MMAjunkie.com Radio on Tour, Part 2: Training the troops, attacked by a dog

MMAjunkie.com Radio co-hosts “Gorgeous” George Garcia and Brian “Goze” Garcia, as well as UFC fighters Jake Ellenberger and Amir Sadollah and MMA/boxing cutman Jacob “Stitch” Duran, are overseas and visiting U.S. troops as part of an MMA-themed Armed Forces Entertainment tour. George Garcia is penning a journal during the journey. Check out Part 2.

* * * *

SEE ALSO: MMAjunkie.com Radio on Tour, Part 1: Heading overseas, meeting the troops

Saturday, Oct. 12, 2013

My Saturday was officially over about three hours ago, according to the clock. But in reality, it was over for me about six hours ago cause I headed back to my room in the middle of a comedy show. Not because the comedian sucked; it’s just that I was not feeling 100 percent. My body was hurting, and that was just from standing up among the troops watching the comedians do their sets.

Jake Ellenberger said that one of the airmen told him there were empty seats in the front, but I could only spot one. I think it would’ve made the difference and perhaps I could’ve gutted it out and listened to the rest of George Wallace’s set. He was on fire, and the troops were laughing their butts off. The problem with that was that I knew he wanted to sit too, and I think we both made a gentlemen’s agreement to not head for that chair because then the other would be SOL. And this agreement, by the way, was not made verbally. We just both elected to stand there and hang out together, rather than one of us enjoy that chair. At least, that’s how I saw it.

After about 45 minutes, I told Jake that I had to go and lie down. And I did.

I checked my computer and read a few messages, and then I rounded up a few pictures for one of the guys at MMAjunkie.com and fell straight down on the mattress like someone had knocked me out.

I don’t know if I ate something or if it was pure exhaustion – or, it could be all of the activities we did that I’m about to tell you, in addition to the other stuff. Because I feel way better now that I’ve rested a few hours. Way better! my stomach is still a little fragile, but we’re going to make do. My back isn’t tight, and after I pen this journal/ blog, I’m going to get a few more zzz’s, take a shower, stretch a bit and then be ready for our 6 a.m. wakeup call. That’s three hours away.

Enough about my tummy ache. Let me tell you how my Saturday went.

After the long flight, we were allowed to sleep in and then grab some lunch before our first activity. This time, the dining facility was way more full, and there were lots more soldiers to meet. We all spaced out and took the time to talk to as many as possible at our table. Jake, Amir Sadollah, Stitch Duran and my brother, “Goze,” were great with the troops. They are all truly fascinated with what we do, especially the fighters, and many are hardcore MMA fans. They really know their stuff too. Today at lunch, the Wanderlei Silva vs. Rich Franklin fight was mentioned. The Rousimar Palhares cut from the UFC story was a big topic too. Pound-for-pound talk resurfaced every 30 minutes or so. And we all gave our breakdowns of the upcoming Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos fightsand our recaps of the Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson encounter from a few weeks ago.

The beauty of all this is that you never really hear the same breakdowns and recaps. THey see the fights through their own eyes and have their own takes. Whether it’s discussed on MMAjunkie.com Radio back home or on the other side of the world, in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, there are so many subplots to any fight that the discussion is always fresh.

We then headed to meet the colonel. We were welcomed and then briefed on some facts about the base itself, our tour and our next stops (classified for now). We then finished up with a Q&A. The colonel is a sharp man. You can tell he’s a natural leader. We got to ask a lot of questions and never once felt rushed. I think Goze and him have a small wager going on the Cardinals vs. Dodgers, though. He ruffled Goze’s feathers on that topic a few times. Maybe that’s why he was in such a good mood.

Here’s a picture of my name plate from the briefing:

Here’s a picture of Goze and Amir discussing some military tactics after the morning briefing:

After our briefing, we then went to get sized up for some equipment. I’m not sure I can get into too many of those details, but I will say that as I’m writing this, I’m now realizing that my body aches might have something to do with this portion of the day. I’ll write more about that on a future post. Let’s just say I’m feeling less athletic than I used to, and I’m bordering on feeling like a sissy. The equipment is heavy, though. It’s amazing that this type of gear is sometimes worn 24/7 for days, weeks and months at a time.

We were taught how to put on our gear by a young lady who was way smaller than any of us. She’d probably be a flyweight if she competed in MMA. She had an innocent look to her, with a big ol’ smile on her face. In fact, it didn’t even seem like she wanted to do the demo since she appeared a little shy. Then she just took control and gave us detailed instructions on every step of choosing the right helmet and vest, getting familiar with them and then putting them on and removing them – specific and detailed instructions that none of us could mess up.

Here’s some pictures of that:

After a 30-minute break, we went to the gym and did our first MMA clinic and meet and greet. I’d guess there were about 50 people in the gym, some participants in the clinic. Some were observers who just looked on, but you could tell they were fans of martial arts. And a few of the higher officers were observing the training going on.

The guys were great. Jake ran them through a warmup and got the guys sweating and their blood pumping. Amir then took over and ran them through some basic striking drills. The guys (and gal) then split into groups and did some boxing sparring while a few others learned how to throw some muay Thai kicks. Goze and I held pads for the guys when someone wasn’t partnered up.

Stitch was off to the side working with this fella who was popping the pads pretty hard. It turned out Stitch had taken a liking to him because he had some boxing experience and so that was a little bit more of a one-on-one session. It was great to see Stitch take that role that we’re unfamiliar with – of him holding pads. See, we often catch Stitch tending to cuts and bruises during the fights. And we know that he’s a great hand-wrapper before the fights. But a great cornerman can also get you warmed up properly, and Stitch has been doing that for years. It’s just that we don’t see much of that because we mostly catch him during the broadcasts of the events we’re watching.

Jake and Amir then turned the focus on jiu-jitsu and certain holds and escapes from the position of taking someone’s back, which basically means you are behind him and more than likely going to choke him out. However, we learned today how that position can lead to two other submissions, too, if the first one isn’t working. It was a slick move in which you basically bait your opponent to defend the choke, only for him to find himself in a possible worse position than just having you behind him and ready to choke him.

We finished up with Stitch doing a demonstration of how to wrap someone’s hands and prepare him for an MMA fight. From what he was telling us, it’s not too much different from the wraps he does in boxing too. Everyone surrounded Stitch and watched carefully as he did the wrap in about seven minutes. Amir then shared with us that one of the things he likes doing when he gets to the arena is getting Stitch to wrap his hands. He says he feels like that’s when his switch goes on and knows it’s close to being “that time.”

After a 15 minute Q&A, we then took some pics and went off to dinner, followed by the comedy show. And it was during the striking drills that I knew I was not feeling like a champ. The long journey of the trip and lack of sleep had caught up to me, and I was just about an hour away from leaving the funny Mr. Wallace’s show and crashing out. And that’s exactly what I’m about to do right now since I have to be up in a few hours.

Here’s a group pic from the MMA clinic and meet and greet:

Thinking about all of you thousands of miles away in Kyrgyzstan.

-GG (code name “FLY”)

* * * *

Sunday, Oct. 13, 2013

Or so I thought.

After reading Saturday’s entry, I was under the impression that I was feeling better. And I was for a few hours but Sunday night, I was officially sick. Not before all this happened, though.

We woke up at 6:30 a.m. and went to get some breakfast. Breakfast is good here on base, and I usually wind up with one of them big ol’ Matt Hughes plates in front of me. We seem to be clicking really well with a few of the airmen here, and most of our meals have been with some of them men and women who have gone to the clinics, along with some sergeants who escort us everywhere.

Afterward, we went to see the city of Bishkek. It’s about 45 minutes away, and it’s very similar to other countries I’ve visited. Some good parts of town and some bad parts of town. Good roads, bad roads. Nice buildings, some not-so-nice buildings. But the scenery is beautiful. Huge mountains off to the side, and from what I’m told, even bigger ones to see on our next trip. Speaking of, that next trip will be in a few hours, and that should be an adventure.

While in Bishkek, we caught the changing of the guards at a certain point downtown that is watched 24/7. There’s a big flag pole, and from what I’m told, that spot they guard is a national monument. The guards stare straight ahead and don’t move an inch until it’s time to be relieved. Once the new set comes in, the old set marches away taking huge steps and kicking their legs up high. I’ll tell you what, after standing there for a long period of time, if I have to march away like that, I’d like to stretch first. We all took a picture and then marched away the same way the guards did, except we looked more like the Rockettes. In fact, the Rockettes would be offended at that comparison, but it was funny nonetheless.

It was nice to see this city and its people. They had a big mall about five stories with some modern shops. I almost scooped up a Manchester United jacket, but I didn’t fully like it and it was expensive. Nobody in the group purchased anything, but we all had some looks here and there. Pretty much, it was stuff we could purchase anywhere, save for some cool Champions League gear.

After a ride back to the base, it was time to grab some food and then visit the K-9 unit. I’m going to get right to the point: We all got attacked by dogs. But I’ll tell you what, it was a great time. We all laughed so hard at watching each other get mauled by a Belgian Malinois named “Lennox.” Lennox, it turns out, does not play. I’d rather pick a fight with Lennox Lewis and hand him a pair of brass knuckles before the fight begins than mess with this dog. Even with the sumo suit they outfitted us with, Lennox’s bite penetrated that and left marks on all of us. Goze got it the worst, though as you can see from this photo, Stitch didn’t get off unscathed.

After this K-9 demo, it was back to our quarters and a 30-minute break. And then it would be time for the second MMA clinic and meet and greet.

We had a nice turnout, similar to Saturday night. This time the guys went through a nice warmup, followed by some basics in striking. They decided that the night’s focus would be more on the grappling aspect of MMA. Brazilian jiu-jitsu was had by all. After some drilling on certain techniques, the guys had an open mat, and they each got to roll with almost everyone there, including a colonel.

Stitch wrapped a few hands while Goze did some one-on-one interviews on the edge of the mat. I ran the clock on the grappling rounds and wedged my body from time to time between the groups so that they didn’t plow into each other. It was a great team effort.

Afterward, we did a Q&A, and then the fighters huddled with the troops for awhile longer, as we got everyone that was left to gather around and take some pics.

By this time, I was full on feeling under the weather, and I excused myself from the dinner that ensued. Sitch, Amir and Goze went out for a beer to wrap up the night, but I don’t think they were too far behind me in hitting the hay and getting some rest.

These days have been full with activities, and we’ve enjoyed each and every one of them. But it is some serious jet lag that we’re fighting off so when we hit that proverbial wall. You can pretty much stick a fork in us.

The last thing I did right after taking some NyQuil and closing my eyes shut was to see that my 49ers won their game. That was a great way to cap off an extraordinary day.

Thinking about all of you thousands of miles away in Kyrgyzstan.

-GG (code name “FLY”)

* * * *

“Gorgeous” George Garcia is host and director of operations for MMAjunkie.com Radio. He’s producing a journal in conjunction with his MMA-themed Armed Forces Entertainment tour in Southwest Asia. Following him on Twitter at @MMAjunkieGeorge for additional updates.