Wish me luck

[Stevebjj]

Made weight tonight without any problems. Weighed in at 181.9 in the 171 to 184 weight class, and that was with board shorts and a light t-shirt on.

We weighed in outside the Gracie-Barra school on what looked to be an old loading dock... pretty nippy. So, I'm glad I wasn't one of the guys who had to get down to the jockies! :)

So, wish me luck. Tomorrow's my first tournament. No matter what happens, I'm sure to have a good time. I'll be sure to let you guys know how I did.

[slipthejab]

Good luck bro!
Jump in a give 'em hell!
You should have a very good time. :)

[g-bells]

LUCK Pei

[bcullen]

Good luck Pei.

[narcsarge]

Good luck peisistratos! Give 'em hell! :woo:

[1bad65]

Good luck. Don't panic and remember to breathe.

[timex]

yeah , remember to breathe! good luck-have fun.

[Su lin]

Good luck Pei!!!

Let us all know how you got on,and have fun! :love:

[Lekta]

Enjoy it and try to learn from the experience.

[Hiroji]

good luck warrior!! ;)

kick some ass Pei!...or should i say tap some ass...erm... :D

[Victoria]

Good luck P. I'm sure you'll be fine :D

[sprint]

good luck.

be sure to give an update.

win or lose...

it's a win no matter what...

[Stevebjj]

Okay... I'm gonna jump in the shower and head out pretty soon. Thanks for the encouragement! I told my wife that this is my first time, so I may finish pretty quick. She said that as long as I have a good time, this one's all for me and the next one can be for her. It occurred to me that she might not be talking about the tournament. :D

I'm stoked. I feel great and am ready to go.

[Victoria]

I told my wife that this is my first time, so I may finish pretty quick. She said that as long as I have a good time, this one's all for me and the next one can be for her. It occurred to me that she might not be talking about the tournament.
Now there's a sig. :D

[Su lin]

I told my wife that this is my first time, so I may finish pretty quick. .


:D No comment!!!!

Have fun Pei! :D

[Alansmurf]

go get em ............ :cool:

[Slindsay]

Belated wishes of good luck.

[Stevebjj]

:D No comment!!!!

Have fun Pei! :DLOL... I knew the girls would get that right away! :D

Well, I won 1 and lost 1. I won on points in my first match, 11-0, I think. I was smiling the entire time, even after I lost. It was awesome. I'll post it to youtube ASAP.

In the second match, I went down into his guard (not sure if I got takedown points or not), got swept as I tried to pass (I got caught thinking about the choke when I should've been thinking about my base), then passed, and then as I fought to regain guard got choked out with a lapel choke. The guy who choked me out eventually took silver, losing to one of my teammates via triangle choke.

I learned a lot today about how it feels to compete, and I also identified some things that I need to work on next (chokes and choke defense). I also found out that I'm BIG for my weight, and strong. If I can keep working technique, I'll definitely be able to use that to my advantage.

[bcullen]

Good job. One win one loss not bad for a first timer.

[Stevebjj]

Match 1: Win 11-0 on points. As I said, I won this one, but I did a lot wrong. I was focusing on breathing and not hyperventilating. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyIOEUMwThs

And Match 2: I lost pretty fast. The guy went on to take the Silver. He also mentioned that he'd been training twice as long as me. I feel pretty darn good and can't wait until the next tournament in July.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNRHKBYtGkI

[sprint]

awesome.

so would you say there is a difference between training and competing? i mean, to you, are they the same?

[Stevebjj]

Well, two major differences. First is nerves. I'm a corporate trainer and have delivered training to classes of up to about 1800 people at a time, and I was more nervous before the first match than I am speaking in front of a large group. I'll say that my experience dealing with my nerves helped, though. I think in my first match, I looked more tired than I felt. I was actually ready to keep going.

Second big difference is that it's damned hard to warm-up and stay warm. Competitor check-in was at 9am, and I didn't compete until after 3pm. When we did go, I had about 10 minutes warning. So, I warmed up as best I could, but when we train, we train warm. That makes a huge difference in how confident you are going full speed, and I'm sure it contributes to injuries.

Other than that, I tried to think about the match the same way I'd approach sparring in class, the only difference being that I work my game and stick with what I'm best at. Next go around, I'll try and have a better idea of game plan.

[sprint]

to me training and competing are two entirely different things.

competing is very intense. in all of the tournaments that i competed in, there was blood.... either from me or the other guy, or even both. we both don't want to lose cause after a tapout you go home. also in training we kind of hold back but in a tournament we kind of let loose. like if someone has an ezikiel on you and you are blocking it with your mouth instead of it having to go on your throat, the compeitor will keeep budging until you bleed or tapout. but in training you would hold back and wouldn't do that. err... its a true story.

yeah its true about the weigh in stuff. one time i weighed in at around 9 am. but my weight class didn't fight it out until... 6 pm. i had no idea when we were going to go. i didn't want to eat too much cause i could go up at any time and i remember getting all warmed up early but then so much time has passed that it was kind of a waste to warm up when i did.

well anyways training is less intense than competing. competing is the closest thing to a real fight. that is why i am an advocate for tournament entry. yeah.

[1bad65]

You looked good. The first guy was real active and you avoided getting caught or swept. One thing you could think about, if you try and can't tap a guy from side control, try to mount and get those 4 pts. You can always go back to side control if you want and you have 4 more pts than before.

The 2nd guy just had more experience. If you see him at your next tournament, he will probably be wearing a blue belt.

[Stevebjj]

LOL... I had a lot on my mind. Americana is my best submission, and I'm looking at my technique in the first match and thinking, "Why am I allowing him to raise his elbow like that?" I know better and could've ended that first match at about 1 minute if I'd been thinking clearly. After the match, my coach told me I had several opportunities for lapel chokes, as well when the keylock wasn't working.

You're right about mount. At the time I was concentrating on keeping my hips low and maintaining position. He was very active. I'm looking forward to the next local tournament in July. I'm going to work hard between now and then. I think that, now that I've got this one out of the way, I will be able to focus more on technique in my next match and less on "Oh sh...ucks... this is a competition!!!" :)

[slipthejab]

Match 1: Win 11-0 on points. As I said, I won this one, but I did a lot wrong. I was focusing on breathing and not hyperventilating. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyIOEUMwThs

Good job. Yeah you passed up alot of chokes by focussing on getting a keylock on the guy. But overall you maintained a good dominant position and got the takedown points and sidemount points. Nice.

I was getting worried there when you were in his guard and he kept trying to work you elbow into the center.. he kept opening his guard which usually means someone is going for a triangle. When he did though he didn't have the confidence in it or the strength to pull it off.

Good stuff. This being your fist taste of competition will effect the outcome. Next time you're gonna eat a guy that alive.

And Match 2: I lost pretty fast. The guy went on to take the Silver. He also mentioned that he'd been training twice as long as me. I feel pretty darn good and can't wait until the next tournament in July.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNRHKBYtGkI

Nice reversal this guy scored. Wow. Though I'm sure you can see the massive difference in skill level between him and your first opponent. Given that he's got a lot more rolling time under his belt it's not surprising he won. But it's all valuable info to work into your game plan.

Peis - how much do you weigh?
What were the weight categories in those bouts?

Congrats on your first competition and keep it up bro. At the rate MAP is going we may actually get to have a Copa De MAP at one of the meets! :D

[Lekta]

You did very well from the looks of the videos and you obviously held your own. The biggest problems with competitions is that guys will fight at a lower level, much like in Badminton and Ping Pong. Your first match you had better control and technique than your opponent. There were times where you could of sub'ed
him but you outclassed him to where you left him to escape and he couldn't, victory to you by points.

Your second match seemed all-too familiar from what I have seen and heard in other competitions. Your second opponent looked very close to blue and just had too much mat time for you to stand up to. His transitions from turtle to guard (Gongola) and his side control stability screamed advanced. You definitely looked like you did your best and no one could ask more from you. Good job, good job.

[Gong_Sau_Rick]

Pei, sweep the leg.

Do you have a problem with that?

[Alansmurf]

Match 1: Win 11-0 on points. As I said, I won this one, but I did a lot wrong. I was focusing on breathing and not hyperventilating. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyIOEUMwThs

And Match 2: I lost pretty fast. The guy went on to take the Silver. He also mentioned that he'd been training twice as long as me. I feel pretty darn good and can't wait until the next tournament in July.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNRHKBYtGkI


First fight was a battle of attrition ...well done good dominance..
second match as stated different opponent more experienced...

good fights thanks for posting

and get a haircut !!!!LOL!!!



Smurf

[Hiroji]

Nice one pei! ;) :cool:

[Stevebjj]

Thanks for all the comments!

Weight class was 172 -184. I weighed in at 181.5lbs the night before. I felt bigger than everyone, too. I'm not sure if they monkeyed with the weight classes to fill up brackets or not, but I definitely felt big. I'm going keep eating right and working out and see if I can't get into the 171 and under weight class for the next tournament. If I lose the weight correctly, I could be a very, very strong 171lbs.

Regarding technique, I'm confident I'll do better next time. I don't learn as fast as many guys, but I'm diligent. I know now that I've got some things to work on, and I didn't see them until I competed. I can totally understand how critical competition is to training now, regardless of whether you win or not. You get to see with perfect clarity what you do well and what you can work on for next time. Helps you compete your game. Competing also helps you cope with stress, helps you think under pressure.

Oh, but what about that sprawl in match two? He rolled into guard, but come on... gotta give the old, bald guy some love for that sprawl! :)

[Sever]

You bully, Peis - what was that first guy, 12?! :D
Seriously, great work in both matches. You've certainly showed a lot of potential for later comps. Nice sprawl in the second one too. Next time, get someone to throw something at the ref when he gets in the way of the camera :D
When's the next one?

[Stevebjj]

Thanks for the love on that sprawl. I feel like that was pretty good for a 36 year old dude with a herniated disc in my lower back! :D

My brother told me I was beating up on a kid, too. I told him that the kids are brutal. They NEVER get tired and they bend like gumby. While I didn't keep his elbow down like I should have, I'd say that 7 out of 10 people would've tapped to the Americana early in the first match.

Next competition is the Revolution in July (July 14th, I think). I've got a good 2 months plus a few to eat right and get down to 170. :)

[slipthejab]

Dude never let it be said it's beating up on a kid... at 12 they're unbreakable. :D
Woe is anyone who's over 30... that's when things start becoming brittle. :D

[Stevebjj]

Hey, before I forget, they had a complete kids division at this tournament. Those kids were AWESOME. Some of the best bouts of the day were in the kids division. They're fearless and go for every technique with complete abandon. I saw triangles, armbars, keylocks and chokes. They were technical and VERY flexible. I was very impressed.

At one point, this kid had an armbar going. He was straining so hard his little legs were shaking... he was pulling in and the other kid wouldn't tap. Another kid shot in for a single, then let go and basically ran around the other kid, jumped on his back and locked in an RNC. He was like a little badger. I think the future looks bright if these kids are any indication of where BJJ is headed. Holy cow!

[Lily]

Pei - awesome videos, you looked good, competed welll, great attitude :)

Thanks for sharing those, look forward to seeing many more of you just getting better and better :D

[Shiho-Nage]

*** SNIP ***

At one point, this kid had an armbar going. He was straining so hard his little legs were shaking... he was pulling in and the other kid wouldn't tap. Another kid shot in for a single, then let go and basically ran around the other kid, jumped on his back and locked in an RNC. He was like a little badger. I think the future looks bright if these kids are any indication of where BJJ is headed. Holy cow!

You have to love the kids. They are always thinking outside of the box, usually because they weren't aware there was a box to begin with.