05/10/2010 - BJJ (Beginner)

Class #347
RGA High Wycombe, (BJJ), Kev Capel, High Wycombe, UK - 05/10/2010

As I’ve returned to Buckinghamshire for at least a couple of months, while I look for work in Bristol (as my gf is now there permanently), I can again benefit from the excellent training at RGA Wycombe under Kev Capel. It was nice to see my old training partners, like Howard and Callum, were all still there, and of course chatting to Kev himself.

Basics class began, as it always does at RGA Wycombe, with a technique from GB Fundamentals. This time, it was the guillotine escape, when they’ve sunk it from their guard. Drive forward and come right up on your legs, so that you’re shoving your shoulder directly into their neck. With your same side hand, grab their wrist and free up some breathing room. Your other arm will loop under the other side. The pressure should enable you to loosen up their grip and pop your head free.

That was then followed by another Kev trademark, teaching both sides of a position. He began with a basic guard pass from the knees. Classic grip to start, holding both their collars with one hand, a bit below their chest, the other hand on their hip. Bring your hip hand knee out, which should provide space to bring the other knee into their bum.

Both hands will now shift to their hips, acting as a brace for you to gradually shove your own hips back against their cross feet, until you can break open their guard. As soon as there is space, bring your knee up the middle for combat base, then step your other leg over. The raised knee will slide over diagonally in the same direction.

As you move through to pass, underhook their far armpit with your same side arm, using your free arm to pull up on their other sleeve. You also want to jam your head next to theirs, driving their head over to the other side, which will make it tough for them to turn. From there, you should be able to progress through to side control or scarf hold.

The difficulty I always have with the guard break, if I can even get to that position, is generating the right leverage with my arms and hips to break open their guard. If you are against somebody with long legs, which therefore makes it tougher, the key thing is to get your knee up the middle. Even if their legs are still closed, bring that knee up. When I asked Kev, he suggested the Roy Dean guard break I saw at that seminar last year.

For the flipside, Kev went through a De La Riva sweep. They are in combat base. First, you want to loop your same side leg behind the knee they have up - if they’re keeping their foot in tight and leaving no room, push them sideways with your leg, grab their heel and pull their foot out, to give yourself some room.

You want to get your leg right through, so that you can hook your foot around their ribs on the other side of their body. Your other foot will go to the knee they have on the floor. With your same side hand, grab their same side heel, while your other hand will grab their other sleeve.

Push into their knee on the floor with your foot and pull on their sleeve, aiming to stretch them out. Ideally, you want to put them in a position as if they were going for a breakfall over their shoulder. You can then tilt to the side to roll them over, coming on top. Slide your knee across diagonally and go for the pass, as before.

Specific sparring was from guard, and I was getting anywhere near passing Howard’s guard. I keep saying it, but definitely need to re-read my notes from Kev’s private lesson earlier this year. I was failing to deal with grips properly (just blocking them rather than removing them), and I also need to be careful I’m not leaning forward when I stand up, and as ever, absolutely have to drive those hips forward and put them under pressure.

Underneath didn’t go much better. I was trying stuff, but kept being to relaxed about letting them pass one leg, by which time I wasn’t able to do enough with my other one. I attempted to move into position for a triangle a number of times, and on about the fourth attempt, although Howard got his other arm back through, I was able to lock my feet and thought maybe there was some kind of omoplata option. Triangles are rare enough for me, but I still want to keep working that classic switch between triangles, omoplatas and armbars (on the extremely rare occasions I’m anywhere near the right position).