Gui Mendes Seminar Sat Jan 12th 2013

I think I've mentioned this seminar in about 10 blog posts over the last few months. Man, was I excited to train with Gui for 3 hours. Too bad I couldn't because of my stupid head. Anyway... The seminar was AMAZING from the sidelines, I can only imagine how excellent it was to actually drill the techniques and have a master like Gui helping you fix them.

The pace of the seminar was great; it was 3 hours, so pace is important. No precious time was wasted on warm ups, which I think surprised a lot of people, but was appreciated. People didn't go to the seminar to run around the mats and shrimp. The flow of the techniques was good too, they progressed nicely.

The first half was bottom stuff, all starting from De La Riva guard, well, pulling DLR, then starting from there. Apparently there is a lot more to pulling guard then just sitting on your butt and hoping for the best! Who knew? One of the most important concepts that was reiterated over and over, for pretty much every technique was controlling the distance.

So, they did...
1. Pulling De La Riva
2. Switching from regular DLR to inverted DLR
3. DLR sweep
4. Berimbolo
5. 2 back takes from DLR
6. double under / stack pass and back take (starting from inverted dlr)
7. I think I’m missing something else.
Having been to the Art of Jiu Jitsu, and with Pura being a Mendes affiliate already, I had seen a lot of the DLR sweeps and back takes already. But there is always a detail or 10 to pick up, and tweaks that they have made over time to make them better. An example: for the berimbolo posting your foot on the mat to help you spin faster was a detail that I had forgotten.

The double unders/stack pass stuff was brand new for me. Not that I've never done a double under pass before, but the way Gui is doing it now, man oh man, completely different, and ridiculously effective. I cannot wait to try to remember it, drill it, and crush people’s dreams using it. I'm not going to get into the details of it, I would explain it all wrong anyway, but the most interesting part was that he kept a grip on 2 collars. There is probably video of it on their online training site. If not, go do a seminar and learn it from them. I really can't explain it.


The other cool thing with when Gui (and Rafa) do seminars and classes is they like to roll with as many people as they can. On Saturday Gui did 6 rounds straight. This is after flying over night, dealing with flight delays, driving from Toronto to Hamilton and arriving with 20 min to spare. Then teaching for 3 hours straight. What a machine. I'd be like "Nope, I'm going to bed now". It was really neat watching Gui execute a lot of the exact techniques that were shown in the hours previous. I'll be honest it was pretty entertaining watching my team mates fighting valiantly if not effectively.

Gui also spent a good amount of time answering peoples questions. They didn't have to have anything to do with the techniques that were worked on, or even things that he is known for using. People asked questions about defending the leg drag position, baseball bats, and a bunch of other things, that I forget. The Q/A sections helped pace the seminar nicely. It gave people breaks to rest a bit and catch their breath. Working DLR and all the getting up and down that goes with it can be pretty tiring.

I'm not sure I'm going to survive the week on the sidelines. It's so fucking depressing to not be training with such a great coach/Sensei. The worst thing is I'm totally not a visual learner. I can't even visualize things when someone is trying to explain it to me. Ask Jon, he gets so frustrated with me when he tries to explain something he wants to try, or something that he did. It's annoying, but it’s just the way I'm wired I guess. Even worse, my short (and medium, and long) -term memory seems to have been affected by the concussion and I'm finding myself not even being able to remember the techniques that are shown an hour or two after a class. I'll be honest, my memory has been not excellent for a while, but it seems like since December it's gotten a lot worse.

Anyway.... There are still plenty of opportunities for you to train with Gui this week...

Tonight: 7:30 PM
Tuesday 6pm
Wednesday 12:30PM and 7:30PM
Thurs 6pm
Fri 12:30PM

If you can get to any of these, you will NOT regret it. $70 is a steal for such a great opportunity.

Oh, I forgot.  Here's my facebook album of pictures from the seminar:

Upcoming Tournaments and Events

So, 2013 is starting out with a plethora of tournaments and events and just because my brain is too fucked up to fight doesn't mean you shouldn't be out there checking these tournaments and seminars out.  Starting off with 3 seminars.  I'd recommend going to both, if you can teleport.

Egor Radzik is doing a No Gi / MMA Submission Seminar in London, Ontario this Saturday the 12th.   Egor has crazy Sambo leg locks, and a brown belt in BJJ.  If you like leg locks, you should be there.  It's only 40 bucks, and all participants get $30 off their next Redstar gi order. So, if you’re in the market for a new gi, it's an even better deal!

Gui Mendes will be at Pura BJJ for a 3 hours seminar this Saturday the 12th from 11am till 2pm.   There are still a couple spots available so contact PJ, or Joe to save your spot.   Gui is going to be at Open Mat on Sunday the 13th for a 3 hour seminar as well.   I don't know if there is space available still, check out that Facebook event for who to contact and whatnot.

Gui will be teaching classes at Pura all week from the 14th till the 18th as well.   They are open to anyone for $70 per class.   You can see the schedule for these on the "Pura BJJ Schedule" link on the left. 

Finally, Also on Saturday, Mestre Sylvio Behring will be doing a seminar in Brampton.  He's kind of a big deal, so if you’re in the area, you might want to check it out.

So you Grappling Goons, you have no excuse to not doing lots of jiu jitsu on Saturday. 3 great opportunities right there.

First up in the tournament category is Ascension. (Jan 19th 20th) This will be the tournament’s 8th year and they've come along way. Ascension is an OJA tournament so comes with the usual quality that comes with them. Pre-registration, quality refs, decent organization, and friendly people! Ascension is unique in the vibe it has. Omar brings the Rasta vibe. Last year had the most amazing rendition of O Canada. Good times. They also have the BEST food for a tournament ever. Mmmm. Jerk chicken, brownies, salad. Amazing.


Also coming up is Montreal Grappling on January 26th . I love these tournaments. They have come a long way since their first event and are constantly improving. They've implemented IBJJF weight classes, masters divisions and another mat area in the last couple events. They are also giving away a few trips to Pans, which is huge. The referees at the events are also constantly improving.  I’ll admit, they were not the greatest at first, but they have since taken the IBJJF course and have gained a lot of experience.

Next up, also in Montreal, is the Abu Dhabi Pro Trials on Saturday Feb 9th and 10th.  This is not an event for noobs, it is not for people with fresh belts, and it is not a good choice for someone’s first competition.  That being said, It's generally a very well-run tournament, and I am very disappointed that I won't be competing.  This year they have added a LOT of ladies divisions, and changed it up a bit. For purple and up, there are a bunch of weight classes and 2 absolutes, if you medal in your weight class, you get to play in the absolute.  Previously, it was only 2 weight classes, and the winner wins. I think this way will get more ladies out and will have an overall more enjoyable experience. This tournament is a qualifier for the Abu Dhabi World Pro tournament, in Abu Dhabi UAE.  Winners of certain absolutes and divisions will get an all expense paid trip there.


Heading back to the GTA next for Grappling Industries second visit to Toronto.  On Feb 16th  They Bring their unique format back to the GTA with trips to the Mundials on the line.   This is a great tournament for beginners and experienced competitors alike.   If your a noob, and you get smashed in the first round it's OK, you've still got 3 more fights in the round robin to get more experience.   The staff at grappling industries has promised a lot of improvements from their last event (which was a raging success in my opinion), so I am really looking forward to this event.

Last, but not least, for this blog post anyway, on Feb 23rd the OJA brings the first SUB ONLY tournament to Ontario! There isn't a ton of information out about this yet, but it should be a lot of fun.  Keep your eyes open in the OJA and Ontario BJJ Tournament Facebook groups for more info. Here are the rules, for you to look at while we wait for more information.