Training March 30-Apr 3

The week after Pan Ams...got a lot of work to do! Some of the guys are taking a break. Charlie started the week off for us teaching us some of his great Back Mount stuff on Monday! Tuesday was another great session! Here we are about to start Mat time!

-Michio

Pan Ams, Sunday, March29

Chris did Fantastic! He won his division in impressive fashion!Thanks to Chris and Melissa for letting me stay the weekend at their house!
I ended up with 2nd Place. Every Match was a war! Major Props to my opponents, they came very well prepared! I AM BEAT UP!

-Michio

March 27-28

Hi Guys!

Just wanted to give you guys an update from yesterday and today:

Max takes 3rd! Man, the guys he fought were super aggressive! He kept his composure and showed an incredible amount of heart! He barely lost in the semis and ended up with a huge medal for Third place! Each match he fought was a grueling match. He won 2 and lost 1 and I believe there were 11 guys in his division. Congratulations Max!!!

Ben had 78 guys in his division. He won one and lost one. Unfortunately, it's single elimination and was out. He lost to the eventual second place guy. The first match Ben fought was tough! It went down to the wire. Ben didn't warm up prior to that first match and hit an adrenaline dump because of going from 0-100 miles an hour with a snap of the fingers and was gassed starting his second match. Learning experience.

Jim fought his heart out and looked fantastic for his first tournament! He made a small mistake toward the end and the guy was able to capitalize and pass Jim's guard and hold on for the win. Jim was pumped and will be back for more next time!

Ray was so ready to go! He was winning his first match and looked incredible! He went to finish his opponent with a kneebar and the kneebar is an illegal move for lower belts and so he was DQ'd. Nooooo! It was my fault as a coach as I should have been better prepared with the rules. I didn't realize Kneebars were illegal for that division.

Andy started his day with a close win 2-2 and won on advantage. he won his second match 7-0 and was winning his third but didn't realize the loop choke setting in and got put to sleep. bummer but welcome to the club. I've been put to sleep on many occasions and all I can say, again, welcome to the club!

I am so excited about tomorrow! I'm ready! I am staying in LA with Chris and Melissa Haueter and will post pics and results tomorrow night. I start about 10:20 and Chris fights around noon.

wish us luck!

-Michio

Pan American Championships are here! March 27-29

First, Congratulations to Andrew Lowen for his Second Place finish and Dave Bonney for his Third Place finish at this past weekend's Grapplers Quest in San Diego! These guys grappled their hearts out and displayed great skills!

Pan Ams this weekend!

On Fri, March 27, Jim Stratis competes @ Noon, in the White Belt Masters division.

On Fri, March 27, Max Sheppard, Ben Blakesly, and Ray Sloan compete in Blue Belt Adults

On Sat, March 28, Andy Atkinson competes in Blue Belt Masters

On Sun, March 29, I compete in Brown Belt Senior 2, and Chris Haueter competes in The Black Belt Senior 2 division.

Wish us luck! We've worked hard and we're ready!

-Michio

Grapplers Quest this weekend! so, no class on Sunday. Good luck to Andrew and David for this upcoming weekend!

Dan and Greg training hard on Wednesday night! Ray and Max kicking it after some hard training!

Keep up the hard work everyone!

-Michio

training March 8-13

this week we are working on attacking the turtle position and attacks from the back mount. Pan Ams are approaching in a few weeks! there are a handful of us doing the tournament. make sure you keep track of your weight... and make sure you guys keep up your strength and conditioning outside of class!

-Michio

March 1-6, 2009

Greg took us once again Indoor rock climbing on friday! this was my second time and we had a group of us go, some right after Jiu Jitsu class. We had so much fun!!! I really enjoyed this session! My forearms and fingers were toasted when we were done though! Greg, with all his experience taught us how to be safe, have fun and get a workout in. He passed along some great technique and demonstrated How to kick some butt! thanks Greg! Ryan got there early and one of the last to leave. He said he had a blast and can't wait to go again! Ben is out visiting from the east coast and is a little afraid of heights but he looked great manuevering up those rocks. he kicks butt on the mat...and off the mat! Eric was on tonight! he took on some of the toughest routes and made it look easy! Max had a great time and took to the indoor rock climbing like a natural!
Andy said that it was a tough workout, especially after a Jiu Jitsu class but glad that he went and wants to go again! (sorry for the blurry pic)

Ben, Deb, Eric

...thurs night training! ...after some Hard training on Monday!

-Michio