Professor Alexandra Peterson, a first-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, wraps her legs around student Hannah Baker and instructs students last Saturday in how to overcome their opponent.
Alexandra Peterson, a visiting Brazilian jiu-jitsu professor demonstrates a move she wants students to mimic at a seminar held on Oct. 8 at the Wrangell community gym.
Alexandra Peterson instructs students in Brazilian jiu-jitsu moves on Oct. 8 at the the Wrangell community gym.
Bob Baker, who teaches Brazilian jiu-jitsu at in Wrangell, has been training in the martial art for four years along with his wife Hannah Baker, who has won multiple gold medals competing in the sport.
Joint locks and compression locks might sound like the perils of getting old, but they are among hundreds of moves that are incorporated into Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighting.
Though the sport can seem intimidating to first-time students, a group in Wrangell is working to welcome newcomers and highlight the many benefits.
Jiu-jitsu was created over 100 years ago, originating from judo. Brazilian jiu-jitsu was created in the 1920s and has become one of, if not the fastest-growing martial arts in the United States. Meant for close combat, jiu-jitsu is a form of grappling, much like wrestling, that relies on submission holds and other maneuvers to best an opponent.
Though classes have been held at the community gym for some time, a seminar was held last weekend to encourage people to sign up. Professor Alexandra Peterson, of Appleton, Wisconsin, came to town to instruct veterans and rookies alike.
The title of professor is given to those who have earned a black belt in jiu-jitsu. Peterson, 36, is a first-degree black belt with 18 years training experience. Before that, she trained in karate, giving her 27 years in martial arts.
Peterson was brought to town thanks to a grant from the Wrangell parks and recreation department. It was her intention to introduce new students, show them basic positions, give them the ins and outs of Brazilian jiu-jitsu and give them a starting point to jump into the regularly held classes.
It's a sport that is particularly appealing to women due to its style of self-defense and confidence building, she said.
"It's an amazing martial art for women," Peterson said. "The thing about Brazilian jiu-jitsu is that it's based on technique and leverage and efficiency. It's actually designed for a smaller person to be able to handle a larger, strong opponent that's attacking them."
For Peterson, after having been in the martial arts world for nearly a decade before discovering Brazilian jiu-jitsu in college, six months in the sport greatly increased her confidence in self-defense. "For me, it's just a lot of fun. It's a great sport. It's a great community."
Bob and Hannah Baker, who moved to Wrangell from Wisconsin in June, are students of Peterson. Both quickly got involved with the local jiu-jitsu classes coached by Matt Nore. The Bakers began their jiu-jitsu journey four years ago when Bob decided he needed to make healthy changes.
"One day, I was like, 'I'm too fat. I need to do something to exercise,' and I typed 'martial arts near me' into my computer," Bob Baker said. "The closest gym to my house was a jiu-jitsu gym. I've basically been going every day of the week since."
The Bakers began the classes together. Since then, Hannah Baker, a laboratory manager at Wrangell Medical Center, has won multiple gold medals at International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation sanctioned competitions. Bob Baker admits his wife is better than he is and jokes that he would never argue with her. Beyond the marital peace and weight loss, the sport has plenty of other benefits.
"I'm healthier," Bob Baker said. "It's helped me with my mental health a lot. It's a great way to get out all the stress I had from the day. It helped me to find a community to be a part of, especially when we moved up here."
Nore said the Bakers moving to town has helped the club expand when members can train. Classes are held on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. and on Saturday from 10 to 11:30 a.m. in the community gym. He's seen an increase in interest from women and more members makes training more competitive and fun, he said.
"You make new friends. You're sweating, so you release all these endorphins. You're increasing your flexibility and your knowledge," Nore said. "You have to think about how to get from this position to this position, which is why it's like a chess game. While you're doing that, your opponent is trying to counter you."
Bob Baker said the grappling aspect is what was most appealing about Brazilian jiu-jitsu as a martial art to him.
"We don't do any striking in jiu-jitsu. It's grappling. There isn't any punching or kicking in here," he said. "I got hit one time. That was enough. (I said) I'm going to do the fighting where we don't hit each other."
That said, many mixed martial arts competitors train in Brazilian jiu-jitsu to incorporate it into their fighting style.
Peterson said age isn't a limited factor either. She's trained people as old as 60 and as young as 6.
Even though most of the attendees at last Saturday's seminar were regular class members, there were two new people interested in learning more.
"You get a really interesting mix of all kinds of people that train together," she said. "You get more white-collar IT guys, you get a nerdy group. You get blue-collar factory guys, police officers, firefighters, EMTs. And everybody is together in this nice community."
Nore said one quote he read summed up jiu-jitsu perfectly for him: "Brute strength is subservient to knowledge, skill and technique."
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