Wellington hijinks ...

Another day in new Zealand. It has been a hectic trip so far. After seminars in Christchurch and Auckland, I went to Napier and trained with Shayne Cox's students. That was great. One purplebelt was awarded as well as three blue belts - making Napier, one strong BJJ team!
I then left for Wellington, where Ray Floro and I taught at the Police Academy for the whole of today. There were a mixed back of Police defensive Tactics Instructors, Diplomatic protection Squad, Fisheries officers, Military Police and the like. geoff Aitken made the trip up from Christchurch to join us - it was great. We worked on weapons defense for thr whole day and have only just returned to Geoff Grants place for an hours rest before we need to leave for the BJJ class this evening.
I am looking forward to tonights training - Geoff's group is fantastic, and we always get loads done and have heaps of fun doing it.
Then it's four hours sleep for me, before I need to head to the airport once again.
here's a pic of me inflight from Napier to Wellington. Sleep deprived.
Train smart - train safe.
JBW

Kiaora time ...

Off to new Zealand tomorrow morning. A bitter sweet occasion for me. I hjave been away from my family a bit this year and have only just come back from 9 days in Singapore and already I am leaving. I will also miss my students - I love training here at my school in geelong, and seeing everyone make such wonderful progress.
the 'sweet' part, is that I will see some of my new Zealand friends again. last time there, I was severely injured - and had to hobble through al the sessions - this time my back is 70% healed, so it will be a far more enjoyable trip.
I shall try to hit the blog again whilst i am over there - i best get packing. So see all of you Kiwi's momentarily.
Train well,
JBW

PS: here's a pic of one of the nice trout I caught last year down in the South island - fear not, he went back in after the quick pic.

KL Konnection

Just arrived home from Kuala Lumpur where I taught at Vince Choo's Academy for my purple belt student Sam Wee. I had a great time, especially when Sam, marlinam their son Sean and all of us headed out for a bite to east after friday nights training. What a great bunch. here's a quick pic of the malaysia BJJ crew.
Can't wait to get back and visit you guys (and gals) again.
Best wishes,
JBW

The Knee-ride

The Knee-ride

Back when I first started training in BJJ, this was referred to in Brazil as the knee on the stomach. No good, I couldn’t say it fast enough, so I named it kneeride. It seems to have stuck.

The kneeride is a unique position. Do not expect to get the quick results with this position that you would get by working side control or north south for example. It does require more balance and a willingness to move, that mot other positions do not require. But the benefits of having some skill with this position, far outweigh the costs of developing it.

Hints and tips:

Make sure to obtain control over opponents arm before jumping up into the kneeride position; don’t try to get the arm afterward, it is far more difficult.

Keep as much weight off the trailing/outrigger foot as you can, the key to kneeride is the riding bit. You need to follow your opponent, not try to pin him.
The kneeride I an aggressive/attacking position, so make sure you have a couple of good attack set-ups/combo’s from there

Know your fallback position; ie: where you are going to bail to if your opponent starts to escape

Learn to transition into the knee-ride position from the Mount; it is also a great way to transition from the mount to your feet

If you are interested in street apps, learn to hold your knee-ride whilst putting up a verbal fence against attacks from third parties – I like to practice this in my school, as this is one of the biggest advantages of the knee-ride - it is a powerful, visually dynamic intermediate stage between full blown ground grappling and stand-up work.

When first developing knee-ride – get your shin across the soft part of your opponents stomach and not the ribcage; this gives you a shock absorber effect, and you will not be bounced off so easily. Have your opponent move around the floor a bit while you keep the kneeride going, without the use of your hands. This will develop your willingness to move – a key to the development of a good kneeride.
Afterward, add the hand/arm controls in to give more control. Persevere with it; it does not give immediate gratification but is well worth the effort to bring it into your arsenal.

Train smart - train safe!
JBW

Thanks for the uppercut Nuno

Another day - another sneaky rear uppercut!
it's off to the beach for a gathering and group chat on martial arts training and coaching. The weather is rainy - so that seems about perfect for me!

One person that I find to be very cool and extraordinarily helpful, is the ever elusive Nuno. Nuno is a fantastic fighter and a great human being. I like him a lot. if anyone ever gets the chance to spend time with him - do not pass the opportunity up.

here's a shot of him and I molesting an Aussie icon.
Train smart, train safe.
JBW

Wild things ...

Hello everyone,
I have been having a great time here in Singapore.

On the mat for four or five hours a day - Rodney King and myself are co-teaching this 2006 Martial Arts retreat to about thirty particpants from the world over. We have been having a blast - punching on and getting into the technical yet highly effective CM boxing method (Rodneys brainchild) - and hitting the mat afterward for some good solid BJJ skills.
Today we took a break and headed to the Singapore Zoo in the morning. A great chance to wander around and get to know each other better - talk shop and chill out before the evening sessions begin.
Here's a quic pick of Rodney and myself edging in on one of the zoo's friendly inhabitants.
best wishes,
train hard - train smart.
JBW

Singapore life ...

Hello from Singapore,
the weather here is kind of rainy bu the temperature is great.
I arrived on thursday and after an airport pickup from Kon Quek, I tooka dip on the hotel pool before heading out to Jasons Queks BJJ class in Chinatown. A great group of JAsons studennts attended and we trained from 8 till 10:30pm. And then went out for dinner (satay, rice, noodles, etc) at a night market. We chatted and ate till midnight before I headed back to the hotel. It was a really good night - despite the fact that I had stayed up way past my bedtime.

next day was pretty cruisy - I walked around, located a few hotspots for my wireless laptop, swam laps in the pool and relaxed. Late afternoon I met a few of the Brits and we hooked up at Starbucks for coffee and intros for a bit. I then hooked up with Rodney King just before we headed off to Kon Queks school for training. There were a couple of dozen of us there - including Adam Kayoom (brown belt BJJ er from downunder - and very nice guy). I made intros and then got started by taking everyone through an hour and a hlaf of positional drill - a good way to get everyone moving and set a culture of thinking and being fully engaged. It went down well - and we are all primed for more today (the day after).

After that, I think most everyone went out on the town. Me being the old guy, went back to my room, swam a bit, then ate, before doing some reading and hitting the pillow. I hope eevryone recovers from their fun last night - as we are kicking off with a long training session as of 2pm this afternoon.

Rodney, who seems straight 'up and down' and and very switched on, will be taking the first two hours. We will be running through his CM (crazy monkey) boxing system at the point of it's latest evolution. I am pumped for the session!
After that, I will be taking another BJJ session for an hour, before fellow Aussie MAtt Jones will be taking a session on functional strength training. That will be followed by another two hours of BJJ training which I will be heading up.
That will be followed by an hour of open mat before the day winds up at 9pm.

They can party - I shall head to the pool; eat, read and watch the late night news.
Old guy!

I'll keep you informed - stay well, train safely.

JBW