A travel agent is swapping fam trips for fight night after signing up for a charity boxing match to raise money for two causes close to her heart.
Becky Walker, who works for Club Voyages under the Hays Travel Independence Group, is preparing to take part in an upcoming event organised by Ultra White-Collar Boxing.
The challenge sees people with little or no fight experience train for eight weeks before stepping into the ring for a three-round bout.
Becky, who has boxed previously but just to keep fit, admitted the prospect of an actual fight is overwhelming.
“People probably think I’m a little bit crazy,” she said. “I’ve boxed on and off as a hobby for a few years as a way to stay fit, but I’ve never actually had a fight before. I’ve never punched anyone and I’ve certainly never been punched in the face, so this will definitely be a new experience.”
Becky said she had wanted to take part in the event for some time but had previously struggled to commit because of her busy travel schedule.
“I travel quite a lot for work so I could never make the training before,” she said. “This time I decided to stay home for a couple of months and really commit to it.”
Participants must attend regular training sessions over an eight-week period before the fight.
“The training is twice a week and it’s pretty intense, but it’s been really good fun,” she said.
“Everyone taking part has to attend at least 50% of the training sessions or they won’t be able to box. There are about 30 men and only three women in our group, so everyone knows who we are straight away.”
Becky spoke to Travel Gossip about the challenge while she was away at the CLIA River Cruise conference in Amsterdam.
“I have been religiously going to training because I knew that I was going to miss three while I was away at the CLIA conference. I get invited to a lot of supplier events too, and I have been unable to commit to them because I have been so focused on my training,” she said.
Becky is raising money for Rotherham Hospital and Community Charity after meeting someone from the organisation through a networking group, as well as Ruben’s Retreat, which supports families with seriously ill children and those that have experienced child loss.
“I’ve done things like skydiving and bungee jumping before, but people know I’d do those for fun anyway, so it wouldn’t really encourage them to donate,” she said. “This felt like something that would really push me.”
Becky co-hosts the podcast Tales of a Travel Agent with Jake Cullum-Hollins, who she met on a fam trip to Jamaica hosted by Palladium Hotel Group. They now release weekly episodes discussing life behind the scenes as a travel agent, and have hosted Travel Gossip CEO and founder Bruce Martin on the ‘Gossip about Travel’ episode.
Walker added: “We share the funny moments, the chaos and the reality of working in travel. There’s always a story.”
To support Becky’s fundraising efforts donate via her online page.
