bj penn trains Special Forces soldiers

[DickHardman]

there is an article on http://www.bjpenn.com/ about bj training green berets.

"On Pearl Harbor Day BJ Penn, voted one of the best pound-for-pound fighters ever by Elite Fighter magazine, gave his own time and expertise to some Green Berets at Fort Lewis, Washington simply because he wanted to contribute to the war on terror. At his own expense and with his younger brother Reagan, himself a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt, in tow, BJ spent two days with the 1st Special Forces Group sharing his vast knowledge of submission grappling…twice. BJ - Special ForcesDisplaying true character and dedication, BJ not only conducted a two-hour seminar with Soldiers from across the Group, but he also took another hour to train with members of the Headquarters the next morning. For a man who nominally garners up to $5,000 an hour for his services, this was a tremendous gift.

"My time is nothing compared to saving a life," BJ offered. "If I can show them a skill that they use in combat or something that helps get them out of a bad situation, then I’m happy to do it."

With over five hundred documented cases of hand-to-hand combat since the war on terrorism began, it’s not unlikely that this scenario could happen either.BJ - Special Forces For his time and effort, BJ was treated to a static display of Special Forces equipment and received familiarization training on several different weapon systems. As gracious as he was with his grappling skills, he was equally as kind with his personal time, having breakfast with the troops in the Group dining facility and sharing dinner at a local restaurant with ten soldiers, some of whom recently returned from Iraq. During his visit, BJ never hesitated to give one-on-one instruction, take a picture, shake a hand or sign an autograph and was presented with a "Special Forces Brotherhood" certificate by the Group Commander, COL Eric Wendt. "Actions speak louder than words," COL Wendt said. "He did this out of his own pocket just to show support for us. He’s a warrior who will always be welcome in First Group."
By the time BJ and Reagan left, the legendary northwest fog finally lifted and Mount Rainier came into view. "It’s not Hawaii, but I like the Northwest," BJ admitted. "I could definitely come back."

[Tom Yum]

That's very generous of BJ and I'm sure the lesson was a treat!

[DickHardman]

i think its interesting that they stated that there have been over five hundred confirmed cases of hand to hand combat confrontations have taken place during the iraq/afghanistan campaigns(at least i think thats what they a referring to).

[JaredExtreme]

Cool story! When I first started BJJ I took classes at a school in tacoma that had lots of army rangers, their cardio was amazing!

[wavyd]

My BJJ instructors were Drills in the Marine Corp so I know what you mean about amazing cardio.