Travel Day 13 / Training Day 10

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Well, this is the last Friday training for the trip. Into the countdown now. It’s still amazing how fast the time is going here. Since the afternoon is off, I’m planning to do some shopping, and go to a Muay Thai outlet store. My shorts are starting to look a little ragged. Very expensive online, so hopefully the stores will be more favorably priced.

This morning, the gym was deathly quiet. A beautiful morning with even a nice cool breeze blowing on the walk in. I arrived just about 7:30 and saw Fahlaep had just hosed down the floor mats and was setting up the power washer. Running today started slow, but only took a short part of the first lap to warm up. Today I did 9 laps, and then a couple of sprints at the end, not full out, but at a fair speed. No way I want to risk a pulled hamstring. Jumping today was about 15 minutes again. The morning temperature had warmed up and the sweat was just flying everywhere. Only 3 other people came in this morning, so the pad rounds went pretty quickly. I am still doing the series of 10 punches, kicks, knees and teeps, but more and more combinations are being worked in also. I’m going to have to get my video camera charged and setup for next week. Round 2 and 3 were finished up by the 30 seconds of kicking. Today Fahlaep counted and he got 45 right, and 46 left, so yesterday’s count was probably accurate. There were also a set of power kicks left and right to finish off round 1. Round 4 was closed out by body punches, not on me, and with power. Not sure Fahlaep even felt those, but my shoulders sure do feel it now. After pads, there were 4 rounds of bag work and then some weights and sit-ups to round out the morning. Once again, the session went until about 10. Grabbed an iced green tea, my omelette, and hit the road to the hotel. After eating and showering, it’s quite comfortable just sitting here. Many things to do before heading back to the gym, and then to Lumpinee for the fight tonight.

No afternoon workout today, and it felt good to really not workout, eventhough I had been planning it since Wednesday. I did find the PRIMO outlet. It was halfway between BTS stops, and like the Boon outlet store, it was tough to find. The maps app on the phone is ok, getting me to the general area, but it didn’t find the business when I typed it in. I almost walked by it because the only thing i could see in the windows were stacks of cardboard boxes. I tried the door and poked my head in, and it was the right place. These seem to be the preferred gear for Eminent Air. The clothes look to be good quality but the cost is a bit more. Probably worth it because the ones i bought from the shop near the Nana BTS just last year are starting to fray. With the exchange rate, the shorts were about 30% cheaper than online. Might have to go back if I can find time. Arrived at the gym a little before the meeting time of 6, and had to wait for another American who trained in the afternoon, and wasn’t nearly ready. Traffic was terrible and the new Lumpinee very far. It’s west of the main airport, where the hotel and gym are east (assuming my sense of direction is correct), and nearly at the second airport. It took about an hour using the taxi driver who lives near the gym. He stayed for the fights, so we had a guaranteed ride home. The Eminent fighter wasn’t on until around 9:15, and sitting on the concrete bleachers wasn’t the most comfortable, but the tickets were free. These fights weren’t the typical Muay Thai style. They were 3 rounds and used the 4 ounce gloves. That means lots of KO’s and potential for broken hands too, from what I was told. Most of the early matches were all knockouts, or TKO’s. The winner received a 350000 baht bonus for a knockout. That sounds like a fortune, but when you convert it to dollars, it’s still a good amount of about $10000. The fight was a good one, but didn’t last the full 3 rounds. The Eminent fighter won by knockout. He caught his opponents kick and then landed a massive right hook to his head, and that was that. Fight over. Because it was so late, we left after the fight, but waited outside for pictures. We ended up running into most of the people who have been training at the gym over the past 2 weeks, at least that I’ve seen. There were lots of pictures taken and everyone was very happy for the win. I didn’t arrive back at the hotel until late, and it was nearly midnight by the time I was in bed. That doesn’t give me confidence for tomorrow morning training….

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Photos

Lumpinee Stadium
This is the new stadium. It is very far from the old Lumpinee park

Entering the ring area
A little bit of WWE wrestling here with the way they enter the ring. Done for the cameras.

Winner!
After being announced the winner, taking a little victory lap. He’s 26 and I think his record is now 33-6.

The gangs all here!
There were many individual pictures taken, and ones with his family. At the end, everyone crowded around for a final picture.