Roll 12

This is one of the most significant rolls of all; it's against my 9-year-old daughter!

*Hey, wanna roll?*Sure*Surprise Attack*

Yep, my daughter surprise attacked me while I was playing with my other daughter.  She took my back and was holding on tight, but she didn't have her hooks in.  I easily slid out the back door, and my daughter fell to the ground with a light thud.  I took side control being careful not to crush her like a little girl.  She said something about not  knowing that we were starting; blah, blah, blah.  I swooped in for a kimura.  I don't go all Frank Mir on her, though.

I transition for an armbar.  It was tight; in fact, I could have snapped her arm like a chicken bone.  Instead, I teach her the hitch-hiker escape which she hits.  Now, she's in my guard.  I check her base, because she lets it slip a little.  This time, she's solid but not too solid for me to hit a perfect flower sweep.  She goes over like a 9-year-old little girl, and I'm on full mount--baby!

I feel her will depart.  She's done.  She pretty much gives up.  She does, however, muster the strength to remind me not to be too heavy on her.  I'm feeling charitable, so I flop to turtle.  To turtle from mount.  Oh well, it's jiu-jitsu.

My daughter eases in for an attack.  I fall to my side; she takes the gift and goes into MMA mode dropping hammer fists on my head.  Ug.  I go to my back, and she takes mount and boasts that I won't be able to get her off.  But, I do.

I'm in her guard after and bump and roll.  I pass it like butta.  I'm on side control.  There's a little back and forth, but I eventually hit a wrist lock.  She taps!  I win, but we play around a bit more before it's all said and done.

I think this is a good breakdown.

Kimura Set

This class taught a great set from the guard that was all off of a kimura attempt.  Here were the 3 options we drilled.

1.  The standard kimura.  It's money, and who doesn't love it?!

2.  The bump sweep (sometimes called the kimura sweep).

3.  A guillotine.

122211#211

Elevated Guard

We achieved this position when someone stand in our guard.  Feet go to the opponent's hips, and he is lifted.  From here we can roll our opponent or hit a cool armbar.  (In past classes, we've also worked taking the back.)

122111#210

Armbars and Triangles

Today was a nice time for drilling armbars and triangles.  We were also shown a variation of the triangle that was like a teepee.  Cool stuff.

121911#209

Roll 11

*Slap*Bump*

I rolled with Mr. quite triangle. He's sitting as usual. I grab his ankles and work to pass. I kill the legs nicely. He pushes my head and tries to escape out. I'm still holding on, but more and more of his legs are getting out.

I hurry my pass and establish side control, but it's not tight. I bug his neck as I try to isolate an arm. My opponent is small and nimble, and he manages to get a knee in. This soon leads to my being in his open guard.

I attempt to pass again. He must have popped up and created a scramble. I grab his leg and work a take down. He attempts a guillotine. I'm easily surviving it, but he's using it to get up. He ends up on top in side control.

My opponent settles in to a head-and-arm triangle. It's not fun, but I'm surviving. Then, he does something weird with my trapped arm--almost like a wrist lock. I could hold out longer, but I'm got good. I tap as the round ends.

Bonus Round:
I rolled with cool blue, and that joker caught me in a wild armbar multiple times. He cross-grabbed my elbow (almost like a classic armbar set up). He, then, rotated my arm and (sometimes) used his other hand as reinforcement. That move was cool. He hit it from a lot of places. He was looking for my arm to straighten. He was cool and let me drill it on him. He smashed me in the roll, though.

More Gentleness

This Judo class was a blast.  Stuff is feeling a bit better, and a friend was awarded Sankyu.

121711

Roll 10

*Deep Bow*Hajime*

This one is against big black again. We position and grip fight; I remain calm. I even throw an attack, or two (nothing major).

At some point, I end up on my back thanks to his perfect foot sweep. We scramble on the ground. He ends up in a North/South pin. It's a tight hold, and he's in control. I try to roll him, etc. I don't normally to a ton when in North/South: I defend and bide my time until there's an opening. The thing is, that's a pin that could in the match in Judo, and that's exactly what happened here.

Dudes who train to pin are wicked heavy on top--lesson learned.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, I believe his North/South pin turned into an inverted, top-side triangle. Highlight reel move; too bad I was on the wrong side of it.

Roll 9

*Deep Bow*Hajime*

This Judo match was against a huge, camo gi wearin dude. We grip fought for a bit, and my man is winded, big time.

We exchange foot slaps, but no body moves. Eventually, he hits a tai otoshi on me. He probably got this because I was hoping around too much, but I give him all credit.

He lands on top of me in side control. I lock up half guard before being pinned (in Judo you have 25 seconds). We are soon stood up. Dude comes in for a throw, and I counter with a rear throw of my own. He goes down hard, and I'm on top. I hear him huffing and puffing, and I even ask if he's okay (thinking the fall might have actually hurt him; he's okay, just gassing).

I don't do much on top. I think I end up on his back. My man is breathing hard. Time is called. We both scored a take down, and I was more comfortable on the ground. Good roll, all-in-all.

You Shall Not Pass

After some takedown work, we drilled 3  defenses to the toreando pass.

1.  Grab the passer's knee and shrimp out.  This will effectively flatten your opponent and allow you to improve position.
2.  Straighten your body with the passer, get good grips on your opponent, and you will easily be able to roll the passer.  (I was really surprised with how well this worked.)
3.  As the pass happens, grad your opponent's arm that needs to come out.  Hook his leg and adjust your body according.  This is pretty much put you in the position as #2, and you can hit a sweep.


121511#208

I Fell Down This Youtube Hole

Roll 8

With spazzy white belt, but I don't hate.  I might have been there before, too.  (I say that to be nice.  I know that I was never as spastic as this dude.)

*Slap*Pump*

*Punch*

Yep, that's right--a punch.  Mr. Spaz came thundering forward to yank me into his guard.  In the process, I get a stiff lil punch to the face.  (Might I insert a suggestion here?  If you want me to be in your guard, just ask:  "Hey, man, will you start in my guard?".  It happens all the time, and most folk--including myself--are totally cool with it, but I digress.)

So, I'm in spazzy's guard, and I hunker down:  hands on his biceps; elbows tight; head tucked down.  This allows me time to ponder things.  I think about the punch.  I think about being a white belt.  I think about karma--I kinda avoided partnering with this dude for class.  Now I'm caught in his spaz trap; karma's probably having a nice chuckle at my expense.

I stay hunkered down for a while...an uncomfortably long amount of time.  My opponent is gassing out from all his spaztastic attempts at crazy stuff.  He attempts chokes and a lot of other power plays.  Soon enough, I decide to join the party, and I open and pass his guard.

I hold him in side control for a  while.  I, then, bare some of my own weight.  My opponent crawls away as if it's a scene from Friday the 13th. He lunges on my back and flops back pulling me down with him.  My man isn't even calm when he's got my back.  Whew.  I defend all his flails.

Time is up, and karma releases me from its hold.



Bonus Round:
I'll include a review of another roll from this day.   This roll was with a nice, advanced blue dude.  From the start, I get out of position, and I'm playing catch up the entire roll.  My opponent threatened with legit stuff. My shields were up, though.  I defended stuff that I usually don't (or can't) defend.   He attempted a few clock chokes, and they weren't bad.  I just managed to get wrist control and ride out the storm.

We changed positions a bit, but he was in control the whole match.  I was defending chokes and armbars galore.  I was totally dominated.  At one point, it felt like my opponent was bouncing on my back.  Not real sure what happened or why.

Of course,  I knew that I was getting out-pointed, but I also knew that I was surviving.  That gave me confidence.  Lately, I've been thinking  bit more about the Gracie way.  The ability to survive (and in the event of the spazzy white belt, conserve my energy as he runs through his) is a key to winning an actual altercation.

I'll remember these rolls for different reasons.  My jiu-jitsu journey continues.

Spider Man

Today's class began with tai otoshi work.

We, then, worked a sweep from spider guard.  It was, honestly, and little clumsy for me.  (I did, however, pick up a set up for a wrist lock that is cool.)

Next, we worked on a counter to the sweep.  (The sweep was a little hard for me, so the counter was even more so.)  O well, it was a good class and one more toward my 10,000.  :)


12/14/11#207

Roll 7

This roll was with bald four stripe blue before class.

I ask for a warm-up roll; he accepts.  I totally thought this roll would be medium force, but after the first few moves, I learned that this roll would be light (nearly zero) resistance.  I shifted mental gears immediately, and what followed was a 10-12 roll of back-and-forth transition, catch-and-release, and beautiful flowing.  I certainly would like to think the roll was a nice demo of jiu-jitsu.

I would like to think it was something like this.

I'm sure it wasn't as beautiful as I imagine, but it was a good roll that allowed me to focus on some of things I've been working on.

Roll$ 6

I rolled a lot and with a variety of folks.  In fact, I rolled for about 40 minutes before class. This post will lump several rolls into one review.

I rolled nicely.  I hit the sweep that coach and I worked on from half guard.  I also killed the legs of several of my opponents and worked a better than normal (for me) top game.  When I went to my back, I was up often working for underhooks, etc.

I didn't suck, but I wasn't a killer.  All-in-all, I would consider that progress.

Attacking the Turtle

We worked a nifty lil takedown when a guy is laying back.  Push him to cause a reaction, then drive him down.  It's not a sure thing, but it just might work in the right case.

Your opponent will land in a turtled position, so we worked on attacks.
1.  You can roll over your opponent's back and hit a nice (in a bad way) choke.  :)
2.  You can trap your opponent's arm and try to hit an armbar using your legs.  (It was kinda hard, but good to add to the brain.)
3.  The highest percentage move (and everyone's favorite) was the clock chock.  It was awesome in a painful way!   :/

121211#206

Roll 5

*Deep Bow*Hajime* 
Yep; here's another one of the Judo matt.


My opponent is big bad black.  He's good, and he's taking on the entire line.  I try to be cool.  I manage to get a grip or two that I like.  I throw out some foot sweeps.  He doesn't budge.  He fires off some sweeps on his own.  I stay on my feet.  Sure, I may look a little like bambi on ice, but I actually stay on my feet.  


Just as I think about dropping down for an armbar/guard pull, he does it to me!  This made me think that the idea was at least a good one.  We go down, but his armbar isn't perfect.  I pass and land in side control and work to free an arm.  Time is called in this short match, but it was a real confidence boost.

Roll 4

*Deep Bow*Hajime*
You see this roll takes place on the Judo tatami.

I grip fight with my much larger opponent.  He outweighs me by at least 50 pounds.  We exchange attempts at foot sweeps. Nothing doing.

Then, I sweep him--he goes down.  He's pretty much on his side, so I take a loose version of side control.  He pushes and presses to get up.  No biggie to me; I go to my back and trap him in my guard (which barely fits around the hoss).  Soon after, I scissor sweep him and hear the oohs of the few on-lookers.  I'm on mount; I hop to side control and work to isolate an arm.  I don't exactly get what I want, so I pop to knee-on-belly.  Bottom is struggling, so I pull him into my guard to let him on top.  My charity soon runs empty, and I attempt another scissor sweep.  This time he bases out, so I take my bottom foot and kick out his knee.  He's flattened, and I'm climbing on his back.  From there I give a half-heart attempt at a rear naked choke.  My opponent buries himself in until we are stood back up.  When we are stood up, our match is over.

Gentle Way Class

I enjoyed a good Judo class.  I hope to attend more.  Also, I have a goal of learning 20 throws in the gokyo no waza--that's half.

121011

Private

In this class, I learned at least these things:

1.  I need to pull the sleeve more when I pass the guard.
2.  My posture needs to improve when I'm in someone's guard.
3.  In half guard, my outer leg can drag my opponent's trapped leg and work and take down.  (I get caught by this a lot.  Knowing how to do it will help me defend it.)
4.  In someone's 93 guard, don't play push/pull.  Go around the post.

120911#205

Beginner's Class with a beginner

I stayed after my daughter's class again.  I scouted out a beginner to work with--they're so easy to pick out. :)

We worked a level change shot to counter a 1-2 combo.  From the takedown, instruction shifted to how to do an americana.  From that, we discussed going to mount and, then, taking the back if bottom rolls.

12811#204

Roll 3

Bad Ears Blue and I were the last two, so we rolled.  I'm a good bit bigger than him, but whatchya gonna do?

*Slap*Bump*

I lay back, not wanting to over use my size.  I turtle up, and he is on top. It seems that he moved all around but didn't find any openings, so he returns to the front and attempts a choke.  I sit out, and there is a scramble.  He ends up in my guard.  I think I even pull out the rubber guard and clear the neck to chill dog.  I kung fu move him out before realizing that his hand isn't on the matt.  Doh!

He passes whatever mess I made of that and is in side control.  He's no real threat as he really is smaller than I.  At some point, I reguard him and hit a nice scissor sweep.  I didn't just pile onto him after the sweep because I am so much bigger.  I actually end up in a sloppy side control.  He quickly and easily gets quarter guard.  I had both of my knees under me.  I attempt a kata juji jime.  I'm putting little of my weight on him, so he reguards me and time is called.

Roll 2

*Slap*Bump*

We fight for grips, but in a calm, cool kinda way.  My opponent's hands are everywhere, but not in a bad way.  In the hustle, I get scratched pretty good.  That, honestly, took me out of the roll for a moment.  My opponent tripods above me as I lay in turtle.  I even check to see if I'm bleeding from the scratch; I just knew I would be, but I wasn't.  Okay; cool, game on.

My opponent didn't have his knees on the ground, and I could not escape this hold.  I tried sitting out.  I reached for his leg; blah, blah, blah. Nothing was working.  He just had a really good position.  He wasn't threatening in any way.  He seemed content to hold his position.  I tried to escape, but I didn't want to make things worse.  I kinda felt like the pressure was on him to improve his position by taking my back, forcing me to my side, etc., etc.  My opponent definitely didn't feel the same way, and 5 minutes later, we were done. 

At the beginning, I thought I would stay in turtle for a while.  About mid-way through the roll, however, I wanted out but couldn't escape.  My opponent did nothing besides hold me down.  That might have been his game plan.  Oh well.  They can't all be great.

Looking back on it, I should have sat to some kind of guard against Chase's dad.  I had the space to do so; it just didn't enter my mind. That's why I want to keep track of these rolls.  :)

Roll 1

"Hey, wanna roll?"
"Sure, let's go light."
"Fine with me," I say, since it was the first activity I'd had all day.

*Slap*Bump*

He's seated and working some kind of open guard. I ease in. I post a foot, and he flops to his back. I love this! Sure, I'll go easy, but I'm going to stay on top.

But my opponent was working some crazy off-balancing stuff. He didn't sweep me, but I never really felt settled on the top. That was a bummer.  I want to spend more time on top, but this guy's making it awkward.

I worked to isolate an arm or sink in a choke, but he's using his feet like hands to push me away.

At some point I consider an ankle lock. He acts like he just might do the same. We both react and end up in a not-exactly 50/50 guard before each getting to our knees.

We are neutral, and I wade in for the kill. My opponent goes to his side, and I take side control. He hooks me up and a quarter guard. I bug his neck, and he reguards me.

Professor Blue and I call it a day and get straightened up before class begins.

The Blues

Today's class had all blue belts.  It was a good time.

We began with a takedown from fainting pulling guard.  It was a variation of a standard single leg, but it seemed to click with me.

We worked a counter to the pretty standard butterfly sweep.  It basically works because you base out and get grips on your opponent and effect your own takedown of him.

We concluded with a few passes from standing in one's open guard.  We stepped through, passed right, and passed left.

12811ww#203

S Mount cradle choke and armbar

After warming up with a couple takedowns, we drilled a knee-on-belly move where we flow from side to side in response to a moving opponent.

At some point, we would settle in behind our opponent pinning him with our chest. From there, securing the open mount is the natural move.

In open mount, the cradle choke (sometime called bow-and-arrow) is a powerful finish.

The armbar is, of course, an equally strong option.  Coach talked about stepping your leg over bottom's head and keeping it straight and sitting to that hip.  This eliminated a lot space that bottom could use to escape.

12711#202

This Looks Kinda Cool

I may try this.  Minus wearing the socks, though.  Whew.

Caique Seminar

This was a great time of learning from a true legend.

Class began with a warm-up and a hip throw drill.  After the takedown, we drilled an armbar defense.  It works by posting the foot of the side that your opponent wants.  Re-center your hips and prevent the armbar.

The seminar focused a lot of attention on the americana and kimura.  (Caique said that the kimura is one of our highest percentage moves.)

Americana defense points
Keep the arm tight and close to your own chest.  Fight for the underhook.
If your arm get separated from your chest, pin your elbow and do not let your opponent lock in his arms.
If your opponent does manage to lock it up, bridge and explode toward the lock.  You will not roll your opponent but you may create enough space to get your arm back.

Americana attack points
Pry bottom's hand by using your straight arm.  Don't tug of war.
Slide your second arm under bottom's elbow, not shoulder.

Kimura defense points
Keep your arm.  Fight for the under hook.
If your arm gets pinned, take your free hand and attempt a spin out.
If the kimura gets locked in, bridge toward the lock and attempt to roll your opponent.

Kimura attack points
Good leg work is key.  Switching hips and stepping make this move.
If your opponent buries his arm, you will have to strip it in one direction before applying the move in the other.

12 Rolls

I got my new gi and my 200 classes.  Now, it's upward and onward to my next goal.

I am going to track 12 rolls this month.  Sure, 12 rolls isn't a lot, and there is nothing new about tracking one's sparring, but that's what I'm going to do.  I really hope to gain some insight into the state of my game.

I will likely roll more than 12 times this month, so I will pick and choose the ones I spotlight.

Basics

After my daughter's class, I stuck around for the beginner's class and paired up with a first-timer.

We worked big punch defense (with the hip throw) and headlock and hit defense.

Since kesa gatame happens often off of headlocks, we drilled the escape to open mount.  When the opponent stays on top (in kesa), bottom has to run his legs back, hook top's, and come to his own knees.  This usually opens the back.

12111#201

S Mount triple threat

Today's small class was a review of Tuesday's. From the S mount, you can do these three things:
1. Gi choke
2. Armbar
3. Take the back

12111ww#200 :)