When Rocky Winstead hears the word “boxing” his ears perk up. Now in his mid-80s, it’s been a big part of his life and he can still make a heavy bag pop.
So, when the Roanoke Times ran an article about a new home for youth boxers on the last day of 2022 it got Rocky’s attention in a big way. He feels he still has a lot to give to the youth in the Roanoke Valley and volunteered to help.
“Boxfit,” a fitness organization run by Roanoke’s Latorie Woodberry, has moved into a large building at the Norwich Park Center in Roanoke. The organization’s goal is to provide fitness training for kids from disadvantaged neighborhoods, but anyone in the Roanoke Valley is welcome, including kids from Craig County. Programs are offered for running, biking, swimming and a little bit of everything, but the main focus is boxing and that’s where Rocky comes in.
“I saw that article in the paper and I feel like I can teach them what I know,” said Winstead. “Boxing is a great way to keep kids off the street. It’s a way for them to get their name in the newspaper for something besides stealing hubcaps.”
Rocky can relate. He grew up with a father who was tough on him and a mother who was very religious. He was a handful in school, dropping out in the ninth grade to join the Marines.
“I did things to get attention, and often times that got me in trouble,” he said. “I would run down the street and hit every mail box along the way. Some lady at church told my mom she saw some fool running down the street hitting mailboxes, and my mom didn’t say anything because she knew it was me.”
Joining the Marines may have saved Rocky’s life, as it introduced him to the “Sweet Science” that is boxing. He went out for the boxing team, and although he didn’t make it on the first try he was persistent.
“They told me to take up tennis,” he said. “But I didn’t quit and made the team in 1959.”
Rocky boxed on the Marine team and was making a name for himself as a talented and respected fighter. He met his first wife when the Marine team competed in Roanoke and bought a house in the valley. However, his life took a turn when he was deployed to Viet Nam in 1967 and was injured, losing a knee cap. After returning home he took to coaching the sport, and at one point trained future heavyweight champ Ken Norton. He served stints as Boxing Coordinator for the Roanoke Parks and Recreation Department, coached some prison teams and put together state competitive amateur teams training out of the Roanoke Valley.
Lately, the sport has had a tough time finding places to train and few kids have taken up the game. That’s why it’s such a big deal that Woodberry was able to access the large pavilion in the Norwich area. It gives kids the opportunity to be introduced to boxing and give them something to focus on.
“We moved in January 1st and we’re still unpacking boxes,” said Woodberry. “We want to be open five nights a week and the program is free, but we need some funding. We’d like to pick up a sponsor.”
Woodberry has been a boxer himself, fighting out of Roanoke. He was an amateur fighter for 10 years and a pro for three years, trained by legendary local trainer Maynard Quesenberry. He knows how the sport can put discipline and focus into young people and build character. When Rocky called him to ask if he could help he was happy to have someone with his experience join the team.
“Rocky has the wisdom and I have the will and energy,” he said. “We make a good team.”
“I feel like I can teach them what I know,” said Winstead. “I can show them what they need to do to turn pro. If we can get guys who are young and strong but don’t know what to do with their lives, we can give them a chance at something.”
Boxing is still a big part of Rocky’s life. You can see the adrenaline flow when he steps up to the heavy bag, even at his age. He can’t jump rope anymore, but he can instruct the kids how to do it correctly to improve their fitness and footwork.
“I tell ‘em if you can jump rope for 15 minutes you can make love three or four times a night,” said Rocky with a chuckle. “A kid went home and told his mother that and she said she was going to get his daddy to start jumping rope.”
Winstead has a paper he distributes with 114 topics about boxing that can he can teach, like “how to box on the ropes,” “how to box in the corner,” “how to spin an opponent without fouling,” “what to eat and when,” and on and on with tips on every aspect of boxing you can imagine. Categories include “Basic Boxing,” “Ring Techniques,” “Boxing Training,” and “Being Mentally Prepared.”
Rocky hauls around items in his van that help him teach, like a mat with numbers on it that he uses to show proper foot work. While he has much experience on the physical side of the sport he also stresses mental toughness, and has some rules that he instills in kids he works with.”
“Number one, you’re always going to have some negative things happen and you just need to flush it,” he said. “Just flush it, the past is the past and it’s not going to change.
“Number two, we all need to work together, all colors. We all bleed red.”
Rocky envisions the program expanding to the point where different areas of the Roanoke Valley have their own teams and have competition.
“If you go back 40 some years we had five different locations where kids could take up boxing,” he said. “Can you imagine if Salem had a team and Roanoke had a team and they boxed each other? We’d have a packed house to see that.”
As mentioned, all kids from 7 to 17 are welcome to attend the Boxfit program, both boys and girls. You don’t have to be interested in boxing to join, just a desire to be physically fit. If you’re interested e-mail [email protected] or call Latorie Woodberry at 540-204-1173.
Rocky Winstead is also interested in having anyone interested in boxing reach out to help, and he’d also like to hear from boxers in the area that he’s worked with. You can reach Rocky at 252-230-4268.
“We need people who really want to help others,” he said. “Kids need something to focus on, and we can make a difference in a lot of kids’ lives with a program like this.”
