VANCOUVER's FIREFIGHTERS BOXING CLUB
MY YEARS WITH THE FIREFIGHTER BOXING:
- by brian w. zelley.
It was the Olympic year, so all cards were on the table. For me, I decided to move to Vancouver and join
one of the Vancouver based clubs. I considered three clubs that were of interest:
the East Vancouver Optimists, the Firefighters Boxing Club and the Hastings club.
At the end of the decision process,
I chose the Firefighters under the
direction of Bert Lowes and Pat West.
It would prove to be a good boxing club
withe plenty of experienced boxers and
two active coaches.
*Some of the Firefighters boxers that
would be ready for action in late
1967 and January 1968 would be
Dave Wylie, Frank Scott,
Freddy Fuller, John Gamble,
Alf Cool, Danny Gontes,
Eddie Ostapovich, Nicky Macdonald
and others. And there were other boxers
just starting out such as Gordie Lawson.
The First Fight of the season took place in Richmond and I would face
a win a bout over one of the Richmond boxers. Then as a tune-up and
a selection process for a team of BC boxers to enter the
1968 TACOMA GOLDEN GLOVES, the Firefighters would host a
boxing card in January 1968. The four of us from the Firefighters
that would be in what was billed as four main events inluded:
Freddy Fuller, Brian Zelley, Dave Wylie and Frankie Scott.
But, another surprise would be boxer Jake Wiebe.
THE MANY FIGHTS AND TRIPS -
*Between that first fight in late 1967 until May 1968,
I would be involved in 15 bouts which included
five tournaments in Tacoma, Portland, Vancouver
and Seattle, and numerous club shows from
Richmond to Seattle. Of those five tournaments,
I would be in the finals at the Oregon Golden Gloves,
the BC Golden Gloves and the Seattle Golden Gloves.
For the Seattle Golden Gloves, of 19 BC boxers six of us would
make it into the finals:
SIX IN THE FINALS: Fuller, Findlay, Austin, Zelley, Wylie and Taylor.
BETWEEN SEATTLE GOLDEN GLOVES and the MAY 1968
BC OLYMPIC TRIALS/DIAMOND BELT TOURNAMENT
there would be plenty of clubs shows including two that were six
days apart in Seattle and Victoria.
The Seattle all-star boxing card would feature a lot of talented
boxers. My opponent would be 1968 Seattle Golden Gloves
champion NEIL KNIGHT of Seattle. It was a good bout of
boxing skill and I was pleased to get the decision in Neil's
home town club show hosted by his coach Bob Decker.
Brian Zelley and Neil Knight in an All-Star boxing card
held in Seattle, Washington in 1968.
Six days later it was a club card in Victoria with another
solid bunch of boxers from the mainland and the Island.
After the Victoria show, it would be back to training
until early May when the BC Olympic Trials took place.
Of our long list of boxers that began the journey in
September 1967 until May 1968, the only BC boxer
to make the four man Olympic team was Dick Findlay.
Subsequent to that season, I would stay connected to the
Firefighters boxing club and got a former Nanaimo high
school student by the name of Dan Wright to join the club.
In the 1968/1969 season while attending UBC I would only
have one fight, but would train and help train some of the
other boxers such as Gordie Lawson and Dan Wright.
*But no matter where we are or how far we have come,
we musto all return back to where it all began, so it was
just a matter of time before there would be a fresh start
for amateur boxing in Nanaimo, and the vision of some
and the hopes of others would become a reality in '71.
- by brian w. zelley.
It was the Olympic year, so all cards were on the table. For me, I decided to move to Vancouver and join
one of the Vancouver based clubs. I considered three clubs that were of interest:
the East Vancouver Optimists, the Firefighters Boxing Club and the Hastings club.
At the end of the decision process,
direction of Bert Lowes and Pat West.
It would prove to be a good boxing club
withe plenty of experienced boxers and
two active coaches.
*Some of the Firefighters boxers that
would be ready for action in late
1967 and January 1968 would be
Dave Wylie, Frank Scott,
Freddy Fuller, John Gamble,
Alf Cool, Danny Gontes,
Eddie Ostapovich, Nicky Macdonald
and others. And there were other boxers
just starting out such as Gordie Lawson.
The First Fight of the season took place in Richmond and I would face
a win a bout over one of the Richmond boxers. Then as a tune-up and
a selection process for a team of BC boxers to enter the
1968 TACOMA GOLDEN GLOVES, the Firefighters would host a
boxing card in January 1968. The four of us from the Firefighters
that would be in what was billed as four main events inluded:
Freddy Fuller, Brian Zelley, Dave Wylie and Frankie Scott.
But, another surprise would be boxer Jake Wiebe.
THE MANY FIGHTS AND TRIPS -
*Between that first fight in late 1967 until May 1968,
I would be involved in 15 bouts which included
five tournaments in Tacoma, Portland, Vancouver
and Seattle, and numerous club shows from
Richmond to Seattle. Of those five tournaments,
I would be in the finals at the Oregon Golden Gloves,
the BC Golden Gloves and the Seattle Golden Gloves.
For the Seattle Golden Gloves, of 19 BC boxers six of us would
make it into the finals:
BETWEEN SEATTLE GOLDEN GLOVES and the MAY 1968
BC OLYMPIC TRIALS/DIAMOND BELT TOURNAMENT
there would be plenty of clubs shows including two that were six
days apart in Seattle and Victoria.
The Seattle all-star boxing card would feature a lot of talented
boxers. My opponent would be 1968 Seattle Golden Gloves
champion NEIL KNIGHT of Seattle. It was a good bout of
boxing skill and I was pleased to get the decision in Neil's
home town club show hosted by his coach Bob Decker.
Brian Zelley and Neil Knight in an All-Star boxing card
held in Seattle, Washington in 1968.
Six days later it was a club card in Victoria with another
solid bunch of boxers from the mainland and the Island.
After the Victoria show, it would be back to training
until early May when the BC Olympic Trials took place.
Of our long list of boxers that began the journey in
September 1967 until May 1968, the only BC boxer
to make the four man Olympic team was Dick Findlay.
Subsequent to that season, I would stay connected to the
Firefighters boxing club and got a former Nanaimo high
school student by the name of Dan Wright to join the club.
In the 1968/1969 season while attending UBC I would only
have one fight, but would train and help train some of the
other boxers such as Gordie Lawson and Dan Wright.
*But no matter where we are or how far we have come,
we musto all return back to where it all began, so it was
just a matter of time before there would be a fresh start
for amateur boxing in Nanaimo, and the vision of some
and the hopes of others would become a reality in '71.
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