Classic American West Coast Boxing

[Randyman]

Years ago, I worked in construction as a laborer.
I worked on many crews with mexicans. Man those guys were bulls. Could go all day. I hung with them though.
I made alot of friends and we really got along great.
But one thing that those guys could do that I couldnt was, eat spicy mexican food at 6am!
For me , I would be munchin on a roll or something and these guys would be shoveling it in.
Good times though.

I'm a shoveler myself Brian, or rather I used to be. I try to be more aware of the way that I eat, or at least the amount. But I love hot chilies and salsas. Nothing goes better with eggs in the morning with some tortillas. It's in my blood.

Randy DD

[Randyman]

Hard tacos, rice and beans


Taco salad

Good stuff! Maybe we should rename the thread "Classic American West Coast Boxing and Mexican Food". It works for me.

Randy

[Randyman]

A Hap Navarro time capsule. Frank, you always come up with some pretty amazing stuff.

Randy

[Expug]

A good story involving one of the friends I made in construction.
This guys name is Jesse. Hes been in Chicago maybe twenty years.From Mexico, a family man . Good guy.
Before he started in construction, he worked at Hertz or Avis, the car rental joint.
One day, Kevin Garnett comes in right after he made it to the NBA. He rents a car but leaves his liscence there by accident.
Jesse holds onto it for him ...for years.
Fast forward to 2008 and Im working Bulls security and they are playing The Boston Celtics.
Kevin Garnett is the star.Jesse knows I work down with the team and after the game he gives me a call on my cell phone.
Hes at the game and wants to know if its possible for him to come down to the Celtics locker room and personaly give Kevin Garnett back his drivers liscence. I hadnt seen Jesse in years but I liked the guy and the request was pure balls.I had to make it happen.
I brought him down after the game and set it up with The Celtics.
Into the locker room he went and handed Kevin Garnett back his liscence.
Pictures were taken there were high fives all around and the team was real cool about it.Including Garnett who signed an autograph for him and posed for a picture with him.
Man, you should have seen this little laborer with The Celtics in there locker room. He was on cloud nine. After about ten minutes he floated out of there. He was speechless.

[Randyman]

A good story involving one of the friends I made in construction.
This guys name is Jesse. Hes been in Chicago maybe twenty years.From Mexico, a family man . Good guy.
Before he started in construction, he worked at Hertz or Avis, the car rental joint.
One day, Kevin Garnett comes in right after he made it to the NBA. He rents a car but leaves his liscence there by accident.
Jesse holds onto it for him ...for years.
Fast forward to 2008 and Im working Bulls security and they are playing The Boston Celtics.
Kevin Garnett is the star.Jesse knows I work down with the team and after the game he gives me a call on my cell phone.
Hes at the game and wants to know if its possible for him to come down to the Celtics locker room and personaly give Kevin Garnett back his drivers liscence. I hadnt seen Jesse in years but I liked the guy and the request was pure balls.I had to make it happen.
I brought him down after the game and set it up with The Celtics.
Into the locker room he went and handed Kevin Garnett back his liscence.
Pictures were taken there were high fives all around and the team was real cool about it.Including Garnett who signed an autograph for him and posed for a picture with him.
Man, you should have seen this little laborer with The Celtics in there locker room. He was on cloud nine. After about ten minutes he floated out of there. He was speechless.

Brian, Kudos to Garnett and the rest of the Celtics for giving this guy his Kodak moment. That's class! I'll bet Jesse will never forget that moment. maybe made a big shot of him as far as his family is concerned. Great story!

Randy

[Rick Farris]

A good story involving one of the friends I made in construction.
This guys name is Jesse. Hes been in Chicago maybe twenty years.From Mexico, a family man . Good guy.
Before he started in construction, he worked at Hertz or Avis, the car rental joint.
One day, Kevin Garnett comes in right after he made it to the NBA. He rents a car but leaves his liscence there by accident.
Jesse holds onto it for him ...for years.
Fast forward to 2008 and Im working Bulls security and they are playing The Boston Celtics.
Kevin Garnett is the star.Jesse knows I work down with the team and after the game he gives me a call on my cell phone.
Hes at the game and wants to know if its possible for him to come down to the Celtics locker room and personaly give Kevin Garnett back his drivers liscence. I hadnt seen Jesse in years but I liked the guy and the request was pure balls.I had to make it happen.
I brought him down after the game and set it up with The Celtics.
Into the locker room he went and handed Kevin Garnett back his liscence.
Pictures were taken there were high fives all around and the team was real cool about it.Including Garnett who signed an autograph for him and posed for a picture with him.
Man, you should have seen this little laborer with The Celtics in there locker room. He was on cloud nine. After about ten minutes he floated out of there. He was speechless.

Brian . . . I love that story. He'll never forget that moment, and Garnett will probably remember it too.

-Rick

[bennie]

2008 WBHOF Presidents Dinner
Carlos Ortiz, John Bardelli and Cleo Klizer.

In background, Gil King whispers in Dan Hanley's ear . . .
"They robbed me of everything, can you believe that?"

I don't know how Dan answered Gil, but I'd have to say . . . "Yeah."

[bennie]

Hard tacos, rice and beans


Taco salad

Good stuff! Maybe we should rename the thread "Classic American West Coast Boxing and Mexican Food". It works for me.

Randy

Cheers, Frankie.

[bennie]

Can anyone recommend a Mexican dish that wouldn't microwave me?

As a non-Chicano (and, thus, one who cannot handle really spicy food), I would recommend that you start out with something basic. Enchiladas and tamales as the main dish, with rice and refried beans on the side. Maybe some tortillas with guacamole dip. I like iced tea (non-sweetened) as my drink to go with the meal.

However, I doubt what you'll be eating is really Mexican food. In my experience, the only place to get real Mexican food is Mexico (obviously), California, New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado. The stuff I've tried to eat in Las Vegas tasted like the same crap they pass off as Mexican food in St. Louis and Chicago.

N.B.: I didn't see Frank's message when I wrote this. Get anything Frank recommends - he's the real expert. Hard tacos are great!!

Thank you, too, Ray.

[bennie]

A few pics of my old boarding school, including some of the grounds and the lodge at the end of the drive. It looks posh and it was certainly great to roam the grounds but in reality it wasn't a public school (like Eton) but a school for kids whose fathers were servicemen and were always being posted abroad (my dad was just a Corporal in the RAF).
I tell you, there were some pretty good fights on those lawns.

[bennie]

Police officials in Brazil are prepared to charge Amanda Rodrigues, the wife of Arturo Gatti, with premeditated murder. Early Saturday morning, Gatti was found dead by his wife in their room at the seaside resort of Porto de Galihnas in Brazil. Brazilian police officials became suspicious after there were numerous inconsistencies in her testimony. The couple was on a second honeymoon and planned to stay in the country for a month.

According to Rodrigues, she woke up on the morning of July 11 and claimed to have found Gatti with damage to the back of his head and strangle marks on his neck.

When police arrived on the scene, a bloody purse strap was discovered in the room. As BS.com reported on Saturday, officials believe that Gatti was strangled to death with the purse strap. Police officials held a press conference with Brazilian media and they believe the wife strangled Gatti to death when he passed out from being drunk.

Based on the information pieced together by police, the couple went to dinner on Friday night. They later went to bar and left on foot. Witnesses told police that the couple had an argument on the street after leaving the bar and Gatti pushed his wife to the ground. It was said that she suffered minor injuries to her chin and left elbow. Gatti, with their one-year-old, caught a taxi back to their room. The wife returned later on. Gatti was drunk as the couple had been drinking beer and wine for most of the night.

Police believe that Gatti was passed out from being drunk and his wife stabbed him to the back of the head with a kitchen knife, although the wound was not significant enough to kill him. He was then strangled to death with the purse strap while he was laying down.

The wife is being held by police. She has not confessed to the crime and tried to blame a third party for the murder. Police say the possibility of a third party gaining access to the room is nearly impossible.

“It is humanly impossible, because access to the room is done only with a magnetic card. The apartment is on the second floor, and only has one window, and it would be necessary to climb in order to come in," said one police official who is familiar with the investigation.

Police expect to have expert reports ready in about two weeks. Gatti’s relatives have arrived in the country to claim his body.

From BS.com

[kikibalt]

A few pics of my old boarding school, including some of the grounds and the lodge at the end of the drive. It looks posh and it was certainly great to roam the grounds but in reality it wasn't a public school (like Eton) but a school for kids whose fathers were servicemen and were always being posted abroad (my dad was just a Corporal in the RAF).
I tell you, there were some pretty good fights on those lawns.

Bennie, that looks more like a country club, then a school.... 8)

[bennie]

A few pics of my old boarding school, including some of the grounds and the lodge at the end of the drive. It looks posh and it was certainly great to roam the grounds but in reality it wasn't a public school (like Eton) but a school for kids whose fathers were servicemen and were always being posted abroad (my dad was just a Corporal in the RAF).
I tell you, there were some pretty good fights on those lawns.

Bennie, that looks more like a country club, then a school.... 8)

Aye, it is nice - in the summer. On those dark winter nights it is plain scary.

[kikibalt]

Arturo Gatti’s wife
By Edgar Gonzalez



Photo of Amanda Rodrigues, the 23-year-old wife of murdered boxer Arturo Gatti, being escorted by police
BY Harold Emert In Rio De Janeiro and Samuel Goldsmith In New York DAILY NEWS WRITERS

Boxing legend Arturo Gatti’s sexy stripper-wife choked the life out of him with her purse strap while he slept in a swanky Brazilian resort, cops charged Sunday.

Amanda Carine Barbosa Rodrigues, a 23-year-old former exotic dancer, looked unfazed as cops escorted her out of a police station in Recife, Brazil.

The stunner’s eyes were hidden by giant designer sunglasses as she walked to a police cruiser in low-rise blue jeans and a clingy white top that showed off the toned physique that first caught Gatti’s eye.

The busty bombshell’s purse was found stained with blood in their rented apartment at the luxurious Dorisol Resort in the turquoise-water paradise town of Porto de Galinhas.

“She is the only suspect,” a police spokesman said.

The couple – who had met while she danced at a club in Brazil – were vacationing there to celebrate a second honeymoon after rekindling their relationship following a brief breakup, friends said.

Carl Moretti, who promoted many of Gatti’s fights, said he always worried the 37-year-old former Jersey City star spent too much time in strip clubs picking up the wrong women.

“Among friends who knew him, no one felt that this was a good relationship,” Moretti said. “The relationship was not based on love. It could get violent at times.”

Moretti said he had heard through Gatti’s manager, Pat Lynch, that Rodrigues threw a lamp at Gatti on a recent trip to Montreal.

“They were always fighting,” he said. “It never stopped. But clearly, you didn’t think that it would lead to this.”

Authorities detained the tight-bodied beauty early yesterday because of contradictions in her story when she was first questioned. Police called her version of what had happened “inconsistent and incoherent.”

Rodrigues could not explain how she had spent nearly 10hours in the room without noticing that Gatti was dead, authorities said.

The couple went to a bar Friday night and began to argue, witnesses said. Rodrigues told cops Gatti got drunk, hit her and pushed her to the floor.

Witnesses said the two were still fighting when they returned from the bar early Saturday morning.

Rodrigues was being examined at the Medical Legal Institute near their vacation spot and will spend the night in prison.

Gatti, who won 40 of his 49 professional fights, including 31 by knockout, was raised in Montreal but became a star in Atlantic City, where he won his first title. He moved to New Jersey in 1991 and delighted crowds there until his retirement in 2007.

Nicknamed Thunder, he won world championships in two different weight classes, 130 pounds and 140pounds.

“She murdered her husband and left her child an orphan,” said Lou DiBella, a former executive at HBO who put together several of Gatti’s more memorable fights.

“Now she’s going to spend the rest of her life in prison. This is just too much a tragedy.”

Photo by Clemilson Campos/JC Imagem/PAGOS

[Rick Farris]

Another Boxing death . . .

With the deaths of Alexis Arguello and Arturo Gatti getting most of the attention, many didn't notice that boxing lost a former heavyweight contender last week.
Cesar Brion, an Argentine heavyweight that fought Joe Louis, Ezzard Charles, and other top heavies of the era passed away on July 9th.
I have a video of Brion's ten round fight with the great "Brown Bomber".


Brion was trained by Charlie Goldman, and was a stablemate of Rocky Marciano.
Brion died of natural causes. He was 84


-Rick Farris

[kikibalt]

Exclusive: The One That Got Away
By Edgar Gonzalez

Arturo Gatti’s ex speaks out to MyBoxingFans.com
With the shocking news of former boxing champion Arturo Gatti being killed in an apartment he rented with his 23-year-old Braziling wife Amanda Rodriguez in Porto de Galinhas, a seaside resort in northeastern Pernambuco state. I think it’s more shocking to know his wife strangled him with her purse strap while he drunkenly slept.

Personally, I’m a huge fan of the Italian Thunder and like many of you, I only know little about their personal life and though I never wish death upon anyone, we can’t point fingers and start choosing sides without knowing what forced Amanda to react with such violence.

MyBoxingFans spoke to Erika Rivera who was previously engaged to Arturo Gatti. Ms. Rivera is currently raising Gatti’s 3 year old daughter and working for the US Army as a Chemical Engineer.

MBF: what exactly do you do as a Chemical Engineer?

Erika: I work for the ARMY. I love my job. I make explosives for a living and witness a lot of the testing of munitions. It’s great. I could not have asked for a more exciting and challenging job.

MBF: you have a beautiful daughter Sofia with the former champion. What can you tell us about the relationship Sofia had with her father?

Erika: These are all of the pics from her first birthday. I don’t have the pictures from the hospital here at work. However, he is not involved in her life. He was upset Sofia was a girl. He was permitted to see his daughter whenever he wants. He had chosen not to. I took him to court after the baby was 6 months old when he refused to help me out. He was not seeing her nor paying child support. He threatened to take her to Canada and that I would never see her again. I took him to court and he was forced to pay. Our engagement was broken off when our daughter was a couple of weeks old.

It would be nice if I could say that he was a good father, but I can’t. A child needs more than just expensive clothes. Fortunately, his brother Joe and wife Vikki have been in Sofia’s life and my family is very supportive. They have two little girls so Sofia has her first cousins around for her that are close in age.

MBF: Your relationship with Gatti wasn’t perfect, but how shocking were you to hear about his death and how would this impact your life?

Erika: My daughter has not seen her father since his involvement with Amanda. Sofia made a card for her Papa for Father’s Day and I mailed it for her. She spoke to him on his birthday and on March 31 on her birthday he called her and said he was planning a trip to come visit his daughter. He always wanted a little boy. My daughter doesn’t have a father now. Nobody’s life should be taken from them. I will not tell my baby girl that her daddy was killed. I still have not told her he died. I am trying to explain to her that we become angels when something bad happens, or when we become old, or really sick to prepare for when I tell her that her Papa is in heaven with the angels.

Her Uncle Joe Gatti, wife Vikki and children Versace and Gianni, have been very supportive the last three years and have been filling the void for Sofia’s other side of the family. The girls play like sisters and Joe has been a positive influence for Sofia and will continue to be now that her daddy has passed away. He tells Sofia great stories about how great her daddy was as a child and a brother growing up.

MBF: Did you ever meet Amanda? If so what was your opinion of her? Also The New York Daily news recently released a statement from Carl Moretti, who promoted many of Gatti’s fights, where he states that he always worried about Gatti because he spent too much time in strip clubs picking up the wrong women. Was he ever like that when he was with you?

Erika: I went to dinner with her. She told me she never did drugs and didn’t drink alcohol. I proceeded to order a Margarita and she ordered the same. She told me she worked at a clothing store called Bebe in the mall and that Arturo took her virginity. He loved strip clubs and gogo bars, but most men do. He liked women. He was a very paranoid, jealous person, but she seemed to be the same way. You just have to walk away from a situation like that. He had a heart. It wouldn’t have mattered to me what her job was. It only mattered to me whether or not she was a good person to be responsible to take care of Sofia when in her father’s care. I heard from his friends that she seemed to make sure that he did not see his daughter if he wanted to be with his son.

MBF: why did you guys break up?

Erika: I left because he was too paranoid and was always falsely accusing me of infidelity. He was punchy from being hit in the head and we all felt bad for him because he was depressed and confused all the time. He did not deserve to be killed. I left because we couldn’t get along. It’s hard to come to agreement with someone who can’t agree with himself.

MBF: How would you remember Arturo Gatti?

Erika: I will remember Arturo as being funny and cracking jokes all the time calling Sofia his “little stinky butt” and “his little monkey.” I will remember him loving to dance and dancing with me asking me to teach him salsa and he’d flip me over his head and we’d fall on the floor laughing. I will remember him wanting to be a father more than anything in the world because he lost his father when he was young. I will remember the good times.

MBF: Erika Thank you so much for your time.

[kikibalt]

Ex-wife charge jails Art Aragon for assault

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/files/1 ... _cover.jpg
Mirrror-News...Monday, July 13, 1959

[Rick Farris]

Brazil . . .

I have no idea what happened to Arturo Gatti in Brazil.
They say his young Brazillian wife killed him?

It was said to be a jealous relationship.
He was a fighter, and often fighters do what they wish.
He didn't like the way she dressed in Brazil. She had been a stripper, but not on his shift.
They say he pushed her to the ground, he was drunk.

I ask my Brazilian wife what she thinks.
"I think she killed him, no doubt. In Brazil, women sometimes kill other women over a man."
Women outnumber men 10-to-1. When it comes to men, Brazilian women are very passionate in their actions.

She went on to say that her sister married a man whose brother was killed by his jealous wife.
She found he was cheating, so she prepared his favorite desert (seasoned with powdered glass).
She secretly slips him a "Good Night Cinderella" (a date rape drug) and then serves him some cake.
A day later, the "other woman" left the state. "She knew she'd be next," I'm told.

Monica says it's more common than people realize. Brazil would never advertise this.
"They don't give out such statistics" she says, "But Brazilian women are crazy." (I can validate that)

As she's talking to me, it occurs to me that I close my eyes every single night right next to a Brazilian woman.
Like Gatti, I kinda do what I wish. I never disrespect my wife, but I walk my own path.
Don't get me wrong, we aren't having any problems, but my eyes keep drifting over to that new purse sitting nearby her.
Pretty husky shoulder strap . I also spot a hammer, one she uses to re-condition antique furniture
Maybe I'll take it back to the garage? Out of site, out of mind ;;-) .

We'll be in Brazil early next year, after Carnival, as their summer ends.
We'll be on the north-east coast, in Salvador, the Capitol of Bahia which is Monica's home state.
She will return after twenty years, this time an American Citizen. Her passport will be blue, not green as in the past.
She's very proud of this, she is a good citizen.

At 46, Monica is twice the age of Amanda Rodrigues. At 23, Monica left Brazil for Europe, the United States and a new life.
At 23, what does Amanda Rodrigues have to look forward to between now and her forty-sixth birthday?

How quickly a person's life can change. Just one quick decision, the wrong one. Or was it?
Hell, we don't really know whether she did it? However, that's what we are being told (or sold) so I'll just go with it until more is revealed.


-Rick Farris

[bennie]

Brazil . . .

I have no idea what happened to Arturo Gatti in Brazil.
They say his young Brazillian wife killed him?

It was said to be a jealous relationship.
He was a fighter, and often fighters do what they wish.
He didn't like the way she dressed in Brazil. She had been a stripper, but not on his shift.
They say he pushed her to the ground, he was drunk.

I ask my Brazilian wife what she thinks.
"I think she killed him, no doubt. In Brazil, women sometimes kill other women over a man."
Women outnumber men 10-to-1. When it comes to men, Brazilian women are very passionate in their actions.

She went on to say that her sister married a man whose brother was killed by his jealous wife.
She found he was cheating, so she prepared his favorite desert (seasoned with powdered glass).
She secretly slips him a "Good Night Cinderella" (a date rape drug) and then serves him some cake.
A day later, the "other woman" left the state. "She knew she'd be next," I'm told.

Monica says it's more common than people realize. Brazil would never advertise this.
"They don't give out such statistics" she says, "But Brazilian women are crazy." (I can validate that)

As she's talking to me, it occurs to me that I close my eyes every single night right next to a Brazilian woman.
Like Gatti, I kinda do what I wish. I never disrespect my wife, but I walk my own path.
Don't get me wrong, we aren't having any problems, but my eyes keep drifting over to that new purse sitting nearby her.
Pretty husky shoulder strap . I also spot a hammer, one she uses to re-condition antique furniture
Maybe I'll take it back to the garage? Out of site, out of mind ;;-) .

We'll be in Brazil early next year, after Carnival, as their summer ends.
We'll be on the north-east coast, in Salvador, the Capitol of Bahia which is Monica's home state.
She will return after twenty years, this time an American Citizen. Her passport will be blue, not green as in the past.
She's very proud of this, she is a good citizen.

At 46, Monica is twice the age of Amanda Rodrigues. At 23, Monica left Brazil for Europe, the United States and a new life.
At 23, what does Amanda Rodrigues have to look forward to between now and her forty-sixth birthday?

How quickly a person's life can change. Just one quick decision, the wrong one. Or was it?
Hell, we don't really know whether she did it? However, that's what we are being told (or sold) so I'll just go with it until more is revealed.


-Rick Farris

I believe they were both drunk but this crime is horrible. Gatti was a little too old (in my opinion) to be marrying a 23-year-old; nevertheless, he was no Davey Hilton and (obviously) did not deserve to die.

[telboy66]

You be a good boy now Rick do exactly as she tells you, in the meantime I'll keep checking the obituary columms

[dagosd2000]

BACK HOME

Sitting in the airport in Philly waiting for the flight back to San Diego I'm watching CNN News on the plasma screen. War,murders,Michael Jackson... i was thinking of turning around. But here is my job,my sisters,and the condo.

I remember when I was a little kid and my folks took me to Tijuana. Something about the country that I felt a connection with. Same with Spain. You either fit in or you don't. I've always been at ease in a Latin world.The food,living in the moment,not a lot of neurotic control freaks. Especially the women. The are grounded so well.They let a man be a boy. People feel comfortable in their skins. For an Anglo it can often be frustrating because punctuality and organization are not that adhered to.

Latins are not going to break new ground in the scientific and technological worlds. Their days of wanting to take over the planet were extinguished finally in the 19th century. I often think of what a fool was Mussolini.

Later this year I'll go to Mexico to our home in Jiquilpan. Relax on the porch watching the people walk by and having a conversation. Watching the children play in front of the church in the plaza. Eating real Mexican food. The sun will set and the fire flies will turn on and off. The pretty morenas with the long black hair. They are so pretty to look at. Precious. They are strong yet delicate.They are wives and mothers that a man doesn't have to worry about.They will handle things.

I'm getting old now. This world is too hectic for me. Maybe it always was. I want to find peace. I won't find it in front of a television.I want to sit on my porch in Jiquilpan and watch the children play in the plaza in front of the church.

[raylawpc]

BACK HOME

Sitting in the airport in Philly waiting for the flight back to San Diego I'm watching CNN News on the plasma screen. War,murders,Michael Jackson... i was thinking of turning around. But here is my job,my sisters,and the condo.

I remember when I was a little kid and my folks took me to Tijuana. Something about the country that I felt a connection with. Same with Spain. You either fit in or you don't. I've always been at ease in a Latin world.The food,living in the moment,not a lot of neurotic control freaks. Especially the women. The are grounded so well.They let a man be a boy. People feel comfortable in their skins. For an Anglo it can often be frustrating because punctuality and organization are not that adhered to.

Latins are not going to break new ground in the scientific and technological worlds. Their days of wanting to take over the planet were extinguished finally in the 19th century. I often think of what a fool was Mussolini.

Later this year I'll go to Mexico to our home in Jiquilpan. Relax on the porch watching the people walk by and having a conversation. Watching the children play in front of the church in the plaza. Eating real Mexican food. The sun will set and the fire flies will turn on and off. The pretty morenas with the long black hair. They are so pretty to look at. Precious. They are strong yet delicate.They are wives and mothers that a man doesn't have to worry about.They will handle things.

I'm getting old now. This world is too hectic for me. Maybe it always was. I want to find peace. I won't find it in front of a television.I want to sit on my porch in Jiquilpan and watch the children play in the plaza in front of the church.

Spain probably seems better than it is because you are on vacation. Same for me in Sweden. I feel a real connection with the people (after all, a few are relatives), and I enjoy the lifestyle. It was a real downer to come home last year. But I suspect if I had to live and work over there, I would come to have the same pressures and problems that I have in the good old USA.

What's that they say about the grass always being greener on the other side of the fence?

BTW, did you ever get to try out any of the Hefeweißbier in Germany?

[Rick Farris]

Prizefighting Today . . .

I really don't care much for boxing today.
I love what it once was, what I experienced in my era, meeting greats from past eras.
I used feel excited about upcoming events, and we had such events every week.

Every couple months somebody would hold at major card in L.A.
Usually undisputed world championships were at at stake, or true "elimination" bouts.
Names such as Napoles, Lopez, Olivares, Quarry, Liston, Ramos, Rojas, Griffith, Chacon, etc. would be featured.
In between these mega-cards promoted by Eaton or Parnassus, were weekly bouts. These were as good as, often better, than the big ones.

Today, we can't attend boxing in L.A. as often or convenient as in years gone by.
Indian Reservations, the boxing venues of the new millenium, are located in the desert here in Southern Cal.
Occasionally, Oscar will throw a big event into the Staples Center.
His last featured his new star, a kid who didn't realize that boxers occasionally get hit.
When I fought, this was required knowledge.

In old school boxing, you were taught to defend yourself, and to accept the consequences when you couldn't.
Today, the fighters are much smarter, they just quit.
They seem not to realize that they have entered into a public contest where people are paying to see the participants get hurt.
The goal isn't a tochdown, or home run, it's a knockout. I'm no Rhodes Scholar, but I understood right off that this was a pain game.
The idea is to inflict as much of it on the other guy, and at the same time avoid allowing him to do the same.
It's not about breaking records, it's about breaking another man's spirit, to dominate. I guess it's one of those primitive things, whatever?

This past weekend I didn't expect to see anything great, maybe a little action. As expected, nothing was great and there was little action.
I watched a rough Armenian, who would try to intimidate opponents by telling the world he "hated" them.
A tougher African kid didn't care if he was hated, but he was smart enough to care who got hit, and made sure the Armenian took his share.
I thought to myself, "well, by today's standards the guys are fighting." It was a World Bantamweight title fight.

I looked at the champ and challenger and tried to compare them with the 118 pounders from my era.
We had Jofre, Harada, Olivares, Pimentel, Medel, Zarate, Castillo, Zamora, Martinez, Herrera, Anaya, etc.
I then thought about a guy from the previous era, Manuel Ortiz.

Am I just getting old, or has the quality of talent really diminsished?
Occasinally we'll see a "throw back". I think Manny Pac is a guy who "reminds" of us a better era. He'd be hard to beat at any time.
However, Pac would would not look so unbeatable a few years back, he'd be a good one, but just one of dozens that pass thru L.A. at any given time.
And he'd be fighting much more often against better fighters.

If I live long enough, there will be a time when I lose all interest in watching contemporary boxing.
When I no longer have my friends here to remind me of how special it was, then I'll just limit my involvent to teaching kids.
I won't teach boxers, I'll teach kids how to keep themselves safe, and fit.
I won't run a class, I'll just continue to workout, and I'll run into a kid who is being picked on.
He may be too small, or fat, or too white or too black, just a kid trying to deal with his pride, charactor and fear.
Sometimes they just need someone to believe in them, and then they might believe in themselves. I understand this.

There are many things I can teach about fighting. The best thing I can teach is how to avoid fighting. That was a hard lesson for me.

For now the WBHOF is of interest. I see a lot of old friends and meet a lot of idols from days gone by.
I find myself smiling more when I see my old friends, and meet some new ones, boxing people, the REAL boxing people.
In due course, today's lot will be retiring, and a few years later they'll be up for induction honors.
This is when I shall walk away. It will no longer mean anything to me.


-Rick Farris

[dagosd2000]

BACK HOME

Sitting in the airport in Philly waiting for the flight back to San Diego I'm watching CNN News on the plasma screen. War,murders,Michael Jackson... i was thinking of turning around. But here is my job,my sisters,and the condo.

I remember when I was a little kid and my folks took me to Tijuana. Something about the country that I felt a connection with. Same with Spain. You either fit in or you don't. I've always been at ease in a Latin world.The food,living in the moment,not a lot of neurotic control freaks. Especially the women. The are grounded so well.They let a man be a boy. People feel comfortable in their skins. For an Anglo it can often be frustrating because punctuality and organization are not that adhered to.

Latins are not going to break new ground in the scientific and technological worlds. Their days of wanting to take over the planet were extinguished finally in the 19th century. I often think of what a fool was Mussolini.

Later this year I'll go to Mexico to our home in Jiquilpan. Relax on the porch watching the people walk by and having a conversation. Watching the children play in front of the church in the plaza. Eating real Mexican food. The sun will set and the fire flies will turn on and off. The pretty morenas with the long black hair. They are so pretty to look at. Precious. They are strong yet delicate.They are wives and mothers that a man doesn't have to worry about.They will handle things.

I'm getting old now. This world is too hectic for me. Maybe it always was. I want to find peace. I won't find it in front of a television.I want to sit on my porch in Jiquilpan and watch the children play in the plaza in front of the church.

Spain probably seems better than it is because you are on vacation. Same for me in Sweden. I feel a real connection with the people (after all, a few are relatives), and I enjoy the lifestyle. It was a real downer to come home last year. But I suspect if I had to live and work over there, I would come to have the same pressures and problems that I have in the good old USA.

What's that they say about the grass always being greener on the other side of the fence?

BTW, did you ever get to try out any of the Hefeweißbier in Germany?

Tom
You're right about being in a different place and seeing the greener side,but to step back and analyze it,there are a lot of places in the world that are more civilized and the way it should be. Granted ,people have to make a living wherever you go. People get sick. People die. It's the same everywhere,but I'm at a point where I can pick a spot and get away from gangs and drive bys,rap music,aggressive behavior...and not have to work and get buried in bills.

BTw. The Hefeweiber? No,but the Augustina Helles and sausage,well just wrap me up and call me Porky

[Rick Farris]

BACK HOME

Sitting in the airport in Philly waiting for the flight back to San Diego I'm watching CNN News on the plasma screen. War,murders,Michael Jackson... i was thinking of turning around. But here is my job,my sisters,and the condo.

I remember when I was a little kid and my folks took me to Tijuana. Something about the country that I felt a connection with. Same with Spain. You either fit in or you don't. I've always been at ease in a Latin world.The food,living in the moment,not a lot of neurotic control freaks. Especially the women. The are grounded so well.They let a man be a boy. People feel comfortable in their skins. For an Anglo it can often be frustrating because punctuality and organization are not that adhered to.

Latins are not going to break new ground in the scientific and technological worlds. Their days of wanting to take over the planet were extinguished finally in the 19th century. I often think of what a fool was Mussolini.

Later this year I'll go to Mexico to our home in Jiquilpan. Relax on the porch watching the people walk by and having a conversation. Watching the children play in front of the church in the plaza. Eating real Mexican food. The sun will set and the fire flies will turn on and off. The pretty morenas with the long black hair. They are so pretty to look at. Precious. They are strong yet delicate.They are wives and mothers that a man doesn't have to worry about.They will handle things.

I'm getting old now. This world is too hectic for me. Maybe it always was. I want to find peace. I won't find it in front of a television.I want to sit on my porch in Jiquilpan and watch the children play in the plaza in front of the church.

Spain probably seems better than it is because you are on vacation. Same for me in Sweden. I feel a real connection with the people (after all, a few are relatives), and I enjoy the lifestyle. It was a real downer to come home last year. But I suspect if I had to live and work over there, I would come to have the same pressures and problems that I have in the good old USA.

What's that they say about the grass always being greener on the other side of the fence?

BTW, did you ever get to try out any of the Hefeweißbier in Germany?

Tom
You're right about being in a different place and seeing the greener side,but to step back and analyze it,there are a lot of places in the world that are more civilized and the way it should be. Granted ,people have to make a living wherever you go. People get sick. People die. It's the same everywhere,but I'm at a point where I can pick a spot and get away from gangs and drive bys,rap music,aggressive behavior...and not have to work and get buried in bills.

BTw. The Hefeweiber? No,but the Augustina Helles and sausage,well just wrap me up and call me Porky

Rog, I'm going to see if I can find Augustina Helles here. Your post about it caught my interest.
It may not be common here, but if it is hard to find, I have some very good sources.
Studio people can come up with just about anything. We'll see?


-Rick Farris