Dennis Asche - Jiu-Jitsu Lifestyle

Saturday training was great today at Gordo Jiu-Jitsu, plenty of black belts and lots of good training!

Gordo Jiu-Jitsu Saturday training November 2009

(Photo from Greg Penaloza)

There are a dozen black belts in the photo, including myself and that is not including the ones out of the picture, not to mention a half dozen brown belts, high level purple belts… No breaks from high level rolling and hot weather!

As it has been a long time since the last blog entry, I would like to write first that training and teaching are great at Gordo Jiu-Jitsu. The amount of time spent teaching every day has provided another avenue to refine my game and I really enjoy helping others develop their Jiu-Jitsu. The Summer weather is here and for me it makes training that much better.

On another subject, yesterday I was speaking with an educated man about Brazil or more specifically Rio…He asked me why I would prefer to live here in Rio as opposed the the United States and simplified, it is the quality of life. He began telling me that he had many friends who left for the US to make a life because of the crime and problems here in Rio. My response; Running away from the problems in your own country is not the solution. They will need to be dealt with eventually and the people to do it are the countrymen themselves.

For all the people who want to know more about Gordo and the academy:

Here is the link to David’s story : SCSentinel By J.M. BROWN - Sentinel Staff Writer

Thanks to the conglomerated help of friends back in Santa Cruz Dave’s family is now in touch and making preparations to travel to Brazil. I thank the efforts of Paul “el Technico” Schreiner, Jesse Landis, Desmond and Gabe.

The list of damage he sustained is larger than first conveyed…Fractured skull, fractured fibula, fractured ribs, collapsed lung, swelling of the brain. Doctors seemed positive in pointing out that his lung had begun to expand and heal, a first step. There is no cause for brain surgery because the swelling is moderate and even though his ribs are fractured they are not severe or posing any danger of puncturing a lung. He will be undergoing surgery to repair his broken leg, only after he is allowed to regain consciousness. The extent of the damage he sustained is serious and it will be a difficult road to recovery. However Dave is a very strong person and I am confident he will recover quickly.

Send your prayers and positive vibes for Dave to pull through a quick, successful, complete recovery.

Not long ago after night training I walked the mile to stand at a bus stop and wait for the ride home. This night my chosen bus was one with a more direct route that drops me closer to home and tends to move faster. There happened to be a group of hip-hop dancers outside of a nearby English school for a party that was holding my attention away from the road and arriving buses. When a bus passed by some time later I nearly missed it but managed to flagged him down…Entering the vehicle (stopped in the middle of a two lane road) I thanked the driver who although looking directly at me, almost drove past. After telling me he almost chose not to, the driver began to tell me about a car he believed to be following him, who’s drivers where possibly Federal Police and asked if it would be alright to drive straight to my stop. Sure, I said telling him where my stop was. He began barreling down the two lane road weaving in and out of cars as if he was driving a race car in an attempt to loose the car he thought was following the 50ft yellow and white bus. The two other passengers seemed a little tense but nothing out of the ordinary. As we sped through the bairros  as he past the bus stops and the yelling pedestrians who frequently signed him with a big finger high above their heads… right into a traffic jam that allowed some of them to chase after the bus yelling and slapping the side. The driver allowed a couple of passengers on and the traffic cleared enough for him to push forward all the while revving his engine and lurching forward into the cars, in an attempt to push through the jam. He then hit the back of a van and bumped into another car, completely ignoring the reaction of the other motorists. As the cars thinned he sped on toward my stop. Within a few blocks of my destination I yelled out to him and he opened the door on the move, slowing the bus (but not stopping) to the speed of a fast walk as I jumped out on the move. Although the this exact type of scenario is not common (for me), there is always something out of the ordinary happening here every day.

Brazil, always an adventure!

I made it to the academy to see the tail end of the kimono training but was fortunate enough to meet up with Deigo Braga and Zen Mario Sperry for some no kimono. Zen Mario has some crafty attacks from inside the 1/2 guard that keep me backpedaling on the defense.

Zen Mario and Deigo Braga at GJJ (LB)

Having opportunities to train with all of the talent that is part of this academy (weather passing through or fixed there) and Gordo Jiu-Jitsu is something not to be taken for granted. I have come a long way from my native home to be a part of this and it is well worth the effort that brought me here.

Thanks to computer guru Jeff Anliker, the blog is up on my site!

After Monday, this week has been pouring down rain almost non-stop here in Rio. Flooded streets and crowded buses made getting around the city much more difficult these past days…Not the ideal conditions for commuting. This coming week is the last before the Brazilian National Jiu-Jitsu Championships the following weekend (one of two championship this month). There are still a few days left to prepare and I intend to make the most of them training through the weekend. One thing that has always remained the same throughout my competing is the feeling that there is more that can or should be accomplished in preparation. For me that thought creates the drive that wakes me up in the early morning to train after the late bus ride home or pushes me in that last round before leaving the mats.

“Mamazinho” and I after training. –>