Subject: [August newsletter] Photos from Germany & Iceland camps // Featured Globetrotter // Newguard Jiu Jitsu

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BJJ Globetrotters Newsletter // August 2021
Dear Globetrotters,

I apologize for this newsletter coming out a bit later than usual, but I have been on the road now for 1.5 months and things have been hectic to say the least, so I haven't had much "office time". Last month, we hosted two big camps in Iceland and Germany with a total of more than 400 participants from all over the world and I've just arrived in Austria to prepare for our camp here next week. It's still kind of a challenging environment to be a Jiu Jitsu camp organizer, but it feels good that some things finally work and we can operate at somewhat near normalcy at this point. Next month we go to Estonia after three failed attempts since the beginning of the pandemic. 

In Iceland and Germany, we also hosted the premiere of our BJJ Globetrotters documentary that we filmed in 2019 and was planned to be released last year. It was very special to finally show it to people after having worked on it for almost three years. It will be released online for free within a few months.

Traveling and training restrictions are loosening up and we fully expect to host every camp we have planned, without issues. On our website, we have now made an easy overview of up-to-date status for each of the camps, go take a look at www.bjjglobetrotters.com/bjjcamps :)

Have a fantastic day,

What you'll find in this month's newsletter:

  • Photos from Iceland Camp last month
  • Featured Globetrotter: Alexander Wolf
  • Photos from Summer Camp in Germany last month
  • Globetrotters Academy in Focus: Newguard Jiu Jitsu
Travel to Estonia is now possible for all nationalities - join us next month!
* From September 13th to 18th, 2021 *
* In Tallinn, Estonia *
* Less than 20 minutes from Tallinn airport *
* Huge mat space in a beautiful medieval town *
* Six-day training camp *
* Gi and no-gi classes all day long *
* High-level international instructors *
* Free ticket for world premiere of BJJ Globetrotters documentary *
* Yoga every morning *
* All experience levels and affiliations welcome! *
Sign up for the free online premiere of our documentary!
The Gentle Art of Travel is following the BJJ Globetrotters camps behind the scenes over the course of one full year and 12 training camps around the world. Sign up now to receive an invitation for the free online premiere. 
Photos from Iceland Camp last month
Featured Globetrotter: Alexander Wolf
Age: 39

Belt: Blue

Profession: Boring software & electronics engineer

How many years in BJJ: 3

Other martial arts: I've been playing ice hockey since I was 6 years old, does that count?

Where do you live: Zurich, Switzerland

Where are you from: Bavaria, Germany

Other fun or curious information you would like to share: Whenever you find yourself in a beer garden somewhere in Bavaria, order a “dunkles Weissbier” It’s a dark wheat beer! This will make you look like a pro instead of a tourist.
Tell us what inspired you to travel and train? 
Since my younger days I've been doing rock climbing, and since you need rocks for that, you have to go where the mountain is. Every free minute we went into the Alps, the Franconian Jura, Fontainebleau, Lago di Garda, Ticino, and many more areas in Europe and around the globe. So travelling and training BJJ abroad instead of climbing a rock from my perspective is pretty normal. Rock climbing brought me to remote places where no tourist would go, and BJJ brought me to hidden gyms. That style of travelling for me is the best way to connect with other people and countries.

Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
Before the pandemic hit in September 2019, my girlfriend and I did a road trip with our micro bus from Switzerland to Greece, crossing Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia Herzegovina and Albania.

One reason for doing this trip was that we desperately needed to get our loyal indestructible micro bus repaired. That camper bus technically is worth max the petrol inside its gas tank, but to get it repaired in Switzerland is just not affordable. So a fellow BJJ friend from Zurich, who is originally from Sarajevo, gave us his mechanic and jits contacts there. We spent almost one week in Sarajevo training at Bosnae Team United BJJ while our car got a manicure.

At the moment I'm planning a longer trip to South and Central America. Apart from wanting to acquire a new skill and learn Spanish, I heard so many good things about that part of our globe that I want to go there.
What are the things you enjoy about traveling?
After the wild "exploring new things" phase in my twenties, nowadays I honestly enjoy coming back home the most. Home is where your heart, your family, and your friends are. Coming from a first world country and traveling through less privileged parts of our planet grounds me, and makes me grateful of the life I have and the chances I got.

Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training? 
Plenty! For example, my girl and I ended up in Split in Croatia at Black Dragon Alliance which was so cool! We ended up in an industrial area following a YouTube short movie on how to find the gym because it was hidden inside a shut down industrial complex. Once we arrived, Danko (the black belt) explained to us that they usually don’t have female BJJ students. Not because they don’t want women to train with them; it's just that they had no separate changing rooms or toilets. We as tiny 115 and 150 lbs midgets, not understanding a single word and total white belt noobs, now found ourselves in a Croatian man-cave filling up with big buff guys going there to roll! But luckily also some fellow dwarves showed up, who folded us nicely inside our gis - as we deserved it. After we left happily this evening, we accumulated just another unforgettable experience travelling the planet.

What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
When travelling through Iran, we once got a flat tire and got stuck on some remote dirt road in the Iranian outback when looking to find a place to camp. But then out of nowhere two Iranian men showed up on tiny motorbikes. At first glace we where a bit intimidated, but it turned out that these two where shepherds and we got stuck on their land. Their names were actually Hassan and Hussein. We communicated only by gestures while they helped us fix the tire. After that, Hussein took out his smartphone, called his wife to inform her that they will have guests over night, and invited us to his place. In that order. 

So we went to his house and had a simple but rich dinner consisting of tomatoes, cucumber, self-made cheese and tea. Sitting on a Persian carpet with his family, cousins, and neighbours he invited on short notice, we tried to exchange stories in broken English. Similar invitations happened all the time! These people where so hospitable that I now constantly question my Western behaviour. Would you invite a stranger/traveller from another country you don’t know to your home and offer him dinner and a place to sleep?

Another story would be those policemen in Kyrgyzstan that fined me 70 USD for speeding. And after I paid they bought me some vodka and ice cream from my own money, haha ...

Or that drunk Russian sitting in a beer refill kiosk in the middle of Siberia that thought if he only speaks slow enough I would finally understand him...  
Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip? 
I would consider myself a budget traveller, but only because I sleep better in a cottage under a mosquito net than in an air-conditioned hotel made of concrete. Usually I don’t plan much, I mostly “flow with the go” which makes travelling a tiny bit more exhausting but exciting. There is always a bus going somewhere, a scooter to rent, or someone you can ask or team up with in the hostel or BJJ gym.

If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be? 
Always be extra friendly. Keep in mind that you are an ambassador of your country! If you're friendly, everyone else will be friendly. You can't change other people, circumstances, the past, or the future - you can only change yourself and how you behave.
Photos from Summer Camp in Germany last month
Winter camp is BACK!
* January 2-6 in Wagrain, Austria *
* 70 km from Salzburg airport *
* Beautiful location in the middle of the alps *
* Five days of BJJ and skiing / snowboarding *
* Four nights accommodation *
* All meals included *
* Free skiing and snowboarding lessons *
* Daily workshops, lectures and movie nights *
* 24 hr free fruit and non-alcoholic beverages *
* Extra mat space for all-day open mat / drilling *
* Free laundry service *
* Direct access to huge skiing area with 120+ km slopes *
* Free access to water park and sauna facilities next door *
* Afterski parties *
* All levels of BJJ and skiers welcome *
BJJ Globetrotters Academy in Focus: 
Newguard Jiu Jitsu
Where is the gym located?
Our gym is located in Muttenz. This is an small village near the city of Basel in Switzerland, close to the border of France and Germany.

How many people train there?
So we didn’t even start yet, but i think between 10 and 20 people will be there on our first session.

Is the gym growing - if so by how many new members each month or year?
Hard to answer this question. In the beginning, maybe 1 to 3 new members each month. We have some advance registrations, but only time will tell!

What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
The highest belt grading is a purple belt with four stripes. The lowest is, of course, a couple of white belts.

When did the gym open?
The gym will open on the first of August 2021.
Some facts about you:

Name: Patrick Neugart
Age: 39
Belt: Purple Belt four stripes
Profession: Workforce Planning
Years in BJJ: 9 years (with interruptions)
Other martial arts: Wing Chun, Sanda, Kickboxing
Currently living in: Allschwil, near Basel
Originally from: Switzerland
Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence
I was a coach in a couple of gyms. My friend from MMA Basel, where I gave some lessons, had to move out of their current place. They were searching for a new place to open a gym, so we had some talks. At that point I already I had the idea in my mind to do my own BJJ offshoot, because there are not many options to train BJJ in our region. They asked me if I wanted to join them and open my own BJJ school in partnership with MMA Basel and Enshin Karate Switzerland. I said yes, and here we are now waiting for the date to start.

Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
We have many nice folks here from around the world - women and men, old and young. They're all in different stages of their life (study, work, family).

Why do they train?
Everyone has their own reason to train, be it for fun and having a good time and meeting new people, or for the fitness, competition, self esteem and self-confidence, self defense, and many other reasons. And that's how it should be, because everyone should have the possibility to train for whatever their reasons are.

What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
BJJ is slowly growing here in Switzerland, but it is still a fringe sport. The area around Basel has many martial arts gyms, but most of them are Kick-/ Thai boxing studios. BJJ is actually not a big thing in this region. As well as that, Switzerland is very expensive and the rents are high, so the biggest challenge is not to go broke!
How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
If i could say that, then I would need a new job! Joking aside, like I said before, BJJ is growing slowly, but it is growing. I’m sure that more people will discover BJJ for themselves and fell in love with this art. Like i did many years ago.

What’s the best thing about your gym?
We are open for all. We are one big family. We have a 235 square-meter mat space (including a seven-meter diameter cage). And we work closely in collaboration with Aire Valley Martial Arts in Keighley (West Yorkshire, England) and BJJ Kingston (near London).

What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?
You can do short trips to France and Germany. Because we're right on the border of the two countries. But in the city itself, I would suggest to visit the bank of the Rhine (the river runs right through the city). It's a beautiful place to chill (especially on sunny and warm days), with many small and urban bars and street food stands.

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Thanks for sharing! If you'd like to visit Newguard Jiu Jitsu, you can find them here.
 
 
 
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It can be a mess to try and find a manufacturer of BJJ gear that you can trust on quality, delivery and attention to detail. 

You can burn a lot of money going through samples from the many thousands of factories in Asia, trying to find one that will provide you with the product as you’ve imagined it. We know, because we’ve been through it all, ourselves!
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    This is an online snapshot of a newsletter created by the owner of BJJ Globetrotters (BJJ Globetrotters, Quartier du Roy, 97133 Anse des Cayes, Saint Barthélemy) and sent via GetResponse on 2021-08-11. Report abuse