to LaFollette and check it out.

Coaching This Week

There are posters in the gym that were up on the walls long before I was hired as a coach.  However, I needed to add some more pictures to the available bulletin boards.  I used to keep my old copies of The Ring magazine, but one of the last times I did a cleaning purge, I threw most of them out.  A few of the ones I kept as collectors' items I did not cut up.  But I did cut up the most recent copies I had for the gym's bulletin boards.  The Ring does feature stories about female fighters these days, but I was a bit miffed that I didn't have enough photos of female fighters to post.  One of my goals is to attract a number of girls to take up boxing.  It would be nice if they could see plenty of pictures of other women in the sport.  I still have to look among my stuff to see if I have any more boxing pictures.

I found out that I have to turn in a lesson plan.  I've been working on that for the last month.  The goal is to get across that conditioning is just as important as knowing how to throw punches.  I want to cut down on the "all I have to do is spar" thinking that I've witnessed out of people in other gyms.  In fact, I'm only allowing sparring to happen once a week, and that aspect of the training will not begin until next month.

I have a handout for parents which is on the staff computer at the field house.  It explains what amateur boxing is and what it isn't.  Most of the parents who have expressed a desire for their kids to be in the class are okay with their kids being in the sport.  The handout is more for parents who may uneasy with their kids wanting to box.

There's still not much equipment on hand for the kids who will start in the gym this week; more will come in eventually.  Luckily, boxing is not one of those sports that require a lot of equipment to get started.  There will be a big emphasis on shadow boxing and floor exercises for awhile.

I keep thinking about how I want the kids to address me.  "Coach" or my first name (or a combination) will be fine.  But I rather not be known as "Miss Hillari".  Makes me sound like some old schoolmarm in the Old West. I didn't mind when kids at the church where I used to attend called me that, but it doesn't sound right for the gym.

Speaking of church, I did try out a new one today.  If you've been following this blog for awhile, you know some of the difficulties I had at the church where I used to be a member (and from what I keep hearing, not much has changed).  It's been a little over a year since I attended regular services.  Afterwards, I had coffee with other newcomers to the church, a church member, and the pastor and his wife.  People were asked what they did for a living.  Everyone went wide-eyed when I told them I coach boxing.  "We would have never guessed that!" people said.

Planning Day

The photo above is of LaFollette Park's boxing gym.  There are pieces of the ring in a nearby storage room.  The two bulletin boards in the gym aren't visible in this shot, but I worked on them today.  I took down the old paper and pictures.  I'll copy some material out of the boxing books and magazines I have at home to decorate the bulletin boards.

These are speakers; the sound system is behind them in the boxing gym's storage room.  I suspect I'll be listening to the usual hip-hop stations when the gym is open, just like when I was at Loyola Park.  There were CDs around, but I didn't look at them too closely.

This is the boxing gym storage area.

These are hand weights in the storage area.

There's a small refrigerator in the storage area.  A couple of containers of water are inside, along with three jars of petroleum jelly.  I'm glad there's a 'fridge; I can store snacks there plus extra water bottles.

This is the football field in the back of the field house, which also doubles as a soccer field.  I met James, who is the youth football coach.  He told me that his players who also did boxing workouts in the past were in great shape.  James proposed having the football players coming in to train in the boxing gym in order to improve their game.  Sounds like a good plan to me.

I wrote out my own plan for when the fall session begins in September.  It's similar to a poster hanging in Loyola Park that has a workout plan on it.  Right now, sparring will be twice a week, but it won't begin until the third or fourth week, depending on the experience, skill, and readiness of the participants.