The Burbank Boxing Club . . .

By Rick Farrris

In an attempt to stay busy while the actors and producers negotiate a new contract, I stopped by my friend Steve Harpst's Burbank Boxing Club last night, and brought with a young heavyweight prospect.

Harpst, a successful bronze artist who creates the WBHOF's Inductee award, "The Fighter", a foot tall bronze sculpture, has spent more than a dozen years bringing boxing to a town that had nothing of it's kind when I was a kid growing up there, in the sixties. At the moment, Harpst has a complete boxing gym at the Burbank YMCA, and the only requirement for joining is YMCA membership.

The Y's of today have everything you'll find at Balley's Fitness, etc. and in Burbank, they also have boxing. For roughly $50. a month there is full gym membership and boxing on mon-wed-fri from 7-9pm. Steve Harpst is a great coach and shares his experience as an amateur boxing champ who fought out of Arizona. Today, Steve is well known bronze sculptor and sits on the Board of Directors of the WBHOF.

Last night, I visited Steve and his boxers, those who fight for the Burbank Boxing Club. I wanted to see how a boxing coach can successfully teach 40 young boxers at the same time.

I grew up in an "old school" gym, everything was one-on-one with a variety of teachers, who worked with my main trainer. You were exposed to a variety of styles and ideas. We had verteran pros to share their experience, an element that is missing from many contemporary "boxing clubs", however, this isn't true at the Burbank Boxing Club. Steve Harpst knows how to get the most from his boxers, as well as those he enlists to help, always seasoned professional boxing figures including a number of current and former world champions, trainers, cut men, referees and judges, historians, etc.

Steve is friendly with the legends of boxing past, as well as those who rule the ring today, and his friends are only too happy to share a little encouragement and experience with his young boxers.

Steve is a "trainer's trainer" in the area of physical conditioning, and this is one guaranteed benefit of training with the Burbank Boxing Club- If you follow the program, you will reach the best condition of your life. However, If you can box, more important, if your willing to fight, the Burbank Boxing Club is a great place to start your boxing career. Steve takes his hot young talent to all the local boxing shows, as well as nationally and internationally. Recently, his team traveled to Canada to compete against the Candian team.

I've learned from Steve Harpst that it "is" possible to teach a class of forty. There is as much one-on-one attention as one would have with other coaches, who also train other boxers. The proof for me was watching the kids gloved up and boxing. Those who had been with the program a few months had solid skills, skill to win themselves amateur titles, should they take them into the ring. This "old school" guy was impressed.

Steve started from nothing more than a dozen years ago and the built his club up to one of the finest places to learn boxing in town. The boxing gym is currently being moved upstairs to a large fully equipped facility complete with a ring, heavy bags, speed bags, and a state-of-the-art floor for injury-free jumping rope. The features of the Burbank YMCA gym, pool, sauna-steam baths is an added bonus.

I dragged my 57-year-old butt onto the floor and worked out with the kids. I'm glad I never stopped doing this for more than a few months at a time, thruout the years I always did a boxer's workout. I rarely box today, unless working with somebody I'm teaching, but I love a boxing workout, and working with young boxers starting out. I do the workout, hold the pads. Aside from the arthritus in my left hand, boxing is a pain-free activity for me today. I'll let the kids get hit in the face. They're young, it's good for them, teaches them what not to do.

The thing I like about the Burbank Boxing Club is how it radiates everything that is "good & right" about boxing. It's the flip side of the coin. For this I would like to personally thank my friend, Steve Harpst, for doing something I never believed would happen. In reality, Steve is resurrecting a connection to the Golden Age of boxing, a time when Burbank played host to one of the most successful amateur boxing venues in history, the "Jim Jeffries Barn".

The City of Burbank was the adopted home of one of the greatest World Heavyweight Champs, James J. Jeffries, who owned property at the intersection of Buena Vista St. & Victory Blvd. Today, where a "Ralph's Market" now sits, was the spot where Jeffries Barn served as both a boxing arena and gymnasium. In the late 30's and early 40's, Art and Babe Martell successfully sold out their amateur boxing shows in the barn every friday night. The seats were filled with top film personalities, who lived in the San Fernando Valley to be close to both Burbank and Hollywood Studios. Historically speaking, never has amateur boxing in Southern California been more successful than what came out of Burbank's "Jeffries Barn" back in the day.

Perhaps with Steve Harpst reviving boxing in the City of Burbank, the city's rich boxing history will resurface. I have a good feeling that it will. And when that day comes, maybe the city will recognize and honor their greatest boxing legend . . . James J. Jeffries.

I'd like to give credit where it is due, and much credit for the success of the Burbank Boxing Club goes to Steve Harpst's girlfriend, Michele Chong. Everybody familiar with boxing in Southern Cal knows her name, she is hands down the premier L.A. boxing scribe of today, covering every bout, promotion, pro & amateur, every Hall of Fame event from the WBHOF, California HOF and Golden State Boxers Assoc. Michele's incredible energy, and great personality are not only a positive factor in the success of the Burbank Boxing Club, but a gift to all who follow West Coast boxing.