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Team mates not class mates
05 Jun 2009 11:42PM
My last post talked about made, natural and never will fighters and I made reference to the fact that thankfully most of the team mates I have are made. I have had some positive feedback about this. What’s funny about that is that after I wrote that blog I wasn’t satisfied with it at all. Normally I just sit and type what’s on my mind and quickly spell –check it before sending it off to MMA Hit Pit. For once I read this one ‘Natural Ability’ http://www.mmahitpit.com/diaries/alldiaries/mmablogs/davebownds/diaryentries/naturalability
over a few times and didn’t like it at all... but I sent it anyway because I was conscious that I hadn’t posted anything in a while. I cringed a little when I saw it up one the site and hoped no one would notice it... I normally post a link on the Grindhouse Fight Team Facebook page so people have something to do on their tea break at the company’s expense. But I couldn’t bring myself to do it for this one as I wasn’t too proud of it.
Matt put a link up on the Facebook group for me... though I’m sure he probably should’ve been doing something more important... and he passed comment on it at training on Tuesday. Also Jon messaged me saying he’d enjoyed it and referenced an older post about parts of the body – the constituent parts of the body being the team - http://www.mmahitpit.com/diaries/alldiaries/mmablogs/davebownds/diaryentries/shiningalight
Jon was very complimentary (he must have been drinking when he wrote it) and following my subsequent reply responded with another positive comment, this time about the team. He said this:
“We might not have the best facilities or blackbelt/professional trainers but I think you would be hard pressed to get a better group of guys, good rapport, no egos or arguments.”
Now this got me thinking (I think lots... it’s ‘cos I have a small brain). I had never really thought too much about it in that context, I had always sort of assumed that’s how things go in fight teams. It seems cheesy to say, but in all honesty the training sessions have a great camaraderie. They are fun, hard work and ego free. We don’t really have any egos (except mine... but I’m the most important one in the team, so it doesn’t count) and those egos that have barged through the door in the past have sloped off after a few weeks unable to cope with the lack of attention.
Bearing this all in mind I headed to training last night with my fantastic ‘team’. On arrival I was a little disappointed to see that Matt was the only other person there. Irony, it seems, has a sense of humour. We had a good session though and basically just rolled for the whole hour and a half with Matt correcting a few of my more common errors. Between rounds we chatted about all sorts and I mentioned Jon’s comments and also about me not liking the last blog. Matt agreed with Jon and reiterated what he himself had written on the Facebook page – that the last post was ‘insightful’. Despite me cringing at this slightly we continued to talk about it, mainly about the team ethos we have and how things may differ at other larger clubs. It was then we discussed something which I don’t think any of us had ever considered before but is probably very true of Grindhouse MMA.
We don’t offer classes. We offer team training sessions. And this may well be why those fighters I described in the team are made and stick around. Train, spar and contribute and you will be part of the team regardless of ability. Those who have just come for ‘classes’ are clearly baffled at the type of training and sparring and are perhaps intimidated by it. But like I say, those who stick around long enough (certainly those who come week after week) I would consider ‘team mates’ as opposed to ‘class mates’ or ‘guys I train with’. I suggested to Pep a while back that the t shirts we have with ‘Fight Team’ splashed all over them should not be immediately for sale, but earned first. Feel free to join the club, feel free to train with us but entry to the team is not tangible... you can’t just ‘be’ in the team ‘cos you have the t shirt.
Membership to the team is earned... not through macho rubbish like blood, sweat and tears, but rather through commitment, friendship and contribution.
Photo By Laura Slater
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