Question For The Classic Posters......

:good

 

Good to hear for you Chinx, busy man you are then at the moment.

You see Hopkins last night??

 

Really i never knew that. I didnt mean anything bad in my post there BTW.

 

Scratch that, March of '07, same time McGrain got here.

 

No. I was out last night, T. I've got some old haunts down in Hollywood I've been neglecting. I heard about though, all Hopkins wasn't it?

 

:rofl :rofl :rofl :rofl :rofl :rofl

 

Was out aswell! Gunna watch it soon though, ALL Hopkins apparently. Big admirer of the man myself, not just in the ring, some people dont like that, but i respect him

 

This is an interesting one -a thread that demands reflection and honesty.

I have neither the luxury nor so much the inclination to spend the hours that many ESB stalwarts spend out here. I appreciate that they do liven it up out here and hope that my contributions measure up by quality if not quantity. My weekends are usually too booked up to even log on to a computer, so I come out on weekday evenings and see what's happening. If there's a thread that piques my interest or someone makes an argument that riles my sporatic intolerance for free speech, I'll post. At times, I have both time and the inclination to make fairly regular posts.

I don't think that I'm obsessed with boxing. But I love it. It has been a beautiful woman in my life -I'm enamored and devoted, even though it breaks my heart and abuses me sometimes. I'll never let go.

Most of what I write is from memory and I'm lucky to have a pretty good one. Probably not photographic, but if I really care about something I absorb it's details pretty well. When I was about 12 I got into it for reasons that were more practical than passionate. I had the build of Ichabod Crane and there was much violence where I was raised. It was either "be a victim" or "learn how to give concussions." The passion for strategies and such came soon enough when I learned how effective boxing is (those who think it is near useless in a "streetfight" are full of "bleep". Most thugs and hoods can't get by the jab and they are simply unprepared for what's coming next). I was fighting constantly throughout my teenage years -defending turf, for reputation, at times for nobler motivations... and so started watching every fight I could (instead of doing homework) and then started collecting tapes and all that.

When I hit majority age, the streetfighting dropped off and I started going to gyms. Another facet of interest really blossomed there because since I already had good command of the fundamentals I was able to experiment with moves and tactics -some of which were from the grainy old films. I'd spar with pro's and soon discovered that speed and power, straight punching and a good jab just wasn't enough. Technicians were wrecking me. I found -I don't know- kinship (?) with past fighters and of course learned to respect the 'great' among them. So I studied all of it -fundamentals, tactics, strategy, ring psychology, history, etc...

I never cared for other sports. Foreman really nailed any mild interest I might have had into a coffin when he said that "boxing is the sport that all other sports aspire too." How true. Neither touchdowns, grand slams, goals, slam dunks, nor hole-in-ones are as thrilling or as dramatic as the KO. I grew up in and spent alot of time in Boston, although lately, my borderline disdain for other sports has brought along the alienation that compels me to come here. I can't name 2 players on the Patriots, nor can I name 2 on the Red Sox. I honestly could care less. "Home team" my "bleep". How many players are natives to Massachusetts? In 5 years both teams may have completely different rosters. Give me a break. What is that the fans like? The uniforms? The contrast is extreme. Bernard Hopkins is Bernard Hopkins. He's doing honest battle with shorts on -without equipment and pads, without teammates, without time-outs. That's real.

Boxers are the ultimate individualists. You gotta love that. I refer to it as Violent Chess. Barbarians ain't boxers. Strategic minds dominate in the ring -the thinking man, the technican, the man who controls his emotions. It's the ultimate character sport.

Irregardless of Women's boxing -which is (thankfully) fading fast, boxing really is the last bastion of chauvinism, and perhaps one of the last gasps of masculinity in the developed world. Modern men are losing it. They are becoming more feminized by an irrational culture with every succeeding generation. Boxing is a stopgap to this trend. This partly explains why so many call for it's abolition, are threatened by it, or just can't understand it -is it boxing that is alien to them or is it something deeper? I suspect that it is. I suspect that the modern man is fast becoming an alien to himself.

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In sum, I love boxing because it kept me from becoming a stain on the street, because of its honesty, its intellectual stimulation, its unique ability to temper and channel our baser instincts, and because it reminds me that masculinity still matters.

 

Good read. I like how you import philosophy & sociology into your posts. :good

 

That pretty much summarizes the history of my involvement with boxing. In my mid to late teens, I was fanatical about knowing everything about the sport, including all the contenders, clubfighters, statistics, etc. I never missed any fight on TV. In my 20s and 30s, my interest faded considerably; I stopped buying the magazines and began watching fights only on a selective basis.

These days, I check the boxing websites and forums daily to keep up on the news and talk. I'm not neary as much of a fanatic as I was in my younger days though.

 

Exellent post, loved every word of it!:good

 

Pure brilliance my friend.

 

I'll be perfectly honest and say if not for this forum, I honestly wonder if I'd bother with it.

Thats not a knock on the sport, but I have many interests and when you're limited to only big fights and the occasional overseas monthly publication, it's hard to be a die-hard fan.
Still, I try what with coming here every day and getting up for the big fights. Biographies have also come in handy in recent years.

Bwtween 1980 and about 1997 I was utterly obsessed, religiously watching everything from meaningless 4 rounders to every championship fight. TV coverage was a lot more extensive back then though, so it was easier to be interested. I also read every scrap of paper I could.

It's still (and always will be) my favourite sport though...nothing beats a great fight, or the tension leading up to one.

 

What a wonderful two paragraphs...brilliant.

 

1997 Funny you should say that mate. That's around the time my magazine collection started becoming more irregular. I think I remember TBooze saying the same era (95-97). I was still up for certain fights, but I couln't roll off the name of every title holder and top 10 contender like I could in the late 80s and early 90s.