Stronghold Babies!

Stronghold Babies!
By: Raquel Cusi

We have quite a few Stronghold babies due this year, which is quite exciting! Today in particular was a special day for Mike and I. I am currently almost 5 months pregnant and this morning we went in to do our Ultrasound and learn the baby's gender. The technician had to take a few pictures of various body parts first before she would study the "goods." =] To her and our astonishment, she found our baby in a weird position. Our baby had both legs and feet curled up over its head, and wouldn't budge for a good 20 minutes. I mentioned to Mike that our baby was already practicing his shoulder rolls for Jiu Jitsu! She finally got the baby to move to get him in a better viewing position, and told us we were going to have a boy!! Although we didn't mind either sex, we got what we were rooting for. ;]

So even in the womb, our baby boy is just like Daddy; training BJJ!!

A couple years ago, Mike and I, and a bunch of our friends went to Las Vegas for Grappler's Quest. The day began with the Children's matches, and we were amazed by all the child competitors. The youngest kid had to be around 5 or 6, but you would be surprised at how much BJJ these kids knew! Our favorite was a kid from Cobra Kai, and before he started his matches, he stared at his opponent with a Pit Bull face and hands up ready to take him down. It was the cutest thing (his dad must have been so proud). That day we all talked about the Grappling team we would start when we all had kids.

Two years later, we finally get to fulfill the dream... Be on the lookout for these Stronghold phenoms in 5 years!! Haha...

Mr. Roy Harris

For those of you who don’t know Mr. Roy Harris or have had the pleasure of meeting him, I suggest you put it on your to do list. Who is Roy Harris you might ask if you aren’t familiar already? Around the world, he is well-known as an amazing instructor, mainly in the martial art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, but also in Jeet Kune Do and Kalis Ilustrisimo. Many Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioners around the world have learned from Roy Harris in one way or another whether it be his BJJ Instructionals or the many resources he publishes on his website: royharris.com.

I first met Roy in October of 2005, when I was searching for a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu instructor in San Diego. There were quite a few BJJ schools in San Diego, but one of the main things that caught my eye when I visited Roy’s website was the amount of valuable info that was available and a particular section “In Christ.” To me, I figured that was a double bonus and so I went to Miramar and signed up for classes. It didn’t take me long to find out how great an instructor Roy was. I have never took any martial arts classes before BJJ, but in comparison to any teacher or professor or I have had in school or college, no one was as detail-oriented, interesting or insightful as Roy was.

As time went by, I got to know Roy a bit more, and learned a lot more about him from his instructors and students. The consensus from every person who knows him is that he is not only a great instructor, but a very wise mentor and friend to all who know him.