Who I Am..

Hello all, my name is Thomas Huitt-Johnson. I was born in Sacramento, California and moved to St. Joseph, Missouri shortly after. However, I moved back to California until I was 14 years old when my family decided to stay located in Missouri and I have been here ever since! I am 20 years old and of white and native american descent. I am not a big person, I am only 5'5 and weigh around 120 pounds, and because of my attributes I was not able to play all the sports I wanted to. I loved football growing up, but I was never going to be good at it. The same with basketball, although I did play high school basketball for two years before I decided to focus on something that made more sense to me: boxing.

I have been boxing since I was 10 years old, but really didn't take it serious until I gave up basketball. I have been able travel all over the United States (Colorado Springs, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Atlanta, Chicago, among other places). I wasn't always the best boxer but I have always showed that I am very capable of having potential in the sport. I boxed for the United States National Team in 2009, right before I started attending college, and that was the first time I was ever considered the best at anything in my life. I fought internationally three times against Great Britain, Ireland and Mexico. Although I was only able to beat Ireland, that is still cool that I was able to represent my country.
I have always been a sports guru, that's just because growing up with my family I had to be. Because of that, and my love for sports, I decided when I was younger that if I couldn't go professional in any sport I would do something involved around it and that is to write about it.

I am a Journalism Major at Missouri Western and also currently work at the St. Joseph News-Press. A lot of my stories have made front page and this was even before I turned 20. I am really thankful for that. Like I said before, I grew up in a sports environment and that is because I have four older brothers. They have always been around me to help me and make sure I do not make the same mistakes they did when they were younger. Yes, I am the youngest!
I also have one sister, who is one year older than me, and my mom and dad have always been there for me too. We are a very close family and still all speak to each other frequently even though we are all older. My three older brothers (Darrel, Steven and Dustin) are all managers or supervisors at a plant nearby while my brother Joey is going to college just like me. He wants to run his own restaurant in a few years and he is a really good chef. Jessica, my only sister, is going to be a nurse just like our mother, and my father is a truck driver and has been ever since he left the marines when he was 22. That is how my mom and dad met, and that is how we left Sacramento for St. Joseph. A lot of times people ask me why or how, well because my dad is originally from here and my mom from California,

and when my dad was in the marines he was stationed there and that is where they met. We lived there for years but my dad loves St. Joe so we are here.
I am a fun person to be around and try to be helpful to people I know. Although a quiet person, I am always there for people and that is just because people have always been there for me when I need help. I have great friends that I am close to and that is always nice to have. I wouldn't want to trade my life for anybody because I love my life so much. I hope to stay at the News-Press until I graduate and we'll see what happens there. I plan to graduate in about three years. Boxing has taken a back seat to college,

and it should, but I still attempt to do very well in that sport and we'll see what happens in the future. Thank you for reading my blob and I appreciate it very much!

Timeline for Athletes who Take Steroids or Weight Cycle'd

Athletes as Idols?

Sports figures all of the world are cast as idols from the very beginning. They have to be. So many people look up to them. What people do not understand is that they are real people and no different than a regular person. What we should all know is that athletes should not be anybody's idol.

Why is somebody your idol? Because you believe what they believe and they have pushed an issue that you believe in or did something special that makes you feel good and makes you believe you can act on that certain something. A idol is not somebody that puts on a uniform and beats a team.

You may idolized that person but you truely never know what that person stands for unless you know him or her personally.

An idol doesn't become a hero simply because he takes a stand against the villain but he becomes a hero because he stands for something. You may think this certain "idol" has success but success is not something that somebody can just say you achieved or even do it for you, success comes from inside you and it is who you are made of.

So idols and heroes may not help you reach your dreams, they may, but usually it's you. That is why you must be careful with who you look up to and who is your idol.

Native Americans Should Not be Used as Logos/Mascots in Sports

The Native American culture was once a proud culture that learned the ins and outs on how to live and how to go about doing things the nature way. They lived in the Americas before anybody on the Eastern side of the World knew this place existed. When the English settlers and the Europeans decided to explore what else was out in the World, it was the Natives that took care of them, fed them, and showed them simple things like how to hunt for food and live out in the wild. Hundreds of years later, the Native American culture hardly exists here in America as less than two million Indians live here (U.S. Census Bureau).

There are not many reservations that are around, and more and more of different races seem to find their way to America (Asians, Hispanics, Blacks, etc). The one thing that has kept the Native American tribes alive is the one thing that is tarnishing it the most, and that is using their Native language and culture and symbolizing it as if it was a humorous subject, a cartoon somewhat. So many names, faces, and items that the Natives are made of have been placed on a school or a team as their personalized team name, their logo, or even their mascot. I do not see this as celebrating a once proud culture, but hurting it, poking fun at it, as if the Natives are some kind of animal. Native Americans are being treated like animals, used on a platform that no other culture has felt. How? "These names and images have a damaging effect on Native Americans because it freezes us in our past, it distils our humanity to a one-dimensional term" said Joseph Gone (Plaschke, 1).

What this sentence is stating is that the Native Americans in our country are being poked at for fun in sports, games, etc. Their heritage is being placed on the line, being put on a basketball jersey or a football helmet, and nobody is taking time to notice how wrong this is. Native Americans took care of this land and helped the Europeans through the beginning of their time here, and we repay them by tarnishing their heritage, making a mockery of it, putting the face of an Indian on the side of a helmet or in front of a jersey, and that isn’t right.

My Summer Internship With the Chiefs

Duringthe Summer 2010 Training Camp with the Kansas City Chiefs I was able to intern with the Marketing Manager of the Chiefs, Jeremy Slavens, as well his own intern Jared Aeschbach, and my Professor Dr. Hardy. They gave me assignments as well as the other interns in camp with me, and the assignments they were to do simple jobs that need to be done to run a good event like the training camp was. Some of the jobs have been really easy, some have been somewhat difficult. None were extremely hard, though all of us put in tons of hours, sometimes from 6:30 a.m. all the way till 9:00 p.m. Even then though, there was a lot of downtime, and we were even able to go home as we would get close to a two hour break during those days. The camp was very beneficial to me and doing this intern was a great choice that I made.

This internship gave me three credits to my College here at Missouri Western State University. It was a well earned three credits, especially since we had to do assignments we would have to do in a regular class, such as attend on time to camp, listen to your professor as well as type a couple pages for class. Camp was fun at times, and at other times not so great. Some of the people I had to work with were not that great to talk to, as sometimes they would gripe and didn't want to do what they were asked. Instead of telling the bosses or their professor how they feel, they complained to their peers and acted like everybody should feel the way they do. Other things I could have lived without was doing jobs that other people were getting paid to do, such as what the St. Joseph Police Department should be doing, the paid interns from Missouri Western or the Chiefs own security. I guess I didn't mind doing some things like helping them, but seeing them do nothing and I had to do their work was not something I enjoyed doing. I did not expect things like that to happen at camp, but I live with it, mostly because I have to in order to receive my credits.

The fun parts about thd internship was meeting new, great people and experiencing the "behind-the-scenes" part of how an event should be run; little things, such as helping people go where they are suppose to, arriving at the event early and staying well after to clean up, talk to others about what were good things about the event and bad things, and other little things, details, as Jeremy was always preaching. All of us interns ate at the cafeteria, where the Chiefs players were eating, and the food was great. We also would get all the water, Gatorade and soda we wanted because it was so hot we needed those drinks to stay hydrated. The internship could lead to better things in the future, and knowing this is great. If we do our job and do it right, maybe a job could be in our future, a job that could lead any of us to the NFL, or any other sports department possibly, and that is a great feeling too.

Editorial on Weight Cycling for Athletes

Weight cycling causes problems with people's health. It's bad. How can anybody use this as an asset?

The weight loss of as little as five pounds does not hurt an athlete or an average person walking around. It's the point that while people yo-yo diet, they will gain it all back. The problem then occurs when gaining the weight back, especially if they were to lose over 20 pounds. The more weight they lose, the more weight they gain back, and that then causes problems to the heart, the fat and muscle tissue.

Athletes are typically known for doing this, especially wrestlers and boxers. They must make a certain weight and the only way to do this is to rapidly cut out fatty foods, dehydrate and sweat. After making their desired weight, they then gain it all back by binge eating possibly. This is so bad in many ways. Yet, coaches and trainers let their athletes do this? There is not way this should be allowed.

The affects of this are long lasting and a lot of people won't even realize what they find themselves doing and the affects of what happened because of weight cycling. People will eventually experience high blood pressure, heart disease, maybe a stroke, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, breathing problems and maybe a cancer. This isn't even all the bad problems with the cycling of weight.

The only way to fix this is for the coaches, trainers and people around the sport to be more involved. Make sure their athlete is not going through a drastic weight loss. And for the higher people who control the sport, maybe a weight master or a board member, should make it illegal. Athletes can die from this, and some have. Only they can stop the athletes, because the athletes will do almost anything to gain that competitive advantage.

Larry Bird's Book a Must Read

"Bird Watching" gives a tremendous look on the life of former basketball player Larry Bird and his triumphs he went through in order to become one of the best.

Bird was born in West Baden, Indiana. He was very poor and the book does a superb job of explaining his situation. The family made it through, but barely. They didn't have many extra assets in life. The book's first few chapters evolve around this and more background. Bird loved basketball so much, one particular part of the book talks about how he quit the more popular sports in high school in the 1970's, Football and Baseball, to focus more on basketball and become a better player.

This book has a lot of funny chapters and quotes just as any good biography does. It starts out speaking about how Bird attended Indiana University for less than month and went back to the farm where he thought he was going to spend the rest of his life. He then had a scholarship to Indiana State, a smaller university, and went there to play basketball.

Bird's life was funny to follow in the pros as well. In the chapter "My First Year as Coach" Bird spoke about what he would do to the media when he was in Boston. The media were celebrities in Boston, much different than Indiana Bird said. While playing in Boston, he could only handle them one way.

"After a game I'd go back to the trainer’s room and get iced down. I'd drink a couple of beers, wait until everyone else got done, and then I'd go out and sit on this table in the middle of the locker room. I'd answer everyone's questions"

Bird said eventually the media would quit asking questions and let him go. He didn't care either way, they could ask questions all day and Bird would not have mind.

"Bird Watching" wraps up the career of Bird just as much as his story continues when he starts coaching and working with the front office. While the book shows the transition of Bird's life, a reader still won't be lost in the book because the book follows his life and the readers will be able to see that. The only negative about this book remains in the readers who choose to take their time to read it, it is not that long, but some may find it a little frustrating that this book takes out a lot of his rivalry with Magic Johnson both in college and in the pros, but it instead focuses so much on Bird and his life.

"I'm not going to be stupid about this heart condition, but I'm not going to live my whole life in fear of this thing either. If it goes, it goes." This sentence is one of many that will help you understand the determination in Bird and what he went through to be as good as he was. One of the richest athletes of his generation, Bird suffered from Atrial fibrillation but it didn't stop him one bit. And now that his book is out, it seems that he will be around the sport he loves for years.

Weight Cycling, Steroids Play 'Villain' for Athletes

The dream of wearing a Gold Medal is one of the most prestige and hardest dreams to accomplish, but how could anybody deal with the fact of being so close, yet not even being able to compete?

Gary Russell Jr. was one night away from the opportunity to box in the first round of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. Hours before weigh-ins, numerous reports hit that Russell had passed out in his dorm room, lying unconscious on the floor. He was trying to make the weight of 119 pounds. His dream ended before he even had the opportunity to try.

Weight cycling, or yo-yo dieting, has been a long-term issue that many athletes have been dealing with since they were young. In many sports, trainers and coaches ask their athletes to make a certain weight for an advantage in competition. Lately, affects of this are finally being realized.

The dieter may experience loss of both muscle and body fat during this process. The worst part comes after however, as the person is then likely to experience their body gain rapid weight of fat.

Local boxing trainer Galen Brown sees this as a problem, yet it remains the only option for athletes at his gym to try.

"If you don’t do it, you will be in the ring with somebody who out-weighs you by 20 pounds at least," Brown said. "I mean, then you’re talking about a whole (different) situation."

Brown, 30, thinks that the only solution is to try and keep the weight down as the part that is very serious is gaining the weight back so fast. One of his fighters, Steven Johnson, wrestles to get his weight down to 118 pounds as he walks weights around 130.

"Yes, I think it’s a big deal," Johnson said. "The difference between what I do and other fighters are that I just cut out bad food all together and go from there. I get down to 118 easily without starving myself like I did when I was younger."

Johnson, 27, is experienced as he has been fighting since he was 15 years old. He says that weight cycling is one of the worst things an athlete can do to their bodies. Brown agrees.

"I used to do it myself, and look, it doesn’t help," he said. "I heard from every five pounds you lose, you gain one back. I’ve seen fighters lose 40 to 50 pounds."

Another thing people have to take into consideration is the time it takes to drop such a drastic weight. Brown says fighters tend to lose the weight about three weeks before they fight. Some do it even faster. Once, back when he was a fighter, he dropped 20 pounds two days before he fought and the day of the fight he needed intravenous therapy (an I.V.) to hydrate.

"It’s a bad deal, but it’s how I made money," said Brown.

Boxing is not the only sport that puts athletes through this kind of dieting. Even prep sports must take this into consideration. Courtney Caraway, who graduated from Central High School in St. Joseph, Mo, says back when he was in school he would lose 10 pounds the night before weigh-ins by simply going down to the school’s boiler room.

"(We) would jump rope for at least an hour," Caraway said. "But you gotta know, we were doing this without coach knowing." Caraway said the coach did not approve of this, and if he found out, he and whoever was caught would have not been able to wrestle.

So why do athletes feel the need to make a certain weight?

It is a way to get a scholarship and hope to go professional, Caraway says.

"A football player that is bigger, coaches like," Caraway said. "Same thing with a wrestler; if he can make a certain weight and he is good, colleges will want him."

Caraway not only points out a bad situation with weight loss, but athletes must also get bigger in sports which could cause health issues. Many athletes get bigger by taking steroids which, even though illegal, athletes can get very easily.

Former football player Lyle Alzado died at the young age of 43 from brain cancer. He says steroids caused his illness when he talked about it in an issue of Sports Illustrated.

"I started taking anabolic steroids in 1969 and never stopped," Alzado said before his death. "It was addicting, mentally addicting. Now I'm sick, and I'm scared. Ninety percent of the athletes I know are on the stuff."

Alzado said he took steroids so he could play better and stay on the football team. But towards the end of his life, he started to become crazy.

"I became very violent on the field and off it," Alzado said. "I did things only crazy people do." Alzado pointed out to one night when somebody hit his car, he was so crazy he just beat the guy up. Alzado played 15 seasons in the NFL for three teams, but now he is dead.

Steroids, in this case and many others, are not only to play better but to make a certain weight. Alzado said in the interview he wasn’t born to be 300 pounds, but he had to be that weight to play better.

Football players and wrestlers, among other sports, are asking athletes to get bigger, stronger and better so they can excel. Although nobody has been able to really justify steroids playing into an athlete’s death years later, many believe it is the only reasoning behind deaths of heart failure so young.

Eddie Guerreo, former WWE Champion in 2004, died just one year later after becoming World Champion. Found unconscious in his hotel room, Guerrero is just one of many that have died from heart failure.

Without his Gold Medal, Gary Russell still remains a top young prospect in the professional ranks. Since fainting played the role of the villain back in 2008, he now boxes between the weight of 126 and 130. With a professional record of 14-0 with 9 KO’s, he is ranked in the top 100 in the World according to boxrec.com rankings.

But with every Gary Russell there is in the World, there is another Lyle Alzado, another Eddie Guerreo. Even though some athletes are able to get to a weight easier than others, the dieting and stress it puts on athletes cause too many problems. With coaches and trainers being fine with this, maybe there just isn’t a way to stop it.

A Day in the Dungeon

The brick walls do not let light escape. The ceiling fans barely keep air circulating. The ground is durable, yet in the least of ways. The corrosion on the pipes could lead one to think they do not work; no windows, no stairs, a mystery of what is inside; cracks all around desperately in need of filling. All of this, and still 20 somewhat people pile in for two hours or more throughout the night to gear up for what's ahead of them.

Weeks before fight time, people walk into the gym to get the useful material they need in order to improve. Whether that is proper training or just to use the equipment, it's up to the person. The life of a boxer far exceeds the limitations they are dealt. They can be the greatest fighter in the world or just starting out, no matter what, the gym they are at is where it starts and where it ends.

This gym in particular, not too many champions made here. Not too many names will be in the paper for wins or faces on television. They are who they are and they are fine with that. They are raw; they are hungry, but not the most talented bunch of boxers. Nothing that could lead anybody to think this is the famous Kronk Gym in Detroit or Eastside Boxing in Cincinnati. The only stories that are told are between the rounds when the boxers will find themselves chatting from time to time. No pictures on the wall, posters or frames of work throughout the years. They leave that at home, or they possibly don't have any.

Outside has limited parking as many carpool to get there. The parking lot is made up of rocks and pebbles, not enough money to pave it. Some park on grass or on the side street if there is room. The gym expands a great amount, both outside and inside.

Outside, there are boxers running miles down the streets. Inside it is much larger than it appears to be. Six boxing bags are put up in one corner. A few speed bags set up across from that. The ring is one side of the building with mirrors fastened to the walls for the boxers that are shadow boxing. Four or five trainers come in every night to help the boxers out, working pad work with them. For hours, this is home to them.

"Let’s stretch now," the trainer barks. So they stretch. They listen to their trainer. Later on, it gets more intense.

"One-two, one-two," he orders to one young boxer. The fighter is already on his third round of mitt work but that is the very least expected of him. This is just a warm up; tired and sweating profusely he does as he is told. He moves on to the bags and will work there for three rounds before stepping out into the bitter cold. He is about to run.

Perhaps the cold is a metaphor for these boxers, because they are bitter and this is a bitter sport. The more they run the more they are hurting. They want to quit, but quitting is not in their nature. They were born this way or something changed them to make them believe they are superior to everybody else. They are a cocky bunch as they talk each other up. But if one falls, they all feel the same way.

One boxer runs over to the stereo. She yells "this is my song!" She turns it up. There will be blasting music for the next several hours now. This seems to be as loud as a football stadium or if you were standing under an airplane landing. How can one think in this place? If the music isn’t distracting them, nothing will. In fact, this tends to pump the boxers up as they are working harder now. This isn’t the kind of music you will hear on the radio; no Lady Gaga, Black Eyed Peas or Justin Bieber here. This is old school rap, 2pac, DMX and NWA. The lyrics are rough and off beat. The harder the lyrics the harder they train.

No one would think a fighter would ever love a place so dark, so cold and so lonely. The exercises, the hard work that come with this sport, that is pure acceptance to love. They wouldn’t do this if it wasn’t. The only thing that could compare to the work they put in would be a person that works at a steel mill or a stock yard; that would be the equivalent to this gym.

Standing in front of the boxers, it’s like they accidentally stumbled upon this place. Why would anybody put themselves in a situation like this? It’s almost like they were born into this. The smell is awful, yet they are here every week day, sometimes on the weekends. It that makes sense, you then might ask: Why do they stay? What do they love about this old building?

The work is what they love best. The fact that only a handful of people can experience this is astonishing. The old cesspool of a place is great for one that is putting their body through the pain and suffering they get out of this place, in this sport.

The young boxer comes back from running after probably 30 minutes. He takes a sip of water. The bell rings and he grabs a jump rope. He is still training.

‘Heart Man’ Sharing Experience Through Fitness and Sports

If being a devoted, lifetime Dallas Cowboy and Kansas Jayhawk fan isn't enough work, how about adding a part time sports reporter and full time fitness trainer to your resume?

Travis Hartman, 28, was raised in Osborne, Mo and grew up with two brothers around the same age as him. Fights occurred regularly at the Hartman household; still, growing up, Hartman couldn't have imagined his life was going to turn out the way it did.

"Fighting on HBO pay-per-view in front of people like Michael Jordan and so many other super stars; NBA all stars and legends, to NFL players, actors, actresses, R&B singers, comedians; that was my favorite boxing memory," Hartman said.

Hartman is a former professional and amateur boxer that now runs his own boxing and fitness gym on 24th and Union behind the soccer fields at Bode Middle School. Being a former boxer, there is very little he doesn't know about fitness.

"If everybody in the world worked out and cared about their bodies, this would be a better place," Hartman said. "Your body is your temple and you have to take care of it."

Hartman learned the fundamentals of being healthy as a young kid. He started boxing at the age of eight, and while other kids his age were out playing games, he was in the gym working out. While other kids were eating what they wanted to, he had to watch his weight, gaining every competitive advantage possible for when he entered the ring.

"It was hard losing weight, but I had to do it," Hartman said. "It is something that at the time felt so pointless, but looking back, I have no complaints."

Now, Hartman teaches the same discipline to his young boxers that come to Team Hartman Gym, a given 15 a night; women, men, young and old.

"It feels great to know I am helping someone become a healthier person," Hartman said. "I also love teaching kids the discipline of what boxing has to offer. It keeps them out of trouble and prepares them for life. If they can box then there is no challenge in life that they can't conquer or have confidence in approaching."

Hartman is one of the most accomplished amateur boxers in Northwest Missouri. He won the National Silver Gloves Tournament two times. He also went to major tournaments such as the National Golden Gloves and the Junior Olympics; though Hartman's reign in the amateurs fell short of the Olympics, losing in the quarterfinals at the Western Trials in 2004. After that, he knew it was time to turn pro.
"It was always something I wanted to do," Hartman said. "After the trials, I knew it was time."

And so he started his professional career. After six fights, still undefeated, Hartman decided to take a big money fight against the son of boxing hall-of-famer Julio Cesar Chavez. After losing the fight by TKO in round three, Hartman decided to take the route of a journeyman boxer, and take money fights instead of trying to build up his own record.

Now, 28 years old and retired due to a neck injury, Hartman can look back at his career and teach others the do's and don'ts of life. Hartman says there is no other better way to do that than to write about it.

"I like giving people a look from a guy who has been there, done that, so-to-speak," Hartman said. "I think most writers have never competed at a higher level and are strictly writing from the outside, whereas a former athlete can bring you the inside-out if done correctly."

Hartman is a part time sports reporter at the Saint Joseph News-Press, reporting on high school prep sports and boxing events. He runs his gym the nights he is not at work with help from his dad and younger brother. He is a busy man, as he also has his own radio gig on "The Ringside Boxing Show" every Sunday at 4 p.m. There isn't much time for him to rest, but he prefers it that way.

"I love everything about my life; I love my job, my gym, I wouldn't change a thing."

Last Saturday, Hartman teamed up with a group of six from the News-Press and Saint Joe Now Channel 3 and took on their rival competitors, KQ2, at their annual basketball game at Missouri Western. The News-Press won by 20, with Hartman scoring double digits in route to claiming the victory. It's events like these that Hartman lives for everyday.

"It was fun," Hartman said. "I had a blast playing and even more fun winning."

After the game, Hartman gets cleaned up, congratulates the competitors before getting on his cell phone. He is calling work to tell them he is going to be a few minutes late because the game lasted a little longer than expected. It's as if Hartman does not have enough time in the day to accomplish everything he wants.

Still, Sunday morning he will wake up extra early after a long, hard night of work that last until midnight, because the KU game is going to be on; and they are playing Missouri.

"Hopefully (the game) won't go into overtime," Hartman said. "I got to go on air at four."