Oni Perez was a huge presence within Masterskya. Please read below. All the best to you, brother!

Open Letter to Masterskya

When I first moved to Bushwick, the experience itself wasn’t great. I had just ended a 4-year relationship, had to move out of my nice two-bedroom apartment in Astoria, and had to say goodbye to the dog, which was probably the worse part. It was a new chapter in my life, and as with most people, change isn’t always easy to deal with initially. I had roommates for the first time in a long time. I had a new neighborhood to get familiar with, and I missed all the old places I frequented that were now too far of a commute. One of those places, was where I trained jiu jitsu.

At that point in my life, being 40 and single, still over weight, still struggling to get healthy after years of abandonment and abuse to my body as a road comedian, jiu jitsu was my saving grace. My only hope to get back to a healthy, fit lifestyle that I once enjoyed in my youth. So, I was completely devastated to say the least, when I had to move an hour and a half away from the Astoria school. I didn’t know what I was going to do, where I would be able to find a school close by, with quality training, and if it was even cool to change schools like that due to travel issues. Like, how would the Brazilians take to someone ending their contract with them because the J train doesn’t go to Astoria? Would I be shunned? Would I be a traitor? Would I be accepted by a new school? WHAT HAPPENS NOW?

What happens next could only be described as fate. A cosmic conundrum that to this day I’m skeptical about.

I am not a man of faith, nor do I entertain the notion of the universe changing the order of this to benefit you, the individual, in some way. Like seriously, who do you think you are that the forces of nature would change the schedule of a train, so you could get to work on time? Or change the direction of things just to make your life easier? But… weird things do happen, and this was one of them.

A lot of people hate algorithms on the internet that focus on what you search for, and use that information to advertise to you. Like if you look up watches on Amazon, then the next time you’re on Facebook there’s a dozen or so ads for watches. They see you. They know what you like. And they advertise to you accordingly, and I always hated it too! Stop watching me, Big Brother! Or the NSA! I hated it, that is, until a video ad for a new jiu jitsu school in Bushwick showed up on my Facebook wall. What’s this now? A new school? At first, I was almost dismissive of it, as I end to be with ads. But in this case, it was slightly different, since I had just moved to Bushwick, and I was stressed out about the travel to my old school.

I played the video. On it, a guy with a ponytail spoke about this revolutionary new concept of a donation-based jiu jitsu school that welcomed everyone. They were a new school, in a new up and coming neighborhood, and they had a unique outlook on training – mainly that no one should be denied the ability to train just because of money. I was fascinated by that. Really was. What a cool concept. But my real focus as this young dude spoke was, “where is it located?” And this is where things get weird. You see, the school, this new jiu jitsu school that I, no lie, wish for it to exist since I had moved to Bushwick, was located literally 30 seconds from my front door. I’ll repeat that, because the ridiculousness of this fact still, to this day,freaks me out.

So let me say it again: I wished for a jiu jitsu school near me, and a week later I see a video for a new school 30 SECONDS FROM MY FRONT DOOR.

At first, I honestly didn’t believe it was true. When the location came up on Google Maps I initially thought it was a fake ad and I was being taken for a ride. I walked out of my apartment, walked the 30 seconds around the corner, and holy crap THERE IT WAS. A for real, new school right there, not 20 steps from my front door. I…I didn’t know what to think. Sure, it’s all coincidence, right? These things happen. I mean, it’s not so outrageous of an idea for someone to look for a space to teach jiu jitsu in an up and coming neighborhood where a business owner could still find decent rent. But THAT CLOSE? I just couldn’t believe it.

I joined Masterskya almost immediately. There was some “breaking up” to do with my old school but they were fine about it; as fine about it as one can be when they lose a client I guess. But no worries, I’ve since stayed in contact with many of the guys I trained with there and see them in competitions all the time and we still have what I can consider a friendship. So I was now training under Alex Ecklin. Cool!

The best part about Masterskya, and continues to be so, is the quality of the training. Sure, it’s super affordable (accessible?) and it’s donation based, so if ever you were struggling financially in life, you know you can still train. But without hyping anyone or any school up more than another, the quality and broad spectrum of training found
at Masterskya, along with the personality of the coaches, is unlike any that I have personally experienced in my
almost 4 years of training and travelling to different schools. There’s just nothing like Masterskya.

The atmosphere, the technics, the hard rolls, the advanced leg lock systems, the focus on fundamentals and classic self-defense, the wrestling and judo technics, the energy during class, the sparing partners, the available classes, the mix of gi and nogi…it’s just above and beyond what many schools put out there. It’s something I never thought I would experience when I watched that guy with a ponytail on Facebook that one day. And it’s what I will truly miss the most about my time at Masterskya.

To all the people that I’ve trained with at Masterskya, thank you. It’s because of you that I, now about to turn 43 years old, feel younger and younger every day. To the coaches, Alex and Van, you guys keep doing what you’re doing. The passion you show and give in every class you teach, is something that most teachers and educators strive for, and it seems to come relatively easy to you guys. I thank both of you sincerely for everything you’ve shown me, and for the time and energy you put into your craft. I only hope I can do the same one day when I achieve the rank of black belt.

I don’t know if/when I’ll be back in New York. I don’t think it will be any time soon if I’m being honest. But I will say this, if I do return to New York, you can bet that I will be training at Masterskya the entire time I’m there. Thanks again for everything and see you guys on the mats someday soon!

Your OSS bother,
Oni Perez