"The Hunt"

 As mentioned in the last post...The Far Hills steeplechase has devolved into a liquored-up  see-and-be-seen-wasted mess. The event organizers nearly had to ban alcohol based on the fights and arrests and general boorish behavior exhibited by the psuedo-horsey set who come to pose and puke.

 I have attended this race several times but gave it up years ago. My buddy Michael Moran's horse, McDynamo won the big stakes there a few years in a row and after that I said enough.

 Now, I like to have a few belts of bourbon and a beer or 5 at a steeplechase tailgate. But our crew is there to watch and wager and enjoy the sport. These posers are there to drool on their tweed and get in the DUI on deck circle.

 This North Jersey bridge and tunnel crowd is there to do one thing...party. The event stacks the rows of tailgates so far back from the course that a huge majority of those in attendance are there only to drink and act out....and have no idea what is happening in the paddock or on the course or in the winner's circle.

There is a now famous Youtube video of a bunch of lovely young ladies engaging in a drunken, muddy cat fight after the race...give it a look and you will see all you need to see and know how low this event has fallen.( The first photo in this post is a still from that video....)

Quaker City Boxing

 First we have a serious card on deck for this evening...Cunningham v. Visinia...I will be ringside.

Then tomorrow the Briscoe awards...Philadelphia boxing version of the Oscars. So this weekend it is all about boxing.
Meanwhile, duck hunting opens in Delaware this coming Friday so our Waterfowl Club is buzzing with anticipation. The Pennsylvania Hunt Cup steeplechase races are right after that on November 2nd. ( The Far Hills Hunt is today up in Jersey. Good luck with that drunken fiasco....a good race marred by the bridge and tunnel crowd getting hammered drunk and having no idea what is happening on the course. I gave up on that race long ago.)

So... boxing, hunting, steeplechasing....a sportsman's life!

Vintage Prize Fighter

"There’s nothing to fighting. Just come out fast from your corner, hit the other fellow as hard as you can and hit him first.” John L. Sullivan

Don't Shoot What You Don't Know.

This is a photo from a  fashion spread in  Playboy of November 2005(the one that features blistering pix of Kelly Monaco-a Philly native.)
We can all see what they thought they were trying to conjure up in terms of mood and setting for these clothes. However, it is painfully clear that not one person on that photo shoot had a clue in Hell. Can anyone tell me what is completely wrong in this photo...there are 2 major and really inexcusable gaffs presented...and a few minor.

The Creator's Game

Giving back

 The Lehigh University Lacrosse team has a serious commitment to community service.

 These are photos of the Lehigh Lacrosse Community day.

 The players and coaches gave freely of their time to local kids who play on school and club teams.

 The students on the Lehigh team have rigorous academic schedules in addition to their team requirements.

Nevertheless, they made the time to coach and mentor young players. Well done young men....

Fight Night

The big Italian(Sicilian) heavyweight I manage is on deck for another bout. He is fighting tomorrow evening at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut. This venue is a few miles north of New London and just above  the New England coast so artfully featured in the Daily Prep. I tend to doubt I will bump into Muffy...beer in hand... screaming at a fighter to "keep your hands up."
In this photo your faithful writer is modeling the custom corner-men's jackets I had  made for my team. It is an all cotton affair...a shawl collar cardigan hearkening back to old school trainers and cut- men like one sees in Scorcese's "Raging Bull." I am not certain whether I have displayed this photo before but what the Hell.
Tomorrow morning I will head North to be at the casino in plenty of time for some time to talk to my fighter and then meet up with the Lehigh boys to have a few drinks before the matches begin. Here's hoping for a KO'd opponent in the early going...another step on the road to Vegas and the big money TV fight for a Championship belt.

Intersection

Now and then my profession as an attorney and my work in the realm of prize fighting intersect. This is one of those times. I am representing former heavyweight Champion of the World, Tim Witherspoon in his contract for this book. The book goes to press and will be available in time for Christmas. It is a great story about a kid from the streets of Philadelphia who fought his way to the Championship. Along the way he was fleeced and lied to by Don King, had his life threatened, lost it all...then fought his way back. Boxers are special breed and I am glad to call this boxer both a client and a friend.