Isle of Palms Winter-Spring 2018-19

17 www.IsleOfPalmsMagazine.com | www.ILoveIOP.com | www.IOPmag.com sport there was to stay out of trouble. I will say that you have to be very self-motivated and disciplined to be a boxer. It’s you against your opponent, and you had better be ready to know how to take care of yourself when you step inside the ring.” He looked back fondly on his career: “I got to travel all over to various parts of the country. I went to Tennessee, where I was maybe going to launch a professional career. But it wasn’t for me. I started dating, met my wife, got married and had kids, and I left boxing behind.” But not completely. “I still do have a punching bag in my house that I work out on occasionally. I would like to get back into boxing as a coach for young kids. I hope that can happen,” Boyd said. Although far removed from his boxing days, it’s obvious that Johnny Boyd still packs a wallop. “There was Lance Leopold, brothers Steve and Eddie Platt, another pair of brothers, Richard and Todd Ruth, whose father, Richard Ruth Sr., helped coach the team a little. Todd and Jimmy Cole were two other brothers who fought with the club, as well as Tommy McManus from Sullivan’s Island.” Also on the team was Boyd’s younger brother, Scotty, who was a pretty good fighter himself. “We used to box in what were called ‘smokers’ out at the Navy base in North Charleston,” said the older Boyd. “One night my brother and I fought one another, and it turned out to be the best fight of the evening. We went at each other pretty good, and he hit me hard a few times.” In time, boxing lost its appeal to young people in the area. “It’s hard to say why,” observed Boyd. “Soccer started coming on big in the late 1970s. I learned boxing when I was a young kid because my mom wanted me to play every 1485 N. HIGHWAY 17, SUITE B | 843.881.0111 | LOYHARN.COM Free Layaway and Financing Options Engagement Rings Fine Jewelry Jason Harn Custom Designs Jewelry Repair Appraisals Shop local this Holiday Season at Loy Harn Jewelers, Mt. Pleasant’s premier family jeweler for nearly 40 years! Your local source for all ne jewelry, custom designed jewelry, and GIA diamonds. Please join us for our Raymond Mazza Trunk Show November 29th, 2-7pm! Photo courtesy of Johnny Boyd.