03/23/2026
It was a great night of grappling here in Bend, Oregon for the team tournament…
Being able to compete again was a lot of fun, for me at the age of 46, and being able to test myself not once but twice in one night against arguably the best Jiu-Jitsu player in the Pacific Northwest was incredible, but more importantly, I got to compete with my students as teammates in the team format. Tye McCarthy, Joey Campbell and Christian Graves not only showed up, but they each showed me (and everyone in attendance) something with their competitive spirits that I hadn’t seen before. These guys really did great. It was an honor competing along side them.
It was also special to compete along side my daughter, who did an exhibition folkstyle wrestling match in the same event.
We were able to make it past the semifinals after going through the formidable 10th Planet Portland team, and we almost got the win for 1st, going deep into overtime in the finals with the defending champions- Clark’s University team.
The odds were stacked against us, but we almost pulled it off. Huge congrats to everyone who competed.
The energy was great from the crowd and everyone involved was respectful, supportive and enthusiastic.
We are very grateful for all of our students and friends who showed up to support.
Can’t wait for the next one!☝️