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| BJJ Globetrotters Newsletter // December 2022 | |
Dear Globetrotters,
What a great time we had in Arizona a few weeks ago! Thanks to everyone who came out; it is always nice to meet so many from the community in that corner of the world, where we don't usually go so much. The camp for next year there is already announced and 1/3 of the tickets are booked, so don't wait too long to decide if you want to go 🙂
In a few days, the first guests will arrive for our Caribbean Island Camp here in Saint Barth where I live. It's always pleasure to have some guests on our little island to roll with. We might be the "BJJ Globetrotters HQ" academy but we're only around 15 adults training (population 9,000), so basically, if you want to come visit and train with us, you are most welcome any time of the year. I am always here outside of camps, so please feel free to reach out on christian@bjjglobetrotters.com.
Have a nice day, | |
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What you'll find in this month's newsletter: - 10 years anniversary of BJJ Globetrotters coming up!
- Photos from Arizona Camp in Poland last month
- Featured Globetrotter: Lea-Marie Stock
- Globetrotters Academy in Focus: Fat Man Gym
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New travel gis now available with 20% off introductory offer
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10 years anniversary coming up. What is YOUR story with BJJ Globetrotters?? |
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What has BJJ Globetrotters meant for you? How has BJJ Globetrotters affected your life? What are some experiences/stories/memories that you have had through BJJ Globetrotters? |
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The 10th anniversary of BJJ Globetrotters is coming up in January 2023 and we’ve been thinking for a long time about how we could celebrate it. The main challenge is that the story of the last ten years is so vast, that it’s too difficult to decide where to start and where to end.
The solution ended up being obvious. BJJ Globetrotters is—and has always been—community first. That’s why we’re asking your help to tell it’s story; from the point of view of the community members themselves:
Here are some suggestions for what you can contribute with:
- Text: Any length from single line quote to a novel, basically.
- Photos: Show us your favorite memories with BJJ Globetrotters or let’s see your affiliated academy.
- Audio: Record something for our podcast! (Try to do it in a quiet place)
We dream of receiving all sorts of content from our many thousands of members around the world and put it together into something. What exactly, depends on the scope and size of what we receive. We might make a book, an online gallery, a poster, a podcast episode or all of it!
Send us your content in any format before the end of the year on 10@bjjglobetrotters.com. You can also send us audio as voice messages on WhatsApp +45 29725007.
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25% of tickets booked for our next adventure in the Faroe Islands |
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* From July 5th to 8th, 2023 *
* In TĂłrshavn, Faroe Islands *
* Four day training camp *
* Gi and no-gi classes all day long *
* Modern training facilities 3 min. drive from downtown TĂłrshavn *
* Direct flights from multiple European cities *
* Affordable accommodation option *
* High level international instructors *
* Everyone welcome, regardless of experience or affiliation *
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Photos from Arizona Camp last month |
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| 1/3 of tickets for next Arizona Camp already booked! |
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* November 13th to 18th in Tempe, Arizona * * 15 minutes from Phoenix International Airport * * Full week of training * * Gi and no-gi classes all day long * * Daily workshops and lectures * * Outdoor BBQ in gym’s back yard * * Yoga classes * * Extra mat space for all-day open mat / drilling * * Free professional portrait service/photo booth * * All experience levels and affiliations welcome! * |
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| Featured Globetrotter: Lea-Marie Stock |
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Age: I am 26 years old
Belt: A freshly promoted purple belt (dyed my hair purple the week after!)
Profession: I am currently working on finishing my Masters degree in psychology to work as a forensic psychologist. I also work as a bouncer from time to time.
How many years in BJJ: I've trained BJJ for 4 ½ years now. It feels like ages and that the time just flew by at the same time.
Other martial arts: I never did anything sporty before I started Jiu Jitsu. I was a nerd in school and I used to prefer to write (mediocre to be fair) homework about muscles rather than performing step aerobics in front of the class, and so my teacher told me that I am probably “just not a sport person”. Definitely proved her wrong by now. I also tried MMA and Muay Thai a couple of times in the past years, but I didn’t like it. I sometimes do Combat Jiu Jitsu though!
Where do you live: I live in Duisburg, Germany. Duisburg is known to be the ugliest city ever, and if you ever end up at the train station (I hope you never do) then you will know why. In the first week of living in Duisburg I witnessed a robbery in front of my door, involving a wrestling belt. After having lived there for a year now, it makes sense from a retro perspective. (If you ever catch me at camp, ask me for that story, it’s a good one). In the future I would like to live somewhere nice and maybe even abroad.
Where are you from: A German city close to Duisburg. I downgraded myself to be closer to my Jiu Jitsu gym in DĂĽsseldorf.
Other fun or curious information you would like to share: Three years ago I decided to build my own (chromatic, google it!) harp, ignoring the fact that I had never played a harp before. I am now the worst harp player known but I can tell you everything about the history of different kinds of harps and other totally useless knowledge. |
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Tell us what inspired you to travel and train? Originally when I started doing Jiu Jitsu (I was introduced by my current boyfriend at that time) I would never have imagined how far this would go. Jiu Jitsu was appealing to me because it seemed so nerdy and playful, and I was pretty much hooked after a few classes. And then it found more and more place in my daily life. I think that signing up for camps and competing helped me to start traveling. Of course, I always had some sort of travel plans, but they were pretty much always vague and “someday…”. But with having concrete dates it was easy to realize it. I know the competition is on the 14th of something, so I know I have to be there on the 13th and so on. And once I started traveling it was much easier to continue. I feel like once you experience how easy it is (as a European) to go somewhere else for a weekend and you get confident in not getting lost somewhere, there's not much that stops you anymore.
Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
So just two weeks ago I flew to Rome to drink Aperol Spritz (I drank plenty) and I also competed at the IBJJF No-Gi Europeans where I took gold and bronze. Three weeks before that I was in Latvia (shooting and learning something about history) and Spain (competing for the German national team).
So my next trip will probably be the BJJ Globetrotters camp in Austria (I will function as Christian's helpful elf). Afterwards I'll go to Paris and compete at the IBJJF Europeans and then I'll go to Bucharest in Romania. I think I have too many places I want to see next year. I want to go to Estonia, Sweden, Norway, Iceland (again!), …
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What are the things you enjoy about travelling? I just like seeing different places. I mostly like city trips, wandering around in a nice-looking city (Riga for example was sooo pretty!) and getting to know a little bit about the history of the country and do some sightseeing. I also enjoy meeting new people and making friends everywhere.
Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
Before Jiu Jitsu I used to be extremely shy and not talk to people (in the first six months of going to class I couldn’t even say hello to my teammates) and if you meet me now it’s the complete opposite. Having the experience of being in a group of people who try to help each other out really helped me to grow into a confident person and that makes it worth it 100%.
And I think especially the combination of training and traveling is great. When you meet people at Globetrotters camps from all around the world it makes it easier for you to visit different places, because you already know someone who can give you a couch and good recommendations. You always get a better experience when you go with the local people. When I did the Iceland Camp in 2020, one of the women who worked at Mjölnir MMA and trained with us during the week took us for a hike the day after camp. After hiking for 1.5 hrs in the beautiful nature of Iceland (we had been told it was 30 minutes, but nevermind) we sat down in the hot springs in the mountains, and I think I will never forget how stunning that was. I would have never found that place without having someone local with me.
What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling?
That it's incredibly easy to get recognized as a German as soon as I stop at a traffic light.
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Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip?
I am a budget traveller. For my last competition in Rome, I depended on people donating money so I could afford to go. I just try to book smart and find the best airplane prices and prefer Airbnb before hotel. But I also love having kitschy rooms when I can afford it.
If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be?
Just go. Jump in and enjoy it! You will be overwhelmed by how welcoming everyone will be.
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1/3 of the tickets for our mega-camp in Estonia are booked! |
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* From July 17th to 22nd, 2023 *
* In Pärnu, Estonia *
* Easy bus connection from Tallinn and Riga *
* Direct flights from Helsinki and Stockholm *
* Huge mat space in a beautiful beach town *
* Six-day training camp *
* 20+ black belt instructors *
* 45+ gi and nogi classes *
* 25+ hours of open mats *
* High-level international instructors *
* Yoga every morning *
* All experience levels and affiliations welcome! *
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| BJJ Globetrotters Academy in Focus: Fat Man Gym |
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Where is the gym located?
Osijek, Croatia.
How many people train there?
About 10-12, but not always at the same time.
Is the gym growing - if so by how many new members each month or year?
We are growing but not by much because we don't have space (only 20 m2). So 4 people can train at a time, but when there are more than that it's not so good. For now we are growing though - we started with 4 people and now we are 10-12.
What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
Highest is brown, lowest is white belt.
When did the gym open?
The gym opened in 2021.
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Some facts about you:
Name: Marko Torić
Age: 36 Belt: Brown Profession: Special education teacher Years in BJJ: 14 Other martial arts: Sambo, Boxing, Kickboxing Currently living in: Osijek Originally from: Zagreb, Croatia |
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Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence Four of us (Igor, Bojan, Želimir, and myself) started to train outside when all the gyms were closed. We bought some mats, found a place that no one was using, and after a few beers we were training.
Our BJJ gym, BJJ Prime (run by BJJ black belt Vedran Budetić) was also closed. After the first lockdown we went back to BJJ Prime, but vew few people returned since there was still the fear of COVID in the air. Then the second lockdown came and we were again hiding and training. During that time I was looking to buy a house, and one of the requirements was that it had to have space for a small gym. Nothing big, just for few people to come and train in case of a new lockdown.
A few months after the second lockdown, in May 2021, I bought a house with one more guesthouse in garden. The logical move was to renovate it and make a small gym inside. So from May 2021 we have been training there. We were planning on going back to BJJ Prime, but it didn't feel right. We all love each other, I am a great friend with Vedran, his best man at his wedding. But the four of us started to train differently and learning different techniques (we were all doing techniques for heavy people!). We liked the relaxed training, watching tutorials etc. When you're in a normal BJJ club you can't usually do that. You have to have structured learning. So we parted ways and that's how Fat Man Gym was created. We still go to Prime and hang out, but we are older and fat, so we can't train like some 20-year-old competition BJJ player…
Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they? Three people we have to talk about are Igor Dundović, Bojan Mikac and Želimir Gusak. They are the core founders of Fat Man Gym. All good people, they like to train and learn. They supported and helped financially me when I was doing home improvement in the gym. Other members are also Marin Šutalo and Tomica Mandić who are there every training and doing their best to improve. Our logo creator Ivan Janković, who is helping us by printing logos on t-shirts. Mauricio Lazarić is coming and training with us and in his original BJJ gym, Univerzum. And a few others who come and go, but these 7 are there on a weekly basis.
Why do they train? We love the complexity of Jiu Jitsu and like to see how much our bodies can do when pushed. And it is a great way to get away from the wife and kids :D
What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically? This is a small gym and we are all friends, so we talk every day about how to schedule a training session.
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How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
The area is good. In Osijek there are 5 BJJ gyms and all are doing great. We are friends with all of them and are hoping that we can create massive open mats so all of our styles can come together and we can all learn from each other.
What’s the best thing about your gym?It is open 24/7 and we can have parties in there :D
What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym? Try the food here - it's great! - and see the city and the countryside.
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Thanks for sharing! If you'd like to visit Fat Man Gym, you can contact them at marko.toric[at]gmail.com
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SUPER LIGHT TRAVEL GIS- ALL MODELS IN STOCK! |
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