A nice night on the mat. I'll admit that it is weird to be doing so much half guard. On the one hand (the biggest, most pimp-like hand, so to speak), nothing could be better for my game right now. I've felt alternately alienated from and trapped in my half guard for the past several months, and this much focus on the position and its options is as good as it gets.
On the other hand, it sometimes feels like your private little cul-de-sac rambler somehow ended up on the Neighborhood Home Tour. And the line of eager gawkers runs half way back up the street.
I got to train with good folks across the board. More Elliott is a good thing, and it was good to train with Benny the Purple and Reuben after not seeing either for what seems like quite awhile. And with Lance at the top of the hill and a new white belt still on his way up, I got a nice range of work in on the margins.
I really think that's important - and one of the things that Rodrigo has been especially observant of over the years. In a perfect world, you spend at least 5-10 minutes against someone whose skill is superior enough for you to be forced to rely on technique, despite the call for athleticism that being overwhelmed tends to induce. And then at least another 5-10 minutes being that someone. Technical. Competent. Masterful.
Everything in between is everything in between. You never know what you're going to get. But to really maximize the training experience, focusing on the margins (the illusion of facing Rickson Gracie and the illusion of being Rickson Gracie) can play a significant role.
162.2 in street clothes post-train. Thursday off. Friday back at it. The Revolution is 2 1/2 weeks away.
