Tap #10

Class #17: Late for class, thought I'd miss only the warm-ups, but ended up I was the only show. So got private lesson from Black Ernie and Purple Jack. Lesson was really good and customized because B.E. asked me, "What's your best Guard Pass, then what do you do in Side, then what do you do in Mount, etc."

It really fixed a few holes in my game. In the passing Guard, I'm successful with the wrapping the knees and getting past but get stuck if they block my hips with their hands and if they sit up. Solution: Lift their knees, put my knee under them to keep them elevated, my head needs to move up their body; to counter the hand block, my elbow in their armpit and circle up to their head.

Rolling with Purple Jack, he gets a double leg pass on me; side then mount; I can't escape and but he can't sub me either: I defend choke and all arm bar attempts; he gets me on the back and same deal - defend chokes and arm bar, and finally gets an arm bar. Tap #10. Feels he expended more energy then necessary.

Also, in this journey/process of Bjj, I'm definitely in the acquisition of DVDs/books phase, which I have read about in blogs and which I'm sure is very familiar to people getting into Bjj. Ha.

Tap #9

Class #16: Rolling with Instructor Purple Jack. He gets North-South on me and pulls me up by pants onto my back. I defend chokes; he gets my arm and switches to arm bar; I defend by giving him the elbow rather than the arm, but eventually he muscles it another angle before I can attempt the escape (which i need to review.) Tap #9.

Also, need to review Side escapes. White Patrick muscling me around and passing my guard and getting to side at will and when I had side, I couldn't hold that position.

Review: Guard and passing guard.

Roy Harris says

as a beginner, I should be spending 50%-80% of my time on these four areas for the first five years:

• Sidemount escapes
• Guard control
• Guard passing
• Sidemount control

"To begin your journey, focus on learning how to escape

from inferior positions and control from your guard. Don’t

worry about the submissions. They will come in time."

- Roy Harris

Tap #8

Class #15: I just can't win: Frustrated with rolling with higher belts, but when I roll with lower Whites, it was just not that satisfying beating up on them. I just can't win.

This class, neither White Patrick or Blue Scott was there. They are the closest in skills to me; that's why they like to roll with me, I guess. Instead, there were two lower Whites.

Class notes: We worked on Pulling Guard and going to Palm up/down chokes and Palm up/up chokes from the Guard.

Details: Pulling Guard - right side, same collar grip, other hand, under elbow sleeve grip; big right step, PAST HIS KNEE; curl my other knee as I fall back and close Guard.

on the choke: swivel to right, get deep, deep, cross collar grip (my ELBOW DOWN, AGAINST HIS CHEST); swivel the other way and grip over shoulder, try to connect my hands.

Rolling: so rolling with the lower Whites, they pull Guard because we just worked on that. I easily pass by wrapping both their legs, side, then mount; same deal with the other White who's a virgin (this being his first class). When I get top mount, he defends the chokes well and I get ready to sit down and for the arm bar when time expires and I let out a loud, "Ahhhh mann" of disappointment.

Well at least with the lower Whites, I can track my progress.

With Purple Jack: I'm going to keep track of sweeps now because Jack sweeps me about four times in every roll: goes like this, sweep; we reset. Sweep. Repeat. He says he's going to sweep, then does. He's got long legs, and gets his hooks in; or he controls my sleeves and kicks out a knee. I have to constantly defend the hooks and the sleeve control at the same time; also watch my base and posture - keeping it not too high or too low.

Even so, he gets me in a Brabo choke, i think, from Side but my fingers are trapped and I tap before he can finish the sub because my fingers are smashed as they are and I don't want to injure them any worse. Tap #8 and total sweeps #12.

Also, I've been thinking of trying my "game" plan: so I'll pull and break posture and hold tight like I'm gonna Rubber Guard (if i was flexible enough); hold on to left sleeve; when he pulls back, go for the Hip Bump Sweep, which I've never been able to pull off yet.

I think it'll work for Blues and lower. We'll see. But I've got to start developing my "game" as Roy Dean says.

Tap #6 & #7

Class #14. Just Purple Jack and me. Jack really wants me to bring a notebook and take notes, but I keep forgetting. So I'll jot some stuff here. In class we worked on: 1. Scissor Sweep from guard to mount to the armbar; failed Scissor Sweep to arm bar.

Key details: in the Triangle, getting tight and finding that sweet spot of his shoulder bone; 2. on the Scissor Sweep, I had learned to pull the guy with the cross collar grip -- that makes him light just before I sweep with the legs; Jack says to scoot out, away, then sit up with the grip and fall back down; as I'm falling, I'll bring him to me. Then do the leg motion. 3. Also, it's not a Scissor, he says; more a kicking/stamping.

On to rolling: Jack gets me in a triangle (he loves to do that); left arm half tucked in and caught; right arm is in the triangle; I'm defending well, but can't quite get the angle for the escape; then I try to brace that right hand, going for the collar grip to pressure his neck; but he straightens that arm and gets the armbar. Tap #6.

Toward the end of class, I get his back and he let me try a choke, saying I have to decide collar or rear naked because I was kind of trying both, but I go for the Rear Naked because I just heard Eddie Bravo talking about how awesome Marcelo Garcia's rear naked choke was and how one must practice the Squeeze. Of course, I couldn't quite finish and gave up because I was using too much strength.

We reset and he got my back and got me in kind of collar crucifix and I tapped. Tap #7. But I think about it and it was almost a revenge ego sub because I almost got him it that rear naked. But it proves that Purple Jack is human.

Tap #5

Against Blue Scott again. I'm in his guard and he's trying to arm bar my right arm, and I'm defending well and I have the correct angle so he can't finish, but both my arms are inside his legs. He topples me over and I escape my right arm. Unfortunately, my left arm is caught under his groin; he's riding it like a horse and I've never really seen an escape for this armbar, and I give it a second, then tap. #5.