Ringer

Mixed Boxing Story
 
Half-way through college I gained a lot of weight and was out of shape. I
joined a local gym off campus and started to workout, a combination of
weights and cardio. In a couple of months I was in reasonably good shape
and decided to step up my workouts. This particular gym and the reason I
joined has a large boxing area, two rooms...one front room with punching
bags, speed bags, room enough for a light spar and a back room with mats
for stretching and a boxing ring. This is an important point of the
story, the back room is more private, no windows and two exit doors. The
front room has side windows with a clear view to the main gym and visa
versa. I consider myself a pretty good boxer, boxed on an amateur level
in the military, won most of my fights and was never injured vice an
occasional bloody nose. I started to look for volunteer sparring
partners, at this point in time I never would have considered sparring
with a woman but male sparring partners were few and far between. I'm a
big guy and no one would step up to my challenge. One day working out in
the boxing area was a tall good looking lady with a lean hard body a firm
biceps.  Description: my guess 5'8'' 135 pounds, long black hair in a
pony tail and blue eyes. She was hitting the speed bag in expert fashion
and pounded the heavy bag better than most men. I was curious, after
about 15 minutes I walked up to her complimented on her hitting prowess
and introduced myself. To my surprise she already new who I was. "My name
is Kris ####", she said and "I heard you were looking for sparring
partners." I said "that is right" and then said half jokingly, "would you
be interested in sparring with me?" She smiled like the Cheshire Cat and
said "I'd love to." She caught me off guard and it wouldn't be the last
time. I just agreed to spar with a complete stranger, I had no idea what
her boxing background was, won-loss record if any and skill level, etc.
Ah what the heck what damage could a woman do to me and besides she was
personable, attractive and very willing.
 
Kris and I agreed to spar the following Saturday four days hence.
Saturday morning was a morning of peculiarities call it omens. On that
particular morning I woke up in a sweat and had a terrific headache. When
I reached the gym the back room with the ring was closed off due to
repairs therefore Kris and I had to use the more public front room. The
gym requires that we both sign a waiver in case of injury. When Kris
signed I did not bother to check her signature a fatal error because she
used her real surname. Looking back if I had known my erstwhile
opponent's real last name I would have put two and two together and
cancelled immediately. We mutually agreed to 3 rounds and I would fight
in a defensive posture coupled with light punching. There were no
restrictions on her. The final omen a fairly large crowd was gathering to
watch us. I wondered why?
 
We began the match in the sparring area well away from the punching bags.
The first round we just felt each other out. She showed good punching
speed hit me once in the gut and then connected again with a left hook to
the side of the head. No problem, I wasn't winded my heart rate was up a
notch and I was feeling good (The proverbial calm before the storm). In
the second round Kris immediately picked up the tempo, her punches were
faster and more numerous. Her one two combinations looked expert, jabs
followed by hooks, jabs followed by uppercuts. I blocked most of her
punches early in the round but I was beginning to wear out. She was
connecting with more and more punches but I stood my ground. Between
rounds I noticed a huge crowd had gathered watching our spar. Again I
asked myself I wonder why? The final round began like the last round
ended a great flurry of hard punching. I began to punch back hitting her
in the arms and shoulders. At this point in time she caught me off guard
with a hard jab right in the solar plexus. This knocked me off stride and
I began a fatal retreat. Wobbly and weary she backed me into one of the
heavy bags caught me with a left hook to the mush and I fell back into
the bag. The bag swung back then forward hitting me in the back knocking
me forward right into Kris' powerful right hand. I went down and I heard
the crowd cheer. There I was half conscious lying in a pit underneath the
heavy bag swinging back and forth like a pendulum. Edgar Allen Poe would
be proud. Kris came over with a broad smile kneeled down and flexed her
right bicep in triumph. The crowd came in high fiveing Kris and one of
the gym patrons said to me "congratulations you have just been knocked
out by KO Kris ***** What? That's right KO Kris ***** is a gold gloves
champion soon to turn pro." How about that knocked out by a ringer.