Well here it is.... Part 3 of my adventure to Xtreme Couture. For my 50th birthday, my wife sent me to a 3 day MMA Training Camp at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. Parts 1 and 2 talk about the adventures at camp. For this part, I'm just going to tie up a few loose ends.
Wounds - Overall, I came out pretty good. You can see the bruises on my shins in the above pictures. I also split open the bottoms of my feet. I still have some nasty wounds on my feet, but they are healing up pretty good. At camp, I asked Forrest how do they take care of their feet. He laughed, pulled off his socks and showed me his feet. They were actually almost as bad as mine. He said that every time he starts a new camp, his feet get chewed up. He said that eventually they do get callused and get stronger.
Other Celebrity Coaches - The guy with me in the above picture is the infamous Junie "The Lunatic" Browning. Those of you who follow the UFC probably recognize him from the Reality TV Show The Ultimate Fighter 8. On the show, Junie demonstrated that he had some real talent as a fighter, but wasn't quite there mentally. He struggled with some anger management issues, especially when he was drinking. To put it bluntly, the guy came of as an immature jerk. After the show, Junie found a home at Xtreme Couture. I had read on the internet where he had jointed the team and how they had humbled him. That he was now growing up and maturing as a fighter and as a human being. Sooooo ..... One day, I can't remember if it was Friday or Saturday, (I know that's what happens when you get old), Mathew and I are working on some drill. Out of the corner of my eye, I see this guy walk by with a hand grenade tattooed on his hand walk by. I thought to myself, I wonder if it is Junie. I mean how many other people would choose a tattoo like that? Well, it was him. It tuns out that he had changed quite a bit. He was humbled, and even worked with me one on one. He tried really hard to be nice. Was he cocky? Oh yea. But don't you almost have to be to be a pro fighter?
The Whoops Excuse You Moment - Saturday afternoon, I was hot, tired and really sweaty from a whole day at camp. I parked my car on the 6th floor of the parking garage at the hotel and go into the elevator. I lean up against the back wall with my gear bag behind me. The elevator stops at the 5th floor, and a bunch of about 6 little old ladies start to load in. There really isn't room for them, but they squish in anyways. A little lady of about 80 years of age, starts backing in. She smashes right into me with her backside, pushing herself right into my cup. She squeals, turns and looks up at me and says "Oh my." I just smiled. She just giggled.
Randy Couture - Before camp, I received an e-mail saying that Randy would not be able to attend Camp. He was working on a movie, The Expendables, with Sylvester Stallone, and would not be able to make it back in time. We were told that Forrest would run the camp instead of Randy. I was disappointed, but Forrest did a great job. Randy did tele-conference in for a question and answer session. That was pretty cool, and Randy remains one of my heroes. For those of you who don't know about Randy, he first won the title, Heavy Weight Champion of the world in 1997, then again in 2000. Later, Randy dropped down to Light Heavyweight where he also became Champion of the World, at the age of 40. In 2006, Randy retired, but grew antsy. Randy came out of retirement and at the age of 43 again became the Heavy Weight Champion of the World. That is why he is my hero. Us old guys need to stick together.
The Reality Check Moment - I was walking into class one morning and I was talking to Gary the Kick Boxer. He asked how the Vette ran through the desert. He asked if it smoothed out at about 80, and wanted to know if I took the top off the car. I told him it did run best between 80 and 90 and that I took the roof off in Barstow and drove the rest of the way in topless. He said "Think about it.... You are driving 80 through the desert in a Corvette with the roof off, on your way to MMA Training Camp at Xtreme Couture." "Do you know how many people wish they were you?" I replied... "Yep, life is good."
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