I have been super busy. We were in Cincinnati, Ohio last weekend for the Jean Jacques Machado Tri-State Open grappling tournament. It was held at the Reed Academy of Martial Arts and the tourney was on Sunday the 4th.
Totally forgot (or didn’t pay attention), but that was daylight savings weekend. So we went ahead two hours, got thrown back an hour, then went back home two hours… Needless to say, I have just caught up on sleep.
Also been fighting off something I contracted from the trip, probably on the bus with wings. Hahaha.
On Saturday, we were shown around Cincinnati by Kevin, we went to Jungle Jim’s, it’s the most amazing grocery store ever! Then to a mall, we got a pic at the Cheesecake Factory! Then we went to lunch at LaRosa’s Pizza.
After that, we took a drive through Cincinnati and into Kentucky to see the skyline of the city. We headed down to an old neighborhood called Over the Rhine. It was really amazing all of the old buildings that are rich in history. If you didn’t know, we are kind of nerds in our house.
Sunday was the grappling tournament. I entered in the NoGi division. Unfortunately, there was only one other female in my weight class and she had two months experience, so I did what I always do, and competed with the men.
I’m sure everyone remembers me talking about working some sneaky new moves for the tourney, well they said “no slicers of any kind”. Bummer deal. The girl I rolled with’s name is Sarah Elizabeth.
We didn’t know the brackets until right after rules meeting. She asked me to please not kill her. I told her that she was going to win the gold, just that I was going to make her work for it.
I am not the kind of person to just go in and destroy someone because they are less than me. That is an opportunity to help progress the sport that I live for and love. I coached her through our match and she earned that gold.
So for the men’s advanced division, my first roll was with Justin McNally. If you don’t know him you should. He is on his way up, he just set a record in Bellator for the fastest submission in the history of their promotion, 38-seconds with a Triangle choke.
We rolled for 6 minutes, and he won by points. Next I rolled with one of his ground coaches and he tapped me. I learned some things and so did they.
By then it was dinner time so we ate and then went out to Go Bananas Comedy Club with a group from the gym. Thanks for inviting us! I haven’t ever been to one and it was funny! Got a pic with one of the comedians named Nikki Glaser. She has a show coming out on MTV and she is hilarious!
We went back Monday evening for some mat time, then left early Tuesday morning. Glad to be home and back on schedule.
I want to thank everyone from the Reed Academy that we met that weekend. You are all very kind and your hospitality was amazing. Thanks Stu for letting us stay with you and Kevin for being our guide around the city. As well as everyone else, thank you!
Check out my Cincinnati album, it has pics of the grappling tourney in it too!
The holidays are here and so is winter. We just had our first good snow of the season. Mark has gone from lawn boy to the snow blowing kid. He also got his report card. All A’s and two B’s! Like we always say, good job and there is always room for improvement. He is definitely a keeper!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog, I love sharing with you all, and hope if you ever have any questions for me to please contact me on my website! I greatly appreciate all of your support!
I want to shout out to my gym Alternative Athletics Crossfit and 4th Ave. Dojo, this is truly the best place on earth! I am very grateful to have my amazing husband/coach in my corner; thanks for always having my best interest at mind. I also want to thank my training partner and friend Ferg for putting in the hours at the gym with me! Thanks guys!!
I want to say thanks to all of my fans, family, and friends for all of your continued love and support. Thanks to Jack and Denny with ProMMAnow.com, as well as my sponsors ~ Polanti Watches ~ Training Mask ~ Nutrabio.com ~ Damage Control Mouthguards and also www.dcathletix.com ~ No Pain Just Glory.
Please be sure to check out my website at www.patriciavidonic.com — my signature men’s and women’s shirts are ready to be ordered! You can also follow me on Twitter at @
XOXO Little Patricia
~ Red Power ~
My interview with TakedownMMA Radio
http://youtu.be/IQpv1lHuz6I
Lil P vs. Justin McNally at the Jean Jacques Machado Tri-State Open
