Renaissance Jiu-Jitsu

It is Christmas Break time again, which is always good for reflection. It would seem that I’m in a bit of a Golden Age of Jiu-Jitsu.

Normal full-time training for somebody of my level around here would be 3 advanced classes per week. I attend all of that, plus all the beginner sessions. I also go into the Big City, and pick up another of each type of class.

We haven’t had any open sessions at all, or anything else “off the timetable” for a long time. I was happy enough with the way it was going, but did dream a bit about more.

And then the Jiu-Jitsu Renaissance started to roll into action.

Shawn Phillips, our instructor, wanted to get his third level completed on his technical exams. We really only had one section left to work through (only isn’t really the right word, as it is a bloody great heap of work) and I was the logical partner.

We got busy, meeting maybe a dozen times, and cranked that puppy out.

Then, we kept going and plowed right into level four. This time, Shawn decided to copy a formula that other instructors have adopted, and recruited another partner into the mix. Rob Henley became our third guy. He is a long-time serous student, and a Purple Belt.

Somehow in all that training, Rob and I started working on his first-level technical exam; meeting on top of everything else to progress down that track. Than, our manager and business head was great with all of this extra training and allowed us all the access we needed.

It seems that meet-ups for any kind of serious training goals are now on-the-table anytime. Still nothing exists for less formal work, but that will be changing greatly soon, too.

My wife and I decided to move into some form of strata living situation, and attacked the downsizing required with gusto. When we finally found the perfect new home, it turned out to be a massively-large town-house. Suddenly, we were living with tons more unused space than we’d ever had. Helen claimed a chunk for her sewing and quilting hobbies, and I grabbed another for my very own Jiu-Jitsu training space.

The mat will be arriving in about a week, and there will be a place for anybody who wants to work on anything at all, and it comes with an enthusiastic Purple Belt ready to help, and maybe a coffee pot, and facilities for tea.

There is also a lot happening to which I am only an observer.

Two of our guys are working towards instructor certification, which we desperately need. The programs that we follow are carefully constructed, and qualified people are needed to handle the many details.

Our White Belt class, which a year ago seemed about to vanish into the mist, has started growing and growing, and now totally fills our mat space. I think that the last class saw about 18 students working away with enthusiasm. This is no flash-in-the-pan, as the growth has been steady, and fed by solid word-of-mouth.

Students who were part of the early growth of our White Belt class have reached the point of evaluation, and will soon be members of our advanced group. This will continue, and accelerate as the later, larger numbers reach a level of readiness.

In summery, more technical training, my own mat space, more certified instructors, and a lot more students are the highlights of this Golden Age of Jiu-Jitsu in our little town of Gibsons.