Another #worktrip, another chance to visit a jiujitsu academy I've admired for a long time.
Though I typically check out academies closest to my hotel, whilst in Irvine, California for yet another Mark Morris Dance Group performance at UC Irvine's Cheng Hall, I absolutely had to make the pilgrimage to Art of Jiujitsu in Costa Mesa. Not just because the Mendes Brothers are two of the highest level competitors and jiujitsu practioners in the world, but because as a marketer, how could I miss checking out this academy in person?
It's just a short Uber ride away I said to myself.... And though Google Maps did show it was about 15minutes by car, I was warned that in Southern California, those 15 minutes could sometimes take half an hour or more.
I was still a white belt, still nervous to be training somewhere new, and definitely didn't want to be running in late. Whilst etiquette rules on lateness definitely apply at your home academy, this goes triple for training as a visitor. You want to get to the academy with enough time to check out the gym, pay any mat fees, and get dressed and acquainted with people there. I'd already called ahead to confirm I could train there as a visitor (see our handy tips for training on the road for more advice), knew that there was a substantial (but well worth it) mat fee, AND that I would need to also rent one of AOJ's branded Shoyoroll gis (as I didn't own a white gi at the time). Because they do get a lot of visitors from all over the world, AOJ has a visitors page with some recommendations for the area.
Suffice to say, I was almost an hour early.... but that's okay. There's a nice waiting area, a store on site, and lots of photos to look at. I was able to calmly get checked in and sized for a gi... and I was able to watch the class before in action to learn more about AOJ's "unspoken" rules.
Everyone was super friendly - which is what would expect of anyone in the jiujitsu community - but this place seemed like it had the potential to be more snobby, with its white-on-white images on Instagram (except for no gi, which is all black); sleek brand appeal, high-class competitors.... But I was warmly welcomed.
AOJ offers only jiujitsu classes, unlike other academies. Which is always fine with me because I really only want to train jiujitsu when I'm travelling (not just because it's challenging enough to pack just an extra gi in the suitcase. I'm happy to leave the boxing gloves, shinpads, and all the other gear at home when I'm on the road. Interestingly, the jiujitsu-only is part of AOJ's vision statement, found on their website:
THE VISION FOR THE ACADEMY WAS TO OFFER WORLD CLASS INSTRUCTION IN A TRADITIONAL YET STYLISH ENVIRONMENT THAT FOCUSED SOLELY ON JIU JITSU INSTEAD OF FOLLOWING THE POPULAR TREND OF BEING A MMA SCHOOL.
Because it was the weekend, neither of the Mendes Brothers were teaching (everyone needs a day off sometime). But, I still got a fantastic lesson in spider guard from a top-level instructor and made a couple friends that, years later, I'm still in touch with on Instagram.
Date(s) visited: 16 May 2015
Class taken: Brazilian Jiu Jitsu – Gi
Instructor: Unknown
Head instructor: Professors Rafael and Guilherme Mendes
Affiliation: Atos
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