A. A minimum of 1500 hours of group training. This can be accomplished by four to six hours of training each week, over a period of five to eight years. Some will be able to accomplish this goal sooner than others.
B. Five hours of private lessons with me. This amounts to about one hour of private lessons training per year.
II. Skills on the mat:
A. A high level of proficiency with side mount escapes, specifically, going to the knees AND replacing the guard. I place more emphasis on going to the knees at this point in time in a practitioner's experience.
When I write "a high level of proficiency", I am speaking of technical execution, timing and combinations. What I mean by this is I want the person testing for brown belt to demonstrate a very high level of proficiency with side mount escape in their execution. I will also want to see them use their techniques in combination and with good timing. A student who uses speed, power, strength and explosiveness to execute their techniques does not have the skill sets on the mat I am looking for at brown belt level. While an fast and explosive student may be strong and athletic, which are admirable qualities to possess, the use of these qualities does not equal a skill in my opinion. During the brown belt examination, I want to see a high level of technical proficiency with the basic techniques. This high level of proficiency will lead to a repeatable skill on the mat.
B. I want to see a high level of proficiency with guard control. I want to see the effective and efficient use of the open guard, closed guard, butterfly guard and half guard. I want to see good limb entanglement and good head control. I want the student to be able to effectively and efficiently use their feet, shins, knees and thighs for MOST of the control.
NOTE: Blue belts use their arms for most of the control in the guard. Brown belts must be able to control using their legs as the dominating force!
C. I want to see a high level of proficiency with off balancing and attacking (the arm and neck) from the guard. I want to see the student simultaneously control AND attack their opponent from the guard. In other words, I want to see simultaneous active legs and active arms.
D. A high level of proficiency with passing the closed, open, butterfly and half guards. More importantly, I want to see the use of base and posture, a combination of forward pressure and good leg movement, as well as a combination of passing on the knees and passing by standing up!
E. A mid level of proficiency with hold downs from the side mount. I want to see good arm, leg and head positioning, as well as a mixture of pressure and movement.
F. A mid level of proficiency with throws and takedowns. I want to see your mechanics and your set ups in action.
G. One submission that you own. I want to see you finish people with the same lock or choke, repeatedly. I don't care which position you attack from, I want to see you use one submission over and over again, as well as use the submission to set up other opportunities. For example, using the bent arm lock to set up a sweep.
III. Miscellaneous:
A. I want you to have a thorough knowledge of my blue belt requirements. You will be tested on my headlock escapes and wrestler's cradle escapes.
B. I want you to have a thorough knowledge of my purple belt requirements. You will be tested on combinations.
NOTE: If you are new to Harris International and you wear a purple belt around your waist from another instructor, in order to test for brown belt under me, you will need to have a thorough knowledge of my requirements for the blue and purple belts. You will not have to take these tests. However, you will be tested on some of the material that is presented in these examination.
C. Demonstrate to me that you have made a positive impact on people's lives. Bring me a minimum of five (5) letters from students, instructors and members of your community that demonstrate what you have done for others
D. When you test, you will need a minimum of three (3) partners to assist you with this examination. Five would actually be a better number. One of your training partners needs to be a purple in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. A second training partner needs to be strong and athletic. The other training partners need to be at least mid to high level white belts or weigh over 220 lbs.
The reason why I want these various kinds of training partners at your exam is because I want to see your technical proficiency, ability to think and reason, as well as your ability (and willingness) to handle size and strength when you are tired / exhausted.
E. The entire test will be performed while wearing a gi. All training partners must wear their gi.
F. Be prepared to test for two and a half to three hours (with only a few short breaks).
The Harris International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Brown Belt Examination is a difficult one. Prepare accordingly (i.e. take a few private lessons, train hard and smart with your training partners, get into shape, learn to focus your mind and heart, mentally and physically test yourself beforehand, etc...). Make sure you are ready at the appointed time - because the test is pass or fail!
If there is anything on this exam that you do not understand, please take a private lesson to clarify.
