Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bjjtech/~3/q6iwT7mwPp0/
Monday, December 31, 2012
Spider guard pass with Jorge Pereira (6 DAN BJJ under Rickson Gracie)
Prof. Jorge Pereira (6th DAN under Rickson Gracie) teach here a nice and simple spider guard pass.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bjjtech/~3/GjeqesXQaxc/
Sunday, December 30, 2012
The ?leg drag guard pass? compilation
Let’s start with the famous Martin Aedma “Guardpasses From Hell” video : The video above is very famous and popular (and also very good). But a lot of people now think that the “smashing & pressure” style of passing the guard is the same thing as the “leg drag” pass. It’s true that you have [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/bjjtech/~3/ytdS6Y8EmT0/
Gi Review: Oss Kimono v1.0B
Summary
A good, sturdy, smart and tastefully designed debut gi offering from Oss Clothing. The gi in size A1 fitted me very well and performed comfortably throughout training. Unusually shiny trousers as well!
Disclosures
I have been commissioned by Oss Clothing in the past on a freelance basis, I have had no input into this product.
Introduction
Oss Clothing have been operating for around a year. They started out with a range of attractive Japanese inspired t-shirts (including some that were designed by me) and have now moved on to their first gi uniform offering that they state has taken them 9 months to develop. Although a new company, the owner has been involved with BJJ for a long time (in 2006 he founded Purebred USA - Enson Inuoe's own clothing brand) so I would expect this to be a well developed product.
Size, Weight, Shrinkage and other stats:
A: 165 / 161
B: 73 / 73
C: 58 / 58
D: 17 / 16.5
E: 55 / 55
F: 97 / 95
G: 22.5 / 22
Weight
Jacket - 1.1kg
Trousers - 0.5kg
Price: $135
Available from: http://www.ossclothing.com/oss-kimono-version-1-black
More information: Facebook Page
My stats: Weight 58Kg, Height: 169cm
As the stats above display, shrinkage is virtually negligible on both the jacket and trousers. With a wingspan of 161cm, the A1 jacket is nice and long along the sleeve lengths, which suit me very well. The same can be said of the trousers, which at 95 centimetres in length, fit me perfectly. The stats are very similar to the Tatami Fightwear Estilo gi. The weight, at 1.7Kg is a little on the heavy side for the average A1 sized gi, but the fabric is 550gsm pearlweave cotton, so that is understandable. For reference, 550gsm is considered 'medium to slightly heavy weight, and something made from around 400-450gsm is often labelled as ultra light weight, although in practical terms, it's not a huge amount of difference when wearing such items.
Handily, the Oss website includes size data for sizes A1 to A4 as well (though users note some of the A1 data differs slightly to my own).
Jacket
The jacket is made from 550gsm pearlweave cotton. It features silvery grey contrast stitching and embroidery throughout.
The collar is quite thick and 'spongey' in fee. It is covered with twill cotton that feels noticeably soft and smooth.
The embroidered kanji pops out against the black colour gi fabric.
The sleeve cuffs are lined with soft twill cotton tape and triple stitched for reinforcement.
The side vents are reinforced with a triangle of fabric ad lined with contrast twill covering.
The word 'persevere' in a cursive font is embroidered straight on to the right side of the jacket - though this will be obscured when the left flap is wrapped over and the belt tightened.
There does not appear to be any under armpit reinforcements.
Trousers
The trousers are made from twill cotton and feature a pearlweave gusset panel. The trousers are very shiny for some reason. The double knee layer is woefully short, barely covering the knee caps when kneeling.
The rope drawstring is not stretchy but seems to do the job of remaining tied more than adequately. A total of six belt loops keep the rope in place.
Gusset panel, being made from pearlweave fabric is nice and strong. This is reinforced with triangular patches of extra fabric.
Trousers ankle seams are triple stitched and twill tape.
Rolling Performance and Conclusions
I have to say I really liked rolling in this gi. It fitted me very well for sleeve and trouser length and the colourway is tastefully applied. The use of super shiny and very soft twill for the collar covering and the trousers results in a very comfortable wearing gi. Shrinkage is negligible too. Minor niggles would perhaps be that the gi skirt is a tad long and the jacket width is a tad too wide for me (you can see that I had to bunch it up a bit in the photos above) and the knee pads are too small to be of any use, but apart from that, there is very little to criticise here. Overall it's a great debut gi from Oss Clothing and is a gi I will be happy to add to my rotation.
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Meerkatsu/~3/lfqD5MP0rFg/gi-review-oss-kimono-v10b.html
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Gi Review: Aurora and Alpha gis by Aesthetic
Summary
Drop dead gorgeous debut offering from new UK gi company, the Aurora shines while its sister model, the Alpha comes a very close second in terms of looks, fit, feel and comfort.
Disclosure
I have previously designed a t-shirt for this company. The views expressed in this review remain my own and I aim to report as impartially as I can.
Introduction
Aesthetic first burst onto the scene in the most mysterious of ways. They were one of the first to support the fundraising venture by BJJ Hacks to make a film about red belt masters. They bought a very expensive perk to support the scheme and yet there was no website, no Facebook group, no mention anywhere about Aesthetic. It did cause a little bit of a stir in gear addict circles.
Clearly, things have moved on and Aesthetic have officially launched with several very interesting products. I should mention again that I was commissioned by them to design a t-shirt - which you can see here.
Aesthetic have launched with two gi models, the Aurora (blue) and the Alpha (white). Both feature innovative stitching patterns and small details not common to most other gi brands. They also both come with two pairs of trousers and arrive in a rather sturdy 'pizza' box decorated by a wax seal. It all looks very classy. But the thing that raised my eyebrows was the price - �104.99 plus free UK shipping and a fixed fee worldwide shipping price.
Size, Weight, Shrinkage and other stats
Both test gis given to me were size A1. The Aurora is listed as a lightweight hybrid weave gi and the Alpha is listed as 550gsm pearlweave gi. The stats will reveal below that there is very little to separate these two models based on data alone:
Alpha (white) new v washed Aurora (blue) new v washed
(size in centimetres, both gis washed at least three times at 40 degrees C)
A: 161/154 160/157
B: 74/72 74/71
C: 57/53 53/53
D: 16.5/16 17/16
E (ripstop): 51/50 51/50
E (twill): 51/49 51/51
F: (ripstop) 95/92 94/90
F: (twill): 93/89 93/92
G (ripstop): 24/23 25/23
G (twill) 25/23 25/24
Jacket weight (kg): 1.0 0.9
Ripstop trouser weight (Kg): 0.5 0.5
Twill trouser weight (Kg): 0.5 0.5
Stats Discussion
Both gi models showed negligible shrinkage in the key areas - notably the arm wingspan and trouser lengths. There was a small difference between the Alpha and the Aurora in terms of sizes, the Alpha jacket being a wee bit smaller than the Aurora but the difference when wearing both was again hardly noticeable. The wingspan, at 154-157cm wide is slightly shorter when compared to gis with reasonably long arms, such as the Tatami Estilo (160), but they are still longer than A1 sized gis such as the Scramble Wave gi (153cm) which I consider to have fairly short arms for an A1.
Trouser lengths for both models at roughly 90cm is a good length for someone my size. Again, they are not as long as the Estilo pants (95cm) but they are longer than others such as the Submission FC hemp sensation (87cm).
Both gis are reasonably light weight at 1.5Kg. Interestingly the total weight made barely any difference whether one chose twill or ripstop trouser options. The Aurora jacket is a teeny bit lighter than the Alpha.
Jacket
The Alpha's jacket is made from a pretty standard pearlweave fabric. It starts off being a little bit stiff but after several washes, softens up nicely. The most notable observation with the jacket is the 'S' shaped contrast stitching running from the right shoulder down to the left front flap. Chinese words (roughly translated as Aesthetic) adorn the lower skirt and a circular patch is embroidered on the left sleeve.
The image below shows the collar, made from basic twill cotton, it is soft and comfortable but tends to fuzz up after several usages. The inner core itself is very flexible and light. Note also the black coloured piping inserted between the lapel and the main body of the jacket. It's a neat design element but serves no obvious function.
The sleeve cuffs are reinforced with both woven tape and an extra layer of twill on top. The latter I presume to negate the sometimes scratchiness of the woven tape on skin. The double layer of tape adds to the feeling of impressive sturdiness and strength in this zone.
Side vents and armpits have an extra fabric layer for reinforcement plus there is the same double taping as with the cuffs on the lower edge of the skirt.
The back has a small embroidered logo just below the neckline and a continuation of the S-shaped stitching.
The Aurora gi is made from 'hybrid' weave cotton. It is noticeable softer and more comfortable to the touch than the Alpha. The front jacket features a striking sunburst pattern of contrast coloured stitching and collar piping. It differs from the Alpha by having a different Chinese character embroidered on the lower skirt. There is no round embroidered arm patch.
The sunburst pattern is distinctive and easily noticed by everyone.
Unlike the Alpha, the Aurora has a collar and lapel covered with ripstop cotton. This did not fuzz up but it did fade in colour unevenly over several washes.
Reinforcements throughout the Aurora are the same as with the Alpha.
Trousers
Aesthetic offer two pairs of trousers with every gi. It's an unusual arrangement, something I have only noticed being offered with the Breakpoint Deluxe. As with the Breakpoint gi, I found I preferred one pair over another, in this case, I much preferred rolling in the ripstop pair than the twill cotton pair. The latter, while not actually heavier, did feel thicker and less pliable when rolling. I also felt that the inside seam running down the pant leg was too thick and slightly irritating. The ripstop pair did not have those same seams.
Both the Aurora and the Alpha offer a thick and easy to tie and untie rope drawstring. The knees are also double layered and extend all the way down to the ankle openings.
The twill cotton pants have gi material crotch section while the ripstop pair do not.
Rolling Performance
Both models were a great fit on me. I felt the blue Aurora was slightly better fitting than the Alpha since the latter shrank a wee but more. The jacket was snug and arms just nearly perfectly long for my longer than average arms. The hybrid weave of the Aurora is incredibly soft and comfortable. It reminds me a lot of my Honey Badger gi and my Shoyoroll Count Koma. The softness is honestly akin to wearing your favourite winter sweater to work, its that nice.
Of the two trousers, I much preferred the ripstop pair and ignored the twill pair after my first try with them. The ripstop cotton fabric used with these gis is very nice, not too waxy or stiff like older gis from years ago, these ripstop pants are strong, comfy and light. Not as awesome as the Atama Mundial ripstop trousers however, but then nothing can match the awesomeness of those trousers.
As far as the aesthetics goes, I much prefer the Aurora over the Alpha. Although the Alpha is a very nice design, I feel the distinctive S-shaped pattern gets lost against the white gi whereas the yellow coloured sunrays really burst out. Others may prefer the more subtle effect of the Alpha.
Conclusions
Aesthetic have begun with a bang. The launch gi models on offer are terrific value for money without compromising on style, elegance and strength. The buyer is almost spoiled for choice and in my opinion, probably can do without the twill trousers entirely. For quality of fabric, smart sizing, good use of reinforcing tape around the cuffs and ankles plus the eye-catching design, I would say Aesthetic have done a very good job indeed.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Meerkatsu/~3/BWLeWITCdxY/gi-review-aurora-and-alpha-gis-by.html
Friday, December 28, 2012
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Faixa Marrom!
Today I was very honoured to be promoted to brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu by my instructor Nick Brooks and his instructor Roger Gracie. I was promoted alongside a good bunch of my team mates at the Mill Hill BJJ winter grading.
It's very weird to be wearing a different coloured belt. I've been a purple belt for such a while that I can't mentally prepare for a whole new way of playing the game. Brown belt rules allow for all manner of leg submissions that are not allowed at lower grades. Of course Nick and a couple others at the academy have been getting me used to these for the past six months. He describes brown belt as being like a completely new martial art: Once the lower limb submissions are introduced, BJJ players have to completely change their game and learn things afresh. It's just another reminder that while the colour belt you wear might indicate some level of proficiency, the truth is, there's so, so much more out there to learn.
I would like to give a huge thank you to my instructor Nick for dedicating his whole life to teaching and coaching and helping us all grow in the sport. I also wish to thank my good buddies at Mill Hill BJJ. It's so very true that being in a good academy is very much like being part of a large family.
So, onwards and upwards. And my first task ahead is to investigate options for purchasing a custom hand made brown belt...any ideas?
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| My good buddy Chris Hearn who was promoted to black belt! |
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Meerkatsu/~3/9yjAKMZn0m0/faixa-marrom.html
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