April 1, 1998
Boxing teaches teens discipline, structure and respect for violence
By Garret Leiva
Herald staff writer
Bill Bustance won't try to deny that boxing is a violent sport. Instead, the former professional fighter would freely add the words "hell of" when describing what goes on inside the ring.
But that doesn't mean getting hit by a solid right hook can't be a learning experience. Or that a quick left jab isn't a teaching tool.
For Bustance, owner of Trigger Boxing Club in Traverse City, boxing teaches young competitors a lesson in respecting violence. For many of these teens, the ring also provides an amount of structure to their lives along with a sense of community.
"Boxing teaches these kids to respect violence, that it is nothing to take lightly," said Bustance, a part-time hairstylist who once unsuccessfully petitioned the City of Traverse City to decriminalize marijuana.
"None of these kids have problems going out on the street and getting into fights," he said. "They know we limit all our violence to the ring."
Teaching kids to respect violence and themselves is what Bustance's program is all about. Since opening the boxing club in September, the Williamsburg resident, who himself began boxing at 15 in 1967, has helped train a vast variety of fighters. Some have never put on a pair of gloves before; others are ranked amateurs gunning for Olympic gold.
Training for many consists of learning the do's and don'ts of boxing: slide instead of step, never stop and punch, keep your guard up. An aerobic routine is also part of the regiment, Bustance said, as endurance can make or break a bout in the later rounds.
"Just to hold your hands up for 30 seconds, especially when someone is trying to hit you, is so much harder than people can imagine," said Bustance, who runs his Garfield Road gym five times a week in two-hour practice sessions.
Some of Bustance's students take this training and put it to the test in club fights. Others have even gone toe-to-toe with other amateurs in front of thousands at state-level Golden Gloves tournaments.
There are those, however, that are involved strictly to raise their heart rate. "Some people will never put on a pair of gloves in the ring; they just like the exercise," Bustance said.
Whatever their reason for entering the ring, many teen-agers find a sense of structure and community between the ropes, Bustance said. Calling the boxing gym a "cultural vacuum," Bustance said the sport draws together every sociological group imaginable.
"(Boxing) isn't going to take the place of family for somebody, but if they have any kind of structure or discipline outside the ring, they can use this and do OK in life," said Bustance, who has on occasion taken in a young boxer to live with his family.
One such boxer Bustance has taken in under his wing is Tim Skolnik. The 17-year-old has not only learned how to throw a straight right hand but also how to make wise choices outside the ring.
"He's going to make it the other 22 hours outside the ring. He's learned to make smart choices and build self-esteem from his success," said Bustance, who trains Skolnik, a ranked amateur boxer in the Junior Olympic standings.
For Skolnik, boxing is what he lives and breathes these days.
"It's mainly what my life is all about right now. It's my entire focus," said Skolnik, who fought this weekend in the Golden Gloves in Grand Rapids.
For Bustance, 46, perhaps the greatest lesson taught in this school of hard knocks is not winning or losing but character.
"The neat lesson about boxing is that it seems like the humble kids come in and learn a little confidence while the arrogant ones come in and learn a little humility," he said.