Okay, now it’s officially past the halfway point…
Time to see where I’m really at- Sparring Day. Everybody competing in the Haymakers4Hope event met up at Church Street Boxing Gym on Sunday for a very full day.
First, we’d meet who our likely opponent would be, sparring against each other for 2 2-minute rounds. Haymakers does this to make sure the matches they’ve set up (generally people training at different gyms, who are around the same height, weight, and age, and about the same place in terms of their training (the staff has been popping into the gyms every few weeks to gauge our progress). Assuming there’s no major discrepancies, this will be our opponent in the ring.
Next we’d spend the better part of the day with their media team shooting photos and videos of us going through different drills and exercises that will all be edited together into our promo video that plays before we walk in to the ring. But, let’s get back to the sparring…
My opponent is a 47 year old guy named Greg. We just found out who we’d be matched up with a day or two before- so of course I immediately stalked his fighter bio page and any social networks I could find him on. When I walked into the gym at 9am that Sunday I immediately started looking around, where was he? As we were handed our schedules for the day I was a bit bummed to find out I was fighting first. I had spent the whole weekend upstate at a wedding, getting home late Saturday night and up early to get ready and into the city. Harry was there to observe and coach, immediately sensing my nervous energy he told me to do some deep breathing through my nose to calm myself down. Everyone is nervous he told me- every champion, every fight….
Still, fighting first meant I didn’t get a full stretch in and didn’t get to really warm up the way I like to- just jumping straight into the fire. I spotted Greg across the gym going through the same routine, loosening up and chatting to his trainer. Eventually he came over to say hi and we chatted briefly. Very nice guy from my first impression. And then we were in the ring and the bell had sounded…
I think I blacked out. Watching the video they sent us brought back some memories, but wow, even 2 2-minute rounds seemed like an eternity and the blink of an eye at the same time. We’re pretty evenly matched I’d say, we both got a few shots in on each other and both were pretty gassed when all was said and done.
All in all, I’m happy with how things went. I know I have a long way to go, but even when I was blacked out and holding my breath the entire time, my training and muscle memory did kick in as I could hear Harry yelling out instructions from my corner. Also something about just being in the ring and getting some of the nerves out of the way enabled me to relax a bit mentally (though it doesn’t appear that way on film) which will go a Long way over the next two months. I got a glimpse of my opponent, he got a glimpse of me, and we’ll no doubt both be giving it our alls right up until fight night.
After the sparring Greg and I chatted for a good 30 minutes. I was right, he’s an incredibly nice guy. Everybody there was. Although long, I really enjoyed the day getting to chat with everyone that’s competing, meeting them and hearing their stories. We talked about why we were fighting and how our training was going, etc. It really added much more of a human element to the whole thing. Also there were the organizers of the event- was great to finally put faces to names with them as well. Because everyone is training at different gyms, at different times, with different trainers- most everyone I had only seen pictures of on the Haymakers website. Again, though it was a long day, you could see a lot of camaraderie in the gym, people talking, high fiving, laughing, etc… and most importantly making new friends. We’ll all share the bond of this experience, and that’s a pretty cool thing.
The rest of the day as I mentioned was spent filming the segments of our promo videos. Various stations were set up, and it was lights camera action with the film crew until almost 4pm. Was funny, most of the ladies were kinda just chilling out between ‘shoots’ while many of the guys were huddled around a few phones watching NFL Red Zone and checking fantasy stats haha 🙂
And that was that. I went through a lot of emotions during those 6.5 hours. When the adrenaline surge I experienced during my sparring wore off like 30 min later, I felt like I could have fallen asleep for 10 hours! Fight or flight to nighty night! There was joy, gratitude, and happiness but also fear, nervousness, and downright exhaustion… and we’re only halfway home.
My donations are going great! I’m certain I’ll beat the 20k goal I set for myself- now I’m pushing for 25k. So many people have contributed, not just with money, but with also notes of encouragement and notes telling me that I’m inspiring them (means so much)- this is what’s driving me. This is my motivation.
I’m proud of myself and what I’m doing, and so excited about the impact it’s having overall. Less than 2 months til showtime- time to do some situps and pushups!
Thanks again for all the support and encouragement, I couldn’t do it without you. And thanks for taking the time to read this, it means a lot…
Much Love and Gratitude,
B
KO'ing Cancer 
You walk the walk! We’ll be at the match,and we’d like to donate. I’ll ask mom for the info. Quite proud of what may be your most amazing accomplishment. Love,peace and charity:) Jean and Stew
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