This Is Sad

We’ve all heard it many times throughout our childhood. We’d complain about what we were being served for dinner and our parents would give us the old “you should be grateful, there’s kids in (insert 3rd world country here) that don’t have any food at all”. That comment never really had an effect on me because after all, I was in Canada, and I didn’t want to eat the fucking meatloaf or whatever it was that I was being served that I didn’t like. Yeah, I know there’s kids in poor countries that had it worse than me but, “out of sight, out of mind”. I didn’t really think about it.

Well, there are things that I see on a daily basis here in Thailand that really put things into perspective. For example, last night was Saturday and if you’ve been following my entries, you know that I go out drinking on Saturday nights. And yes, I know it’s not good for me but I view it as a reward for training hard all week. Anyway, I was about 11 or 12 drinks into the evening and it was about 4:30am while I was walking to a club appropriately called “Insomnia”. I was with a really hot girl too. Money hungry, yes .. but hot nonetheless.

While we were walking towards the entrance, a little boy (he was about 8 years old) ran up, grabbed my leg and tried to get me to buy a pack of gum. “Mai Me Sataing” I said. Mai Me Sataing is Thai for “I have no money”. It’s become an automatic response along with “Mae Ow Khap” (no thank you) because as a foreigner, I’m constantly being hit up to buy shirts, suits, bootleg movies, watches and as I mentioned in an earlier post – vaginas.

As I was walking towards the club entrance, the journalist in me (I guess that’s what I am now) kicked in. Why is this 8 year old kid selling packs of gum at 4:30 in the morning? Where are his parents? What is the money going towards? So, I had a decision to make. I could either go into the bar with the girl I was with and spend a ton of cash on overpriced drinks for her and her sister or I could go and talk to the kids. I chose the latter. After all, I was too drunk to “boom boom” anyway.

There was actually a lot of them out there. I’d say about 10 or so. The first girl I talked too was 14 – which is about the same age as my little sister. She was selling glow-sticks which, when you think about it, is pretty smart. She’s selling glow-sticks in between 2 after-hour nightclubs that are full of E-Heads (ecstasy users). She said she was using the money to pay for school (2000 baht per month) and her apartment (3000 baht per month). When I asked her where her parents were, she simply replied with “no hab” (no have).

The little 8 year old boy that tried selling me a pack of gum earlier walked by again so I waved him over. I gave him some money and let him keep the gum. After I gave him the money, he slapped my hand, turned it into a handshake, gave me 3 “daps” (“daps” are just a fist-to-fist greeting) and ended the combo with a peace sign. It was really cute actually. I guess he was selling enough packs of gum to afford a TV to watch hip hop videos on. I really wish I had got the handshake on video.

Some random girl then walked by wearing knee high boots and little jean shorts and started hitting on me. She was clearly a prostitute but I ignored her advances and decided to ask her about why the kids were up all night, alone, selling gum and glow-sticks to the club goers. She said that most of the kids are doing it because their parents are making them and that they’re not allowed to sleep until they make a certain amount of money.

I’ve mentioned that in Thailand, often times the kids are expected to provide for their parents but when they’re 8,9,10,11 years old – that’s a little extreme. After talking to the girl for about 20 minutes, I went looking for the cute kid that did the ghetto handshake so I could give him some money and also, so I could get the handshake on film. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find him again. I did however, come across this little girl…

I’d estimate that she’s about 7 years old and just like the others, she was working all night, alone, without any adult supervision. She told me that she wasn’t allowed to go home until she made 100 more baht and that her dad beats her mom etc.

Stuff like this really makes you think. I’ve seen so many orphan kids since I’ve been here. After seeing these kids last night, it makes me have an even greater appreciation for what they do over at Sityodtong (story here). Then of course, there’s the kids that I came across in Bangkok who were forced to sell flowers to the tourists and if they didn’t sell enough, older Thai men would basically beat them down (story here).

Anyway, I felt this was worthy of an entry. Since it’s sort of sad, I figured I might as well leave you with something funny. So, check out this old dude that was on walking street last night. As if the bright white hair and outfit wasn’t enough of an attention grabber. And yes, those 2 gigantic “ladies” he’s strolling hand-in-hand with are actually men. You’ll also noticed that he gets approached by one of the kids trying to sell stuff.

In my next entry, I’ll be doing a camp profile on Scorpion Gym. I also have a “Fon” update (yes, the crazy girl!) and now I’m even more convinced that she’s a psycho.

THINKING OF GOING TO THAILAND TO TRAIN?

I’ve developed a 70 page guide that profiles everything you need to know about training in Bangkok, Phuket and Pattaya. In the manual, I discuss the visa issues, the Muay Thai camps, the different areas, the transportation, the food, the culture and customs, the girls, the scams, the safety issues and most importantly, how to save a ton of cash along the way!

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

Back to the Basics

While it would be nice to spend everyday training at Fairtex, the 800 baht per session price tag doesn’t exactly suit my long term budget. Since I had to move on, the other day I went looking for a Muay Thai/MMA gym that I had heard about here in Pattaya. As usual, I got lost and found myself wandering down a little side street.

I suppose I lucked out because I looked to my left and noticed a small sign that said “Thai Boxing”. I turned down the volume on my Ipod and immediately heard the grunting and sounds of shins smacking against the pads. At first, I was somewhat apprehensive about going in as the place didn’t look like a public gym, but rather, it looked like someone just had a ring set up in their backyard.

After a minute or two of watching from a distance from what appeared to be a garage, I figured I might as well walk through and introduce myself. After all, the chances of me finding the gym I had originally been looking for weren’t very good. As soon as I made myself visible, one of the trainers immediately stopped, mid-round, with the kid he was training and inquired as to what it was that I was looking for (I’m sure he assumed I wanted directions or something).

“How much for training?” I asked. He paused and thought for a second, “300 baht” he replied. I have a feeling he just pulled that price out of his a@s but it sure beat the 800 baht I paid at Fairtex so I obliged, got changed and started skipping. I don’t think I’ve ever heard the word “farang” (non-offensive Thai word for foreigner) being tossed around so much. When you’re the only white guy around and the Thai’s are talking are dropping the “F-bomb” (falang) in your presence, it’s a pretty safe bet they’re talking about you.

Not that they were saying anything bad, I’m sure they were just talking about how awesome I am (right?). Anyway, once I was warmed up, I was told to kick the heavy bag 30 times per leg. When you kick the heavy bag, you usually have someone holding it for you and often times, you’ll be kicking it along with someone else (you kick with your right leg, the other guy kicks with his left), then you switch after.

Well, I was trading heavy bag kicks with a 9 year old. It was a unique experience to say the least and in no way am I ashamed to admit that in terms of technique, he was better than me.

With great difficulty, I finished up the 30 kicks per leg and while I was pouring water all over myself and struggling to catch my breath, the kid, who showed no signs of even having an elevated heart rate, came up to me and said “very good” with a big, innocent smile on his face.

Once I re-gained my composure and caught my breath, I stepped into the ring and went through my usual 5 rounds of pad-work. We then moved on to the clinching and again, I’m not ashamed to admit – I got owned. As a matter of fact, it’s been a few days since I trained there and my neck still hurts. I guess that’s a testament to how effective Muay Thai actually is. Right now I weigh around 210lbs (formerly into bodybuilding) and I got tossed around the ring by a Thai guy who weighed no more than 170lbs.

It’s funny to think about all those “roided up” guys in the gyms thinking they’re tough based solely on the amount of weight they use when performing preacher curls. It’s not often you see the “juicepigs” of the gym performing neck extension exercises. It doesn’t matter how much someone can press, curl, row – whatever! If they get into a Thai clinch and get their neck pulled down (because it’s a weak-link for most people), they’ll be defenceless because where the neck/head goes, the body follows.

I learned that the hard way as my strength advantage was completely neutralized when I was “clinched up”. I’m just glad that it happened in training and not an actual fight or else I would have taken some serious knees to the face. Overall, it was a beneficial experience though as I now have an even greater appreciation for the art.

When training was over, I sat for about an hour or so and just talked to my trainer. He spoke very good English and as yet another testament to the hospitality of the Thai’s, he took me on a little tour through the house. He showed me some of the videos he had of the kids (wait, that sounded bad, let me re-phrase).. he showed me some photos and videos he had of the kids that train at the camp FIGHTING..

I then saw a trophy case and walked over to it. He followed and told me some of the stories behind each one. He then pointed to a championship belt that was lying next to the trophies and told me that he was “number 2″ at lumpinee stadium back in the day. I guess that’s Thailand for you. Randomly stumble on a side-street camp and end up training with a formerly ranked fighter at lumpinee stadium. Overall, it was a really cool experience and although I only have a couple weeks left here in Pattaya, I think I’ll be going back.

Here’s a short video tour I took of the camp..

Now, in my last entry, I said I had some information on the status of a potential fight between Buakaw Por Pramuk and Yodsanklai Fairtex. Well, I didn’t say it was GOOD news. Although I’m sure the fight will eventually happen (just makes money sense), things are not looking good for the moment.

When training at Fairtex Pattaya, I was informed that Buakaw’s camp was on board at first providing they fought under K1 rules and not full Muay Thai rules. Now, it seems as though they have backed out because, as my source at Fairtex put it, Buakaw has too much to lose at the moment (with him coming off a KO loss at the hands of Yoshihiro Sato). Of course, that’s only one side to the story. Hopefully I’ll make my way to the Por Pramuk gym at some point and get their perspective on the potential match-up.

THINKING OF GOING TO THAILAND TO TRAIN?

I’ve developed a 70 page guide that profiles everything you need to know about training in Bangkok, Phuket and Pattaya. In the manual, I discuss the visa issues, the Muay Thai camps, the different areas, the transportation, the food, the culture and customs, the girls, the scams, the safety issues and most importantly, how to save a ton of cash along the way!

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

The Future Of Muay Thai

I vagely remember my childhood but I’m pretty sure that when I was 7 years old, I was into “WWF” wrestling and the ninja turtle movies. The closest I came to fighting at that age was when I’d act out the wrestling moves on a pillow while watching summerslam. Of course, at the time, I thought I was a badass.

The scene at the Sityodtong Muay Thai camp is unique to say the least. Upon first walking in, you really don’t know what to make of it. The average age of the people training there is about .. 14. There’s a lot that are younger, and of course, there’s a few older guys like myself. At first, you’re not so sure if the fact that there’s so many kids around is a good thing or a bad thing.

Well, it’s a good thing. The thing about Sityodtong is that they create champions. They start training the kids when they’re around 6 years old and by the time they’re 8, their technique is crisp and they’re able to kick the pads harder than beginners that are twice their age. I can only imagine what would happen if all the 8 year olds from the countries around the world went to war (hand to hand combat only).

Check out these little guys .. and girls, hitting the pads!

So why would this kids want to start training at such a young age? Well, I think it comes back to the fact that in Thailand, the younger generation is expected to provide for the family when the parents stop working. A lot of the girls look to prostitution (most don’t) while a lot of the boys test their skills with Muay Thai as it’s seen as a way “out” of poverty.

There’s a story that needs to be told here.

In most of the gyms, the kids are allowed to train for “free” but if they don’t become good quick, they get kicked out of the camp. The camps want the best fighters because in exchange for the free living & training, the kids are expected to fight and donate a portion of their winnings to the camp. Most Thai fighters rack up between 200-300 fights in their careers.

This is where the Sityodtong camp differs. The other day I had the opportunity to sit down with one of the trainers (a former lumpinee champion) and “the boss” and living legend himself – Kru Yodtong (born Erawan Sriwaralak). Kru Yodtong has been recognized by the Kingdom of Thailand as “superior teacher of Muay Thai” and throughout his teaching career, he has trained multiple Thai boxing champions (many of who are current trainers at the camp).

When I was made aware of Kru Yodtong’s contribution to not only Muay Thai, but his people in general, I had to write this story. Unlike at other camps, the fighters at Sityodtong aren’t expected to donate their winnings to the camp. It’s to my understanding that they’re givin half their fight purse up front and the other half goes towards their food, clothing etc.

The kids do not get kicked out of the camp for poor performance. Most of the kids training there are orphins or troubled kids that Kru Yodtong has unselfishly taken in and basically adopted into his family. What’s most important to Kru Yodtong is that these kids succeed in life and become good, productive members of society.

I guess it’s true when people say that “good things happen to good people” because Kru Yodtong has hit the lottery.. twice. The first time was a jackpot of approx. 56 million baht (just under 2 million US dollars) and the second time was good for another 2 million baht (around 60,000 US dollars). The money was not spent on himself.

Rather, the money was put towards bringing in more orphined and troubled youth. They were given a shelter, food and most importantly, they were given guidance through both Kru Yodtong, the family atmosphere at the camp and of course, the sport of Muay Thai.

It’s quite apparent that to Kru Yodtong, money is secondary. He just loves his sport and wants to teach and guide as many people as he can. Even when foreigners come to train, the fee is a modest 250 baht per session. Out of that 250 baht, 150 baht goes to the trainer and only 100 baht goes to the camp itself to help pay the electric bill. For those that don’t know, 100 baht is approx. 3 US dollars.

So what would YOU do with 2,000,000 US dollars? Would you give it all away to underprivilaged children? If not, that’s alright. Most people wouldn’t. I’m just glad I caught wind of this so I could get his story out to as many Muay Thai enthuasists as I could.

Up Next .. I’ll hopefully get a video of my padwork and perhaps a trip to Fairtex?

And of course, with tonight being my big night to go out, I’ll prob. get some footage of the crazy nightlife..

THINKING OF GOING TO THAILAND TO TRAIN?

I’ve developed a 70 page guide that profiles everything you need to know about training in Bangkok, Phuket and Pattaya. In the manual, I discuss the visa issues, the Muay Thai camps, the different areas, the transportation, the food, the culture and customs, the girls, the scams, the safety issues and most importantly, how to save a ton of cash along the way!

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

Ready to Go!

I’ve been working it casually into my recent conversations – “so, what are you doing on the July 28th?”. They’ll respond with the usual “I don’t know, probably just work, why? What are you doing?”. That’s when I hit them with the “Oh, you’re just working? That’s cool, that’s cool. Me? Oh, I’ll be rockin’ out in Thailand. Training some Muay Thai, getting a massage or two”. At this point, I have a hard time holding back my smile and the people I’m talking too usually respond with a “Ohhh.. very funny! Yea, shut up!”

I know, I know – it’s an asshole move on my part. I just can’t help it. My flight’s booked, I got my 1 year visa, I quit my job – it’s just a matter of days until I’m back in paradise (7 to be exact). I leave Ottawa on the 26th, fly to Chicago, then from Chicago, I’m off to Tokyo, then from Tokyo, it’s right to Bangkok. The flight is actually pretty brutal – that’s one thing I’m not looking forward too.

Once I arrive, I’ll probably kick it in Bangkok for a while. I’ll hit the mall and get myself a new wardrobe since I’m packing nothing but my laptop, camera, couple pairs of socks and boxer shorts, my mouth-guard and my cup (it’s Thailand, I’ll be needing my “boys” to be intact).

Once I settle in, I really don’t have any set plans. I sort of like it that way. I might check out Fairtex Bangplee or maybe I’ll hit up Kaewsamrit – I just don’t really know yet. There’s also a gym called “Ingram” that nobody really seems to know about. They’re produced a few lumpinee champions and they’re also the ones that first brought Baukaw to K1.

I doubt I’ll be able to tolerate Bangkok for too long so once I get sick of it, my next stop will likely be Pattaya. Pattaya is a crazy place from what I hear but it also has some world class Muay Thai. In Pattaya, I’ll probably check out Sityodtong. You’ve probably heard the Sityodtong name being tossed around by Joe Rogan during the UFC broadcasts – particulary during the Kenny Florian fights as he trains under Mark Delegratte at the Boston Sityodtong branch (there’s another in LA).

From there, I’ll be heading down to Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket. Tiger Muay Thai has both Muay Thai and MMA training and at the moment, they have all sorts of accomplished grapplers training there. I’ll get owned for sure but you know what? The more sore I am, the better those post-workout massages are going to feel : ) While I’m on the topic, I should also mention that the camp owner (Will) has been very pleasant to deal with. He even provided me with the invitation letter I needed to get my visa. It seems as though they do everything in their power to make everything go smoothly for their guests. So far so good!

Anyway, that’s about it for now. Keep checking back and I apologize for the delayed update. Once I arrive and start training, I’ll be updating this journal about 3-4 times a week. I’ll also be recording everything from camp tours and training to the rowdy nightlife of Bangkok, Phuket and Pattaya.

What are YOU doing on July 28th?

Haha.. just messin’ with ya!

THINKING OF GOING TO THAILAND TO TRAIN?

I’ve developed a 70 page guide that profiles everything you need to know about training in Bangkok, Phuket and Pattaya. In the manual, I discuss the visa issues, the Muay Thai camps, the different areas, the transportation, the food, the culture and customs, the girls, the scams, the safety issues and most importantly, how to save a ton of cash along the way!

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE

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