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| | | BJJ Globetrotters Newsletter // January 2025 | | Dear Globetrotters,
Another year has passed, and it’s been fantastic to see and train with so many of you around the world. We surpassed 100 camps this year and, while it’s “just a number,” it’s still something I’m very proud of having achieved together with you. The BJJ Globetrotters community and its core idea are still going strong after so many years!
This was also an interesting year for me, as I managed to go “back to my roots” a bit and hit the road for some long-term travel. I’ve spent the last six months around Europe, visiting many academies and meeting some great people both on and off the mats. Thank you to everyone for your hospitality!
Things are changing a bit in the new year, as I will be relocating myself and BJJ Globetrotters back to Denmark in a week’s time, after the upcoming Winter Camp. After eight amazing years in the Caribbean, it’s time for new adventures in Europe. Hopefully, I can find a place to set up a little mat space if any of you want to visit for a few rolls. In the more boring department of news, due to a change in company tax situation when I move to Denmark, some of the camp ticket prices will increase in a few days.
I wish you all a happy New Year and hope the next one brings you lots of good training and experiences!
Have a great day,
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What you'll find in this month's newsletter: - Featured Globetrotter: MJ De Vega Föhr
- Globetrotters Academy in Focus: Hold Fast Grappling
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| | | This tranquil, Japanese-style village in the middle of nowhere in the Polish countryside is the ideal haven in which to recharge both your Jiu Jitsu and yourself. Just sit beside a river, wander through the woods, stretch yourself out in a hammock under the stars and listen to the silence.
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| | | | Less than 50 tickets left for the 10th anniversary of our USA Camp |
| | For the 10th year in a row, we’re hosting our beloved USA Camp! Together with more than 200 Jiu Jitsu enthusiasts, we’ll will spend a week together in the forest with more training and activities than you can possibly handle.
We take care of absolutely everything – food, accommodation, laundry, and Jiu Jitsu. All you need to do is show up and get in your gi or shorts! |
| | | | Featured Globetrotter: MJ De Vega Föhr |
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| | Age: “One should never trust a woman who tells one her real age. A woman who would tell one that would tell one anything.” -Oscar Wilde
Belt: Blue (BJJ) and Brown (Judo)
Profession: I’m a practicing CPA in the state of Pennsylvania, specializing in corporate tax.
How many years in BJJ: My BJJ journey has been a rollercoaster, but I suppose everyone can say the same when COVID lockdowns threw a wrench on all our training lives. I started BJJ in 2013, training inconsistently, and stopped in 2016 to focus all my martial arts efforts on Judo.
Other martial arts: Judo.
Where do you live: Currently in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania since December 2023.
Where are you from: I was born in Manila, Philippines where I also spent my childhood. I moved to Los Angeles, California with my family when I was 14 years old.
Other fun or curious information you would like to share: My other passions in life are cooking and classic literature. If you’re a fan of classic literature, I’d love to hear your favorites! |
| | Tell us what inspired you to travel and train? In 2012, I was stationed in Naples, Italy while serving on active duty in the US Navy. I was not a fan of running but because I needed to be able to pass a bi-annual physical test that included a timed 1.5 mile run, I needed to do some sort of cardio that I enjoyed. At an acquaintance’s recommendation, I tried BJJ. I was addicted.
In the first year, I trained BJJ almost daily. Sometimes, twice a day. Also in the first year, my beloved instructor, Marco Galzenati, passed away. I then turned to bodybuilding, something I can do in solitude. I grieved. I lost the fire that I had when I first fell in love with BJJ. A year after his death, I decided to travel around Europe and train at different gyms while also exploring the area’s culture, history, and culinary scenery. Sometime in 2013, I stumbled upon CSA in Copenhagen, and wrote to one of the instructors (at the time, our venerable Christian Graugart) to ask if I can drop in for a class -- at the time. It also turned out to be the same week that he was hosting a multi-day-training event with different instructors. That, my friends, was the very first BJJ Globetrotter Camp. I started to enjoy BJJ again and this began a series of introductions to so many new, lifelong friends made at subsequent camps.
Tell us about your most recent travel and your upcoming travel – where have you been and where are you going?
Exactly a year ago, I spent a month in the Philippines to do some island hopping. El Nido is my favorite place for snorkeling. While Sardinia has pristine, emerald blue waters, El Nido has vibrant, colorful corals teeming with a variety of fishes.
A more recent trip was a week-long, summer road trip and camping through the Adirondacks. We stayed around the areas of Lake George and Lake Placid, host of the 1980 Winter Olympic Games.
In January, I’ll be in Hawaii for a week with my family. I no longer train martial arts when I’m on vacation with my family because I want to maximize the limited quality time we have.
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| | What are the things you enjoy about travelling? My favorite aspect of traveling is the discovery and experience of something new.
Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that make it worth traveling and training?
What makes it worthwhile to both travel and train are the lifelong friendships I made along the way. Other than that, I don’t think too much of it anymore and I just enjoy the present. |
| | Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip? I am a budget traveler in the sense that I plan my trip within the bounds of set financial constraints, which doesn’t always necessarily mean the trip will be cheap. There’s a Swabian saying: “The cheapest thing is the one you don’t buy.”
I think that if you would like to go on a cheap trip, then you have to go to cheap destinations or places where your currency has strong purchasing power. This will minimize the risk of finding yourself on social media with the captions “Destitute Foreigner Stranded In [Insert Southeast Asian country].” Jokes aside, luxurious or modest, I think it behooves anyone to set a budget for any trip, or any expense for that matter, to avoid a snowball of debt because interest makes everything more expensive.
If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be? I don’t like to give advice because I think people should do whatever they want to do, but I’ll say that years ago, I used to travel and train both Judo and Jiu Jitsu when I visit a new place. Now, if I travel with friends and family, I don’t train at all. I spend all that quality time with my loved ones. I used to be selfish and plan trips with friends and family, fly halfway across the globe, only to let them know I’m stepping out for a Jiu Jitsu session. Obviously, this is something I can do at home so I realized it was selfish of me to have people fly halfway across the globe only for me to miss out on potentially the best memories we could have together. While Jiu Jitsu is great, it’s only just one of many aspects of our lives. |
| | | | Ticket prices go up in a few days! (40 left) |
| | Summer Camp in Heidelberg, a mega camp in every sense, will host over 300 participants on a vast mat space within the Germany Olympic team’s facilities in one of the region's most picturesque cities. |
| | | | BJJ Globetrotters Academy in Focus: Hold Fast Grappling |
| | Where is the gym located?
Homer, Alaska, USA.
How many people train there?
Currently about 60 students.
Is the gym growing - if so by how many new members each month or year?
We get 4-5 new members each month
What are the highest and lowest belt grades training? Currently we have white through brown belts training with us.
When did the gym open?
We opened June 2024.
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| | Some facts about you:
Name: Jordan Kontra Age: 43 Belt: 3rd degree Black Belt Profession: Jiu Jitsu instructor Years in BJJ: 18 years Other martial arts: Sankyu in Judo, casual May Thai practitioner Currently living in: Homer, Alaska Originally from: Willow, Alaska |
| | Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence A group of Jiu Jitsu enthusiasts approached us to help start a gym in Homer. After checking out the community we decided to take a leap of faith and make the move!
Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they? We are the “bad news bears” at Hold Fast Grappling. Everything from fisherman, to policeman, to welders, to plastic surgeons, to authors.
Why do they train?
For community, health, and therapy.
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| | What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general, and in your area specifically?
Generally the most difficult thing is realizing that I can’t save everyone with Jiu Jitsu the way Jiu Jitsu saved me. The best I can do is expose people to the sport, my passion for it, and the community.
Specifically: essentially the entire community is comprised of seasonal workers (fishing and tourism based) and we lose almost our entire student base for the summer months.
How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
There’s a significant wrestling community in the area and with time I see a healthy crossover between the two.
What’s the best thing about your gym?The best thing about our gym is the individuals within it. The group we have in the gym so far is ecstatic to have jiu jitsu available in their area. They’re hungry for it and clearly desire to share it with everyone they come across.
What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym? It’s Alaska. Experience as much of it as possible while visiting. All things any outdoor enthusiast could ever desire and the beauty is never ending. Witness the majesty of mountains erupting directly from the ocean floor, wildlife directly outside your doorstep and as much adventure you can handle.
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Thanks for sharing! If you'd like to visit Hold Fast Grappling, you can contact them here. |
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