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My Journey Part Two

So here I am paired up with this cute gal. I am thinking to myself, "Boy, this training session is going to be great! I get to learn some great stuff, plus I get have a little eye candy on the side.

Well, no sooner had we started and BAAM, this gal (or should I say "wonder woman") threw her first thai kick into the thai pad I was holding and moved me backwards about three feet. She kicked so hard I could feel the power of her kick through the thai pad. Suddenly, training HURT!

Well, then we moved on to focus pads and this "wonder woman" practically ripped my arms out my socket with her punches. When we finished up with a few Jun Fan trapping drills, I thought "OK, now I can show her my strength." Well, her first pak sao (slapping hand) hit my forearm so hard I almost screamed! Each time she slapped my forearm I cringed in pain. Of course, I did not want to show any signs of pain so I sucked it up until class was over. (NOTE: my right forearm was black and blue after that first training session. Talk about a blow to my ego!)

As we were wrapping things up, I asked her, "so, how long have you been training with Sifu Rick Faye?" To this she replied, "Oh, about two and a half years." That made me feel a little bit better. However, I still could not get over the fact that this 5'6", 130 lbs. wonder woman could kick harder and punch harder than me. Oh well, I got over it.

I trained at the Minnesota Kali Group 'til around 1985. It was in early 1986 that I moved to California. Before I moved, I asked Sifu Rick where he thought I should continue my training and he suggested I give Sifu Inosanto and Guru Paul Vunak a try.

In February of 1986, I moved out to San Diego, California with $170 in my pocket. That's right, only $170 and no job! I had been laid off of my last two job in Minnesota and had decided that it was time for a change. Believe it or not, I made that $170 last for an entire month! Granted, I didn't live like a King, but hey, I made due. (It was a heck of a lot better than living on the street like I did for a short time in St. Paul!)

So, here I am in San Diego with a $170 worth of one dollar bills in my pocket, ready to take on all the challenges life has to offer! Within a few hours, I land my first job. Within a few months, I am back on my feet and training at the Inosanto Academy in Marina del Rey, California. I was driving two hours and forty minutes one way just to train at the Academy. Plus, my 1964 Dodge Polara was running smooth and clean!

After spending a year at the Inosanto Academy, and training under the tutelage of Dan Inosanto, Cass Magda, Salem Assli, Paul and Victor DeThoures, I grew weary of the long commute. I began looking a places closer to San Diego.

I stopped by the IMB Academy in Torrance and trained there for a few months. Then, a friend of mine who was training at the Inosanto Academy told me about these Brazilian guys who were awesome on the ground. Up until that point in time, I only had a minimal interest in ground fighting. However, my friend showed me what it was all about. We sparred in the parking lot outside of the Academy. He took me to the pavement and choked me in about ten seconds flat. Now, keep in mind my friend weighed 50 lbs less than I did. Needless to say, I was impressed. No one had ever done that to me before, so I knew he was onto something. So, I went driving through Torrance in search of the new Gracie Academy.

When I arrived, I was met by Professor Rorion Gracie. He showed me around his facility and introduced me to everyone. It was a very nice experience. I purchased my first kimono and began my private training with Royler Gracie. This was sometime around December of 1990 or January of 1991. It was the beginning of my addiction to Jiu Jitsu! Don't get me wrong. I still loved JKD, and still do to this day (I am a JKD practitioner first). However, I never knew that practicing an art could be so fun!

Well, as soon as I began training at the Gracie Academy in Torrance, funny things began to happen. More on this in the next segment, part three.............

Good training to you,

Roy Harris

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Subject: RE: INFO
From: Roy Harris
Date: 07-Aug-01 | 03:31 PM

Grapple Man,

I began thinking about becoming a police officer in 1987. I applied for a couple of agencies but was rejected. In 1990, I applied to attend a police academy in San Diego as an open enrollee (meaning, I had not yet been offered a job by any law enforcement agency).

I was eventually accepted by the academy and began taking classes in January of 1991. My police training lasted until December of that same year.

On a side note, 1991 was one of the harder years of my life. I worked full time (40+ hours a week) as a residential security officer for the University of California. I attended the police academy 40 hours a week (this includes classes and driving time to and from the academy). I taught self-defense classes at the University and at a woman's fitness club (6 hours a week). I drove to the Gracie Academy in Torrance at least twice a week, sometimes three times a week (this amounted to anywhere between 15 and 22 hours a week when you add up all the driving time and class time). So when you add up all these hours, you see that I had a very active life: 100+ hours a week working, learning and training!

When I graduated from the police academy, it was a big day in my life! I was glad to finally be finished with it and was ready to move on to the next stage of my life.

I finally got hired as a police officer in 1993 and worked as a police officer until 1996. However, after a couple of years, I did not like the person I was becoming (I found myself becoming negative, cynical and judgemental, just like the other cops I was working with). I found that my work life was beginning to affect my personal life. So, I made the decision to hang up the badge because the job was a bit too negative for me. I had fought too many political and bureaucratic fights during my four years as a cop and decided I needed something more positive.

When I told my sergeant that I was resigning, he spent three hours trying to convince me to stay. He told me I was one of their best cops and that I had a good heart. However, I stayed true to myself and told him that I was not happy, and that I needed to move on.

I enjoyed being a cop. However, it was all the other stuff that happened that soured me.

Now, before I was a cop, I worked for four years as a private investigator. I performed a ton of surveillance ops, provided personal protection services for a wide range of clients, developed a unique skill at surreptitious entry, performed background checks and financial assessments, tracked (located) people and a variety of other (unnamed) duties. It was a lot of fun!)

A part of me misses it. However, I thoroughly enjoy teaching martial arts though. I wouldn't have it any other way. When I teach, I feel as though I am fulfilling a life long calling! When I see students smile, learn, grow and have those "Ah-ha" experiences, my heart warms! I know I am doing what I am supposed to be doing!

Well, duty calls. I need to get back to work.

More later..............

Roy Harris

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My journey part four:

When I first brought Nikolay Baturin to the Gracie Academy, he was relaxed. However, things got a little tense there in the beginning.

First, Nick began by stretching out in one of the private rooms at the Academy. He was not interested in going into teh big training room. Suddenly, Royce walked in, introduced himself and asked Nick if he wanted to roll "right now." Nick replied, "give me about 15 minutes to warm up and then we'll grapple. Fifteen minutes came and went. Nick went into the big training room and was greeted by a ton of faces, all waiting to see him and Royce do battle.

Then, the moment we had all been waiting for, Nick and Royce started grappling from a standing position. This is where things became tense. I knew Nick was an awesome Judoka because I had done some training with him myself. Plus, I had seen Nick throw a lot of the Judo black belts in San Diego, with ease and finesse. So, to see him start standing with Royce made my heart go pitter patter!)

Anyway, within a few seconds Nick throws Royce to the ground. Not a hard throw, but a throw none the less. Royce and Nick engage in a bit of ground work and then I see Nick go for Royce's foot, really hard. He had it on real tight too. I saw Royce grimace and move faster than I had ever seen him move before. About twenty seconds later, Royce had escapes Nick's foot lock and was beginning to apply a foot lock of his own (on Nick). Now mind you, Nick does not feel any pain when the foot lock or heel hook is applied. He leg is like a frickin' titanium rod. Nick will even let you lock his leg and relax his foot. Still, he feels no pain. And that's what happened when Royce took his foot. Nick relaxed and let Royce take his foot. Finally, Royce gave up and moved on to something else.

There was a number of positional exchanges between Royce and Nick. Neither person was dominating. But then about 10 minutes into the match, Royce got a collar choke on Nick. Nick squirmed and finally tapped.

Royce and Nick went again. However, this time Royce knew where Nick was weak: collar chokes. So, Royce went after Nick's neck again and again. Royce repeatedly tapped Nick, again and again. Finally, the match ended.

Rorion was sitting nearby and commented on Nick's performance. Rorion said, "Nick, for someone who's never trained in Jiu Jitsu, you have really good technique. I am impressed with your skills."

Continued...........

Roy Harris

The group class training began and Nick participated. When it came time for mat time (randori), Nick put on a spectacular diplay of Judo! Nick threw everyone around like barbie dolls. He even did randori with just one hand. Nick was awesome. Royce was awesome! I will never forget that night. I can still see that one purple belt being thrown so high his feet nearly hit the ceiling.

Rorion told Nick that if he ever wanted to train again, he was welcome at the Gracie Academy. We all shook hands after class and called it a night. (Note: I remember training with Royce the next day in class. I also remember looking down at his left foot and seeing the top of it was all black and blue. I did not say anything though cause I knew where it had come from. I too had been put in a foot lock by Nick and did not tap in time, and remember my instep being black and blue!)

ANOTHER NOTE : Nick made a major contribution to my grappling game! Without him, I would not have the leg locking skills I have. Nick, if you're reading this, I want you to know that I truly appreciate the skills you gave me regarding leg locks, especially the straight foot lock!!!!

My training at the Gracie Academy continued until August of 1992. At that time, an article had been written about me in the San Diego Union and Tribune newspaper. This article caused Rorion to re-evaluate my training there. Rorion told me that it was not fair that I make money off of him by teaching Jiu Jitsu. He said I would now have to pay him $100 per class if I was going to continue training at the Academy. I told Rorion the following:

"I told you (Rorion) about the self-defense class I taught at the University on several occasions. I even asked you if it was all right if I taught the students a few Gracie Jiu Jitsu techniques. You said it was OK as long as I didn't wear a Gracie Jiu Jitsu shirt while teaching."

"I also told you (Rorion) that I make $60 a month teaching my self-defense, and that I would give you $30 of it because you were my instructor."

I also said, "Rorion, I am paying $240 a month to train with you and your brothers (not to mention the driving time, the gas and the headache of dealing with LA traffic). I have done all of this for almost two years now. Doesn't that show you the kind of loyalty I have for you and your brothers?"

Continued..........

Roy Harris

To this Rorion replied, "I am sorry my friend. But this is my final offer." I said, "Rorion, paying $100 per class would mean I would be paying $1400 a month to continue my training with you. I don't have that kind of money." He said, "I am sorry."

So, I shook his hand and left the Academy for the last time. That was a very sad day in my martial arts training experience! I was heart broken after that incident. I had dumped my soul into that Academy (not to mention my loyalty to Rorion and Royce) and now I was being treated like a number.

However, the story doesn't end there. What I was about to experience next really caught me off guard!

More on that later..............

Roy Harris

P.S. Rorion, if you are reading this, I hope you know you hurt me a lot on that day. I had put a lot of trust into you, your brothers and your academy, and because you allowed money to come between us, I felt like my loyatly to you meant nothing, and that really hurt! I thought I was your friend because you called me your friend.

P.S.S. Royce, if you area reading this I want you to know that I truly respected you as my teacher and thorughly enjoyed learning from you. I sent you several e-mails telling you this. However, you never responded to me.

Rorion and Royce, I wish things would have turned out different. I wish we could have remained friends over the years. However, both of you made choices (and said things) that severely impacted my life, and because of it I am now training with Professor Moreira, and my loyalty lies with him. He has my greatest respect and loyalty, something you both had, but discarded. Maybe you can learn something from my pain. If not, that's OK.

I wish both of you continued success in all your endeavors!)

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Subject: RE: INFO
From: Bolo
Date: 08-Aug-01 | 03:26 AM

I just want to add acouple things in regards to story about Royce and Nick.

First, Royce had the strongest legs for a skinny guy that Nick had ever felt. At one point, when they were standing Royce dropped straight into the triangle choke (when I later asked Royce how he did it, he said that wouldn't not show me until I was brown belt) on Nick. The triangle was not on prefectly and was more on Nick's head than his neck. Royce held the choke for a while and then Nick tapped. Nick said that it felt like the triangle was going to crush his head. He said his face felt like a mashed potatoe.

Second, Nick had competed in judo and would often roll to his stomach, grab his own collars, and be very defensive. Nick was very strong for his size and an incredible grip. Royce had a very hard time breaking through Nick's defenses. So he began to put his forearm under Nick's nose to pull his chin up to take the choke. Later, Nick asked Royce if pulling up on someone's nose was legal in BJJ and Royce basically voided answering the question.

------------------

Subject: RE: INFO
From: Roy Harris
Date: 08-Aug-01 | 07:30 PM

bounce,

Unfortunately, I only had the chance to train with Nick during that one year. Nick has since moved up to the San Francisco bay area for work, and I have lost contact with him.

Nick was constantly improving his game. While he was teaching me Sambo, he was learning Jiu Jitsu from Chris Hauter, a black belt under the Machado's.

Nick told me he was an average Sambo player. He said there were guys in mother Russia who were much better than him.

I have not had the privilege to train with Gokor. However, I've heard great things about him as a coach and teacher. I have personally watched his classes in LA and think he is a good teacher. However, because of distance and time, I can not afford to train with him. I would love to train with him. I just wish he was closer!

I attended an Oleg Taktarov seminar several years ago. He seemed very likeable and knowledgeable. However, I have never had the chance to train with him.

Roy Harris

My journey part six:

During my twenty years of the study of martial arts, I've been privileged to study a ton of different styles. Each style had a unique way of doing things. I purposely studied different arts because I wanted to see how each art addressed fighting. For example, Jiu Jitsu was great on the ground. Judo was an awesome throwing art. Boxing was great with the hands. Savate was unbelieveable with the feet. Kali taught me weapon and weaponless defenses for the blade. Chin Na taught me the finer points of maniuplating joints. Silat taught me how to effectivey enter and sweep with authority!

What I found in my study of these arts was that:

1. Each style had strengths and weaknesses.

2. Each style had the potential to be effective in a self-defense situation.

3. The effectiveness of each style was dependent upon two factors:

a. the quality of the instruction received from the master.
b. the personal discipline of the individual practitioner.

During my journey, I've seen the benefits of all styles of martial art and have observed five (5) broad categories of styles:

1. Traditional.
2. Eclectic.
3. Sportive.
4. Holistic.
5. Combative.

Traditional styles focus on developing personal discipline in their students. To them, self-defense is not a matter of physical technique. Rather, it is a method of controlling one's mind, mouth, actions and emotions.

Eclectic styles are usually headed by charismatic individuals, who have studied a variety of different styles of martial arts and have come up with their own way of doing things. The eclectic styles are more self-defense and physical fitness oriented.

Sportive styles place a heavy emphasis on competition and preparing for comeptition.

Holistic styles work on the development of the inner person, similar to the traditional styles. However, their emphasis is on stress reduction, relaxation, nutrition, physical conditioning, meditation and philosophy.

Combative styles emphasize combat. What is combat? Well, my Kali instructor in the Philippines said it this way: "Combat is simple - it's either your life or mine!" And because combat is different than sport and entertainment, the focus of training is different.

Continued.........

Roy Harris

Here's an example: When I trained with my Kali instructor in the Philippines, he only allowed me to wear protective gear during my first lesson. After that, I had to perform the drills, as well as spar with him without any protection! Keep in mind that we trained with a heavy blade with rounded edges. My instructor told me, "this was the only way you would know if you could protect your hand and your body when a blade was being swung at it."

When I would make a simple mistake, my instructor made sure I understood that my hand was unprotected for a short period of time by either tapping my hand or forearm with his blade, or by placing his blade very close to my face!!! (In the art of Kali, if you can't protect your hand against the blade, you can't protect the rest of your body)

The training methods I was exposed to in the Philippines blew my mine! I got a first hand look at (as well as a ton of first hand experience of) how someone would prepared for combat. It totally revolutionized the way I look at martial arts training!

Of all the styles I've been involved in, Kali is my favorite! Why? Because I can adapt Kali to any situation. I can kick box with a blade. I can box with a blade. I can trap with a blade. I can grapple with a blade. I can thow with a blade. I can perform single or double leg take downs with a blade. I can ground fight with a blade. I can use a stick or other blunt weapon with a blade. I can use a firearm with a blade. I can adapt the blade to any situation and make it work. This is why I love the blade so much!

Now, of course I love Brazilian Jiu Jitsu! It comes in as a close second. However, I love BJJ because it is something I do for enjoyment. It's something I can continue to do for the next 40 years or so. Of course, I can do the same with a blade. However, the blade puts me into combat mode! I feel different with a blade in my hand. Jiu Jitsu makes me feels like a kid. I can do Jiu Jitsu all day long and talk trash, crack jokes and make a fool of myself. Jiu Jitsu makes me feel jovial and playful!) Whereas the blade makes me feel serious, determined and focused.

Continued........

Roy Harris

Now, my involvement with Jeet Kune Do has been very fascinating. I first started with Sifu Rick Faye in Minnesota. Then, I trained with Sifu Inosanto and Guru Cass Magda at the Inosanto Academy. While I was at the Inosanto Academy, I also had a chance to train with Sifu Larry Hartsell. I thoroughly enjoyed my training time there. I just wish it hadn't been so far away. Five to six hours on the road for each training session became a chore after 12 months. As much as I enoyed training there, I had to find something closer. That's when I found Sifu Paul Vunak in Long Beach, California in 1988.

I remember my first training session with Sifu Paul. There were a bunch of guys training in the back of the apartment complex he lived in. I came in and was welcomed with open arms. However, I soon found of that some of his boys did not like "new guys." I soon became fresh meat for a couple of them. I remember this one guy (I believe his name ws Mark Bailuff) kicking my butt during our first sparring session and Sifu stepping in to calm him down. Every time I went with that guy, he always went full-bore on me! Finally it got to a point where I did not want to spar with this guy because I would end up bruised and very sore after every training session. I can still picture those black and blue marks on my legs! Still, it was an eye opening experience.

I feel fortunate to have spent a ton of private lessons with Sifu Paul Vunak in his garage back in the late 80's and early 90's. Things were so different back then. I remember when Sifu Paul introduced me to the various concepts of Jeet Kune Do and I would have one of those "Ah-ha" experiences. I specifically remember a training session where Sifu Paul showed me how the centerline concept of Wing Chun could help me with my stick training. During that same session, he showed me how the hard core training methods of Muay Thai could be implemented in my Wing Chun training, as well as how the destruction training method of Kali could be implemented in my close-quarter boxing methods. These simple concepts radically changed the way I train. I found myself applying many of these concepts and training methods to the other styles I had studied.

Well, I could go on, but my fingers are becoming tired from all this hunt and peck stuff.

I'm gonna go grab some sleep and write a little more later.

Ciao for now,

Roy Harris

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Subject: RE: INFO
From: jkd_guy
Date: 10-Aug-01 | 07:12 PM
Roy,

Great story!!

2 Questions:

1. 'He said, "Rorion would not want you to watch this video." I asked "Why?" He said, "Because of what is on the tape. You can watch 'Gracie Jiu Jitsu in Action Part One', but that's it. All the other tapes are off limits to you'

What kind of tape was it? What was on it?

2. 'For example, every now and then he would close the door to the training room, look out the window down the hall towards Rorion's office and say: "Don't tell Rorion I showed this to you, and don't do this when Rorion is around. Royce would then proceed to show us some really interesting stuff'

What type of things did he show the class that Rorion did not want you all to learn?

Thanks

-Tony

Subject: RE: INFO
From: Roy Harris
Date: 11-Aug-01 | 08:15 PM
jkd_guy,

To answer oiur first question:

It was a tape of Royler Gracie challenge matches.

To answer your econd question:

I assume it was techniques that he felt Rorion did not want us to know. Otherwise, why would he do what he did?

Roy,

Thanks for the answers...BUT:

'To answer your econd question:

I assume it was techniques that he felt Rorion did not want us to know. Otherwise, why would he do what he did? '

What I meant, was, what were some of the moves that Rorion didnt want you all to learn...like was it jumping, upside down triangle or something like that?

Or was it a way to make a particular submission easier to apply, etc.

Thanks

-Tony

jkd_guy,

The techniques that Royce showed us that we were not supposed to do around Rorion involved escapes.

Roy Harris

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Subject: RE: INFO
From: Ilonggo
Date: 13-Aug-01 | 05:52 PM

roy,

thanks for a very informative thread. i can't believe the dedication you put in by driving 2 hrs + just to train! i've been guilty myself of not training for the past 5 mos., due to the distance that i must drive to a quality bjj school here in columbus. not to mention being a full time family man doesn't help much either. how do motivate yourself by driving that distance multiple times a week? like you said, if you love the arts, one day it will return to you. my urge to start training again is very strong, it's just that the thought of driving (in my case, it's about 60 miles away) kinda depresses me. i've decided to start up again (hopefully) next month.

keep up the good work, roy...

 

Subject: RE: INFO
From: Roy Harris
Date: 13-Aug-01 | 06:10 PM

Ilonggo,

Find something to do while you are driving. Purchase a good set of books on tape: learn a new language, develop your english vocabulary, learn a new hobby, learn something while you are driving down the road.

Plus, find a good book store, coffee shop, computer store or something that's about half way between home and the school. When you head back home, stop by your favorite store and relax for a bit. It will take the sting out of the hour on the road!

If you focus only on the BJJ training, it may not be worth the hassle. However, if you see another benefit to the trip (such as getting away from the family for an extra 30 minutes, taking notes and letting your mind soak in all the new BJJ info you just learned, learning something new, hanging out with a new friend, etc...), it will take the drag out of travel.

Good luck!

Roy Harris

----------------------------

Subject: RE: INFO
From: Bolo
Date: 14-Aug-01 | 02:28 AM

Roy posted this on another forum:

You asked, "Why and what happened to the machado's and rickson?"

Well, I was told that I was not welcome to train with them any more!

With Rickson, it was a matter of respect.

One day, Rickson and I were talking in his office. I told him I was taking private lessons with Nelson Monteiro. Right in the middle of my sentence, he got up out of his chair and walked out of his office. He never spoke to me again.

I kept calling him to set up a private lesson but he never returned my calls any more.

When I showed up at his school, Luis Heredia (sp?) told me that I had disrespected Rickson by telling him that I was taking private lessons from someone else.

I told Luis, "I have to travel 90 minutes to train with Rickson and pay $140 an hour. Nelson Monteiro lives five minutes from my house and only charges $40 an hour. It's quite simple. I can only afford to train with Rickson once a month because of time and money. I meant no disrespect to him, I was just being honest with him."

To this Luis replied, "I know. However, Rickson does not want to train you any more. I am sorry my friend."

(By the way, I told Nelson Monteiro that I was taking private lesson with Rickson and he told me that he did not mind.)

I was asked to leave the Machado's because John Machado accused me of being a traitor.

You see, the Machado's had lost to my Russian friend Nikolay Baturin in a Sambo match, and they blamed me for their loss.

After the tournament, I called the Machado school on several occasions to set up my next private lesson with Rigan. However, no one returned my call. I even drove up to the school to talk to them in person. When I did, John Machado met me at the door and said, "What are your doing here?" I told him that I wanted to set up my next private lesson.

John told me to come back next Saturday because he and his brothers wanted to talk with me about something very important.

So, the next Saturday, I drove all the way up to Redondo Beach from San Diego (two hours and twenty five minutes) to speak with the Machado brothers. When I arrived, John Machado was locking up the school. I walked up to him and said, "Hey John."

Again, John asked me what I was doing there at their school and I reminded him of our appointment.

John Machado then told me the following:

"My brothers and I have decided that you are no longer welcome to train at our school. We have decided this because you are waiving two flags. You trained your friend Nick with the Jiu Jitsu we taught you, and now you want to continue your training with us. Well, in Brazil we call it waiving two flags: a traitor! You are not welcome to train here any longer."

I told John, "I had not trained Nick because I had not seen him in about a year. And besides, Nick could make me tap left and right. I had nothing to teach him."

To this, John replied, "The only way Nick could have beaten us was because you taught him Jiu Jitsu."

Now, I knew who was teaching Nick Jiu Jitsu. It was one of their own purple belts. However, it was not my place to jeopardize this guys training to get myself out of a sticky situation. And besides, if the Machado's did not believe me, I did not want to train with them anyway. I believe loyalty goes two ways: student to instructor AND instructor to student. I believe what they say, and they should believe what I say! Period!!!!

I asked John if there was anything I could do or say to change his mind or his brothers and he said, "No. We've already made up our minds."

So, I walked away and never returned.

Now you know!

Roy Harris

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Subject: RE: INFO
From: Roy Harris
Date: 14-Aug-01 | 01:48 PM

For all of you reading this thread, I need to interject something here:

My purpose in writing all of this is NOT to say how bad the other instructors are NOR how good I am. I do not consider myself better than any of them!

My purpose is simple: after all these years, I wanted to clear the air! Many rumors have flown around the globe about me and I just wanted people to know what happened to me during the beginning years and why certain rumors may have been started.

Too often, when negative information is dissenminated on a public forum, people jump on the band wagon and begin taking sides. For example, since I've written about what has happened to me, I have been very careful not to mention certain things or certain names. However, some people chose to zero in on the missing info and ask what happened. Plus, Bolo has chosen to "try and help me out by telling the rest of the story." Well, I never meant for every little detail (nor all of the involved parties) to be out in the open. I just wanted to tell a few stories about why I ended up training with different instructors.

Because of my involvement in the intelligence industry, I have found that the way the story is told determines how people react to it. If any exaggerations are placed in the story or details are left out, people can get the wrong idea. For example, Bolo said, "The Machados were consistantly losing to Nick in sambo competitions. " Well, that's not quite true. The Machados fought against Nick twice and lost. In my book, that's a bit different from implying they were "consistently losing" to Nick.

Bolo also said, "They (the Machados) did not like the fact that they were losing to our friend and accused us of teaching Nick BJJ techniques to beat them." That too is not quite true. John Machado accused "ME" of teaching Nick Jiu Jitsu. Bolo was no where around when this happened.

All of these incidents (at the Gracie Academy, with Rickson and with the Machados) happened to me, directly. Yes, Bolo was a student of mine at the time, and yes, Bolo was guilty because of his association with me. However, the instructors made their choice to not allow me to train with them. The only person who verbally stated that Bolo (Mike Jen) could not train with them was Rorion Gracie. Rorion said this because Bolo was a regular student at the Academy and because Rorion knew that Bolo assisted me in my self-defense classes. However, Bolo was not a regular student of the Machados nor Rickson.

Now, with regard to the rest of the "negative" stories (or for that matter, "more details"), I am finished focusing on the negative. I request that all of you refrain from asking ( or adding) more details about what happened with this instructor or that instructor. I do not want this thread to turn into a bashing thread, or a thread "that implies" I am bashing other instructors. My goal in writing this thread was to share information with all of you about my beginnings.

From now on, I would like this post to focus on the positive and the funny!

Thanks,

Roy Harris

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My journey part seven:

Over the past 20 years, I've had the privilege to train with a variety of different instructors. There a couple of incidents that stand out in my mind, and I'd like to share them with you.

Several years ago, I had the chance to train with Sensei Darrell Bullock and Professor Robert Crosson in "Sugar ryu Ju Jitsu." Both of these gentlemen came from New York and had that "New York mentality (attitude)!"

I remember training finger locks with both of these gentlemen and I can't tell you of a more painful day of training. All the kick boxing, stick fighting and Judo throws do not compare with someone grabbing your fingers (repeatedly) and throwing your body around like a rag doll! A two hour training session with these guys left my fingers (wrist and shoulders) very sore!

One day in particular, I remember going over a finger lock resistance flow drill and being locked, thrown and countered so much that I wanted to give up. My fingers were killing me. After class, Sensei bullock told us that we were going to give a martial arts demonstration down at Sea Port Village (which is a tourist area down by the bay in San Diego) that weekend and he wanted volunteers. Well, I thought this would be a great opporunity for the general public to see Sugar ryu Ju Jitsu so I volunteered to go. Well, what I didn't know ws we were going to do this demonstration on concrete.

Well, I ended up taking throw after throw after throw after throw! Now keep in mind, some of these throws were hard to break fall out of because of the intense amount of pressure that was being applied to one or two of your fingers just before (and during) the throw. However, when the Judo type throws were executed, I welcomed them with open arms because they gave my fingers a break! (no pun intended!)

Yes, that concrete was hard. Yes, the roll outs over cars, bicycles, benches and trash cans was hard on the body. Yes, the Judo throws hurt a bit. But none of them compared with being throw while someone had a hold firm grip on your fingers!!!

Anyways, the demonstration was a success. We put on a fantastic demo for about an hour! The only draw back was MY soreness the following day!) Even still, I had a lot of fun. AND, I never knew I could take such punishment and live to tell about it! (Let me tell you, if you've never been thrown, repeatedly, on concrete, you don't know what you're missing!)

I really enjoyed training with Sensei Bullock. He taught me a lot. Unfortunately, he decided to move his family back to New York, and so our training ceased. This was 1988.

Continued.........

Roy Harris

Here's another story for ya:

In my travels to seek out new instructors and new styles, I found a gung fu specialist who was teaching classes out of a small building in downtown San Diego. This chap was quite interesting. What happened duringn my visit with him was something I will never forget!

I walked into his studio on a cold San Diego day (meaning it was 67° degrees outside). I watched a couple of his classes and chatted with him about martial arts. I found this chap was really into the esoteric styles of martial arts.

When I asked him about "functionality and practicality", he told me that he was no longer interested in them. He said, "Arts like Jeet Kune Do, Kali and Muay Thai are too simple. They no longer offer me anything of real value. When I asked why, he said, "Throw a punch at me." I said, "Uh, that's OK, I just wanted to know more about your system and why you teach the way you do." He continued, "Throw a punch at me." So, I did. And what happened next blew my mind.

I decided to throw a punch at him, however, I did not want to disrespect him in his own studio, in front of his own students. So, I chose to throw a slow haymaker punch at him and just watch what he did. To my surprise, he did something no one else has ever done before (or since). Are you ready for this:

In the blink of an eye, this gentleman ducked underneath the punch, drilled his head into the center of my chest and began running forward as fast as he could, forcing me to run backwards. While he was running forward, both of his hands were snatching at (and grasping for....yep, you guessed it) my balls! Of course, I had to defend myself but what could I do. I was running backwards with a wall fast approaching. I kept trying to deflect his snatches but my hands weren't quite fast enough. By the time we hit the wall, he had a hand full of my nuts and I was screaming for him to let go! (I guess in gung fu, that's what they call "Monkey snatches the fruit!)

Anyway, he told me that he had practiced a martial art style in Hawaii called "Lua." He said he had spent two years on the beach (in the sand) doing a simple drill like the one he had just done on me. He said, "practitioners would practice evading a punch or kick and then run at the assailant, full force until a testicle was snatched!" He ended by saying, "What more do I need to self-defense? You see and feel how practical it is."

To this, I replied (in my soprano voice), "Uh, I don't know."

He told me, "That's why I study the esoteric martial arts. They invigorate my mind! The simple arts do nothing for my mind."

And so with that, I shook his hand (read "guarded my groin with the other hand"), thanked him for his time and walked out the door.

That, was quite the experience! I thought you might enjoy hearing this story!)

I will write more later.

Good training to you all,

Roy Harris

My journey - part eight

A couple of years ago, I had the unique opportunity to go to the Philippines and train in Pilipino Martial Arts over there. My experience was intriguing to say the least.

For starters, a gentleman by the name of Myles Vives invited me over there to teach a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu seminar. In exchange for my services, he offered to introduce me to a variety of different Pilipino Kali, Eskrima and Arnis masters. I agreed and was on my way to Manila.

Once there, Myles first introduced me to a gentleman named Romy Macapagal. Mr. Macapagal is a senior student in Kali Ilustrisimo. What this gentleman introduced me to, as far as blade training was concerned, totally caught me off guard! I was not prepared for what I was about to receive.

During my first private lesson, Mr. Macapagal told me move around and shadow box. So, I got a stick and began shadow boxing. As soon as I began moving, he asked me, "Why do you put your hand there? Why do you do that?" Of course, I didn't know what to say other than "I had been taught to move the stick that way and to place my hands in those positions."

What happened next blew my mind. Mr. Macapagal told me he was going to spar with me, lightly. He handed me a padded stick and gave me a protective glove. He asked me to hit his hand and told me that he would try to hit my hand. I thought to myself, sounds fair enough to me. So, we began to spar. Mr. Macapagal hit my hands about a fifty times in three or four minutes (and he barely moved his feet). I did not hit his hand, nor could I hit any part of his body. Plus, he held a conversation with someone while he was sparring with me.

Now, I know you might not think too much of that. However, in the middle of our sparring session, for about 30 seconds or so, he held a conversation with someone else! He looked at them and occasionally glanced at my hand! Then, to my amazment, he disarmed me! LIVE! Boy, talk about a wake up call! (I have been training in Filipino Martial Art since 1981, so I wasn't a beginner. And, to have someone do that to you after training so long was quite the wake up call!)

Continued.........

Roy Harris