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| | | | BJJ Globetrotters Newsletter // March 2020 | | Dear Globetrotters,
The last few days have been a bit intense, to say the least. I appreciate all your support and kind words, it means a lot. I will continue to reach out to IBJJF and try to work with them to find a solution. Meanwhile, I encourage everyone to act with decency in any communication online, also towards IBJJF. No need for name calling etc., as a community, I think we are better than that.
In a few weeks, I'll be off to Arizona for our second camp there and I'm really excited to be back and meet so many people from that area of the world. There are only five tickets left for the camp, so if you have considered going, you should make a decision soon :)
Have a fantastic day,
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What you'll find in this month's newsletter:
- Featured Traveller: Pat Divilly
- Globetrotters Academy in Focus: Positive Jiu-Jitsu
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| | Less than 5 tickets left for Arizona Camp next month |
| | Our first ever Arizona camp was a huge success, so we’ve decided to go back to the desert. All day classes, open mats and workshops, combined with on-site barbecues and breathtaking landscapes. |
| | | | Featured Traveller: Pat Divilly |
| | Age: 32
Belt: Purple
Profession: Speaker and Coach
How many years in BJJ: 3 and a half years
Other martial arts: A little Judo as a teenager, alongside boxing, Muay Thai and MMA. Now that I’m old I stick with BJJ!
Where do you live: Galway, Ireland
Where are you originally from: Limerick, Ireland
Other fun or curious information you would like to share: I’m a speaker and podcaster in the area of personal development. Have a huge passion for Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and my work, have done a number of high-altitude mountain expeditions, and in recent years have gotten into yoga and surfing. |
| | | Tell us what inspired you to travel and train? I trained martial arts as a teen and loved it, but didn’t have the work ethic to really succeed in my younger years. When I "grew up" I gave up everything to chase financial success and status. I spent 10 years growing a business, woke up at 28 having ticked all the boxes I thought I needed to tick, and still didn’t feel fulfilled day to day. At that point I knew it was time to go back to martial arts, and I took up BJJ.
Training does a huge amount for me in terms of supporting my mental and physical health, providing community, and giving me a chance to find a state of flow daily.
Travel has been a staple of my life for the last number of years. I feel blessed to get to see the world, and feel I learn more about myself when I’m outside of my comfortable environment than I ever could being in one place.
Tell us about your most recent trip and your upcoming trips – where have you been and where are you going?
I’m currently in Zanzibar for a few days after climbing Kilimanjaro in Tanzania for the second time. I brought a group of 21 clients to climb to the highest point in Africa, and now I’m getting a little down time before heading home to Ireland.
My next plan is to go to Bali for a month in April to surf, train Jiu Jitsu, and work on new content for my future seminars and workshops. I work in the area of personal development, and so I like to be constantly tweaking my content and taking on new experiences to ensure I'm "practicing what I preach".
I tend to work intensely at home and in the UK delivering lots of workshops for 2-3 months, then go away for a month of travel and new experiences.
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| | What are the things you enjoy about traveling? I love it all! The uncertainty, the break from routine, the chance to be completely anonymous and to see the world through a different lens. I love seeing a new snapshot of the world, a new culture, meeting new people and seeing how different but similar we are. I love the possibility and the randomness of showing up somewhere with no expectation and no plan. I love meeting new parts of myself through adversity, challenge and unpredictable situations and experiences.
Can you give us some examples of experiences you had that makes it worth traveling and training?
I’ve been welcomed at BJJ gyms all over the world and treated like family, climbed some of the world’s highest mountains, completed a 200-hour yoga teacher training in Thailand with no previous experience.
I’ve spoken at a youth leadership conference in Nepal and subsequently funded a school out there. I’ve gotten to run a triathlon with my business hero Richard Branson and his family, and visited his private Island in the Virgin Islands.
I’ve gotten laughed at and pointed at by every person in the nightclub in Tanzania for being the only non-local (or maybe it was my dancing?!). I’ve lost passports and credit cards in South America, been surrounded by an angry mob in Russia and climbed snow capped mountains in Poland in my shorts with Wim Hof.
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| | What has so far been the most surprising experience for you when traveling? Fresh in mind, I think Kilimanjaro in Tanzania has surprised me the two times I’ve been there. I used to own a gym and would encourage clients to work toward goals such as 5km, 10km and half marathons. Then I decided organising and bringing a group to Kilimanjaro would be a great personal challenge for my clients.
In the back of my mind, I thought it would be overly commercial and wouldn’t feel like an authentic experience, but on both trips I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the energy and passion the guides and porters continue to bring to the mountain.
Are you a budget traveller – and if so how do you plan for a cheap trip? I’m pretty laid back in general which makes it easier to budget for trips. I don’t like spending money on hotels, as I feel all I need is a bed or a sleeping bag and I’m good! I can be a little last-minute booking my flights, which probably ends up costing more than it might have otherwise…..
Some people are keen to tick all the boxes on the tourist attractions of the city they are visiting. Maybe I’m boring, but for me I just love sitting in a local coffee shop or bar, having a coffee or beer and watching the world go by!
If you were to pass on travel advice to your fellow Globetrotters, what would it be? Just get it booked! We tend to spend our lives waiting for the perfect time but the truth is there is no perfect time. Figure out where you’d like to go, get your dates in the calendar and book the flight. From there everything else will fall into place! I’m a believer that the worst decision you can make in life is no decision and so I try to be decisive, take risks and jump into things before I feel ready! |
| | | Less than 40 tickets left for Spring Camp in Estonia! |
| | We continue to break new ground with this camp in the ancient yet vigorously modern Baltic city of Tallinn. Join us as we explore the largest and most innovative Jiu Jitsu gym in the country, as well as some of the most beautifully preserved medieval architecture that Europe has to offer. |
| | | | BJJ Globetrotters Academy in Focus: Positive Jiu-Jitsu |
| | Where is the gym located?
Our gym is located in First Club, in the neighborhood of Caballito at the heart of Buenos Aires city, Argentina.
How many people train there?
We're about 50 people training in the academy between the competitors and the beginners.
Is the gym growing – if so by how many new members each month or year?
Last January we started a new course, "Introduction to Jiu-Jitsu", where we focus on the basics and the self-defense point of view, which added 10 new members!
What are the highest and lowest belt grades training?
There are total newbies that are starting their martial arts trip, jiu-jitsu newbies with background in other martial arts, and on the other side we have professional jiu-jitsu athletes and mma fighters, most of them black belts.
When did the gym open?
We started Positive Jiu-Jitsu in May 2018.
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| | Some facts about you:
Name: Pablo Peirone / Walter Alamo / Francisco Cuneo Age: 37 / 31 / 34 Belt: Black / black / black Profession: Jiu-jitsu professor / digital marketing specialist / financial consultant Years in BJJ: 12
Other martial arts: Judo, wrestling Currently living in: Buenos Aires, Argentina and New York, USA Originally from: Buenos Aires, Argentina
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| Please tell us the story of how your gym came into existence:
We conducted our training in Jiu Jitsu under the tutelage of Ricardo De La Riva, under whom we graduated to black belt in 2016.
In 2018, we decided to start a new path, under the name of Positive Jiu Jitsu, registering the academy in the main federations and achieving independence in that way. In just 2 years we've reached important podiums in the main tournaments (IBJJF Worlds, UAEJJ Grand Slam, and AJP Tour).
Tell us about the people that train in the gym – who are they?
They're regular people with regular lives - students, moms, dads, teenagers, athletes, and professional fighters. We welcome every type of person, and give them through Jiu-jitsu a place and a vehicle to walk through life and express themselves in their own unique ways.
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| | Why do they train?
The common aspect that defines the people that train at Positive is the love for Jiu-jitsu and the aim to be better and overcome our challenges and difficulties.
What are some of the challenges of running a BJJ gym in general and in your location specifically?
The greatest challenges are the sedentary way of life we have as a society, and then the anxiety of "being good" at any activity in just a few classes. Jiu-jitsu is really difficult, and it demands discipline and consistency. In our area specifically, the economic situation of the country is tough, so sometimes people have a hard time finding a way to pay for tuition.
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| | How do you see the future for BJJ in your area?
Argentina has an excellent level of Jiu-Jitsu, with a lot of top guys getting good results on the international circuit. I see a very bright future for Argentine Jiu-Jitsu in general. Just in Buenos Aires city you can find dozens of academies lead by black belts spreading the word all over the country and the globe.
What’s the best thing about your gym?
First Club is a great place. Besides Jiu-Jitsu there are other activities and sports, suitable for all and family-oriented. There's a gym where you can complement your Jiu-Jitsu by lifting weights. And we have sauna in the men's locker room as well as in the women's; great for relaxing the body after a tough training session.
What would you recommend Globetrotters to see in your area apart from the inside of your gym?Buenos Aires is one of the capital cities of the world and one of the largest cities in South America, with a European flavor.
There are tons of touristic attractions such as La Boca, tango lessons, and Argentine BBQ. Buenos Aires is also the city with more cafés in the world, with different options that range from the more traditional like Café Tortoni to the more modern and younger styles in Palermo. Besides that, you have the connections to the other Argentine provinces and a great public transport system.
Thanks for sharing with us! If you'd like to pay a visit to Positive Jiu-Jitsu, you can find them here. |
| | | | | | | | | | | Make your custom gis, patches and rashguards at our dedicated BJJ Globetrotters factory |
| | | 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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