Ring Magazine Feature Piece at Ring by JCA

[Juan C Ayllon]

Hey,

To my surprise, on Friday, David Diaz told me this was already online. It's a feature piece I wrote up recently that will be coming out in Ring Magazine in October:


Ring Magazine Feature Piece on David Diaz

Let me know what you think.

Cheers,



Juan C. Ayllon

[iskigoe]

Great work Juan

I think old Hype would be proud the Ring carries on with writers like yourself

Igoe

[Juan C Ayllon]

Thanks, Igoe!

I hope you have a terrific week!

Cheers,



Juan

[JakeNDaBox]

Nice work Juan. I always found it funny that Diaz upset Judah to make it to the Olympics and that the two have spent nearly their entire pro careers underachieving.

I never really cared for Diaz, and some of the quotes in your article helped reaffirm my thoughts on him. But overall, your piece helped me appreciate his career a little bit more, which is almost always a sign of a job well done by the author.

Keep up the great work, and congrats once again on getting published in THE RING.

[Juan C Ayllon]

Thanks, JakeNDaBox,

I appreciate that!

I actually enjoy Diaz a lot. In addition to being a hard worker, he's a heck of a guy.

And, interestingly enough, his was my first official interview for the CBZ Newswire. I interviewed him to meet my prefight interview requirement before watching him fight about two and a half years ago in December. I think he fought Frankie Sanchez or someone like that.

I still remember fumbling around with this large piece of yellow legal pad paper shaking in one hand and the tape recorder in the other as I asked him question after question in a room adjacent to the main gym area at JABB Boxing Gym for the weigh-in. I was pretty nervous, but David was very cool about it. Moreover, he's always been very accomodating when I call or visit with him.

I find it fittingly ironic that he's now the WBC Interim Lightweight Title holder now. It couldn't happen to a nicer or harder working guy.

Cheers,



Juan

[GorDoom]

Juan:

All I can say is I'm really proud of you. You started with the CBZ as a novice fight reporter & now your in Ring Magazine.

You've come a long way, young man & you should be proud of yourself also.

One question though: Now that the big time boxing mags want your stuff, I sure hope you ain't gonna leave the CBZ. You are a very important cog to this lash-up of ours ... & it just wouldn't be the same without you.

CONGRATULATIONS!

GorDoom

[Juan C Ayllon]

Thanks, Bucket! I truly appreciate it.

By the way, I have no intention of leaving the CBZ. Sure, it's fun getting featured in Ring and all, but this is my "home" on the Internet. I've made more friends and contacts in writing for the CBZ than I'd ever imagined.

I'm amazed, for instance, that I got a chance to interview Roberto Duran on the telephone. And at such great length! This is a guy I'd watched as a kid and have often considered THE BEST lightweight champion in the history of boxing.

Other highlights include: chatting on the phone or hanging out with guys like David Diaz; visiting with Lamon Brewster several days before his bout against Andrew Golota; visiting Fres Oquendo's house and getting asked by his wife Stacey to come by for dinner sometime in the near future when they get more moved into their new home; chatting with "Macho" Miguel Hernandez or David "The Weezel" Estrada countless times; losing 30-plus pounds with "The Weezel's" help; smoking cigars at Pat Doljanin's house; catching TV bouts with Oscar Bravo and Rita and Mike Figueroa; getting treated to drinks and/or dinner by promoters Octavius James and Dominic Pesoli; and much, much more! It's all been wonderful.

Thanks for providing me with such a wonderful opportunity!

Cheers,



Juan

[Juan C Ayllon]

Here are some cool pics at Fres Oquendo's house from several weeks ago:










I shot them when I came out to do an interview with Fres, a portion of which will appear in this week's Carol Stream Examiner.

Cheers,



Juan

[TKO Tom]

Congratulations Juan.

I'm not going to read the piece yet because I'm a subscriber to the magazine and I want to wait to see it in print with all the pictures and the glossy pages.

Congrats my man, you should be very proud of yourself and I know everybody here at the CBZ is very proud of you.

Tom Stewart

[Juan C Ayllon]

Thanks, Tom! I appreciate that.

By the way, Nigel Collins edited my piece a lot more than I'd have liked. To make for a more narrative flow, he omitted a lot of particulars I included in there regarding his career. No doubt, it's smoother, but it really changed the nature of the piece.

Essentially, the introduction and concluding paragraph, along with some of the narrative was courtesy of Nigel Collins. He punched it up a bit, but in the process, it read more like something you'd typically find in Ring. Honestly, I was a bit disappointed. I don't want to sound like someone else. I want to sound like Juan Ayllon.

You know what I mean?

Writing with word count limits is definitely a challenge for me. My tendency right now is to try to pack too much information in with a minimum of narration. I kind of like it more that way. I'm wrestling with finding a balance with the dictum, "Show them, don't tell them."

Anyways, I'm just beginning to expand my writing repetoire. It's been a little over two and a half years writing for the CBZ. On Thursday, I'll be meeting with the editor of The Carol Stream Examiner to look at possibly doing more work for them. Apparently, they're running a piece today that I wrote on Fres Oquendo, who lives in Carol Stream.

Also, next Tuesday, I'll be starting a class on expository writing, as I am beginning work on a Masters in Writing program at National Louis University. I would really like to get into more freelance work, write some books and perhaps some screenplays down the line.

In terms of writing, I feel I'm in the minor leagues. However, I've got aspirations to go world class and really develop into a well-rounded writer.

Thanks for the encouragement!

Have a great day,



Juan

[Juan C Ayllon]

FYI,

Here were my first and last paragraphs that were changed:

First Paragraph

‘Good things happen to those who wait’ could well be David Diaz’ mantra, who at age 30 on August 12th, 2006, won the World Boxing Council’s Interim Lightweight Title with a thrilling, come from behind stoppage victory over Jose Armando Santa Cruz at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas.

Last Paragraph

Reflecting on the 10 long years it took him slogging it out in the trenches to get to the top, Diaz said the key was, “you’ve just got to be patient enough and good things will come.”

[GorDoom]

That's exactly why I stopped writing for Rolling Stone in '69. I'd send in a piece & they would chop it up so much I could barely recognise it.

We make a point with our magazine NOT to chop up a writers piece. Just fix the typos, spelling etc.

I got so frustrated with Rolling Stone that I quit writing for almost 20 years because I knew all magazines did that.

GorDoom

[Juan C Ayllon]

Wow. I can relate.

Last Friday night at Cabs, after Diaz, Oquendo and the rest of the party had left and a couple glasses of wine later, my brother, Luis, and I went up to his office to find the posted Ring Magazine piece. I was stunned and more than a little annoyed when I finally read it.

In reading it again, I also noticed they changed the phrasing of the quotes a little here and there in order for it to read more smoothly. Oh well!

Anyways, gotta run!

Cheers,


Juan

[smallon]

Juan - it's happened to me at Ring and also in a couple of other magazines. Sometimes I don't mind and sometimes I do. Ring is very particular about how articles come across but I've been happy to write for them so far. I've got another piece on Chartchai Chionoi coming out in the October ediition but I've waited to submit it as I want one more interview with Chartchai and I'm waiting for him to come to Bangkok.

[Juan C Ayllon]

Thanks, Smallon! And welcome to the board!

I'm fairly new to writing for magazines and newspapers, and it's been an eye-opening experience thus far.

As to Ring's particular expectations, I got a better feel for that this afternoon, when I received an email from Nigel Collins. That's cool.

I hope you have a great evening,


Juan

[iskigoe]

Juan


Keep this in mind. To be a writer for the Ring is the "The Top of The Game. If your lucky 50 yrs from now someone in you family will be googleing you trying to read all you wrote. They won't care if you got edited. They will be blown away by your achievements.

SAVE EVERYTHING! someday they will want to know. Make it easy for them. Shit! an email from Nigel Collins too cool. Some day some will be thinking my goodness he knew them all! Keep it up, writers are a lucky breed they get to meet all the people the rest of just read about.

Iskigoe

[Juan C Ayllon]

Thanks, Iskigoe! You're right, of course.

I just got back from a quick run and, slouching on my chair effused in sweat, I found your email very encouraging. In fact, you made my evening!

The right perspective makes all the difference in the world.

Anyways, I'm going to take a shower, do a little reading and get some sleep.

Thanks for the encouraging words, my friend!

Warmly,


Juan

[fightgirl99]

Congrats Juan! Isn't this the 2nd time you have had something in RING? How cool is that!

[Juan C Ayllon]

Hi Rita,

Thanks! Actually, I've had another one or two: the first was a piece on JABB Boxing Gym in Chicago, as per request from Bernie Bahrmasel, then I did a fight report or two for them.

I may be doing a report on Adamek-Briggs on October 7th--they'll let me know.

Also, I'm pushing for another feature piece which I'll let you know about if I'm successful.

By the way, the Carol Stream Examiner ran a piece I did this Wednesday, which I posted up at the CBZ Newswire page with their permission. It's on Fres Oquendo:

Soccer Mom Article

I met with the Examiner's editor yesterday and he wants me to do other feature pieces. For instanace, they want me to do a piece on a local elderly writer of some notoriety with ALS, Louis R. Schavie. Here's something they forwarded me on the guy:

> PublishAmerica Presents The Big Horn Incidents by Louis R. Schavie
>
> Frederick, MD August 30, 2006 -- PublishAmerica is proud to present
> The Big Horn Incidents by Streamwood, Illinois author Louis R.
> Schavie. The Big Horn Incidents is a story about a majestic place,
> nestled in the valley of the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming. It’s a
> guest ranch with log cabins, surrounded by big ponderosa pines. Two
of
> the owners are tenderfoots from the East. The third partner is Jack
> Riley, a cowhand who manages the facilities and activities. The
> tranquility of the ranch suddenly changes when two terrible incidents
> happen. One is ruled an accident, the other a suicide. Riley enlists
> the help of an old friend to investigate the tragedy. The plot
> thickens as the investigation swerves through winding curves, with
> more disasters and victims along the way.
>
> Louis R. Schavie served three years in the Air Force. He was a
> successful barber until diagnosed at the Mayo Clinic with Lou
Gehrig’s
> disease. He changed professions and became superintendent of a
> wastewater facility in Hanover Park, Illinois. Now retired, he writes
> and battles A.L.S. each day.
>
> PublishAmerica is the home of 20,000 talented authors.
> PublishAmerica is a traditional publishing company whose primary goal
> is to encourage and promote the works of new, previously undiscovered
> writers. Like more mainstream publishers, PublishAmerica pays its
> authors advances and royalties, makes its books available in both the
> United States and Europe through all bookstores, and never charges
any
> fees for its services. PublishAmerica offers a distinctly personal,
> supportive alternative to vanity presses and less accessible
> publishers.

Also, if all goes as planned, I'll fly out to cover Fres' fight with Holyfield for the Examiner as a follow-up piece to the "Soccer Mom" article.

Anyways, thanks again!

Will you be at the fights on September 15th?

Cheers,


Juan

[fightgirl99]

That's awesome. Good for you. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy!!!

I will be at the fights the 15th - I'll be working Nora's corner with Sam.

Have a great weekend! Talk to you soon.

[Juan C Ayllon]

Thanks, Rita!

Talk about a nice person. Rita, you're the best!

I will see you soon!

Cheers,



Juan

[fightgirl99]

Hey Juan -

Vince Mendoza just asked if I would go to 25th/California tonight - a place called Jean's Sports Bar. The 2nd eidtion of his Magazine BOXINGWARS is out and he asked some of the fighters to help promote it. David Diaz and Macho are supposed to be there as well. Nora Reyes stated she would be there too. Didn't know of you were interested since it is quite a ways from your place, but letting you know.

Have an awesome weekend!

[GorDoom]

Hey Rita! Don't be such a stranger to the board. I know you have a VERY busy life ... But, you have TONS of fans here on the board. I love having two real, tough as nails, fighters who just happen to be women, posting on this board.

The two women of course, are you & my Northwest homie, Molly. So please don't be a stranger. With all the overflowing testesterone (sp?) gushing in these parts it's always great to hear from you & Molly.

In fact, if you've got some women fighter friends that might be into it, please turn them on to the board.

regards,

GorDoom

[Juan C Ayllon]

Hey Rita,

I'm seriously thinking of swinging out to Jean's Sports Bar a little later on tonight. Right now, I'm waiting on laundry so I can wear something...

Either way, see you soon!


Juan

[iskigoe]

Juan

Did you give the staff the night off?

lol iskigoe

[Ron Lipton]

Great job Juan,

you are one of the best boxing writers out there, thorough, honest, researched well and passionate with great love for the fighters.

with all respect,

Ron

[StingerKarl]

Rita can definitely fight as I have seen her in action.
Good luck Rita, and I am confident she will be wearing a World Championship belt soon.
She fights with heart and passion for the art, and those are two factors that very well may pave her way to glory as far as World Championship status goes in the near future.
Karl

[Juan C Ayllon]

Here's Rita (far right) with David Diaz and Nora Reyes--for whom Rita will be working the corner this Friday night.



Rita signed a few autographs last night, as you can see.



Here she is with her husband, Mike, a terrific guy who is a computer programmer and who also teaches karate regularly.

It was good seeing you, Rita!

Thanks, Ron, for the kind words. And, Iskigoe, I gave MYSELF the night off. Woo-hoo!

Karl, no doubt, Rita is a tough fighter. I hope she brings another title home for Chicago.

Cheers,



Juan

[fightgirl99]

Thanks guys! The support from CBZ is awesome. I do read the threads and news all the time, just don't sign all the time. Sometimes I feel you guys are so much more knowledgeable than I that I just enjoy reading your opinions.

Karl - those words coming from you mean alot - Thanks. I try my best in every fight, and hope to represent myself and the sport well.

It was great to see you Juan. Sorry we didn't stay too late. See you Friday at the fights!

[Juan C Ayllon]

Hey Rita,

It was fun hanging out. Did you catch the bit about David Diaz asking Nora Reyes--who was on a diet for Friday's fight--to pass him a plateful of fried cheese sticks? He really rubbed in the fact that she was on a diet and he wasn't...

Speaking of which, I've been bad about food this weekend! That's gotta stop. I'm also going to try to boost my milage running this week.

By the way, Barbaro Zepeda was sitting at the bar pretty quietly pretty much the whole time I was there. Is he okay?

Anyways, see you on Friday,


Juan