Saturday, 19 December 2015

Merry Christmas

Hi Team Big Judo had its last session for 2015 this week.  We are going to take a summer break..

We start training again for 2016 on:

  • Monday 1 Fenruary - Police
  • Tuesday 2 February - Kids and Adults
On Friday 5 and Saturday 6 February there will be no training because of Waitangi Day,

Then in the second week of February we are back into regular training.  


Saturday, 5 December 2015

Big Judo Big Visit to University Judo Club


 Big Judo Kids from both Central and Pukekohe held a training session at the University Judo in Epsom.  A nice class.  We did lots of Judo practice and finished with 'Batsugan'(informal) competition.



It was also a good chance for Ben and Jordan to catch up with Rick.  The 'dungeon', University Judo Club's dojo in Epsom, is where both Ben and Jordan learnt their Judo. Jordan's Dad also learnt Judo with Rick,

Everybody really enjoyed watching the kids because as well as being a great fun day it also let the kids see where our club's style of Judo started, learn  about their legacy and demonstrated that we are working to bring a new generation of Judoka onto the mat.


Sunday, 29 November 2015

Another Big Saturday for Big Judo

This Saturday was really good day - the two kids classes were big and not to rowdy.  Nellie turned up again and enjoyed helping coach for three classes!

Pia from Germany had a great time with the kids teaching them good German technique. '

And I finally got a photo of Pia.   Here she is Pia Elisabeth Jahn from Jenna in Germany.  A great addition to our team helping us out not just with the kids but also with the adults. 


Then we a had a good strong adults class.  This class just keeps growing, We also had some women on the mat including a visitor from Tukaha BJJ, a big well respected BJJ club.  We know Pedro, Mike and Jonathan (instructors at Tukaha BJJ) from the olden days and really appreciated that one of their students has come to visit.



With Tracey, Nellie and Pia we have really good female instructors on the mat which is a huge bonus.

At Big Judo we pride ourselves on being an inclusive and safe training venue so are really pleased that as well as our gang of broken down old men and young kids we are starting to attract a nice group of women keen to learn Judo,

Great work team.

Monday, 23 November 2015

Big Judo Has A New Friend



At Big Judo we are pretty lucky to have had visitor from Germany - Pia Jahn.  Pia is a handy young Judo player who hails from Jena in Germany.

Pia used be a competitive Judo player but after injuring her knee decided to concentrate on coaching instead.  She is very good coach and has brought a lot of interesting ideas and techniques to the club.

Pia helps out with the kids classes and trains with the adults.  She has been wonderful to have on the mat as a coach and even though our adults class has a few large dudes in it she has thrown herself into that with gusto too.

If you want to meet Pia come down one Saturday.


Monday, 19 October 2015

Great Start to Term Four

Awesome start to Term 4.  Some photos of the Central Class.  Would have photos from Pukekohe too but was so busy there that I didn't have time to take them!  Last Friday the Beginners had 20 kids!

1pm kid beginners class.  Look at all the newbies in the distance learning their breakfalls with Jordan.


2 pm kids class - busy - busy
 
3pm 'silver backs' more busy-busy
It awesome to see so many kids and new adults on the mat.  As instructors it is incredibly satisfying to be so busy and more importantly introducing new people to Judo.  Wonderful way to start the term.

Sunday, 27 September 2015

Big Judo Classes Getting Bigger



Awesoem Satruday class. Sixteen Big Judo big boys on the mat. Well done team!

Monday, 7 September 2015

Old Friend - New Little Sister


We had a visit from an old friend this Saturday.

Lyle Kendrick stopped in to say Hello.

His grand-daughter Abigail is doing Judo with us. Lyle and his daughter Ayesha (Abigail's mum) used to do Judo at the old Pukekohe Judo Club.

In the late 80's Pukekohe Judo Club had about 200 members and was strong club.  Lyle was one of its stalwarts and in the late 80s and early 90s me, Shaun Walton (and sometimes Daniel Gowing) used to regularly visit the club and a strong relationship existed between University Judo Club and Pukekohe.

It was good times and it is fantastic to have Lyle's grand-daughter on the mat with us.  

Sunday, 23 August 2015

Big Judo Guns By the Numbers

Got the confirmed results from Howick. Big Judo got:

  • 6 Golds;
  • 6 Silvers; and
  • 9 Bronzes.
A pretty good performance.  


Saturday, 22 August 2015

BIg Judo - Big Guns - Howick 2015

What we love!
A Big Judo player knocks down and holds down an opponent.

You don't have to be big to do Judo even at Big Judo.
Two of our little kids in action. 
Ronda Rousey would be proud.!
Two of our girls fighting hard.
At Big Judo we are very proud that we have so many girls on the mat and that we have so many Mums involved we work hard to create a 'safe', family environment and the number of girls and women involved in the club  demonstrates that this commitment is paying off. 

Kapow!
Wonderful a seven year old demonstrating a strong Yoko Shio Gatame (side control).  Who says you can't teach kids good ground fighting.  At Big we love the ground and our kids are developing a good ground game. 
What we like to see!

Again from the front - Marcel, Oliver with Gold and Eli Silver.


Another Gold for Big. 
 
For all my self promotion - This is what it is all about. Check out that smile!

Happy kids enjoying Judo!











Sunday, 16 August 2015

Big Judo Rock and Rollers! Howick 15 August 2015





The big blue judo machine was in action this weekend!  We took nearly 40 kids and adults to Howick's club contest and team did a fantastic job.  We won medals  (will get a list ASAP) but most importantly the kids and adults fought well demonstrating real grit and determination. 

We also had a huge support crew there with lots of parents, coaches and other supporters on the sidelines cheering the team on - Thanks heaps.

As more photos come through I'll keep posting them. 

Jamie in action. Bigger, older higher graded opponent but the Jamie kept the pressure on and on and won the fight awesome. 
The end result - victory

What we love to see! The Big Judo trifecta.  
We even had some 'silverbacks' on the mat enjoying the day.

Another good victory. Noah in control and winning with the ground hold.




How could I resist this shot!

Saturday, 15 August 2015

Big Judo Central Ready for Howick Comp Too!



Don't think its just the Pukekohe 'crew' that are keen to fight this weekend. The Big Judo kids trained this Saturday and we have a heap of kids fighting.  Thirty two in total plus four  adults.

Really looking forward to the competition.

Friday, 14 August 2015

Big Judo Pukekohe Ready for Howick Comp



Good nights training at Pukekohe tonight. The kids are all fired up for Sunday and ready to go!

Between Pukekohe and Central we have more than 30 kids on the mat and even have a few adults competing should be a good day.

Wednesday, 12 August 2015

Big Judo Party Night



Ben took the adults class on Tuesday night and it rapidly descended into a disco dancing free for all and ground fighting tussle!

Actually it was another example of the fun our adult crew is having. We are trying to take things a little bit serious but its just so much fun having roll on Tuesday night. Then on Saturday afternoons we have a beer after training and plan to move into the next phase a beer and a curry.

If you are a socialy minded Judo player feel free to pop in on a Tuesday night at 7 pm or Saturday at 3 pm.




Saturday, 8 August 2015

Big Judo Kids Competition - Success by the Numbers


Unfortunately was too busy coaching and organising at the Judokwai competition so didn't get many photos.  If you have any send me some.

But I thought that the best way to show how well our kids did was to let the numbers tell the tale:


  • Big were the biggest team on the mat - We took 28 kids over;
  • Those 28 kids got:
    • 9 gold medals;
    • 8 silver medals; and
    • 3 bronze medals.
  • 20 out of 28 kids got a medal
The coaches and I are very proud of the kids and hoping that we do well again next weekend.  

Thursday, 30 July 2015

Why Judo is Good for Good Kids



Loved this video.  Kid on the left is in Japanese school uniform.  Keep watching!

Big Judo Competition - Team Big - Biggest Yet



Big Judo has its biggest team yet in action on Sunday.  We have 29 kids fighting in the Judokwai tournament,  A fantastic effort! Look out Howick I reckon with our Seniors we might have more than 35 on the mat then!

If you want to come and support the details are:

Time: 0930 
Venue: Judokwai Dojo, 68 Hillside Road, Glenfield, NORTHSHORE


There is no 'door' charge so coming to support cost nothing. Be great to see everybody there.

Tuesday, 28 July 2015

Big Night Out of Tuesdays - More Adult Judo



Uh oh Saturdays just wasn't enough and now we need to have a Tuesday night adults class.

Jordan took the class this week, Dave showed up and we had a gang of other 'big' boys there,

From now on Tuesday nights at 7 pm will be a regular training opportunity.  

Great to see this part of the team growing.

Saturday, 25 July 2015

Big Judo in Town


Nice photo of Jordan and Henry coaching the little kids class in town. On Tuesday night Jordan had 14 kids on the mat a record!

And today we had 12 beginners and 18 big kids.  Its looking like we should have more than 30 kids on the mat at the Judokwai Competition this weekend. Very happy about that.

As well as a good start to the kids our 'big boys' are going from strength to strength with a regular 8-12 on the mat on Saturday. This week we will start a Tuesday night adult class,


Tuesday, 21 July 2015

Big Judo Kids Happy to be Back


Tracey (in pink), Geoff in the back left and the gang out at Pukekohe back on the mat and into training. Even better we have twelve Pukekohe kids lined up ready to go for the Judokwai and Howick competitions in August. Awesome.

Sunday, 19 July 2015

Big Judo Big Boys First Class of Term Three



Big Judo's first class of Term Three was the big boys at the Police Station.  We had a nice session. Look at the size of the guys a really good work out.  Only problem is all the people doing cross-training in the background.  Why would ya! When you could be living the dream and doing Judo.

Monday, 29 June 2015

Big Judo Throws - Masters Style



Check out this video from the World Masters. Masters in Judo starts at 35 and there are some pretty 'mean' throws going down range in this little selection.

Tuesday, 23 June 2015

Big Judo MMA Opportunity

Hamish Robertson is a guy Ben trained with lots years ago when he was more involved with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).

Hamish is great guy and runs his own MMA gym. He has recently been contracted by Northland Polytechnic to deliver a martial arts and fitness based life skills programme to 'at risk youth',  He is currently promoting the programme and looking for applicants.

That's where Big Judo comes in because we have a great network of interested and motivated people. So:


  • If you know someone that would benefit from the course show them the post; or
  • If you have the ability to tell people about this opportunity please do.


Thanks heaps for the support.

Monday, 22 June 2015

Big Judo Tournament - Auckland International Open



A couple of photos that I took at the Auckland International Open.  Once again it was a great tournament with people from all over New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific fighting.

The competition attracts a couple of hundred fighters over two days and has everything from kids to masters. A really neat competition.

Now for something a bit different. A couple of pictures of the 'opposite' end of the Judo spectrum. The Police club doing some social Judo today.  I guess the point is doesn't matter where you sit on teh spectrum there is a type of Judo for just about everybody.  



Sunday, 7 June 2015

Big Judo Adults


Another nice photo of the expanding group of happy, social Judoka in Sandringham adult class.  Judo types will recognise a couple of faces but there is a nice group of newbies mixed in their too.

The important thing is this class is open to anyone wanting to play some good technical Judo in a friendly social environment.  We are looking at adding a Tuesday night class soon.

If you are  interested give Ben a call or email ben@benstallworthy.com

Sunday, 31 May 2015

Big Kids in Town


Oops in the last post we forgot a picture of the big kids. Nice to see three adults on the mat with them too. Thanks guys. One of the awesome things about Saturday afternoons is that a lot of Judo playing Dads come down early, help out with the big kids then stay around for the adults class.  Family Judo - Awesome.

Saturday, 30 May 2015

Big Judo Gets Bigger




About a month ago we started our 3 pm Saturday adults class.  The class is going well and we are getting a nice regular 10-12 players on the mat.  We all have a great time there is a nice selection of broken down old farts, Dads keen to do Judo with their kids and guys from the Police Club.

We do some technical work, have a low impact wrestle then adjourn to a nearby bar for a few lemonades and a discussion about how great we all used to be.  

Seriously it is great fun and if you are interested in learning about Judo stop by sometime.

And just in case you thought we might have forgotten about the kids here is a photo of our beginners class. 



We also have the advanced kids but I didn't get a photo this week.  They are getting good and the oldest kids are now 12-13 and in a year or so having a few adults around will be a requirement for their future development. So we are very pleased with progress.


Wednesday, 6 May 2015

Pukekohe Kids Tuesday Night Class


A nice shot of the kids on Tuesday night. Pukekohe classes are going well and we even had a new Orange Belt have a look at joining up this week,

Friday, 1 May 2015

Kids at Pukekohe




Tracey and Geoff teaching the Beginners class tonight at Pukekohe. It was a nice night and on Tuesday we had 19 kids on the mat a nice start to the term.