Well what a year, our anniversary and probably the best year we have ever had. The fighters have been absolutely amazing and its been a fantastic privilege for me to be in the corner with Mick and Trix to witness so many wicker camp victories. How many champions have we got now?, that many I have lost count a long time ago (something to do with getting smacked in the head a lot lol) having so many champions and good fighters that keep winning to me means only one thing that Mick Mullaney is without doubt the No.1 Thai boxing trainer in the country and has been for a good few years now (round about 30 to be precise) but as they say behind every good Thai boxing trainer is a bloody good female Thai boxing trainer and Trix March fits that bill superbly having trained thousands and thousands of juniors to the very highest standard in the world and many of them have gone on to be adult champions i.e. Imran Khan, Chilli, Thomas and of course many junior champions too.
Not only are they fantastic trainers, but they are also fantastic friends to anyone who pops there head round the door and joins the wicker camp. I’m sure you will agree with me when you join wicker camp you join a very special family the atmosphere and friendliness down at the gym is second to nowhere else. I have been there for a lot of years now and Mick and Trix have done so much for me and hundreds of other students way above and beyond just being instructors, it's awesome. So I guess what I’m trying to say is Mick and Trix I love and respect you and would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for the last 30 years of wicker camp and look forward to the next 30. Wow we are going to have some amazing champions to come.
If like me you are proud and humble to be a member of the very best Thai boxing club in the world please take this opportunity to leave a few words to two of the best people I know .Also i would like to to say thanks to all the instructors that also do loads for the gym cheers love you all; West, Dan, Lee ,Daz ,Helene, Ali ,Sam ,Imran, Paul
15 comments:
I only came across Wicker Camp earlier this year, and definitely feel like I'm part of the family. In such a short space of time, Mick has become a great friend and teacher. I thank him and Trix for their open-mindedness and allowing me to be a part of such a great place. I'm honoured to have been a student in this fantastic 30th anniversary year.
I have been a member of Wicker Camp for 1 year this month and it has really made a big difference to my life. Not only have I got fitter, more confident, and learnt a hell of a lot but I have gained loads of great friends and have been welcomed into a very friendly Thai boxing club!
Everytime a fighter goes in the ring they prove what a great club Wicker Camp is, and to what high standards they are trained!
Mick & Trix are 2 of the nicest people I have ever met and I have so much respect and praise for them both, and that also goes for all of the instructors and all of the students I am now good friends with!
Keep up the good work!
Think Uncle Pete has hit the nail on the head there and I can only echo his sentiments.
We have had a fantastic year, another very successful Octagon show, Daniel, Imran, Mehdi, Helene, Dave K all winning titles (plus the numerous titles won by our team of very skilled Junior fighters – can’t remember most of their names but know I’ve tormented probably all of them from time to time), many many students partaking in Inter clubs at home and at other gyms proving the future of the Wicker Camp fighting tradition is going to be very strong indeed, a great day of team sparring to celebrate our 30 years as one of the greatest gyms within the UK (if not the greatest) and hopefully a night of more celebration with faces from Wicker Camps past & present.
I guess the titles held by our gym and the quality of it’s fighters are a testament to the hard work and knowledge put into the gym by Mick and Trix and the team of instructors, but there is also another side to the gym, which Pete has already mentioned, that outsiders and other gyms will never see.
I can remember my first class and my first few months of training, how I was in awe of and a little scared of the fighters and the more advanced students, how I made friends with other beginners and found new training partners as I progressed through the grades – 12 years on and some of those scary people and those beginners I shared my first few classes with are still there. I have met and shared experiences and good times with a hell of a lot of people within Wicker Camp over the years, many have left and I no longer see, some find that they can no longer train that often but pop in every now and again and some I see almost every day.
I, like other fighters, have literally shed blood (‘owch! My fudkin nose..’), sweat (Do your training clothes smell like a rabbit hutch?) and tears (‘But Mick I’ve got my ironing to do…’) in our gym, and through it all I have been surrounded by people that share my experiences, that do their best to help me (and everyone else) and will do what ever they can to make me feel better and genuinely care while they do it. No matter who you are or what your expectations are, when you walk through the door at Wicker Camp you will forge friendships and relationships with the people you meet, some may last a few months but some will last for years. Every person that comes up that staircase brings something with them to Wicker Camp and it is that which makes it so special, I for one feel lucky to be part of such a fantastic gym, to have met the people I have and for being allowed to contribute to what we all share.
On a personal note I would just like to say thank you to the people that have forged me (with their love, the encouragement, their effort, their questions and their constant piss taking ;-) ) and the others around them into the people we are today, and becoming some of the best friends anyone could ever want – Pete, Daniel, Lee, Imran, Daz, Christian, Thomas, Helene, Mehdi, Sam, Ali - Love you all. And to Mick and Trix – thank you ever so much for what you have given me and countless others, words on an Internet forum could never fully explain how much you mean to us all. Sorry if I’ve forgotten anyone didn’t mean to but I wrote this in a rush at work. Anyhow better go before they fire my ass.
West
This is probably not going to be as eloquent as everyone else's posts, but here goes. To anyone out there who is thinking of going to Wicker Camp and is slightly apprehensive of doing so because you think you won't be as good or as fit as everyone else and it will be full of big scarey blokes, don't be. I too had all these feelings as I came up the stairs of the gym. Instead what I found was a truly warm, welcoming friendly place, where a massive variety of people go to enjoy a sport they love. Wicker Camp has become like a second home to me and everyone down there like a another family. I've made so many friends down there and had such a good laugh, that I'd recommend anyone to give it a go. You may find it's not your thing or, like me, find a sport you truly love doing and some of the nicest people I've ever met.
Of course all of this is because Mick and Trix and the other instructors have made it the place it is. I'd just like to thank Mick, Trix and all my friends at Wicker Camp for making me feel part of somewhere so special.
Love
Georgina
I used to come to Wicker Camp with the Uni club when I was a student and now ive got a job ive been a member for a few months. Id like to thank Mick and Trix for a fantastic camp and for making me feel so welcome straight away. The other students and instructors are great with their no attitude approach. This is a thankyou to everyone who makes Wicker Camp the best place to train from me and from my friends who cant train anymore (Owen and Jon the old president and treasurer of the University Club, they pass on their congratulations to Mick and Trix for their 30 years of fantastic work) Heres to a few more years of great fun for me and for everyone else at Wicker Camp.
Alex
I only joined wicker camp july ealier this year and as soon as I finished my first lesson I knew I'd definitely be back.
Mick and Trix made me feel so welcome and so did the instructors.
Everybody at the camp is so friendly, I haven't got a bad word to say about anyone.
Wicker Camp has without a doubt made me alot fitter and stronger.
Going to watch the matches has been great..it gives you a reel insite to what you can achieve.
Like I said, I have only been at Wicker Camp since July and yet made so many close firends. Having gone from training one day a week to four it has definitely become part of my life.
The only regret I have is that I didn't join sooner!!
Thanks alot Mick and Trix
Take Care
Alex x x x
Uncle pete said everything I feel. On a personal note, Wicker Camp has given me opportunities beyond all my expectations. I'm glad I looked in the yellow pages 15 years ago - I dont know where i'd be otherwise.
Love lee chesters.
I've been associated with wickercamp for most of my life.
I don't think this would have happened were it not for Mick and Trix. Thanks for your enduring friendship.
Thanks also to all the instructors and students for being such great people to train and learn with.
Ali
We have been members of Wicker Camp for 11 and 6 years respectively. We can honestly say that Mick and Trix have been like second parents always supportive and encouraging not only in Thai Boxing but also in our personal lives as well. We couldn't have achieved what we have so far and what we hope to achieve in the future without your commitment and belief in us. We thank you so very very much for being there and are proud to be part of what is the Wicker Camp family. All our love to you both Jordan and Jaz.XX
It's been great to reading all the kind and richly deserved comments for Mick n Trix and is a true measure of their integrity.
I started going down to the gym in May with my son and would like to place on record, my many thanks and gratitude for their warm welcome and continued support.
If anybody reading this is contemplating taking up Muay Thai then The Wicker Camp is the place to be, with it's warm and friendly atmosphere, top coaches (thank you and respect) and good facilities.
This is home to beginners and going right through to Domestic, European and World Champions with consideration afforded to everyone. This is full credit to Mick n Trix.
I consider myself very fortunate to be a part of The Wicker Camp Experience.
Congratulations on your 30th Aniversary and wish you all the very best for the future.
Thank you Mick n Trix.
Best wishes Mark
Pete and everyone you said it all, Mick and trix have help me and others no end, i dont what or where id be if it wasnt for them giving me and so many others opportunities that have changed ours lifes. I love you Mick & trix, and everyone at wicker camp, Thankyou for everything.
I was a member back in 2000 for a couple of years before I moved away. Thanks to Mick and Trix I learnt a lot about the sport and myself and even started training 5 times a week, it became addictive and my second home!
I have since trained in gyms in Australia and New Zealand but nothing compares to the authentic experience that Mick and Trix offer to every student that walks through their door.
Even though I have moved to the other side of the world I still miss Mick, Trix and the Wicker Camp.
I just want to say thanks to them both, and also all the the instructors too (Lee, Pete, Christain, Ali etc etc) it seems there are a lot of you still there which speaks volumes!
Catch you next time I'm in the country.
Love Claire.
Reading that I miss you all more than ever! I'm reminded of how difficult it was to move away! Mick, Trix and everyone at Wicker are amazing... I can only reiterate what's already been said about the positive role models they are and how much they've done for me and for so many others. I may not be able to be in the gym every day now, but when I frequently catch myself daydreaming about sparring or padwork I know that I'll always be a part of the camp and it'll always be a part of me. No one can take that away from the literally thousands of people who's lives you've touched. I'm so proud to have worn the Wicker camp colours and to have represented you in the ring and in front of your students.
Mick, Trix and everyone at Wicker, I love you to bits!
See you all soon.
Much love
Sam
I joined Wicker Camp in Mid-september of this year, but I feel as though I have been going there for years. There is a warm welcoming familiarity the second you walk through the door. None of the pretentiousness or intimidation that is often so prevalent in a typically male orientated sport. It is a community in itself.
What more can be said about Mick and Trix? No one could ever wish to meet to more genuine lovely people. Mick Mullaney is a Tea Tree!!! To be taught Muay Thai by someone who exudes such passion and respect for the sport is truly inspiring and motivating. Both Mick and Trix clearly believe equally in each and every individual that walks up those stairs. When people invest such belief and trust in others previously unattainable heights can be achieved, there becomes no limits. I dont think they will ever fully comprehend just how much they do and give to people in so many spectrums of their lives.
I know that I am very lucky to train it such a special place surrounded by champions. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I love being a member of Wicker Camp it means so much to me, it holds my balance. XX
Coming to Wicker Camp a few years ago when i came to Uni i didnt know what to expect. I had heard good things about Wicker Camp, but it was only when i joined that i realised what an amazing place it was. It seemed a bit daunting being a softy southerner coming to Sheffield but I can honestly say i was made to feel right at home at the gym, and in a short time it felt like an old friend. Even though uni didnt allow me to train as much as i would have liked, it was always great to come back to after being away from, and made me realise how much thai boxing had become a apart of me. Mick and Trix are two amazing people who I see as friends as well as my family in Sheffield. Through them, all the other instructors and members at the gym I really feel part of a strong community, which has persuaded me even after graduating to remain in Sheffield and continue my training!! Thank you both for believing in me x
i started training in 2001 and truely loved it. I can remember watching the fighters and thinking "i wanna be like them" I was in ore of trix and couldn't believe how nice and down to earth she was. Both of them in fact. they are two of my best friends and has i've said before mick is the only other man i trust other than my dad. To be a wicker camp fighter is a amazing experience and to be a champion is more than i ever dreamed of. mick and trix gave me that opportunity and for that i will be forever greatful. i love all the lads and to say we all don't fight as much as some people think were supposed to we still dominate the rankings. thank you again for helping me to believe the impossible x
We both feel that our lives are richer for having our beloved Wicker Camp. It is the best thing that we've ever done and we are both proud to say we are from wicker camp and Mick is our Arjarn.
On a final note, how cool is Roo!! The newest addition to our family
Love Jenn & Helenexxxxxxxxxxxxx
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