Sorry for replying so late, whilst on Vacation my dog died and it kind of sullied the rest of the vaca so much so that i disconnected from social media/text/ etc. I “untethered” for some reason.
ANY ole' WAY...
The first day i went to the Renzo affiliate. Despite being off the mats for almost 2 months, i expected to go in there with my Gi and be one of the top dogs. Ended up being No Gi day, and there were a couple of guys there who ended up letting me know that i wasn't going to just walk in there and dominate. Not a lot of colored belts, but some tough ass dudes. The gym itself is very nice also. Paid 20 bucks for a drop in.
But...
The next day i went to Mata Leao, and i automatically resonated with this place. The coach's name was a Grant, and i want to say he was an affiliate of Megaton? He reminded me so much of my own BJJ coach; someone that encourages you to have your own game, but has the qualities in a coach i expect/respect:
Not too many breaks. Never more than a 1.5 minute break.
Educated in BJJ and fighting, but also in other academic/life areas
Well spoken.
Presentable, in shape, nice appearance.
Natural leader.
Commands respect instead of demanding it.
STRONG wrestling game(as well as being a strong guard player).
TAKES CONTROL OF THE CLASS (Not docile/sheepish when he speaks)
Incorporates warm ups/cool downs that relate to grappling.
Tells you to pick it up when you start wanting to give up.
Rolls with all students.
He even showed us that yoga pose (in my head i call it the Rickson pose) that requires diaphragmatic breathing while sitting indian style. We ended up doing that for 5 silent minutes AFTER rolling hard for 1.5 hours… LOL. BJJ yoga=not knowing the names of the positions but knowing which ones are beneficial and why… and which ones are best left to girls in yoga pants. Or real Yogi’s.
For 50 bucks he essentially told me i could train there 4 times a day for the whole 5 day duration. a month membership is 180 dollars but they are flexible and accommodate out of towers. Again, his name is Grant and he was my second favorite coach ever, second only to my own here at home (Carl).
Knowing that i really wanted to roll, after beginners class ended we transitioned right into advanced, didn’t drill or work technique but just had rolls. Not because I'm special but because he could see that i really wanted to spar, on that first day, he catered to my wishes. The art of BJJ is intrinsically tied to respect (for lineage, skill, experience, history) and he showed me tons and of course i showed his vision/school/students/his self tons. We partnered up for the instructional duration so of course we were one another’s first roll mates. We had that kind of roll where all the other classmates are circled around watching. He ended up getting me with the kimura and actually almost injured my shoulder BUT:
Kimura's are most high percentage when you explosively rip your opponents hand away from the gi that it is inevitably gripping on to. (If u let your opponent get too good of a grip on a Gi it ends up turning into a battle of muscular strength which turns to fatigue.)
He is the alpha male, the instructor, and he doesn't want to let his dedicated students see some new guy walk in and tap him. Which i respect immensely. It’s not ego. He also knew that it was going to take more than flow rolling to tap me; he knew i was dangerous and did what needed to be done and in so showed my game respect.
I hope none of this comes off as cocky, but i don't care if it does. I expect to be one of the top guys in anything but the highest level gyms because i've worked, competed, bled, shed tears, Gold medaled, lost sleeping thinking about, and dedicated myself to this thing. Grant at Mata Laeo saw the writing on the wall and obliged me. I don’t know if the teacher at the Renzo affiliate had that in him; he didn’t roll with me.
Unfortunately the morning after i trained there i went on a long run along the water of that beautiful city on an almost record hot day - 95 degrees - and by that night the entirety of my upper boy was sunburnt and my Soleus muscles, as a result of not having done any long runs in months AND as the result of being a for foot runner, were and still are SO sore that i am literally walking like an old man. Coupled with my actual obligations there, I ended up not going back.
It kind of sucks that i didn’t get to bond with that team anymore but if anyone is reading this and still has an interest, please check Grant at Mata Laeo out.
Check that whole damn city out. Im a slightly left of center kind of guy politically, but Portland is a very liberal city with tons of character and everyone seems to be into fitness. In Michigan 4/5 people are fat and lacking any physique. In Portland 9/10 of the females are hot runners or cyclists. It’s mind boggling how many pretty girls there were. Weed’s legal, people are respectful, Food’s aplenty, and SURPRISINGLY there are some tough people there. I must admit, I thought Portland BJJ would be full of “flow rollers” and, if i can be honest, wussies. Daisy’s. Roses
Wrong. Not a huge concentration of talent, but enough rogue ass-kickers to give a 200lb IBJJF gold medalist some tough rolls and tap outs.
P.S. grapplers in the Pacific Northwest love Lindland, Chael, and Randy. When Grant was still a purple, Lindland was competing at an IBJJF as a purple and they would of ended up competing against one another but Lindland ended up attempting to both heel hook AND knee bar someone and ended up getting DQ’d… LOL.
That is all, would love to read anyone else’s experience in Rose Town.
