Dec10

Rolling with Surfer Dude

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Rolling with Surfer Dude

The class started, as usual, with Mrs. Instructor and me partnering together. Also, as usual, we struggled to remember the moves. I’m generally inclined to watch other groups and try to figure it out from them, but Mrs. Instructor is, for some strange reason, NOT afraid of the instructor, as though she’s perfectly comfortable with him or something.

“I’m raising my hand,” she said.

Fiiiiinnneee.

Instructor joined us, but then Surfer Dude (SD) arrived, so Instructor helped his wife and assigned SD to me. That was all good.

Then Instructor introduced our next move, a “bear roll.”

You reach one hand through the other person’s knees, the other hand under their back, grab their wrist with both hands, get a strong stance, bend, lift, flip. Voila!

I looked at SD with one eyebrow raised.

Not the bear roll, but I explain later.* SD is in the background here.

SD first bear rolled me, and Weeee!!!!

Then I got into position to “do the same” to him.

“Dear diary,” I began. “Today I flipped–“

“A 180-pound man,” SD supplied.

Just to paint the weight disparity image for you: I hover above 100.

Nevertheless, I bent, I lifted, he rolled over.

“Okay, thank you, but let me try it for real this time,” I told him.

He smiled.

I geared up again. I bent, I lifted…

I fell over backward. He stayed put.

Laughter ensued. Whenever anyone hears laughter coming from somewhere on the mat, you can be sure that’s the corner I’m in.

“Alright. Let’s try this again,” I said.

The mighty fearsome Surfer Dude napping at the Christmas party. I wish I could sleep anywhere, anytime like that.

I sort of flipped him, but he helped. We ended up rolling to nearly the center of the stage, er floor, and everyone else had finished. This meant they were watching us because OF COURSE. (This is my tagline.)

But the roll isn’t the end of it. Then you have to step over the person and armbar them. I stepped over, fully aware all eyes were now on me, and grabbed the wrong arm. SD quickly pulled it away, thrust the correct arm into my grasp, and put his own arm to the ground as though I was armbarring him.

“Okay, great,” Instructor said, no doubt happy the spectacle was over so he could continue teaching.

I quickly scooted off to the side next to SD. “Thanks,” I stage whispered. He smiled and nodded.

At the end of class came free-for-all rolling. I am the toy mouse to SD’s cat, in that he just plays with me. I tried swinging my leg over his head, he ducked his chin. I tried again, he ducked his chin. I tried again several times because I am a slow learner, even once saying, “Look over there!” He half looked… and ducked his chin.

This replayed several times with me attempting and failing, attempting and failing again, various moves. Once I tried a new cool technique Instructor showed me a week or so ago. THAT surprised SD.

“Whoa. Ilsa learned a new attack. She’s acting skilled!”

Thanks so much for the obvious display of surprise, SD!

But did I pull it off?

No.

Did I make several fruitless attempts anyway?

Yes (because OF COURSE).

Whenever I tried to get a hold of him, he hopped back and forth. Once, with my back on the mat, he leaped, limbs sprawled, like a flying squirrel over me.

“Wow,” I said. It was crazy and impressive.

When the timer rang and I sort of kind of nearly had him in a foot lock, he smiled and said, “That was really fun!”

At least I provide entertainment value.

A closeup of SD’s terrifying socks. “I’m going to give him crap for these later,” I told an amused Instructor, who witnessed me taking these pics.

*This is not the bear roll, but some other crazy sh*t (sorry, it felt appropriate) that Instructor did to me by basically grabbing my hand out from under me and giving it a quick pull. I immediately looked at Mrs. Instructor, who was filming the room, and said, “Did you get that?”

My absolute favorite thing is when Instructor sends me flying. It’s just so much friggin’ fun. This screenshot is good. You don’t need to see the conclusion when my rear unceremoniously hits the mat.

Quick bonus story for the true Ilsa Rey devo-tay (devotee, but I wanted to be sure you rhymed it): With those foot locks, by the way, SD was trying to help me remember the difference between the foot lock and the … heel hook… was it? Whatever. He explained that when the foot is in front of you, you gable grip. When it’s behind you, you Americana grip.**

“If it’s in front of you, you…”

“Gable grip,” I said.

“Good.”

The next second I had his foot in the wrong grip. He merely smiled patiently. But let’s be honest, I’m surprised I remembered the correct answer to the first question.

**Not long ago I reread my first Jiu-Jitsu posts and shook my head at my newbie self confused by terminology. I didn’t know an elevator sweep from an elbow escape. Pish! Can you imagine? I hope I one day reread this post and laugh at my heel hook/foot lock confusion.

Old Q: “Aladdin” and “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves” are not actually from this compendium of tales: “One Thousand and One Nights,” also called “The Arabian Nights”.

New Q: A Miami Vice episode, a Queens of the Stone Age song, a Fatboy Slim album, and an Olivia Wilde film all have this four-word title, a variant of an 1935 DuPont slogan.

Yeah. I had no clue. Good luck with this one.

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41 responses »

  2. “Gable grip”, huh? The technical terms for JJ just keep on a-coming. You mentioned feet so many times in this post it suddenly dawned on me… your foot must be doing just fine. After all you went through in rehab it’s a wonder you’re now rolling and tumbling with abandon. Not gonna take a gander at this week’s trivia question but I will say, one of these days you’ll be able to ask “What is the significance of the image I use for Trivia Time?”… and no one will know the answer.

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    • I wear the ankle brace for every class still. It helps a great deal. The feet are in constant dull pain no matter what, and I figure they probably will be for the rest of my life. I’m just going to have to deal with that. Okay, now the trivia image–really? That doesn’t mean anything to you? Have you never played Trivial Pursuit?

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  6. A “Bear Roll”? WIthout knowing this was a Martial Arts blog, I would have thought it something you have with dinner. I buy bear claws all the time with my lattes and actually have never thought of seeing if a bear roll is on the menu. Of course, “bear roll” could describe me rolling over in bed — maybe not as graceful as you describe, but more of a grunting mass rolling from once side to the other.

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  10. I am so late to this (thanks so much, WP Reader), but “Better Living Through Chemistry?” That’s one of my favorite sayings, or it was before I had to give up ibuprofen. Also, how tall are you? Trying to figure out how people jump over you!

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