Find 2 hours where you can sit by your computer and listen to Bas Rutten and Joe Rogan talk about the old days of Pride as well as Bas' incredible stories from Holland, Japan, the UFC etc. I'd love to see Bas added as a 3rd mic on UFC broadcasts. (or we could just get rid of Mike Goldberg and let Rogan & Rutten take over the world...interesting thought eh?)
jeudi 24 février 2011
vendredi 18 février 2011
two fights from last weekend
Last weekend, Igor Gracie and John Cholish both faught on the Strikeforce "Fedor vs Bigfoot" card on Showtime. Igor really needs no introduction, but John Cholish is also a fighter from Team Renzo Gracie NY. Both had awesome fights and brought home the win. Enjoy the fights!
lundi 14 février 2011
Schoolyard bullies.
If there's one thing I can't stand...it's a bully. Bullying takes different forms, physical & verbal.
I had written a blog earlier this year where Noel stuck up for his little buddy at school when he was being physically bullied in the washroom at school. He ended up being the one who got in trouble and was sent to the office. For anyone who knows Noel, you can imagine this didn't go over well. As proud as I was on the inside, Roxanne and I had to sit him down and have a talk reaffirming that we werent upset with him, but the next time, he should find a teacher (or adult if not at school) and tell them what's happening rather than first resorting to getting physical.
Fast forward to today. Apparently Noel was playing with his friends and the class bully ran over and socked him in the belly. He was upset and went and told the teacher who was supervising recess. He did exactly what we told him to do. The teacher took the bully to the office where we've been told he'll spend recess for the next few days. We're hoping his parents will also be getting a phone call, but in this day and age, it's difficult to tell whether that will make any difference or not. (not all parents think the way we do).
At any rate, here I sit thinking the situation over in my head. My brain tells me we've done the right thing and hopefully, this kid's parents will deal with their son accordingly. My heart on the other hand kind of wishes that my boy would have reacted with a double leg takedown, pass to mount and smothered him into the snow until a teacher came by. My brain wins this one but eventually we will have this talk. As a parent, I struggle with what a 6 year old would consider the appropriate amount of force which is why we continue to practice what we preach.
It's odd this happened today. At the club on Saturday, I was told the kids program will be starting the anti-bullying program. They'll also look at it with the Little Ninjas but will do an age appropriate version.
At the end of the day, I'm happy with how Noel handled the situation. He's a big strong kid who will be able to handle himself as he grows up. It's those life lessons along the way that will be interesting.
I had written a blog earlier this year where Noel stuck up for his little buddy at school when he was being physically bullied in the washroom at school. He ended up being the one who got in trouble and was sent to the office. For anyone who knows Noel, you can imagine this didn't go over well. As proud as I was on the inside, Roxanne and I had to sit him down and have a talk reaffirming that we werent upset with him, but the next time, he should find a teacher (or adult if not at school) and tell them what's happening rather than first resorting to getting physical.
Fast forward to today. Apparently Noel was playing with his friends and the class bully ran over and socked him in the belly. He was upset and went and told the teacher who was supervising recess. He did exactly what we told him to do. The teacher took the bully to the office where we've been told he'll spend recess for the next few days. We're hoping his parents will also be getting a phone call, but in this day and age, it's difficult to tell whether that will make any difference or not. (not all parents think the way we do).
At any rate, here I sit thinking the situation over in my head. My brain tells me we've done the right thing and hopefully, this kid's parents will deal with their son accordingly. My heart on the other hand kind of wishes that my boy would have reacted with a double leg takedown, pass to mount and smothered him into the snow until a teacher came by. My brain wins this one but eventually we will have this talk. As a parent, I struggle with what a 6 year old would consider the appropriate amount of force which is why we continue to practice what we preach.
It's odd this happened today. At the club on Saturday, I was told the kids program will be starting the anti-bullying program. They'll also look at it with the Little Ninjas but will do an age appropriate version.
At the end of the day, I'm happy with how Noel handled the situation. He's a big strong kid who will be able to handle himself as he grows up. It's those life lessons along the way that will be interesting.
dimanche 6 février 2011
The Politics of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
I started this blog a year ago today to follow my journey as a white belt learning the art I`ve come to love. (I`ve been training 1.5 years now) In the last 365 days, the page has been viewed over 7000 times. Not exactly something that will be listed in top google trends, but hopefully those who`ve been reading have enjoyed it so far.
Today, I figured I`d get on my soapbox and give my opinion on the politics of BJJ. It should be noted that this is my own point of view and mine alone.
Sudbury is a small city and Jiu Jitsu is a sport which is growing by leaps and bounds thanks to the popularity of mixed martial arts and the UFC in particular. As more people train, more clubs are bound to open their doors for business.
I`ve heard some clubs state they don`t play into politics and their members can train wherever they want and the business model behind the club doesnt matter etc because it`s for a love of the sport. What I find funny is that it`s members of these clubs who are the first to talk trash about other clubs and the level of instruction that may or may not be given at another club.
The reality of the situation is that if a person hasn`t trained at a specific club, they don`t know what the instruction is like and really don`t have a leg to stand on when critisizing the competition. There are then the grapplers who`ve trained at different clubs and then moved on to others. My question is why did they leave in the first place? Some may have had legitimate reasons, but for the mostpart, it usually always comes down to differences in personality (which is putting it lightly) or the member wasn`t able to pay their membership fees etc.
Then there is loyalty to your team. There are people who believe that you should be able to train at any club, at any time. These are people who see BJJ as an individual sport. They don`t recognize the team atmosphere which is imbeded into the culture of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. These people seem to think that if a club takes that approach, it`s a negative thing. My suggestion to those who share this view would be to look at the people at the root of our sport/art. If you were to go to Brazil, do members of Gracie Barra train with members of Nova Uniao? Do any of them cross-train with members of Alliance? I`m by no means an expert here, but I`m thinking the answer is no.
Why should it be any different in Canada? There is a team atmosphere in BJJ and that should be respected. But sometimes I hear grumblings from people who want to train "anywhere they want" that this is "politics". My view is that these guys just don`t get it.
At any rate, I`ll just leave it at that for now. Be proud of your club, train hard but smart. Help your training partners improve their game. This in turn will certainly help yours. Lastly, don`t worry about what other clubs are doing. Let them say what they want to say. Concern yourself with being ready to smash them on the mat when it comes time to compete. The medals on our walls speak for themselves.
Today, I figured I`d get on my soapbox and give my opinion on the politics of BJJ. It should be noted that this is my own point of view and mine alone.
Sudbury is a small city and Jiu Jitsu is a sport which is growing by leaps and bounds thanks to the popularity of mixed martial arts and the UFC in particular. As more people train, more clubs are bound to open their doors for business.
I`ve heard some clubs state they don`t play into politics and their members can train wherever they want and the business model behind the club doesnt matter etc because it`s for a love of the sport. What I find funny is that it`s members of these clubs who are the first to talk trash about other clubs and the level of instruction that may or may not be given at another club.
The reality of the situation is that if a person hasn`t trained at a specific club, they don`t know what the instruction is like and really don`t have a leg to stand on when critisizing the competition. There are then the grapplers who`ve trained at different clubs and then moved on to others. My question is why did they leave in the first place? Some may have had legitimate reasons, but for the mostpart, it usually always comes down to differences in personality (which is putting it lightly) or the member wasn`t able to pay their membership fees etc.
Then there is loyalty to your team. There are people who believe that you should be able to train at any club, at any time. These are people who see BJJ as an individual sport. They don`t recognize the team atmosphere which is imbeded into the culture of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. These people seem to think that if a club takes that approach, it`s a negative thing. My suggestion to those who share this view would be to look at the people at the root of our sport/art. If you were to go to Brazil, do members of Gracie Barra train with members of Nova Uniao? Do any of them cross-train with members of Alliance? I`m by no means an expert here, but I`m thinking the answer is no.
Why should it be any different in Canada? There is a team atmosphere in BJJ and that should be respected. But sometimes I hear grumblings from people who want to train "anywhere they want" that this is "politics". My view is that these guys just don`t get it.
At any rate, I`ll just leave it at that for now. Be proud of your club, train hard but smart. Help your training partners improve their game. This in turn will certainly help yours. Lastly, don`t worry about what other clubs are doing. Let them say what they want to say. Concern yourself with being ready to smash them on the mat when it comes time to compete. The medals on our walls speak for themselves.
vendredi 4 février 2011
jeudi 3 février 2011
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