In 1995, I was a fan of wrestling and martial arts living in Dallas, Texas, and writing on those topics for a newsletter called "The Wrestling Lariat". Specifically, I was exterior the Japanese shoot-wrestling promotions Uwfi, Rings and Pancrase, and this upstart promotion in the U.S. Called the greatest Fighting Championships. I was impressed by not only Royce Gracie's operation inside the cage, but his family's conviction and desire to prove Brazilian Jiu Jitsu was the most sufficient martial art.
Through a co-worker with many years of martial arts experience, I heard that one of the Gracie cousins, Carlos Machado, was chance a Bjj school in the Dallas suburbs. Mestre Carlos was doing some personal training for Chuck Norris, and choreography for his television show "Walker, Texas Ranger." Norris had in case,granted some space at his yield studio to set up a small training installation for Mestre Carlos to take on some new students.
I had very minute feel in wrestling or martial arts, and wasn't an active athlete...but I had to go try it. From Day One, I was indeed a fish out of water. Not only was I the only martial arts novice in the room, most other students were existing black belts in judo or other arts, looking to take Machado Jiu Jitsu techniques back to their own school. Unlike today, Bjj was a secret. At the time Carlos Machado stared in Dallas, there was only a concentrate other Brazilian Jiu Jitsu schools exterior of California (Renzo Gracie in New York, Carlson Gracie Jr. In Chicago).
People went out of their way to learn from Mestre Carlos. A number of students came from all over Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. I knew two students that would drive the 4+ hours from Houston to Dallas for Friday's class, stay overnight in a hotel, train again Saturday morning, and drive back; they did this every week for months on end. Champion collegiate wrestlers and fighters came for underground lessons. I saw Pancrase and Ufc champion Guy Mezger a number of times; Mma legend Frank Shamrock once.
Realistically, I had no company being there, but I was hooked practically instantly. I loved the idea of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu's sufficient use of leverage and position. I didn't have to be a bodybuilder or bodily freak of nature to make an opponent do what I wanted. I liked being in on the ground floor of the next wave of martial arts. I appreciated the changes that were happening to my body, losing weight and feeling stronger than I had since I was a teenager.
Those of us who were regulars at the school felt like an insulated community, a Bjj island. Nowadays, there are hundreds of Jiu Jitsu schools across the country. You go on their Web sites, look up their Facebook pages, and see them at grappling tournaments many times a year across the country. At a big tournament, like Naga Great Lakes, you'll see 60, 70 or more schools represented. It is practically impossible to dream Bjj as an upstart fad.
But back then, there wasn't a submission tournament exterior of Brazil or the fledgling Abu Dhabi Combat Club. The Ufc had shows two or three times a year, and some times the company was in danger of going out of business. It wasn't on any television outlets exterior of Ppv; you'd never dream it would be shown on basic cable, much less broadcast television. But we hung in, as fighters and fans, because we loved the training, and we knew that we were part of something special.
After about a year, in the summer of 1996, I received my first belt promotion...and a health scare. some bouts of strep and tonsillitis led to a considerable tonsillectomy. After the surgery, I had some bleeding issues straight through my scar tissue - one of which came from trying to head back to train and getting choked way before I was ready. While I was healing, I met the woman who would at last be my wife, and my priorities swiftly changed. I didn't want to take some hours driving back and forth to the studio and training, three times a week. I had other things on my mind, and in my heart, so I quit.
I spent the best part of 15 years off the mat. I was still a fan of the Ufc and other mixed martial arts, but I always made excuses why I didn't back into it. I was too busy getting out of shape to stay in shape.
Eventually, my son reached the age where I wanted him to start in martial arts. With my past love and feel in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, I started my search there. And from the first day, he loved it like I did. His enthusiasm was contagious, and being colse to the sport again fueled my itch to get back on the mat. But that's other story, for other time....
My Long, Interrupted History With Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
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