Maybe I’ll get back to OUTLAW STAR. Maybe not. Bottom line is… I sat down at my laptop today with a choice of two shows to watch, and you can guess which one seemed far more appealing to me. Anyway…
Oh boy… co-ed training in contact sports. In my experience, there have been many reminders of why gender segregation is basically essential. See, I’ve weighed between 225 and 245 lbs since high school. Some of teammates on the wrestling team had to fight girls, but I never had the face the potentially-awkward situation myself since… well, there wasn’t ever much risk of running into a girl being in my weight class. The one girl on our team was dating another teammate, though - - and the drama they brought to practice wasn’t nearly as harmonious the mismatched couple's cutesy stuff in this show.
The issue did come up a few times when I was training MMA in college. For a couple years, I got by without having to potentially choke out one of the girls on our team by simply telling my coach I was uncomfortable with it any time he brought it up. After a while, though, he started getting a little more insistent - - saying I needed to grow up and just deal with it.
Now, size matters a little less in Jiu-Jitsu and I’m certain that pros like Gina “Crush” Carrano or Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos would kick my ass in any match despite our 80-100 lbs differential (it’d probably play out just like this girl’s gallant kendo beat-down!) If my female opponent’s still learning, though? Well, both of the times I played along with my coach’s request, I opted to just sit there and do barely anything. The girls could get the tightest Rear Naked Choke on me and, every time, I could muscle my way out without much effort. Those were just the facts…
…And this is fantasy, of course. But it’s fantasy rooted in some very humanist reality. And if my digression above has told you anything, I’m relating to it - - and thoroughly enjoying it - - because it’s definitely been made by somebody with real experience with the subject. “Write what you know,” as they say… and you’ll tell a story that connects like a shinai to a jock’s skull.
Watch this episode, "The Blade Bravers and Boxed Lunch” below and decide for yourself, then read my comments on the previous episode here.
Tom Pinchuk’s a writer and personality with a large number of comics, videos and features like this to his credit. Visit his website - - tompinchuk.com - - and follow his Twitter: @tompinchuk
I don't see how people can be uncomfortable when wrestling girls if you win you win no issue. The girls chose to wrestle you so there is nothing wrong with you beating them. If they beat you no face should be lost either, on your side or theirs.