4.4.08 #40

Trained with Bamboo

We worked on passing open guard. Two simple rules to live by when passing:
1. Take away ALL space
2. Put your head on the ground

From that Bamboo showed me several different ways to pass guard. Of course they all started with taking away all of my opponents space. Second, I had to get my head on the ground. Then the variations kicked in. Once in that position, I can use my hand to hold my opponents leg and then hop over his guard. Or I can use my shoulder to push his leg in to got 2v1 and then pass. Or if my opponent is giving my pressure, pushing me back with his legs, I can pop his legs with my bicep and hop over.

Bamboo showed me two other passes. The knee through pass, very simple pass but can be defended with the opponent keeping their foot hooked into yours and as you pass, you get swept. The other pass I learned was for when the opponent has both feet on my hips or one on my hip and one to the outside of my leg. Push the foot off the hip, hold it down and then shoot my opposite arm to the outside of my opponents hip, through his legs. Then from there I slide into 2v1, only this time my outside leg is way outside of my opponents leg and it makes for a very simple pass.

The third, not so concrete rule that we discussed today was passing to the same side your head was on. The idea behind this rule was to prevent you from being swept when you took side mount across your opponents body. If you don't pass to the same side as your head, when you get to side position you must sprawl to prevent from being swept. If you are ready to defend the sweep, then the third rule goes away. For the time being, I am going to try to work with all three rules.