Lesson number one: if your reason for going wasn’t to watch the NFC conference final between home team 49ers and the New York Giants, it was not the appropriate occasion to visit San Francisco. Rain fell on the California desert, and the airports were packed.

But everything seemed to be running along smoothly at eight that morning; I was already dozing off in my seat, and the airplane awaited takeoff on the tarmac. That was when I cracked my eyes and realized, we were back in the hangar. Something had bust in the plane. To spare readers the personal soap opera, we’ll cut straight to the chase: I didn’t get to the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, the venue for the event, until 3:30 in the afternoon.

On a day of Jiu-Jitsu and football, the bearded Bradford Sandoval got the better of Erik Benaquisto at All Star in Santa Cruz, CA.

I made it in time to witness Erik Benaquisto losing to Bradford Sandoval in the semifinals of the master black belt middleweight division. A forlorn Erik, still out of breath, made the obvious assessment: “The lesson of the day is to not skip cardio training.” His undoer, Bradford, would go on to lose to Luis Fraga in the decider.

JIU-JITSU VS. AMERICAN FOOTBALL

Also the promoter of the US Open and American Cup franchises, Cláudio França reaped his own lessons from the day: “Look, it’s best not to schedule a tournament for the same day as an American football final,” he said. Contemplatively, he pointed to the stands, already empty at a point in the competition when the gym would usually be packed—during the white belt contest. And he drew his conclusion: “But I’m pleased; it’s the first installment of the event and the number of sign-ups exceeded expectations.”

Sporting a referee outfit, the good-natured Puerto Rican Marcos “Yemaso” forwent putting on his gi, but he did come over to shoot the breeze as usual, and he fumbled when I inquired as to what his lesson of the day was. “Well, this is a special place for me. It was there, at that corner over there, that I started my first competition ever, with two months of Jiu-Jitsu training, back in 1999,” he said, but was cut short, as his services were required elsewhere.

Young local brown belt talent Nathan Mendelsohn occupying his usual first-place spot on the podium

Meanwhile, blue belt Nicholas Greene celebrated victory in the blue belt absolute division by busting out an elaborate break dance routine in the match area (“It was my hobby before Jiu-Jitsu,” he explained). The runner-up, Arizona native Gary Hatch, derived his technical lesson from the encounter: “I shouldn’t have let him get to north-south.”

Former break dancer Nicholas Greene shone in the blue belt absolute.

At purple, teammates Amir Mahboobi and Benjamin Mendoza determined the winner of the final by doing odds or evens. Before the match had even started Amir had already taught me a lesson—not of the day but of life: “Don’t lose!” Unfortunately, he only stayed true up until the final, as Mendoza got the better luck of the draw and took the gold.

Benjamin Mendoza gets the takedown to win the purple belt absolute at the All Star Jiu-Jitsu tournament.

Yemaso didn’t leave before completing his thought: “This was where I started, and Jiu-Jitsu has given me so much. Now I’m happy to be refereeing and giving a bit back to Jiu-Jitsu. The lesson, at least to me, is gratitude. Always be grateful.”

THE ONLY DEFINITIVE DEFEAT, IN BOTH JIU-JITSU AND IN LIFE

With fine rain drizzling and my pack full of learning, I hopped highway 17 and cut through the hills heading for San Francisco. Meanwhile, in overtime, the Giants earned their berth at Super Bowl XLVI, and the mood was funereal at the airport in San Francisco—where thousands of fans, heads downcast but still sporting red, would soon be making their way home.

The greatest lesson of the day could be from either football or Jiu-Jitsu; it doesn’t matter. It’s that you just can’t take seriously a temporary defeat—that setback at an event, or in a match, that doesn’t extend past that one moment in life. The only definitive defeat is quitting.

A lone Giants fan at the dismal airport following the 49ers' defeat

A primeira lição: se o motivo não fosse assistir à final da Conferência (NFC), entre os locais 49ers e os Giants de Nova York, não era a ocasião mais apropriada para ir até San Franciso. Dia chuvoso na deserta Califórnia, com aeroportos lotados.

Mas tudo parecia ir bem às oito da matina, já estava sentado cochilando, e o avião na pista de decolagem. Foi quando abri os olhos e reparei, estávamos de volta ao hangar. Aeronave quebrada. Para poupar o leitor de uma novela pessoal, vamos direto ao final: cheguei ao auditório civil de Santa Cruz, local do campeonato, às 3h30 da tarde.

Em dia de Jiu-Jitsu e futebol, o barbudo Bradford Sandoval levou a melhor sobre Erik Benaquisto no All Star, em Santa Cruz, CA

Cheguei a tempo de registrar a derrota de Erik Benaquisto para Bradford Sandoval, na semifinal do master faixa-preta, categoria médio. Resignado, Erik avaliou, ainda esbaforido, o óbvio: “A lição do dia é não deixar de treinar o cárdio”.  Seu algoz Bradford acabaria perdendo para Luis Fraga na decisão.

Jiu-Jitsu vs Futebol Americano

Organizador também das franchises US Open e American Cup, Cláudio França também tirou proveito do dia: “Olha, melhor não marcar campeonato no dia da final de futebol americano,” ponderou, apontando para as arquibancadas, já vazias num momento tradicional de estádio lotado, a disputa dos faixas-brancas. E concluiu: “Mas estou feliz, é a primeira edição do evento, e o número de inscritos superou as expectativas.”

De uniforme de árbitro, o simpático porto-riquenho Marcos “Yemaso” não vestiu o kimono, mas veio como sempre conversar, e titubeou quando perguntei qual teria sido a aula. “Olha, este lugar é muito especial para mim. Foi ali, naquele canto ali, que eu disputei minha primeira competição, com dois meses de treino de Jiu-Jitsu, em 1999,” disse ele, mas acabou interrompido, pois seus serviços foram requisitados.

O jovem talento local faixa-marrom Nathan Mendelsohn, ocupando como de hábito a primeira posição do pódio

Enquanto isso, o faixa-azul Nicholas Greene comemorou a vitória no absoluto azul com uma sequencia plástica de break dance sobre a área de luta (“Era o meu hobby antes do Jiu-Jitsu, justificou). O segundo colocado, o local do Arizona Gary Hatch, tirou uma lição técnica: “Eu não devia ter deixado ele ir pro norte-sul.”

Ex break dancer, Nicholas Greene brilhou no absoluto azul

Na roxa, os companheiros de equipe Amir Mahboobi e Benjamin Mendoza disputaram a final no par ou ímpar. Antes da disputa, Amir já tinha me dado uma lição, não do dia, mas de vida: “Não perder!” Infelizmente, ele cumpriu bem até a final, mas Mendoza levou a melhor no sorteio e ficou com o ouro.

Benjamin Mendoza derruba para vencer o absoluto roxa do All Star de Jiu-Jitsu.

Yemaso não foi embora sem concluir o raciocínio: “Foi aqui que eu comecei, e o Jiu-Jitsu me deu tudo. Hoje estou feliz de estar arbitrando e dando um pouco de volta para o Jiu-Jitsu. A lição, pelo menos para mim, é gratidão. Sempre ser grato.”

A única derrota definitiva, tanto no Jiu-Jitsu quanto na vida

Com a garoa caindo e a sacola cheia de aprendizados, peguei a serra da estrada 17 em direção a San Francisco. Enquanto isso, na prorrogação, os Giants garantiam o passaporte para o Super Bowl XLVI, e o clima fúnebre no aeroporto de San Francisco — onde milhares de torcedores, cabisbaixos mas ainda vestidos de vermelho, passariam dali a pouco em direção às suas casas.

A maior lição do dia pode vir do futebol ou do Jiu-Jitsu, tanto faz. É que não tem como levar a sério uma derrota temporária, aquela num evento, ou numa luta, naquele momento da vida. A única derrota definitiva é a desistência.

Um torcedor isolado dos Giants no triste aeroporto após a derrota dos 49ers.

Torregrosa in Rio

GMA member school Yemaso BJJ closed out an incredible year in competitions with a momentous promotion.

Instructor and current International Masters & Seniors champion Marcos “Yemaso” Torregrosa promoted his first black belt, Steven Tafoya along with Al Ramirez who ascended to the rank of brown belt. Mark Longshore, Director of Cache Creek security, also recieved his purple belt.

This along with many other blues helps solidify an already powerful house of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in the Sacramento area, in California.

This comes after impressive performances at the US Open that not only saw our instructor take top honors in the black belt division but also a brown belt champion in Eliot Kelly who has also taken the No-Gi Pan and the No-Gi Worlds!

It has been a productive year for Team Yemaso and 2012 promises to be even better!

For more info, go to yemasobjj.com

Marco Yemaso, form Capital City BJJ, in California, paid a visit to Frank Burczynski, of JKD Berlin.

For four days, Yemaso shared his knowledge with his German friends.

He taught Gi and No-Gi techniques.

Here are some pictures of his stay in Berlin.

For more info, go to jkdberlin.de, capitalcitybjj.com

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