A special day on the mats on Saturday! Black belt promotions don't come around very often, so to get the chance to give 2 out on Saturday to a pair of really deserving guys was a nice moment.

Ken Cooney and Stan Ciocan are 2 long serving Jiu Jitsu students here, and two guys you can guarantee a great roll from every time they step on the mat. Congratulations to them!

Ken did a Ken and legged it before I could get a photo!

And I also gave out some well earned promotions in the other belts too. Seon Kelly got his long-overdue brown belt. He's a popular training partner and a modest guy on and off the mat. Maybe too modest!

Emma Smith had a big layoff with injury, but battled back to become the consistent presence on the mats that she is now. I was delighted to give her a purple belt on Saturday.

And finally, I presented Daire O'Mahony, Brendan Killoch, and Conor Killoch with their blue belts. Daire has been putting in solid work the last while, and Brendan and Conor are an incredibly consistent father and son team.

Actually, while we've got a lot of parents and kids training here, including some adult duos, this was my first time giving a blue belt to a parent and child at the same time, so that was cool!

Of course, it was the usual great craic that we usually have on a Kyuzo Belt test day. A huge challenge for the folks going for their belts, and great craic for the rest of us. I love these days because we get to have so many of us on the mat at the same time. With everyone's schedule being different, some people might not train together for months at a time. It's great to have the chance to see everyone together.

Thank you to all who made it there on Saturday, and to everyone who contributes to the vibes!

See you on the mat,

Barry