Loess Hills boxers prepare for Silver Gloves tournament
Don Harrold, Executive Editor
editor@enterprisepub.com
Young boxers from Loess Hills Boxing Club near Missouri Valley are preparing to compete in the Silver Gloves state tournament in Des Moines in December, with an opportunity to advance to regional and national competition.
The club will compete during the next three months in preparation for the state tournament, which is hosted by Southeast Des Moines Boxing Club, Mike Brinson said.
If the boxers win at state, they advance to the regional tournament in Ottumwa. Brinson said the region includes Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Illinois and Wisconsin. Regional winners advance to the national tournament in Independence, Missouri, in early February.
Among the boxers Brinson expects to compete is 17-year-old Adriel Roque, who has trained with him since he was 7. “Adriel is extremely fast,” Brinson said. “Probably one of the fastest upper body boxers I've ever trained. His ring vision, his skill is unprecedented. But he's been training for 10 years too.”
Brinson also identified 8-year-old Maverick Crowder and 12-year-old Trenton Savage among the club's young boxers. “Maverick, I could absolutely see going all the way to nationals,” Brinson said. “He is extremely tough.”
Savage fought last month and lost by split decision. “He's gonna do very well, seriously,” Brinson said.
Loess Hills Boxing Club has been open since August 2025 and is located about 3 miles east of Missouri Valley on 315th Street. Brinson said it is currently the second-largest boxing gym in Iowa. The nonprofit club does not charge participants. “I didn't get charged as a kid, and I don't wanna charge other people,” Brinson said. “We take donations. We're a 501[c][3] nonprofit. But we don't charge a dime.”
Brinson began the Council Bluffs Boxing Club in 2012 after his son became involved in boxing. “My son got into boxing. That's why I started the gym, was for my son,” Brinson said. “He was being bullied in school, and I just wanted to do something to help him get going.”
Brinson said he has coached 66 Silver Glove and Junior Olympic state champions, 11 regional champions, four national champions and one Ringside World Championships winner. He was named Coach of the Year in 2018.
The Council Bluffs gym closed in late 2019. Brinson later moved to Harrison County, where he built a house and gym. The current gym includes a boxing ring and about 12 heavy bags. Brinson works for the railroad and runs the boxing program with his wife. The nonprofit also has a board that includes Scotty Crowder, Ellie Reed and Gina Roque. Reed serves as vice president.
“We try to help at-risk youth as much as possible,” Brinson said. “And of all of the kids that I've ever trained, only one didn't graduate high school. We help them with any educational stuff that they need.”
Brinson said his own experiences growing up contributed to his decision to work with young people. “I grew up very, very poor and very rough, and the neighborhood was gang-riddled,” he said.
Brinson said a friend, Mark Rodriguez, helped him get into boxing. Rodriguez has since died, and his name is displayed on the side of the club's building. “I had some bad stuff happen to me when I was a kid and I wanted to let a lot of aggression out,” Brinson said. “Instead of learning how to take it out on my dog or my, you know, the neighbor kid and beat them up, you take it out in the ring, you know? And there's, there's, there's resources for people like us that, that... There's avenues to let that, that anger out, that frustration out, or just to learn how to defend yourself so you're not hurting people.”
Brinson said the club does not tolerate fighting or bullying outside the ring. “We don't allow any bullying. We don't allow any fighting at all,” he said.
He said participants receive individual attention while following the same training routine. “At my gym, everybody gets one-on-one attention,” Brinson said. “We all do the same routine, and I'm on top of everybody working out that night.”
The club is accepting additional participants. “We're always looking for kids to come join,” Brinson said. “The more the merrier, and it's totally free.”
