Whats New At The Den? Check it out!
Hi there!! Thank You for checking out our quarterly newsletter , we use this to keep our members and maybe future members caught up with all that is going on at the Den. It has been a bit of time since our last newsletter due to the interruption we have had from the Covid pandemic but we are now back! We have a bunch of new things to share about promotions , new programs and upcoming competitions so keep reading.
New Program Alert!!
The Den is constantly doing everything it can to improve from adding classes, going to competitions , getting training for our coaches , adding coaches and programs , bringing in high level clinicians etc.
This is a big one! We have added 4 time Olympian and Silver medalist Jason Morris to our coaching staff. Jason will be teaching Judo on fridays. Each class is 90 minutes from 4:30-6 and the class is limited to 14 participants . Any adult can sign up and approved children. This is a no nonsense class and we must optimize our time with him so kids must have experience and have proven themselves in classes to pay attention , stay focused and work hard the entire time to participate. While a child may not be ready now, that does not mean they won't down the road so it is something they can work towards. Jason today is widely regarded as one of the top Judo coaches worldwide and has been an Olympic coach as well. Many athletes travel from all over the world to train with him, most notably UFC star Ronda Rousey as she prepared for the Olympics prior to her MMA career. Jason was also a 2 time NYS wrestling champion and wrestled for Syracuse university. He is a great asset to our programs and Judo can help your wrestling, BJJ and MMA tremendously. If your trying to improve your games , I would highly suggest adding this to it.
Competitions
As a team we have won and come in first place at the last 2 NAGA Brazilian Jiu Jitsu tournament's held in Albany NY. With things shut down in terms of competition in NY right now , we have decided to compete at 2 upcoming NAGA competitions which will be in CT and NJ in the coming months. We are also thinking of hitting up some gyms in the area while we are at these tournaments and are thinking of making an overnight and doing a clinic with some UFC stars the next day. In CT , we are friends with Glover Texeira and have taken students down to his facility in the past. In NJ we have recently been working at the Tiger Schullman facility with some other top UFC stars such as Jimmie Rivera. This is sure to be a fun time and an experience you or your child will never forget.
Covid - back to business
As we are getting back open and rolling , you will see some changes in classes and how we operate. Some of these changes are taking temperatures upon entering the facility. No one can enter if you have a fever. We are also cleaning the facility multiple times throughout the evening during classes. We also now do a skin check prior to classes to be sure no one has anything on their skin. Anyone who crosses the mat or uses the bathroom will now have to use the foot sanitizer station before crossing the mat again . All wrestlers will need to disinfect shoes in the sanitizer station prior to class to be sure they are clean. We don't want any germs transferred to the mat. Lastly , be sure to double check our schedule on the website as some changes have been made. Lastly , our facility is operating under 34% capacity at the moment until things completely open up with the state .We also now offer private sessions for families for those who want to train privately . Check out the website for rates.
Training - Fighting
We have been busy and coach Trent and Caleb have been working hard! Trent is scheduled to fight on September 19'th and has been training with some of the top UFC stars in the process of getting ready. They are with Jimmie Rivera here at his gym in NJ after a hard session. Jimmie is currently ranked 7th in the world at 135. We were also lucky enough to have one of my first students back in the facility for a day.
Mike " Beastboy" Davis was just here and put on a free clinic for our students in Muay Thai , BJJ and a kids clinic along with working privately and sparring with Trent and Caleb. This came free as a HUGE thank you to all of our students who stuck with us during the forced closings , we would not be here without you!!
We plan to have Mike back in for a week a couple of times a year. Along with being one of UFC's best up and coming fighters , he is also a great coach . Be sure to take advantage of his knowledge while he is here. Mike will have his next UFC fight in the coming month so be sure to check it out on TV. Ill post the details once they are released.
Promotions
Things have been pretty slow due to the Covid mess but we did just have a few promotions. Congrats to Craig , James and Tony on receiving their BLUE belts !! Also receiving belts in the kids ranks were Brody , Parker , Quinn , Aiden , Carmen , Micheal and Aiden K. These students were all on track for promotion prior to Covid , worked hard during our closings and sent in videos of them training while at home . They were sure to stay up on all our training videos and curriculum we were posting and came back ready to roll. Awesome job guys!!
SEE YOU ON THE MAT!!!!!
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