by Travis Partington | May 4, 2018 | Podcast
Episode 91 – Dirty VA Hospital Room
Question of the Week
Question of the Week is why do I crochet? Simply put, I crochet because I made a promise. A listener needed yarn to make hats and gloves for Veterans. I asked a group with Project Linus if they had yarn they could donate.
The group leader said yes if I learned to crochet. The image on the left will be my next blanket. It is a corner to corner blanket. I like doing this because it is something to do with my hands. Also the finished product goes to Project Linus (http://projectlinus.org/). I will keep them coming.
The Word
I was interested in the story that broke about a veteran’s father who took pictures of a hospital room that was, in a word, filthy. It is my understanding that hospital rooms are supposed to clean. Looking at the photos it seems that this room was dirty for a while. Stephen Wilson – The Father’s Twitter Page
My question is this. After all the outrage over a Master Sergeant who re-enlisted with a sock puppet on her hand, where is the outrage over this room? Where is the brass coming down hard on this? Where are all the Facebook Veterans who rail against the injustices of the world? Where are they? What are they doing? They would rather make noise over a sock puppet and get two people kicked out of the military than keep the heat on a VA Hospital that services Veterans. I don’t get it. But by all means, get angry over things that don’t really matter.
Upcoming Events
- June 10th, 2018 – #teamdarrah is having a cornhole tournament at the Avon VFW. This is to raise money for Veteran’s Causes
- July 28th, 2018 – Burnouts 4 Veterans will be at it again on July 28th at the Brockton VFW.
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by Travis Partington | Mar 2, 2018 | Podcast
Getting ready for the fight
So if you have been checking on the #teamdarrah Facebook Page – Team Darrah, you know that Michael did not win his first bout. We all had wanted to do a post fight interview because of how big this Brawl for it All 5 match had become.
I met Mike at Red Seal Martial Arts Co., and we sat down to talk. You can hear Shaun training another fighter in the background for the first half of the podcast. Mike looked good, relaxed even. So I wanted to get his thoughts on the fight, what was happening, and the future.
Mike thought he gave a good account of himself. I have said and wrote it, Mike lost, but was not beaten. It seemed like he understood that for his first fight he did about as well as he could. I looked at Michael and thought he was hungrier now than before the fight. He had no doubt about what he needed to do to improve his game. I think it is Army Ranger in him, and his enthusiasm is contagious.
Shaun Schubert, Mike’s coach, joined us and began to educate me as to how Mike did in his first fight. Shaun told me how the amount of time to prepare, Mike’s fight experience, and understanding of the rules were significant challenges to overcome. Shaun was clear that one of the most impressive aspects of Mike’s debut fight was that at no time did he quit.
Shaun talked about his “Rule of One” approach to training Michael and other fighters. There is no cookie cutter that Shaun uses to coach fighters, and I liked how he explained it to me.
The next thing for #teamdarrah is getting ready for Brawl for it All 6 in June. Michael hasn’t taken any time to feel sorry for himself. He had some pizza and has gotten right back on the training horse. Several people have stepped up to sponsor Michael (See list below). Many of these people are Veterans themselves, so it makes sense to check them out and support them because they support their own.
Everyone who watched Mike fight was proud of him and I am honored to get to tell this part of his story. Rangers Lead the Way
From Team Darrah FaceBook Page – Chad (L) & Mike (R)
Team Darrah would like to thank the following people and sponsors
Shaun Schubert – Owner of Red Seal Martial Arts Company and Michael’s Coach – http://www.redsealma.com/
Mike Smith & Dennis Smith – Owners of Shed When I’m Dead Beard Balm – Shed When I’m Dead Beard Balm Facebook Page
363 Rule Clothing – Instagram – @363rule
Ryan Iverson – Owner of Iverson Masonry and Plowing – Brockton, MA
Rich Decotis & Nick Medis – Owners of Lifestyle Vape – http://www.lifestylevapeinc.com/
Robert Gillman & Angelo Padula – Owners of UnWine’d Beer and Wine Lounge – Unwine’d Beer and Wine Facebook Page
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by Travis Partington | Feb 19, 2018 | Blog
Chad (L) & Mike (R) getting ready to face off
Saturday was go time for Michael Darrah. The Soldier, Army Ranger, husband and father said he was going to step into a ring having never done it before. He did.
I went to Warwick last night to check out Brawl for it All 5. There is some who would say that the boxing scene is dead. After last night, I think that there are some hard working talented athletes and trainers who made the trip worthwhile. These are dedicated, talented people.
Mike was the last card before the main event. He and Team Darrah came out to the “Lion Sleeps Tonight” with flags waving and the crowd loved it.
Speaking of crowd, all I saw was “Team Darrah” shirts and swag everywhere. A big shout out to Mike Smith, who worked behind the scenes to promote and sell tickets. Also it was cool to hang out with Matt D, who is considering following Michael’s footsteps. Good stuff.
Chad and Mike faced off and people around me were like, “Who is this guy?” I was like, “Mike has never fought before, ever…” People started to look at this fight differently.
I don’t know much about boxing. So I respect the hell out of the dedication and effort it takes to get into the ring much less go the distance. Putting my spin on the fight won’t count for much here. All I will say is after watching multiple boxers go down in the first or second round, it was bad ass to see Mike go all three rounds.
In the end, he lost the match by the scorecard, and like that it was over. I walked up to him and saw that he was literally covered in sweat and blood. Some people say it, some people sing it; however, here was a man who walked his talk. So while he didn’t win the match, I will never say that he was beaten.
You made all of us proud Michael. Glad to have met you and let’s train or go riding soon.
by Travis Partington | Feb 16, 2018 | Podcast
Episode 80 – Team Darrah
Mike and Shaun talking before the training session.
My producer, Sinista1 aka., Keith Hayes hits me up and says I want you to contact this guy who is fighting in a couple of weeks. Michael Darrah is an Army Airborne Ranger Veteran, and has a good story. TeamDarrah was getting ready for Brawl for it All, Saturday February 17th at the West Warwick Civic Center. Brawl for it All 5 – February 17th 2018. Family honor is at stake here, but also something more.
I got a hold of Michael and we set a meet. He wanted to introduce me to his instructor, Shaun Shubert. Shaun is the founder and owner of R.E.D S.E.A.L Martial Arts Company located in Lakeville, MA. (http://www.redsealma.com/). I like going mobile, so I was pumped to get there and check this all out.
The first thing I notice when I walk into Red Seal is there is not so much a wrapper on the floor of the gym. All the equipment is staged, cleaned up and ready to go. There are other places where I can’t say that at all. It tells me that the owner, and his students take care of gym.
Mike arrived and we said our hellos. I was looking forward to meeting him. I had been following some of his progress on Facebook and he wasn’t what I would consider the typical fighter. He had just started this, was in my age range, and time to prepare was short. My initial impression was changed when I watched Shaun put him through his paces. This was different than some TV shows I watched about fighting. There wasn’t any yelling or screaming, just a student and instructor working together. I got tired just watching him train. Mike is a beast! I think that he really lives the Army Ranger way….
After the session, Mike and Shaun sat down to give me some background on why Michael was fighting and Shaun’s approach to training students. There is a lot more to Michael’s story, and I hope to get to talk to him again. For now, check out the podcast, and take the drive to West Warrick Saturday February 17th.
If you are looking for a different type of fight training, then get with Shaun at Red Seal Martial Arts Company. He trains all ages and types of students. I can’t wait to see #TeamDarrah roll heavy. I kidded Michael about being in the Army, but we all know Rangers Lead the Way.
This is just the warm up……
155 Millennium Circle, Lakeville, MA 02347 – (774) 259-9258
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