Check out my story today on local Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) instructor, Gene Simco. He's a black belt in this martial art (he holds other black belts as well) and for as deadly as he could be, he's a really nice guy.
I observed a recent class that had some law enforcement guys in it. Obviously, the martial arts comes in handy on the job, but they do it competitively as well. It really is a good workout. Nobody came out of that class without a ton of sweat. Except me. Wielding a high-speed pen and digital camera just doesn't burn the calories like you'd hope, ya know?
I told Simco that I'd watched UFC stuff before in TV and I found it brutal and awful. The kind of blood and guts stuff that turned me off, or never really on to boxing, when I took a sportswriting course long ago. Some of the greatest, most eloquent sportswriting stories have come from boxing, but I just never got it.
This MMA stuff, once you understand the strategy of it, is interesting, though. Little guys, big guys, all these different skill sets...boxers trying to pummel the jiu-jitsu guys before they can get them on the floor, because then it'd be over.
Still...it's icky with the blood. Although, from what I understand, traumatic head injuries in the MMA are less than just boxing alone. I think I'd just prefer to watch a non-punching martial arts competition, if any. Or maybe I'll stick to baseball. Then again, with all the mud-slinging and low-blows lately, MMA is looking pretty good.
Anyway, at one point in his career, Simco trained with the Gracie family. That name probably rings a bell to all you UFC fans. His site is one of the leading resources on BJJ..his web site has tons of info, books, DVD's etc. Check it out here.
For a funny recap of my one and only experience with martial arts, check out my Mommy Memoir blog today.
Hey, I heard pitchers & catchers reported...there's one name I'm looking forward to hearing more about...starts with an "S" and ends with "World Series." Er, I mean "-antana."
Photo: That's former Pace University football safety Steven Olivier on the floor doing the flipping...he's a Deputy in the local Sheriff's dept. Um...don't mess with him. Simco is standing to the right. I didn't get the name of the inverted person. It seemed like a bad time to ask...
I asked Simco if he'd do a women's sel####efense class in the future...I hope he considers doing one...I'd love to flip some big guy like that photo...or at least, not get hurt if he flipped me.
And there's a BJJ show on Discovery Channel tonight...BJJ with the Gracie family in Brazil. Cool...couldn't have asked for better timing than this! I guess their people talked to my people. ;-)
Nice post Carolyn. BJJ is a force in all of the worlds Martial arts. The gracie system of BJJ is perhaps the best, tied with a sub form of BJJ called Combat ####, of Russian fame. The Curent a 5 year long Heavyweight Champion and #1 World Ranked "Fedor Emelianenko" of Russia, is also a #### Champion and along with the Gracie system, he has held the longest reign of any HW. BTW, this is full contact fighting I'm taliking about.
Nice post Carolyn. I've wrote some also in this vein. For most thinking men and women, this sport doesn't offer much to them it seems. But for us dumber people, we like it lol.
Royce Gracie was the best all time ultimate fighter with his BJJ. He was the best, and rarely did he show his emotions. Truly a class act. Just like you. Thanks for the post.
You're right about boxing. Alot of great writing about it, but a brutal sport. Growing up in the Ali-Frazier era I always took an interest in the big fights and the history involved, but haven't seen a fight in years. It's like Mike Tyson finally took the sport to its logical conclusion, which was a conclusion.
Shame on you not getting the name of the flipee. At least he could have said, "See my picture in the paper. Had my name and everything."
Carolyn, I just saw your post about how to get a URL Photo into a blog. Would you happen to know how to get a URL of a photo into the About Me section of your blog? Let me know!
If you could leave a comment on my blog that'd be great! Thank you!
Sports doesn't have to be all numbers and stats and testosterone! I'll share a slightly different angle on sports.
I'm a mom in New York. Go Mets, Jets, Knicks and Rangers.
