My Awesome Gracie Tampa Parents,
As I look back on 2011, my first instinct is to smile. It has been an absolute great year and one of the best parts of growth is reflecting upon how it occurred. We started the year off with a new striking coach, Stephanie “Snowflake” Eggink. She has brought a ton of knowledge into our program, and I look forward to adding more Striking and MMA Classes to the schedule in 2012, once our expansion takes place,and giving her a larger part in the program.
Our Competition Team competed in tons of high level tournaments through out the year, including MMAC, COPA, Grapplers Quest, Evolution, De La Riva, and SWFE. As always, our students not only brought home a ton of medals, but more importantly they used their competition experience to better their game. One of my favorite aspects of being a Coach is watching my students compete. Thank you to all of the dedicated grapplers on our Competition Team, as well as all of you hard working parents who make it possible for them to get on the mat. Our last tournament of the year will be NAGA on December 17th in Orlando. Keep an eye out for an upcoming MMAC Tournament in January or February, as well as a Grapplers Quest in January in Ft. Lauderdale.
2011 also introduced us to our first Boxing Competition Team under the helm of Coach Steph. We have had 2 students compete in Amateur Boxing thus far, Cliff Smith and Brian Mas. These fights are sanctioned by USA Boxing and are a great way for our ninjas to test out their skills in the ring. We are looking to increase the size of our Boxing Competition Team in 2012 and compete in many more local and national events!!
We also saw our LiL Ninjas Program explode this year! With all of the new members, we decided it was necessary to add Beginner and Advanced Level Classes for our 4-6 year olds. Although this is the most difficult class to teach, it is one of the most rewarding. Watching a 4 year old slap on a RNC is a thing of beauty! 
Along with the explosion of our LiL Ninjas Program, our Beginner Youth Program also erupted. With the growth of the class, we decided to make two beginner section classes so our students had a better teacher to student ratio. The new schedule has been working great!
We also added the Code of 26 and the Junior Leader Club this year. The weekly Codes have been a great way to teach our students that being a Martial Artist isn’t just about punching or kicking, it’s about being the best we can in everything that we do. Our Junior Leader Club has shown promising young leaders taking action to help others become better and displaying real team work. When one student improves, we all improve! I am looking forward to all of our students eventually donning the Junior Leader Club Patch!!
I recently updated our MidgetTwister website and switched servers to better serve you. The new website is more organized and will allow for Member Only Access. Please create an account at www.TheMidgetTwister.com. There is a ton of BJJ/MMA Resources and videos for parents and students, so check it out!
Lastly, we had our first expansion of our Youth Program. I recently took over the Gracie Tampa South Kids Program and have been enjoying the new classes and new students. The program is steadily growing each month and I am looking forward to having a new slew of ninjas in 2012. If you know any children who are interested in training in the South Tampa area, please send them our way…we have an awesome referral program!! See me for more details!!
Although 2011 was awesome, I know that 2012 will be even better. I am on a constant search for betterment. This program means everything to me and being the best is our only option. We have a few changes that will be taking place in order to better serve you and our students as well as a few new events that I know you are going to love.
First off, our schedule will be changing slightly starting in the new year:
The Tuesday / Thursday LiL Ninja Class will now be a class for 3-4 Year Olds and will be named: LiL Champions. The Monday / Wednesday / Friday LiL Ninjas Class will only be for 5-7 Year Olds. The Class times will remain the same. We are hoping that splitting the age group will allow for better completion and understanding of our curriculum.
The Tuesday Beginner and Intermediate/Advanced Classes will be moved to Friday. Coach Steph can no longer make the Tuesday class due to a work conflict. I had two choices: I could bring in another Coach to teach one day a week, or I could move the class to Friday so Coach Steph could continue to teach it. With the success of her classes and the feedback I’ve received this past year from many parents, I thought it was important that Coach Steph continued to teach the class. The Tuesday Beginner Section B Class will now be at 6:00pm on Friday and the Tuesday Intermediate/Advanced Class will now be at 6:45pm on Friday. The only class on Tuesday will be the LiL Champions from 4:45 – 5:15. This ensures that everyone still receives the same amount of training and more importantly the same quality of training as before. The Boxing Competition Class will be moved back on Friday and will begin at 7:30pm.
December 14th, 2011 we will be having our first FAMILY FUNDAY. All Parents are invited to join in on their child’s class and train beside them!! This will be a great bonding experience and might also jump start a new passion for our parents. Parents are asked to wear comfortable work out clothes and are required to sign a waiver. Normal class times will be in effect. We hope to have all of our parents participate in our first Family Funday and are looking to continue the new tradition a few times per year.
December 19th and 20th we will be holding our Annual Winter Camp from 8am – 5pm. This will be a great time for you to get your last minute Holiday Shopping in while we train and entertain the kids. Coach Steph will be covering Striking Defenses and MMA Ground and Pound. I will be covering Side Mount Attacks and Defenses. **Price for 1 Day is $30.00 / Price for 2 Days is $50.00. Please bring a lunch, drink, socks, sneakers, and a change of clothes!
January 7th, 2012 we will be hosting our End of the Year Banquet Party at Gracie Tampa North. The Event starts at 12 and will last until 2. We will be having a Pot Luck Lunch and will be giving away a ton of awards to our students as well as crowning our STUDENT OF THE YEAR. We will even be hosting demonstrations. We want ALL students and parents to join us in celebration of a great 2011 and an even better 2012. A sign up sheet will be posted at the front desk for food and drinks.
January 9th and 12th we will be hosting our SPAR WARS event during class times. SPAR WARS is an exciting event that occurs every few months where our youth students get a chance to grapple and spar with our adult staff and members. This is always a fun event, so make sure to show up for class!!
January 14th Coach Steph and myself will be hosting our first ever Mothers Against Violence Seminar. On Saturday from 12pm – 2pm we will be hosting a fitness bootcamp and will be teaching all of our GT Mothers Stand Up and Ground Self Defense. We are wanting to start an actual Women’s Only Self Defense Class and think this is a great way to get it started. The seminar will only cost $20.00. Mothers are welcome to bring female friends as well (Cost for Non-GT Ladies is $25.00).
Lastly, keep a lookout for our new Gracie Tampa MMA Curriculum DVD’s. I was hoping to have them finished by the Holidays, but it is taking a little longer then expected. These DVD’s will be for sale on our website as well as at the gym by the new year. This will be a great way for our students to practice at home and get any questions they might have answered. As always, we are looking to improve our program at all times. Please do not hesitate to call, text, or e-mail me with any questions or concerns.
Best Regards,
Coach Cris
813 – 244 – 1293 / midgettwister@gmail.com / www.TheMidgetTwister.com
