New Gym, New Apartment, New Beach, New Year..

What I liked about it was the fact that I could show up anytime during operating hours and that the instructor I was paired up with was really technical - which is what I needed at the time since I was a beginner. Before I had found Patong Boxing Gym, I was training at an all-Thai gym in the hills called “SingPatong”.

While SingPatong had a lot of awesome fighters and a real Muay Thai atmosphere, the instructors I was working with half the time didn’t really know how to relate the techniques to a beginner such as myself. Now that I’m a little more advanced, I’ll probably head back to SingPatong for a few sessions but in the meantime, I’m training at a new “Patong Boxing Gym” that just opened up in the hills - about 5 minutes from where SingPatong is.

The owner still has her original gym which is located near the beach surrounded by “happy ending” massage parlours which she is using for her beginner students. For the more advanced students, she’s sending them up to the new camp which just opened about a month ago.

It’s actually a lot nicer than I thought it was going to be. There’s about 15 rooms onsite - some of which have a sick view of the ocean. At the moment, there’s actually more trainers than students and it’s all one-on-one training. I’ll be doing padwork with one trainer and in between rounds, I’ll have another trainer pouring water into my mouth and giving me a massage.

It’s also in a nice, quiet location with a great running path. Check it out ..

I moved into a new apartment which I ended up getting a great deal on. When I first got here and went looking around for rooms, everybody would jack up the price since I’m white and I guess they think foreigners don’t know any better. Well, since I’m staying here for so long, I’m the guy you’d see arguing with the cleaners about getting the jacked up foreigner rate on my laundry. So, getting charged 17,000 baht for a basic room didn’t fly with me either.

I ended up randomly meeting a friend at an internet café that I had met the year before and she walked around with me for a bit and found me a nice big room for 5000 baht a month. See, there really is a “Thai price” on things - which really pisses me off actually. I can only imagine the drama that would ensue if minorities in western societies were being charged 2-3 times the regular cost of things.

I'd take a photo if my actual apartment but it's messy and I'm too lazy to clean it right now..

The building - which is only a couple floors - is right near the boxing stadium and the location is perfect. There’s convenient stores, Thai food stands and fruit markets all over the place. When it’s time to go to training, I just run to the gym - which takes me about half an hour. It’s all uphill too so it’s just what I need since surprisingly, my cardio still sucks. You’d think that after training 6 days a week for 5 months straight, eating right and having only 1 beer in the last 3 months, my cardio would be amazing but apparently not. It’s pretty frustrating actually.

Anyway, on another note, Christmas just past and it was a little weird being away from home. I didn’t really do much. I just trained during the day and went for a walk at night to check out the scene. It was pretty wild actually. It was just a giant party with fireworks, plenty of alcohol and plenty of guys looking to get laid.

To be honest, Christmas for me has always been about family and church, not booze and prostitutes (lol), so I was on my best behaviour. For some reason, I figured it’d be bad karma or something if I was to give into temptation so I ended up just coming back to my room. I ended up taking a video of the scene though for you guys to see. The video quality sucks - I think it’s time for a new camera. As you can tell, I was feelin’ the girl by the dancing by the Bacardi sign, check it out..

Anyway guys, thanks for following along up to this point (still lots to go) and all the best in 2009.

Happy Holidays!

Tiger Muay Thai

I remember using my laptop outside (since I wasn’t getting any connection in my room) while getting eaten by mosquitoes. It was about 20 minutes after 9 and the restaurant had just closed. The camp is in a very isolated area and after about 9pm, the food selection is limited.

So, as you can imagine, I didn’t find getting multiple bug bites - as a result of having to spend hours outside due to the poor internet connection - and going to bed hungry very appealing. Especially considering I had come from Pattaya - where a 7-11 and a 24 hour Thai food restaurant are fixtures on every block.

But you know what? While I was a little frustrated the first couple nights, I’m writing this - about 58 days later - and I’m still here. Once you get used to it, the location isn’t so bad. Actually, the way I see it, if there’s nothing around - there’s no temptation. No temptation to party, no temptation to drink, no temptation to do anything but train and in my case, get some work done.

I don’t think I’ve ever been so productive. I just train, watch the stacks of 50 baht DVD’s that I buy from the market and write for websites. I’m watching the 5th season of entourage right now actually - Ari Gold is awesome by the way! I’ve even used the location to my advantage. I’ll purposely avoid buying food for the night which forces me to run about 6km to a place that sells plates of chicken, rice and soup for about a dollar.

The training here is a lot better than I expected. Every single pad-holder that I’ve worked with - and I’ve worked with about 8 different trainers - has been amazing. The thing about Tiger Muay Thai is that they probably have more students than any other camp in Thailand. More students - in most cases - equates to more money and since they do so well here, they can afford to pay their trainers an attractive salary.

So, it comes to no surprise that they have a lot to pick from. That’s not to say that you won’t find good trainers at some of the less financially stable camps. There’s actually a couple lumpinee champions over at Sityodtong without foreign students to train. That’s just their loyalty though. A lot of times, if a camp brings up a fighter, they’ll stay there for decades and help train the younger students coming up. When they fight, a lot of them even take on the camp name as their surname. Yodsanklai Fairtex, Buakaw Por Pramuk - get the idea? Although, for the record, Yodsanklai wasn’t brought up by Fairtex - but that’s besides the point.

What’s unique about Tiger Muay Thai is that they implement a lot of western training methods with the traditional Thai way of doing things. Each class begins and ends with a great warm up/cool down and a lot of time is spent on flexibility. They also have a free weight area - which is currently undergoing expansion - and a personal trainer available to help students out with their form and answer questions. In the new free weight area, I’ve been told that they’re getting all sorts of new equipment - even a full set of kettle-bells.

The students here are split into classes based on their skill level. There’s beginner, intermediate and advanced. There’s plenty of beginners so if you’re just starting out, don’t even worry about it. There’s plenty of people here that have never even thrown a kick before getting on that flight to Thailand - at least that’s what it looks like anyway.

The advanced class is run drill sergeant style. The trainers push you hard. They’re the sort of workouts that you hate doing at the time, but feel good for getting through them when they’re over. When you’re doing pad-work and you’re pushed to exhaustion, the trainers will just say “come on man!” and start hitting you with the pads. It sounds bad but it’s not, it’s great actually. They really push you.

In 2 months time, only twice have I been completely overlooked by the trainers and skipped over for pad-work. I was obviously disappointed at the time seeing as how the pad-work and individual attention is what people (myself included) come for. If I just wanted to skip and hit the bag, I’d stay home - save myself thousands of dollars - and just train in my basement.

But in all fairness, that was 2 workouts in 2 months. The other 50 or so training sessions have all been pretty good. No gym I’ve ever been to is perfect, they all have their flaws. There was a point here (before the airport protests) when I found that the place was just too packed. It was during that period though that the owner of the camp was really pushing for a big expansion to accommodate the influx of guests.

The expansion - which is going to see the camp almost double in size - should be done in a couple of weeks. Although, in Thailand - you never really know. So while the place was way too busy for a while, effort was being made to fix the problem and that’s really all you can ask for.

As for the MMA program, to be honest - I haven’t really done any of the MMA classes. I’ve just been focusing on the Muay Thai while I’m in Thailand but from what I’ve seen, the instruction is pretty good. Ray Elbe is the head MMA instructor here and he certainly knows what he’s doing. He’s a BJJ purple belt but I’ve watched him roll with BJJ black belts here and surprisingly, it looks pretty even - at least from my perspective anyway.

Just the fact that there’s BJJ black belts and UFC vets that come here to train says a lot about the calibre of fighters you’ll have to spar with and learn from. While it’s unlikely that you’ll get to spar against one of the UFC guys while they’re here - since they’re usually off getting private lessons - there’s still plenty of other high level guys on hand.  

I’ve been staying in one of the “budget style fighters rooms” that are advertised on the site for 4000 baht per month but for some reason, the price was jacked up to 5000 baht when I arrived. The website still actually says 4000 baht. The room is good enough. Its got a TV, DVD player, mini fridge, bed, dresser and a fan. It gets pretty hot here but surprisingly, a fan seems to do the trick.

The site says that the rooms here have “high speed wireless internet” access. Well, the truth is that most rooms don’t. Most of the students here have to bring their laptops to one of two locations - near the office or near the restaurant. When I first got here, I was living in one of the budget rooms near the back of the camp and since I couldn’t get a connection, I had to switch to a room that was closer to the restaurant.

Even here, the connection is still pretty weak and I get signed in and out every 5 minutes or so. There’s nothing more frustrating than constantly getting logged out of msn when you’re in the middle of a conversation with your friends from back home or writing up a detailed email, then trying to send it off only to realize that you’ve lost connection and even worse - lost your work.

The camp offers accommodation to suit all budgets. Even if you don’t want to stay at the camp, you can stay in one of the nearby resorts that were built specifically to accommodate the Tiger Muay Thai guests. Truthfully, the pricing on all the nearby rooms has been jacked up for the foreigners. There is no way that a Thai would be charged - nor would they pay - 12,000 baht for a basic room with a basic washroom.

Staying nearby the camp is certainly more convenient but if you’re on a budget and you don’t want to stay in one of the budget rooms, you can go a little further out and find a room with hot water and a washroom for about 4000 baht a month - the budget rooms at the camp don’t have a washroom. It’s really not a big deal though. You don’t really need your own washroom, the public facilities at the camp will do just fine.

If you’re only staying for a month or so - or if you’re a baller and money isn’t an issue - some of the nearby resorts are awesome. Here are video tours of both the rooms at the camp and the nearby accommodations. I didn’t film these by the way. I had planned to go around and film them myself but TMT beat me to it. So, to save myself time, I’ll just use their tours..

Budget Room at the Camp (where I’ve been staying)  

Family Bungalow at the Camp

Willow House (Looks pretty nice actually)  

Salinee Bungalows

Ruam Mai Bungalows

Floraville Bungalows

Coconut Village
I-Com Hotel (Boxer Bar)

Tiger Muay Thai Review - The Food There’s a restaurant on site at the camp and it’s decent I suppose. I eat there every now and then just for the convenience of it although just down the road, there’s a place called “country restaurant” that’s a lot better. The portions are bigger and the prices are a bit lower. Everyone just calls the place “mommas” and a lot of the guests live and eat there. The food is great but the rooms are overpriced for what you get in my honest opinion.

There’s also a place in chalong circle that’s amazing. The portions are huge and the prices are more than fair. I’ve actually once gone there once since I don’t have a motorbike and it’s a bit out of the way but now that I’m thinking about it, I’ll have to go back there once more and get the giant chicken salad before I leave chalong and move on.

As I mentioned earlier in the review, I usually run late at night to a Thai food stand that sells chicken, rice and soup for 30 baht - which is under 1 USD. I’ll eat a couple servings there then bring a couple servings back to the camp to eat throughout the night (I’m a night owl).

Since the food selection is so limited after 9pm, I mentioned to Will (the owner) that he should look into getting a microwave so students can heat up their meals and about 2 days later, there was a brand new microwave sitting on the restaurant counter with a sign saying that students are welcome to use it. That really impressed me. A perfect example of an owner who is always looking for ways to try and improve his services.

I’d also recommend that if you’re planning on coming to Tiger Muay Thai (or Thailand in general), you should bring your own protein supplements from back home. They’re much more expensive here. A small 2 pound container of most likely poor quality protein will run you around 3000 baht or so - which is almost 100 bucks.

Tiger Muay Thai Review - The Pro Shop

There’s a pro shop here that sells shirts, shorts, gloves, hand-wraps etc. The prices here are cheaper than back home but compared to what I’ve seen throughout Thailand, they’re a little jacked up. They sell twins gloves for about 1950 baht and hand-wraps for about 375 baht. I’m using Fairtex gloves at the moment and while they’re normally a little more expensive than the Twins - I bought them for about 1450 baht in Pattaya.

You can scoop a pair of Twins gloves for about 1400 baht in Bangkok or Pattaya as well. I’ve noticed that the Muay Thai gear in Phuket to be a little more expensive all around but there’s a shop in Patong that sells the gloves for around 1600 baht. It’s not that big of a deal though, most people - even knowing that they can get the gloves cheaper elsewhere - would just end up buying them at the Tiger Muay Thai pro shop for the convenience of it.

They also sell Tiger Muay Thai shirts for just under 500 baht - which is expensive for Thailand - but I’ll probably end up buying one anyway because they look sick and you can’t get them anywhere else. A couple of my buddies from back home actually want me to send some shirts back (even though they don’t train) so they can wear the shirts at the bar and look tough. Whack yes, I know!

After having spent 2 months here, I can certainly recommend it. The trainers are excellent and the entire staff - the owner included - seem to do whatever they can to help you out. They have a guest services manager who will organize trips & visa runs for you, they have a laundry service that is the cheapest I’ve seen so far in Thailand and a personal trainer that seems eager to answer questions and help people out.

For first timers who have never been to Thailand and are a little nervous, you want to pick a camp that has good guest relation services so that if anything were to go wrong, you wouldn’t be alone. Tiger Muay Thai is also a good place to make friends since on average, there’s around 100 guests from all over the world training here at any given time.

That being said, since Tiger Muay Thai is a very isolated, foreigner oriented gym - it has a summer camp feel to it. You’re in Thailand, but you’re surrounded by people from western countries. For that reason, I also recommend eventually going off on your own (once you feel comfortable) and putting yourself out of your element so to speak.

Doing so will enable you to experience a completely different culture and training alongside Thai’s - even the 8,9 and 10 year olds - can be very motivating. Travelling to foreign countries is all about new experiences so if you’re planning on staying long term, I recommend that you train in a few different gyms and environments.

I’m about to move on now but I know I’ll be looking back on my time spent at Tiger Muay Thai with fond memories. The bottom line - Tiger Muay Thai is a well equipped gym with awesome trainers. Certainly worth checking out..

However, this fight is taking place in the light heavyweight (205lbs) weight class. New fans of mixed martial arts may not be familiar with Dan Henderson’s accomplishments overseas in the now-bankrupt PRIDE organization but Dan Henderson knocked out Wanderlei Silva to become PRIDE’S light heavyweight champion. As a matter of fact, Dan Henderson held both the middleweight and light heavyweight titles at the same time. Of course, since coming over to the UFC, he lost his light heavyweight title to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in a hard fought five-rounder and in his very next fight, Dan Henderson dropped his middleweight title as a result of getting choked out by Anderson Silva in the second round.

Rich Franklin has been a very successful fighter in his own right. The former UFC middleweight champion has been demolishing every opponent put in his path. That is of course, with the exception of Anderson Silva who has knocked out Rich Franklin not once, but twice with devastating knees from the clinch. Rich Franklin’s losses to Silva are most likely his reason for moving up a weight class. Rich Franklin’s choice to change divisions has been a good one so far as he’s already earned an impressive stoppage victory over the highly touted Matt Hamill in a fight where Rich Franklin displayed his much improved striking - particularly Thai-style kicks to the body.

So How Do Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson Match Up?

Both Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson are so well rounded that it is going to be tough for one to exploit the weakness of another. Dan Henderson - who trains out of team quest - is a former Olympian wrestler turned MMA fighter so his Greco-roman fighting style should give him an advantage in the tie-ups. It’s tough to tell who has the better striking in this one. Rich Franklin displayed excellent striking ability in his last fight (as he usually does) while Dan Henderson is known for his aggressive style and powerful overhand right. Anyone who is able to knock out Wanderlei Silva with a spinning back-fist the way Dan Henderson did should never be underestimated.

If you look to the ground game, well ..there’s no decisive winner here either. Dan Henderson is the better wrestler so he should be able to dictate where the fight takes place. If he wants to take Rich Franklin down, it’s likely that he’ll be able to do so. However, with Rich Franklin’s Brazilian Jiu Jitsu background and submission defence, it’s unlikely that he’ll be submitted and its here where he may even catch Dan Henderson with something (although it’s still quite unlikely). I imagine if Dan Henderson is able to secure a takedown, he’ll be looking to just pound Rich Franklin out.

Skill-sets aside, the most important characteristic a fighter can have is “heart” and in this case, both fighters certainly have it. I don’t see either fighter giving up in this one and I especially don’t see either fighter fatiguing as both Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson have gone the distance before in five round, championship fights. This fight will only be 3 rounds. This is a really tough one to call, which is a good thing as it goes to show just how evenly matched Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson are. If I was to predict anything, I have to say that this will likely go to the judges scorecards. As for the winner, it can really go either way so I would just throw my money on the underdog (if their even is one). You can check the betting odds for the Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson fight by
clicking here.

As a child, Somphot used to spend his afternoons hanging out at a Muay Thai club. He was 5 years old at the time and rather than going in and participating, he would look through the gate and watch his brother - along with about 20 or so others - kicking the heavy bags, doing pad-work and sparring. One of the head instructors picked up on Somphlot’s curiosity and eventually came out to personally to invite him in.

Reluctant at first, Somphot followed the instructor into the club and decided to give it a try. Fast forward a year and Somphot found himself in the center of the ring in his first Muay Thai fight at the tender age of 6. Most Muay Thai fighters I’ve encountered say that an addiction to fighting comes via their first knockout victory. Somphlot won that day but it wasn’t the knockout that served as his motivation.

Rather, it was the 30 baht ($1 US) that he earned for the fight. Give most 6 year old children a dollar and you can rest assure that it will be spent on candy at the convenience store. Not in this case however. When Somphot was awarded his modest winnings, he was brimming with excitement as he rushed home to see his mother.

His mother - who at the time had 5 children to take care of - was having a difficult time providing for the family. Times were hard. Somphot walked in and instinctively handed his mother the 30 baht he had earned for the fight and he did so with a huge smile on his face for he - at only 6 years old - was able to help out his mother financially.

The sense of self-worth he gained from the experience served as his motivation and he soon found himself fighting at Lumpinee stadium. He ended up losing a hard fought decision in his first fight at Lumpinee but he was invited back regardless for putting on such a good show.

The rest is history …

The night started off with a fight between two of the Thai trainers. Last month when two of the trainers - who were obviously friends - fought, they were just sort of goofing around and taking sips of beer in between rounds. This time it looked as though they were a little more serious. Although they were wearing shin guards, they were still kicking with bad intentions. However, they were just body shots. Here’s a video clip ..

This months “BBQ Beat down” (as they call it here at Tiger) featured a 4 man elimination style tournament. The tournament fights were 2 rounds each with the finalists fighting twice in the night (obviously).

Rather than do a post-fight commentary style write up on the fights, I’d rather just throw them up and let you watch for yourself. You know the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” and a video is worth even more. Cliché I know. Whatever, here are the first 2 fights of the tourney..

Both of the fights were awesome. However, the victors - Jonas and Kristian - were both good friends and they were hesitant to really engage in the final. But who can blame them? I wouldn’t want to fight my best friend in a cage for some BBQ either.

That being said, they still came out and put on a show. It was more playful than anything as the fight - which didn’t last long - resembled a real life, choreographed version of “Never Back Down”. Both fighters were trying to pull off all sorts of wacky jump kicks and whatnot. One of the guys even did a flying summersault as he entered the cage - which was good for some laughs.

There were also few other non-tournament fights on the card. One of which was a classic striker vs. grappler showdown featuring Caden from the states and Brad from New Zealand. It was a good fight, check it out..

The Fight Of The Night

Now, the best for last! My favourite fight of the evening. This fight - had it taken place in a large venue - would have received a standing ovation as it was one of those Rocky style, odds-defying victories. The fight pit Ngoo Ditty - a tiny Thai boxer with about 18 months of BJJ experience - against Richard Dinkins, who trains BJJ amongst some of the greatest in the world in the heart of Brazil.

Richard Dinkins - although the camera angle doesn’t show it very well - towered over Ngoo as he must have had a full 12-inch height advantage. You can tell where this is going. This fight had potential for greatness and a great fight it was.

Overcoming all odds, Ngoo - the tiny Thai boxer - ended up not only beating the much larger Brazilian but he beat him at his own game. He submitted him! He submitted him via an armbar from the mount! As you can tell by the reaction of the crowd, everyone was just as impressed as I was. This guy is going places. First Thai in the UFC? Who knows. I suppose the UFC would first have to get some sort of mega-lightweight division but on second thought, as demonstrated in the fight, he’ll be able to overcome the size differences. Check out the fight!

Political Turmoil In Bangkok!

Regardless of where you live, I’m sure heard the news. It seems to be the top story on all the major media outlets. CNN, MSN - they’re all covering the situation at the Bangkok airport(s). Suvarnabhumi International - which is the 18th largest airport in the world - has been shut down by protestors.

Over three thousand tourists were left stranded at the airport as all incoming and outgoing flights have been cancelled until further notice. To make matters worse, the violence seems to be escalating as gun fights have errupted in the streets of Bangkok and bombs have been set off in the airport leaving several protestors seriously injured.

There have even been reports of a grenade being thrown into the crowd. However, it turned out not to be live. Needless to say, it looks as though a lot of the guests here will be staying a little than expected. Of course, I could think of worse places to be stuck than a training resort in Phuket, Thailand.

Stay Updated Here

When it comes to bottlecap checkers on homemade cardboard platforms, don't mess with the Malaysians

I think I’ve finally figured out how these visa procedures work and if I time things correctly, I should be able to stay in Thailand for as long as I need. I was talking to one of the other guests here over lunch today and he said that he came here last year and decided he wanted to stay longer but they told him he couldn’t and that he had to leave - which was true.

However, the immigration officials didn’t mention the fact that “leaving” only entails crossing the border, paying a visit to a Thai consulate in a bordering country and re-entering Thailand. He ended up going back to Canada. Needless to say, when I told him about his options, he seemed pretty stoked and now he’ll possibly be staying even longer than he initially planned. Thailand really has that effect on people. Visiting Thailand - and southeast Asian in general - can truly be a life changing experience.

So as for Malaysia, the one night I spent in Penang wasn’t long enough to form a solid opinion of the place. The Penang residents for the most part spoke better English than the Thai’s. Of course, like I said, this is from only a days worth of observation. Perhaps they were able to speak English so well on account of dealing with some many foreigners as Penang is outfitted with all sorts of hotels and resorts that accommodate both the tourists and the thousands upon thousands of “visa runners” from Thailand like myself.

Here’s a quick video I shot of the scene while walking around ..

I’m trying to think of a way to make this all sound exciting but to be honest, it really wasn’t. I guess if you’re to take anything from this, it’s that there’s a lot of confusion regarding the visa regulations in Thailand.

Thailand recently limited the number of 30 day stamps that visitors are allowed to get to 3 within a 6 month period. However, they haven’t restricted the amount of back to back tourist visas and other types of visas that visitors are allowed to get. Worse case scenario is that you may have to switch up which bordering countries you visit in order to get them. And I suppose it’s also a good idea to occasionally get a new passport every now and then so they don’t see 8 pages of Thailand visa stamps in there and start to ask questions.

As For The Training

Last night we had another full moon “fight night” and BBQ here at Tiger Muay Thai. Once again, the fights were awesome. The best fight however was an MMA match between one of the Thai trainers and a BJJ practitioner straight out of Brazil. You’re not going to believe this but the Thai guy won - via an armbar from the mount! That’s right! The Thai submitted the Brazilian! It was amazing! A lot of exclamation marks I know but that’s how awesome it was!!!!

Within a few days I’ll have my write up complete along with the videos of all the fights.

Keep Checking Back!

Well, thanks to guys like Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans, fighters coming off the show and into the UFC are now getting a lot more respect. Having both recently taken out former top ranked fighters - Forrest over “Shogun” and Rashad over Liddell - this showdown will certainly be interesting.

I’m calling this this as the fight of the night right now - and that’s saying a lot considering just how stacked UFC 92 is. As we all already know, Forrest Griffin is a workaholic warrior who just keeps pressing forward. It’s that never-say-die mentality that has got him where he is today.

Forrest Griffin isn’t the greatest wrestler, he isn’t the greatest striker, nor is he the best submission artist - yet he’s the champion in arguably the most competitive division in the UFC. How does that happen? Well, it happens as a result of work ethic and “heart”.

Rashad Evans - who up until this point has yet to be defeated in his 13 fight MMA career - embodies similar characteristics. Having gone to decision in nearly half of his fights, he’s no stranger to going into “deep waters” with a game opponent - which will likely happen against a guy like Forrest Griffin.

So How Do Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans Match Up?

Neither of these guys is a “master” in a specific fighting style. They’re both just well rounded, really tough guys with a lot of heart. If there’s any standout advantage, it would be Rashad with his wrestling ability. Rashad is a much better wrestler than Forrest - and most of the light heavyweight division for that matter.

As for whether or not it will make a big difference in the fight, I’m not so sure. While Rashad Evans is the better wrestler, Forrest Griffin will likely be the bigger of the two as he walks around and cuts weight from around 240lbs while Rashad looked pretty small compared to Chuck Liddell in his last fight.

Of course, you could throw a wrench in that theory by pointing out that Rashad used to fight (and toss guys around) at heavyweight. Just look how Rashad was able repeatedly slam Stephan Bonnar when they fought back in 2006.

Both Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans are fighting out of great camps so you can rest assured that they’ll both be entering the octagon with very detailed game plans. And speaking of strategy, one thing worth pointing out is the fact that the last man to defeat Forrest Griffin was Keith Jardine - who just so happens to be one of Rashad’s team-mates.

This is one of those fights where it’s extremely hard to predict a winner. The only sure thing in this fight is that both fighters will give it their all and of course, Rashad’s wife will be sitting somewhere within the first few rows screaming at the top of her lungs.

Click Here to check the latest odds in the Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans fight

The food, drinks and massages aside - the real fun happens down by the beach (or any body of water throughout Thailand). The significance of the holiday - which takes place when there’s a full moon in November - is to honour Buddha and the goddess of water - Phra Mae Klongkha. “Loy” means to float and “Krathong” means a raft. When the Thai people set their raft afloat, they oftentimes add clipped fingernails and hair to the raft as a symbol of letting go of the bad parts of oneself. However, that information is straight off of Wikipedia and I’ve never actually seen them do that.

The rafts are cool but what’s cooler is the hot air lanterns that everyone lights and then sets sail into the night sky. It’s really an awesome sight. I’m sure it’s pretty hard to picture based on just my description of it so check out this video.

As you can see by the random fires and people dodging fireworks from every which angle, you really have to be alert while you’re there. Another tradition of Loy Krathong is beauty pageants. Last year, there was actually a ladyboy pageant going on and this year it was women ..at least I think they were women. Ah, this is Thailand so who really knows.

Loy Krathong is also an awesome day to be a single guy in this country. It seems as though every hot Thai girl is looking for a date for the night. I almost want to compare it to Valentines day in other countries. Of course, on Loy Krathong, the guy doesn’t have to go all out and pay for fancy dinners and jewellery. 3 dollars for a meal at the festival, 3 dollars for a lantern and another 3 dollars or so for the raft and the girl is happy!

Training Update

I’m still living and training at Tiger Muay Thai. Now that it’s high season, there’s a lot more students coming in from all over the world and the classes have been getting busier and busier. The solution to that is a rush expansion and within a months time, the training area at the camp is going to almost double in size. I think they’re also hiring about 5 or so more trainers - one of which is ranked number 3 in the country.

In some of my upcoming entries, I’ll document the expansion and I’ll soon be doing my review on this camp. In my review - as I know a lot of you are curious - will be video tours of all the on-site and nearby accommodations.

Visa Time Again

Time flies when you’re having fun. Once again, my visa is set to expire and I have to head over to Malaysia on Wednesday. These “visa runs” are a major hassle but I guess that’s a sacrifice one has to make while living in this country. So, I guess my next entry will be live from Malaysia.

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With the seminar set to kick off at 9am, I set my alarm clock for 8:59am - as that gave me just enough time to roll out of bed basically sleepwalk about 40 feet to the cage area where the lesson was taking place. Staying on-site at the camp certainly has its advantages. Anyway, the seminar started off with Jon demonstrating a basic wrestling shot. I use the term “basic” loosely as while Jon Fitch made the technique seem so automatic and effortless, the majority of the spectators - when given the opportunity to practice it - looked like fishes out of water. What I mean by that that they seemed out of their element. It just goes to show how good these professionals really are. By the way Fitch was demonstrating the shots, you could tell that its something he’s been doing since childhood.

Throughout the seminar, Jon demonstrated about 5 techniques (all wrestling based) but what impressed me the most - other than his talent - was his teaching ability. He was explaining each and every detail by giving examples that people could relate too. Will, the owner of the camp, said that this was the best seminar they’ve ever had here - which is a major testament to Jon’s teaching ability as they have a lot of seminars taught by special guests. I was able to get a lot of video footage throughout the lesson but I was later informed that Jon requested that video clips not be taken as he - along with many other UFC fighters - have started a website called MMAInstructional.com where they demonstrate all sorts of techniques.

So, unfortunately, I won’t be uploading the video footage here. However, the seminar did finish off with an awesome question and answer session. I didn’t have a recorder or anything so these responses are based off my memory and they’re not word for word. Nevertheless, I’m sure you’ll find it interesting..

Jon Fitch on His Loss to GSP

He basically said that a loss is disheartening but it’s something that you have to expect in this business as losing is inevitable. “Nobody retires undefeated, it’s just not going to happen” he said. He then went on and said that you have to view a loss as a learning experience. Instead of being pissed off that you lost, you have to go back and say “Ok, why did I lose? What did I do wrong?”. In the GSP fight, he said he learned a lot. He said he learned not to throw sloppy leg kicks, 1 punch combos and not to drop his hands. He also said that he’s in Thailand now to correct those mistakes. The fight with GSP basically gave him a better idea of what he has to work on and I’m sure he’ll become a better fighter because of it.

Jon Fitch on Supplements

“98% of supplements are garbage” he said. “They’re only out there to get your money”. He said you can get everything you need for “free” through food and that supplements are exactly that - to be supplemented to your existing diet if you’re not getting enough of something. He was then asked what 2 supplements he recommends and he responded by saying “whey protein & vitamins”.

Jon Fitch on Steroids

He seemed quite disgusted with it. “I don’t know how those guys can look at themselves in the mirror” he said in reference to fighters that use them. He said he doesn’t know how guys can think they’re badass and then turn around and stick a needle in their ass.

Jon Fitch on Tuna

He said that as he was growing up, he had to eat canned tuna 3-4 times a day because it was affordable and he needed the protein. He followed that statement up by jokingly saying that “ if I could take all the canned tuna in the world and get rid of it, I would”. I guess the guy doesn’t like tuna very much.

Jon Fitch on training with a Gi

He said he still trains with a Gi because he views it like “adding weights to a barbell”. He said that training with a Gi is less forgiving and it forces you to be more technical. Obviously he feels that training with a Gi will improve your no-Gi game.

Jon Fitch on Fight Training

He said that in the months leading up to a fight, it’s very fight specific. His training camp is geared around the style of his opponent. If he’s fighting a wrestler, he’ll get more wrestlers in to train with. If he’s fighting a BJJ specialist, then he’ll train more BJJ. He’s already a BJJ black belt and a wrestler so if there’s anything he needs to work on, it’s striking and I suppose that’s why he’s made this trip out to Thailand.

Jon Fitch on Coming Through the Ranks

As he was talking about customizing his training camp around the strengths of his opponent, the conversation sort of branched off and he started talking about the “old days” when he was coming up through the ranks. He said that back then, he’d show up and he wouldn’t know who he was fighting. The only time he’d have to evaluate his opponent was while he was warming up. He’d say to his friend “dude, what’s he doing over there? Can you see?” his friend would say “Yeah man, he’s doing some crane-karate shit”. “Alright” says Fitch, “I have to watch out for the flying crane kick”.

He also said that back then, he’d often get asked to fight multiple times in 1 night. He said that on one occasion, a promoter came up to him after his first fight and offered him 100 bucks to fight again. Fitch declined and then the promoter offered him 500 dollars to fight, but not to knock his opponent out. Fitch said that he agreed, but knocked the guy out so he only got the 100 dollars. On top of that, he broke his thumb in the process which cost $700/$7000 to fix. I didn’t quite hear the exact amount. I hope it wasn’t $7000 to fix a thumb. If that’s the case, than wow .. I hope Obama improves the health care system.

Wrapping It Up

At the end of the seminar, Jon Fitch stuck around and took photos with each of the attendees. There was about 60 people in total. He seemed like a nice guy for sure. I think he and his team mates are flying back to the states tomorrow morning..

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From Canada to Thailand .. Permanently? .. I hope so!

While I’ve been watching movies, I’ve been multitasking and writing articles to submit to article directories. Since I’ve been here, I’ve been researching ways to earn money online and someone in the message boards turned me on to “article marketing”. To sum it up, you basically research highly searched, yet non-competitive keywords in Google, write an article on the topic emphasizing those keywords and submit it to the article directories. Somewhere within the article (usually at the bottom), you insert a link to a product you’re promoting. The goal is obviously to get your article listed on the first page in Google. If you can manage that, you can potentially get a lot of page views and as a result, you increase the likelihood that the reader will follow the link to whatever product you’re promoting and make a purchase - as you then earn a commission.

It doesn’t take much to live here in Thailand. The cost of living here is about 4 times less than what it is back in Canada. To put that in perspective, if you earn 50 dollars a day while living here, your lifestyle will be similar to the lifestyle you would have back home if you were earning 200 dollars a day. The reason I’m even mentioning this is because I know a lot of you guys are considering coming out to Thailand to train at some point. If you were to generate some sort of income while you’re here, you could then stay longer - because trust me, you’re not going to want to go home. I know I don’t!

Anyway, I’m still in Phuket and as you can see from the photo - it’s beautiful. I’m actually still living at Tiger Muay Thai and aside from the injury, things are going well. There’s no new crazy Thai girl stories since there really isn’t any girls around. Chalong - where the camp is located - is a very uneventful area. Me and my buddy went to “Chalong circle” the other night to get some food and we came across the “nightlife” area. It’s nothing but a few raggedy bars with a bunch of old, ugly ladies hollering at you when you walk by. Did I mention how old they are? It’s so bad that it’s almost laughable. For me though, that’s a good thing. There’s absolutely no temptation to go out and get involved with anything other than work and training.

And Speaking of my Training

Even though I injured my ankle, I’ve still been doing what I can. I obviously can’t kick so I’ve been doing some western boxing. The trainers have all been really good about working around my injury. However, today - for the first time in 2 weeks - I was able to throw a kick. I can only kick with my right leg (as my left foot is injured), but when you’re living on-site and you constantly see people kicking the pads - it’s just a frustrating reminder of what you can’t do! Needless to say, my workout today felt good.

However, one of my workouts last week didn’t feel so good. Not because I got hurt physically - although I do have quite the black eye - but rather, it’s the ego blow that hurt more than anything. I was paired off with the biggest guy at the camp for sparring. This guy is about 6’7 or so and weighs about 270lbs. It was just light sparring and nothing was taken overboard (luckily for me). I usually do well when sparring against people my own size but against this guy, I just couldn’t get by his reach. I basically ate jabs for 3 rounds. It certainly makes me appreciate fighters that are able to overcome their opponents reach advantage like Mike Zambidis and even Fedor Emelianenko in his last couple fights.

Speaking of professional fighters, Jon Fitch is here - but I’m sure I already mentioned that. Here’s a video of him doing his early morning padwork (I was most likely trying to sleep in the room to the right of the motorbike when this video was shot.)

As you can see from the video, the pad-holders here are incredible. I’ve worked with about 4 of them now and they’re all amazing. It certainly beats the group Muay Thai classes back at home where your pad-holders are your fellow students.

Anyway, now that I’ll be spending more time training and less time watching DVD’s now that my foot is getting better, hopefully I’ll have a lot more to write about.

Also, if you want to learn more about that internet marketing stuff that I’m trying (start of the entry), check out these two resources.

Wealthy Affiliate
- This site is membership based (about a dollar a day) and it basically walks you through all the different techniques. This site is really good for beginners as it’ll teach you from scratch.

Warrior Forum
- This is the biggest internet marketing forum and it’s free. Any time you have a question about anything, just throw a post up in here and you’ll have an answer within minutes.