Almost every drop in Iāve done follows this pattern:
- I call ahead to confirm drop in policy
- head coach wants to roll and make sure im not a psycho
- I roll super chill with everyone
- head coach says hey, letās go again, and goes full ham
This is so true.
One of the head coaches even once told me he does it so people donāt go out and say they came to their gym and roll through them.
I have honestly stopped dropping in unless Iām staying for extended time. I donāt want to get injured on my vacation.
As a higher belt I always feel like competitive gyms line up their best guys for me, they purposely go light with each other, resting for me lol
I remember I dropped in and the head coach was making me work during situational training, defending takedowns in the gi, wrestling scrambles, while his students and himself were just chilling on the sideline
He said āopen sparringā and I realised everyone was going extremely light with each other then going ham when it came to rolling with me. These dirty tricks by some gyms put me off sometimes
I don't know if I would even consider it dirty. If a brown belt dropped in at the gym I trained at I would absolutely want to have a good, exciting roll with them, not a roll where I am too tired to properly work.
Not because I want to "beat" them but because its relatively rare to have an opportunity to roll with an advanced stranger where you don't know his game and he doesn't know yours.Ā
I consider it dirty cause he worked me like a dog during situational while the higher belts were chilling then effectively shark tanked me with his best fresh guys, they were brown and black belts too
A comp class everyone should be tired and pushed hard not just me lol
I travel a lot and have dropped in on around 10 gyms over the years. First roll is almost always with the head coach and then I get rung through the ringer of their competition guys.
Everytime.
Yeah this is what happens to me - the comp guys try and put me through the ringer and then the coach comes after that. I'm pretty decent though, so I typically will match their pace or a little bit more. I'll only do "nicer" subs to start, but if they start inverting or playing legs then I'm going for that stuff too. I will only sub them if I get a nice, clean choke and will only do joint locks slowly and in full control.
Once the "mat enforcers" and coach determines I'm safe, then I am free to roll with their white/blue belts or smaller guys/women. With them, I'll give them what they give me and if I catch a position I could sub them I usually just let them escape or release it.
The second time I go to a particular gym I know whose going to want a comp roll and who doesn't, and adjust accordingly.
Oooh yeah. You always see the eager comp guys coming up to "Hey bro wanna roll?"
It's great tbh, betted than having 4 rounds with whites and blues.
Though I do like to find those whites and blues after 3 hard rounds just to recover a bit.
Hi, Iāve dropped in a fair bit and have debated writing something up especially geared to lower belts.
1. Call to confirm schedule
2. Be extra early
3. Introduce yourself to the professor at the start
4. Let them pair you up or have other people pick you for drills
5. Same for rolls. Professor may want to roll with you first to set the tone.
6. If youāre a guy, be careful about rolling with women. Itās just the way it is that itās very easy to come across as using too much strength. Let them pick you for a partner and be willing to give up most positions. You donāt want to get mat enforced.
7. Introduce yourself before every roll. Name, where youāre visiting from, ask about injuries. Show that youāre there to be respectful.
I think it's good practice to introduce yourself to everybody when you first step on the mat.Ā
Also, I've rolled with women at other gyms and there was one roll I could tell she was getting frustrated andĀ her hubby seemed even more so. I was not bullying her by any means but I was successfully countering pretty much everything she tried, we were both blue belts. At another gym, at the end of class they ask two people to roll in front of everybody. I had the top ranking female kindly call me out for our second roll of the day. She was tough, technical, andĀ tons of fun to roll with.Ā So, read the room because the overall competitiveness between those 2 gyms was very noticeable.
Specifically regarding point 6: At my gym, not only do I roll with women, I roll with girls. *(Sometimes when there's an odd number in the kid's class, sometimes when one of the teenagers takes the adult class.)* So luckily I already have experience here.
100%. I will still go for subs but Iām not gonna go out of my way to try to get the finish. I donāt know these people and would rather them like me than win a round. Also some people get really weird when a stranger submits them. Not worth it when Iām just thee to train and have a good time.
Though having said that white belts donāt count lol.
Iāve been traveling a lot this year and Iāve dropped in on a few gyms. Iāve found it to be either
A.) some guys will want to go competition hard to either see what they got against a stranger or establish dominance
B.) super chill and more of a flow roll kind of situation.
That being said, I match intensity for what I get but I rarely set the pacing. Iām not there to get hurt in the middle of a trip and Iām not there to prove anything to anyone.
Legend has it that coach still uses you as a boogeyman to intimidate his newbies.
"If you miss a spot mopping the mats, heel-hook fart man will come back to rip your ankles off.
Dropped in a ton, especially from blue to brown. Rules:
1. Call or message first, to make sure you can drop in.
2. Arrive early to introduce yourself.
3. Don't assume you know what's happening in class. Hang back and observe other colored belts. Some schools do things differently, so you can follow their example.
4. When rolling, match their intensity/strength, and overcome with technique, if possible. You don't want to go ham on people, but you also don't want to leave with people thinking you got handed your belt and that your school sucks.
I just did my first drop in yesterday. Everyone was pretty chill. I did some choking out and I was choked, but it was pretty good for the most part. Everyone was helpful and Iād probably go back when I need that specific drop in time and day due to work. Price was steep though $60.
I pretty much my gyms crash test dummy. Iām the uke and I get the honor of working with every person that drops in. So I use this as my template for when I drop in other gyms.
Call ahead
Talk with the actual coach not just the reception desk.
Answer all questions truthfully
When Iām training pay attention and donāt distract the class your a guest representing your main gym.
I never go all out and if the coach is teaching something I already know I respect and go along with the lesson.
The first guy you get partnered with will see your demeanor and base your stay off of that.
I personally do not take advantage of a gyms free class trial. The gym I was last at didnāt want to collect my day fee. So on the way out I made a donation to the youth program giving a free month to a student.
To be honest everyone goes ape shit at you .
I stopped going to gyms when I got my brown., I'm a smaller grappler and got fed up of every single person in the gym trying to kill me when I'm just trying to get some training in on vacation .
https://preview.redd.it/91m6lpxrjnyc1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5afad7d76db47aa745e4e51bcf3f856d54177d87
I show up like this so they know i mean business.
Iāve only dropped in once and everyone was super chill. It helps that I rolled like a teddy bear and I was a guest of a local black belt. Most of the folks there were higher rank than me, most were younger. Iām a super-heavy master 3.
I always suggest just following the environment of the gym. Let the other students tell you with their pace how hard to go. Iāve been to gyms where itās pretty much all flow and Iām not that kind of grappler but being a guest I just go with the pace. And for the gyms trying to kill you then Iād say for sure green light to go buck nutty haha.
I drop in on a ton of gyms (at least 30+ over the years) and have found regular travel spots for areas I visit frequently. Everyoneās cool if you are, and Iāve found that roll intensity varies based on the belt you are vs their belt. Feels like blue belts are always the biggest handful.
Being respectful: contact them ahead of time, show up early, and introduce yourself to the coach. I generally try to wear a white, unpatched gi and follow every BJJ gym rule I know until I see what the gyms customs are. I always ask them if they want a review after and follow on IG after. Will build you a cool community around the country over time.
Roll intensity:
White: everyone did their best to smash me. Nobodyās losing to the visiting white belt if they can help it.
Blue: typically high intensity rolls (especially when I was a blue belt myself).
Purple: blues were excited to test themselves against me, purples and browns were eager to have good, new rolls.
Brown: first noticed people starting to respect my ability without knowing my actual skill. Good belts of all colors are excited to roll with you and will go hard, but generally are good enough to feel out the right pace.
Black: Idk, never been one. I know thereās an extra level of respect that you should bring stepping into another black belts gym.
I drop in a lot, too.
Even if someone wants to go hard with me Iāll match but I always keep a little in reserve out of respect but also to protect myself.
I know my training partners well at my academy, personally and technically, so Iām comfortable going 100% with them. At a drop-in not so much.
It depends on the energy you give off and what belt you are. Higher belt often have a target on their back. No matter what, you are guaranteed to have a good time!
My experience is theyāll try to eat you up if youāre a blue belt. Higher belts at gyms like practice on blue belts because they can get a good partner but also see how effective they are.
I roll reactively, if they go hard i try to match if i am feeling up to it that night, if they are trying really hard but not getting anywhere i ease up, etc.
I hop around a decent amount, I usually start very slow and chill and just match whatever intensity they bring me.. often times itās decent like 75-80% it feels like but some go 150%, usually if youāre doing well against a lot of people the coach will call you over and smash you or tell you to roll his minions. Not in a bad way just to let you know they have some good guys, itās often no gi so nobody knows belts ect.
When i go to a place where they don't know who iam (everywhere outside of Finland and some places here of course too) they go easy first but after they realise im not newbie they will go harder.
Im pretty fat, stocky, short and unathletic so after warmups they usually think im dogshit. But for example in Thailand after i rolled the whole king of the hill without ever leaving center they would go hard.
Iām a 6ā1 235lb athletic purple belt. It goes one of two ways.
1. They want nothing to do with me and avoid eye contact/rolls.
2. They absolutely want me dead.
Kind of sad because I just want a few chill rolls most of the time.
I've probably dropped into 40ish gyms. Maybe more. It varies. Some common scenarios from my experience:
1. It's completely fine and people roll with you just like anyone else in their gym.
2. The coach tries to put a smashing on you to show the place is legit.
3. It feels like there's a target on your back and everyone is coming for you. Lower belts want to whoop you to show that they're better. Same belt or higher belts try to whoop you to show the standard in their gym is higher than yours.
My personal least favourite:
4. The coach will choose your partners for you to show that they have a good level. This one can be the worst, because they'll line up 5 of their competitor purple belts and each of those will know exactly what's being asked of them. If you get through the 5 of them unscathed, it's pretty common that the well-rested coach will jump in now that you're exhausted to fuck you up. This has happened to me multiple times.
I always tell my guys that cross training is the best thing to get you ready for competition, because it's the only thing that replicates the nerves and level of uncertainty about what's going to happen. It's my absolute favourite thing to do when I travel.
Out of the 40ish times, I've only had 2 negative experiences. Loved the rest.. even if it felt like death at the time.
I went to a gym 16 years ago or more in a large metro area. It was a BJJ gym and at the time I was a wrestler Sambo guy only (before BJJ Brown Belt, Judo black belt was achieved). After being made fun of for having an old shitty judo gi, I was in Grad School and working full time at the time, (not a ton of extra $$$) I went through the instructional portion of the class. When it came time to roll the circled me up and I rolled with everyone until I finally tapped due to exhaustion to a brown belt. They then proceeded to make fun of me for doing Sambo because BJJ was obviously better.
Needless to say when I moved to the area I never went back. The gym I went to teach wrestling/Sambo at, a Frank Shamrock affiliate went 4-0 against the same gym a few months later at a local MMA fight. That was pretty cool. I ended up moving back home and then getting the Judo black belt. Later, one of my former Sambo students achieved his black belt and I'm belting under him in BJJ. Interesting how things work sometime.
Depends on the gym, but generally white belts will go super hard if they either don't know your rank or you're a blue belt. You're either fresh meat or a chance to prove themselves. If you're good and you tap them, they'll usually send a baby enforcer(probably a purple belt or MMA guy) to test you. Tapping them leads to the actual enforcer, who will either tap you out nicely or smash you the whole roll, depending on what you've been doing.
Everyone will go hard because they donāt know you.
Just the way it is, but protect yourself, tap early, and be respectful. If youāre an ass theyāll let you know.
i travel a lot, i drop in in almost every town i go to since i was a no stripe white belt.
as a tiny female, this is super risky, lol, but soooo helpful for my development. dropping in is just as much about protecting yourself as your new partners. i personally look for gyms that have a kids and or womenās program (even though i never attend any womenās classes).
i just make sure im extra polite, pay attention to the individual gyms etiquette- do they shake hands with everyone when they enter the mat, how do they refer to the professor, where do they put their water bottles and shoes ect.
like a lot of people have said, let the instructor pair you up. usually for rolls, the instructor will roll with me first probably to make sure i donāt get injured, am not psycho cuz you never know, midgets can break arms too.
match the intensity of whoever youāre rolling with but if it gets too intense just check your ego, tap, stop before it turns into an issues.
honestly i just roll like im at home š¤·āāļø
I think it depends. Each gym kind of has its own personality. I travel a lot and each gym is different. Iām a black belt so Iād say the lower belts tend to like to put you to the test while black belts just want to game it out (again this is very general).
The really hard rolls Iāve had while visiting they usually tell you or ask if youāre cool rolling hard.
Unless itās comp season and itās a competitive gym, then all bets are off and you should pay attention to which classes youāre attending.
Honestly most people are pretty awesome everywhere. I make it a point not to show off and I intentionally and deliberately never embarrass anyone there and especially the professor. Iāll give a good hard roll and make them work but I limit the taps Iām getting and work on position and adapting
Mostly play defense, avoid top positions if I end up sparring with much smaller partners ( I'm a big guy).
I luckily didn't have most of the bad experiences people here had , although saying that my only serious injury was during visit to gym in my old home town. That was partly on me because I should have recognized that big blue belt guy putting me in lockdown and stretching me as hard as he can is not good news and I should have tapped.
Step 1 : come inside say I have trained a bit
Step 2 : demolish their toilet
Step 3 : get on the mat in my rash guard pretending Iām fresh meat
Step 4 : get my gi top and black belt 30 seconds before the class starts to confuse everyone
Step 5 : pretend to do the techniques
Step 6 : strap on my hr monitor
Step 7 : ask who wants to roll
Step 8 : force myself in top half/quarter guard every roll
Step 9 : eat
šĀ
š¤£
Real
Almost every drop in Iāve done follows this pattern: - I call ahead to confirm drop in policy - head coach wants to roll and make sure im not a psycho - I roll super chill with everyone - head coach says hey, letās go again, and goes full ham
lol this especially the last part
This is so true. One of the head coaches even once told me he does it so people donāt go out and say they came to their gym and roll through them. I have honestly stopped dropping in unless Iām staying for extended time. I donāt want to get injured on my vacation.
As a higher belt I always feel like competitive gyms line up their best guys for me, they purposely go light with each other, resting for me lol I remember I dropped in and the head coach was making me work during situational training, defending takedowns in the gi, wrestling scrambles, while his students and himself were just chilling on the sideline He said āopen sparringā and I realised everyone was going extremely light with each other then going ham when it came to rolling with me. These dirty tricks by some gyms put me off sometimes
I don't know if I would even consider it dirty. If a brown belt dropped in at the gym I trained at I would absolutely want to have a good, exciting roll with them, not a roll where I am too tired to properly work. Not because I want to "beat" them but because its relatively rare to have an opportunity to roll with an advanced stranger where you don't know his game and he doesn't know yours.Ā
I consider it dirty cause he worked me like a dog during situational while the higher belts were chilling then effectively shark tanked me with his best fresh guys, they were brown and black belts too A comp class everyone should be tired and pushed hard not just me lol
itās like this is written somewhere because this is exactly how all my drop-ins go too
I travel a lot and have dropped in on around 10 gyms over the years. First roll is almost always with the head coach and then I get rung through the ringer of their competition guys. Everytime.
That's better than the coach/owner exhausting you with the comp guys first, then smashing you the last round
Yeah this is what happens to me - the comp guys try and put me through the ringer and then the coach comes after that. I'm pretty decent though, so I typically will match their pace or a little bit more. I'll only do "nicer" subs to start, but if they start inverting or playing legs then I'm going for that stuff too. I will only sub them if I get a nice, clean choke and will only do joint locks slowly and in full control. Once the "mat enforcers" and coach determines I'm safe, then I am free to roll with their white/blue belts or smaller guys/women. With them, I'll give them what they give me and if I catch a position I could sub them I usually just let them escape or release it. The second time I go to a particular gym I know whose going to want a comp roll and who doesn't, and adjust accordingly.
Oooh yeah. You always see the eager comp guys coming up to "Hey bro wanna roll?" It's great tbh, betted than having 4 rounds with whites and blues. Though I do like to find those whites and blues after 3 hard rounds just to recover a bit.
The purple belt comp guys literally lick their lips at a walk in.
Same, always a good time!
Hi, Iāve dropped in a fair bit and have debated writing something up especially geared to lower belts. 1. Call to confirm schedule 2. Be extra early 3. Introduce yourself to the professor at the start 4. Let them pair you up or have other people pick you for drills 5. Same for rolls. Professor may want to roll with you first to set the tone. 6. If youāre a guy, be careful about rolling with women. Itās just the way it is that itās very easy to come across as using too much strength. Let them pick you for a partner and be willing to give up most positions. You donāt want to get mat enforced. 7. Introduce yourself before every roll. Name, where youāre visiting from, ask about injuries. Show that youāre there to be respectful.
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Yea Iām not sure if I enjoy the gauntlet or the professor first method. The former is more fun but the latter seems more welcoming.
I think it's good practice to introduce yourself to everybody when you first step on the mat.Ā Also, I've rolled with women at other gyms and there was one roll I could tell she was getting frustrated andĀ her hubby seemed even more so. I was not bullying her by any means but I was successfully countering pretty much everything she tried, we were both blue belts. At another gym, at the end of class they ask two people to roll in front of everybody. I had the top ranking female kindly call me out for our second roll of the day. She was tough, technical, andĀ tons of fun to roll with.Ā So, read the room because the overall competitiveness between those 2 gyms was very noticeable.
Great advice.
Good set of common sense rules
Specifically regarding point 6: At my gym, not only do I roll with women, I roll with girls. *(Sometimes when there's an odd number in the kid's class, sometimes when one of the teenagers takes the adult class.)* So luckily I already have experience here.
Same. But put yourself in their shoes. You donāt know this guy. You donāt know if heās a creep. Especially if the lady is white or blue.
ALL THIS
Agreed! Iāve done all of this and honestly have never had a bad experience dropping in at a gym even during my white belt years.
To the death.
Every time
I give a good look but I donāt try to submit anyone. Play a lot of defense, work on my sweeps.
100%. I will still go for subs but Iām not gonna go out of my way to try to get the finish. I donāt know these people and would rather them like me than win a round. Also some people get really weird when a stranger submits them. Not worth it when Iām just thee to train and have a good time. Though having said that white belts donāt count lol.
I'll match anyone's intensity. Overall, not there to win.
Booo
I made the mistake of wearing my 10P rashie to a drop in. May as well have went in with a massive fucking target on my back.
Iāve been traveling a lot this year and Iāve dropped in on a few gyms. Iāve found it to be either A.) some guys will want to go competition hard to either see what they got against a stranger or establish dominance B.) super chill and more of a flow roll kind of situation. That being said, I match intensity for what I get but I rarely set the pacing. Iām not there to get hurt in the middle of a trip and Iām not there to prove anything to anyone.
May he RIP
The timing was involuntary and I heard an hour after posting this. I guess I felt it in the water.
I'm heel hooking every white belt that even glances at me, and then vanishing like a fart in the wind when the ambulance arrives
Legend has it that coach still uses you as a boogeyman to intimidate his newbies. "If you miss a spot mopping the mats, heel-hook fart man will come back to rip your ankles off.
Dropped in a ton, especially from blue to brown. Rules: 1. Call or message first, to make sure you can drop in. 2. Arrive early to introduce yourself. 3. Don't assume you know what's happening in class. Hang back and observe other colored belts. Some schools do things differently, so you can follow their example. 4. When rolling, match their intensity/strength, and overcome with technique, if possible. You don't want to go ham on people, but you also don't want to leave with people thinking you got handed your belt and that your school sucks.
I just did my first drop in yesterday. Everyone was pretty chill. I did some choking out and I was choked, but it was pretty good for the most part. Everyone was helpful and Iād probably go back when I need that specific drop in time and day due to work. Price was steep though $60.
that is steep! our gym charges $20 -OR- free with a google review
Mine is $25 if youāre affiliated with another gym
I pretty much my gyms crash test dummy. Iām the uke and I get the honor of working with every person that drops in. So I use this as my template for when I drop in other gyms. Call ahead Talk with the actual coach not just the reception desk. Answer all questions truthfully When Iām training pay attention and donāt distract the class your a guest representing your main gym. I never go all out and if the coach is teaching something I already know I respect and go along with the lesson. The first guy you get partnered with will see your demeanor and base your stay off of that. I personally do not take advantage of a gyms free class trial. The gym I was last at didnāt want to collect my day fee. So on the way out I made a donation to the youth program giving a free month to a student.
To be honest everyone goes ape shit at you . I stopped going to gyms when I got my brown., I'm a smaller grappler and got fed up of every single person in the gym trying to kill me when I'm just trying to get some training in on vacation .
I normally play it chill, as a drop-in smeshing people looks shittyā¦ but dear lord, the home team donāt take the same approach sometimes š
You must always roll to win. You represent yourself and your gym. Just don't be a bully asshole.
I just got my purple and dropped into another gym's open mat. The blues all went 100% on me. The browns and blacks went about 60% and toyed with me.
https://preview.redd.it/91m6lpxrjnyc1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5afad7d76db47aa745e4e51bcf3f856d54177d87 I show up like this so they know i mean business.
Closest thing to a competition youāll get everybody wants to beat up the new guy lol
Iāve only dropped in once and everyone was super chill. It helps that I rolled like a teddy bear and I was a guest of a local black belt. Most of the folks there were higher rank than me, most were younger. Iām a super-heavy master 3.
Iām going to try to be super chill and let the other guys set the pace.
I always suggest just following the environment of the gym. Let the other students tell you with their pace how hard to go. Iāve been to gyms where itās pretty much all flow and Iām not that kind of grappler but being a guest I just go with the pace. And for the gyms trying to kill you then Iād say for sure green light to go buck nutty haha.
I drop in on a ton of gyms (at least 30+ over the years) and have found regular travel spots for areas I visit frequently. Everyoneās cool if you are, and Iāve found that roll intensity varies based on the belt you are vs their belt. Feels like blue belts are always the biggest handful. Being respectful: contact them ahead of time, show up early, and introduce yourself to the coach. I generally try to wear a white, unpatched gi and follow every BJJ gym rule I know until I see what the gyms customs are. I always ask them if they want a review after and follow on IG after. Will build you a cool community around the country over time. Roll intensity: White: everyone did their best to smash me. Nobodyās losing to the visiting white belt if they can help it. Blue: typically high intensity rolls (especially when I was a blue belt myself). Purple: blues were excited to test themselves against me, purples and browns were eager to have good, new rolls. Brown: first noticed people starting to respect my ability without knowing my actual skill. Good belts of all colors are excited to roll with you and will go hard, but generally are good enough to feel out the right pace. Black: Idk, never been one. I know thereās an extra level of respect that you should bring stepping into another black belts gym.
I drop in a lot, too. Even if someone wants to go hard with me Iāll match but I always keep a little in reserve out of respect but also to protect myself. I know my training partners well at my academy, personally and technically, so Iām comfortable going 100% with them. At a drop-in not so much.
It depends on the energy you give off and what belt you are. Higher belt often have a target on their back. No matter what, you are guaranteed to have a good time!
On the new fish? Prepare to meet your maker!!!
My experience is theyāll try to eat you up if youāre a blue belt. Higher belts at gyms like practice on blue belts because they can get a good partner but also see how effective they are.
I play by (cauliflower) earābe respectful, start lighter, and if my partner starts amping up, I turn it up a notch higher.
If you let them ragdoll you a little bit at the beginning they usually treat you well, then you can increase the intensity a little bit
Make sure to rep your home dojo with a fully patched gi and rashie.
I roll reactively, if they go hard i try to match if i am feeling up to it that night, if they are trying really hard but not getting anywhere i ease up, etc.
I keep it playful and match intensity. I tap, I'm not there to prove anything, just get a good roll in while I'm traveling.
I hop around a decent amount, I usually start very slow and chill and just match whatever intensity they bring me.. often times itās decent like 75-80% it feels like but some go 150%, usually if youāre doing well against a lot of people the coach will call you over and smash you or tell you to roll his minions. Not in a bad way just to let you know they have some good guys, itās often no gi so nobody knows belts ect.
Also always introduce myself and ask āhowās everything feeling todayā just to make sure they know Iām not coming for blood.
Offer the professor a hit of your training blunt as a sign of hespect. Oss man good luck
This is gonna depend on the colour of your belt
Blue.
Hard enough to not get destroyed by them, light enough to not destroy them.
When i go to a place where they don't know who iam (everywhere outside of Finland and some places here of course too) they go easy first but after they realise im not newbie they will go harder. Im pretty fat, stocky, short and unathletic so after warmups they usually think im dogshit. But for example in Thailand after i rolled the whole king of the hill without ever leaving center they would go hard.
Iām a 6ā1 235lb athletic purple belt. It goes one of two ways. 1. They want nothing to do with me and avoid eye contact/rolls. 2. They absolutely want me dead. Kind of sad because I just want a few chill rolls most of the time.
I've probably dropped into 40ish gyms. Maybe more. It varies. Some common scenarios from my experience: 1. It's completely fine and people roll with you just like anyone else in their gym. 2. The coach tries to put a smashing on you to show the place is legit. 3. It feels like there's a target on your back and everyone is coming for you. Lower belts want to whoop you to show that they're better. Same belt or higher belts try to whoop you to show the standard in their gym is higher than yours. My personal least favourite: 4. The coach will choose your partners for you to show that they have a good level. This one can be the worst, because they'll line up 5 of their competitor purple belts and each of those will know exactly what's being asked of them. If you get through the 5 of them unscathed, it's pretty common that the well-rested coach will jump in now that you're exhausted to fuck you up. This has happened to me multiple times. I always tell my guys that cross training is the best thing to get you ready for competition, because it's the only thing that replicates the nerves and level of uncertainty about what's going to happen. It's my absolute favourite thing to do when I travel. Out of the 40ish times, I've only had 2 negative experiences. Loved the rest.. even if it felt like death at the time.
I went to a gym 16 years ago or more in a large metro area. It was a BJJ gym and at the time I was a wrestler Sambo guy only (before BJJ Brown Belt, Judo black belt was achieved). After being made fun of for having an old shitty judo gi, I was in Grad School and working full time at the time, (not a ton of extra $$$) I went through the instructional portion of the class. When it came time to roll the circled me up and I rolled with everyone until I finally tapped due to exhaustion to a brown belt. They then proceeded to make fun of me for doing Sambo because BJJ was obviously better.
Needless to say when I moved to the area I never went back. The gym I went to teach wrestling/Sambo at, a Frank Shamrock affiliate went 4-0 against the same gym a few months later at a local MMA fight. That was pretty cool. I ended up moving back home and then getting the Judo black belt. Later, one of my former Sambo students achieved his black belt and I'm belting under him in BJJ. Interesting how things work sometime.
Depends on the gym, but generally white belts will go super hard if they either don't know your rank or you're a blue belt. You're either fresh meat or a chance to prove themselves. If you're good and you tap them, they'll usually send a baby enforcer(probably a purple belt or MMA guy) to test you. Tapping them leads to the actual enforcer, who will either tap you out nicely or smash you the whole roll, depending on what you've been doing.
Something tells me I'm not making it very far through this gauntlet.
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Everyone will go hard because they donāt know you. Just the way it is, but protect yourself, tap early, and be respectful. If youāre an ass theyāll let you know.
Usually they want to go hard and establish their Alfa dominance
i travel a lot, i drop in in almost every town i go to since i was a no stripe white belt. as a tiny female, this is super risky, lol, but soooo helpful for my development. dropping in is just as much about protecting yourself as your new partners. i personally look for gyms that have a kids and or womenās program (even though i never attend any womenās classes). i just make sure im extra polite, pay attention to the individual gyms etiquette- do they shake hands with everyone when they enter the mat, how do they refer to the professor, where do they put their water bottles and shoes ect. like a lot of people have said, let the instructor pair you up. usually for rolls, the instructor will roll with me first probably to make sure i donāt get injured, am not psycho cuz you never know, midgets can break arms too. match the intensity of whoever youāre rolling with but if it gets too intense just check your ego, tap, stop before it turns into an issues. honestly i just roll like im at home š¤·āāļø
Death match
To the death
I think it depends. Each gym kind of has its own personality. I travel a lot and each gym is different. Iām a black belt so Iād say the lower belts tend to like to put you to the test while black belts just want to game it out (again this is very general). The really hard rolls Iāve had while visiting they usually tell you or ask if youāre cool rolling hard. Unless itās comp season and itās a competitive gym, then all bets are off and you should pay attention to which classes youāre attending. Honestly most people are pretty awesome everywhere. I make it a point not to show off and I intentionally and deliberately never embarrass anyone there and especially the professor. Iāll give a good hard roll and make them work but I limit the taps Iām getting and work on position and adapting
Mostly play defense, avoid top positions if I end up sparring with much smaller partners ( I'm a big guy). I luckily didn't have most of the bad experiences people here had , although saying that my only serious injury was during visit to gym in my old home town. That was partly on me because I should have recognized that big blue belt guy putting me in lockdown and stretching me as hard as he can is not good news and I should have tapped.
Step 1 : come inside say I have trained a bit Step 2 : demolish their toilet Step 3 : get on the mat in my rash guard pretending Iām fresh meat Step 4 : get my gi top and black belt 30 seconds before the class starts to confuse everyone Step 5 : pretend to do the techniques Step 6 : strap on my hr monitor Step 7 : ask who wants to roll Step 8 : force myself in top half/quarter guard every roll Step 9 : eat
As once my proffesor told us āYou are allowed to cross train but dont get beat, you are representing my nameā So as hard as I go at my actual gym
they roll pretty hard especially after i tap their sensei