For our Karate Students and Fellow Instructors:

We’d like to invite you to the “Yamashiro in the Berkshires” mini-camp.  The camp will feature four days of intensive instruction and cultural exchange in October with Master Hirokuni Yamashiro, a Kyoshi, 8th Dan of the Okinawa Karate-Do Association.  Sensei Yamashiro will cover a variety of topics in the Karate style best known as Uechi-Ryu (a.k.a. Shohei-Ryu) including: Sanchin, Hojo Undo, Kata, Bunkai, Yakusoko Kumite (Dai Ichi & Dai Ni), Kote Kite, and Kumite Principles & Drills.  The focus in these sessions will be keeping participants engaged and busy.  The journeyman instructor will be joined by special guest Fumiko Tsuchida (4th Dan in Karate and 1st Dan in Kobudo/
Okinawan Weapons), who will conduct a Bo/staff clinic.   The event will conclude with a Demonstration and farewell Banquet.
The camp will be held Thursday, October 20 through Sunday, October 23 in the beautiful Berkshire hills of Western Massachusetts. All training sessions will be held at ZenQuest, and limited to a maximum of twenty-five participants.  Full enrollment will allow participants to attend unlimited training sessions during the camp.  There is also a “Per Diem” option for attending individual days.  Pre-registration by September 21 will result in significant savings for the camp, and early-bird pre-registration before August 21 will receive a FREE camp T-shirt for any pre-registrants enrolling for at least two days; a 50% discount will be given to those pre-registrants enrolled for one day only!
Click *HERE* for a link to our information and registration packet for the camp.  Please look this over and let us know if you have any questions.  Participants must submit registration forms and correct payment to be considered registered.  Feel free to duplicate more of the camp registration packets if needed, and share with other  students and Karate enthusiast.  
Thanks, we are looking forward to seeing you and enjoying some great training together!

Sincerely,

Senseis Mark and Connie

Hey ZenQuest kids! 
Join us for the return of “Movie Night” for Children on Saturday, August 19.  This is a fun way for the kids to have some pure fun and relaxation with their friends at ZenQuest, and their parents to have some down-time of their own!
The event will start at 6:00 PM, with the first of two children’s movies starting at 6:15 PM.  The second movie will start at about 8:00 PM after a brief intermission.  Pick-up will be no later than 9:15 PM after the second movie, and younger students may be picked-up after the first movie if needed.  
Kids may bring pillows, blankets, bean-bag chairs, sleeping-bags, etc. to sit on.  Kids may bring drinks and snacks, but they must be in spill-proof containers.  
There is no charge for enrolled students, and a $5 for non-students.  To have your kids participate, simply let us know how many will be attending.  This will be our first movie night in many years, so join us for a night of fun!
 

​Matt “the Machine” Bienia is now 4-0, and the NEW “Kaged Kombat” Lightweight MMA Champion!  He won via 3rd round TKO against a very gamy Wyatt Roberts, who went into the match undefeated with a record of 4-0.  In what was easily the “fight of the night” in the promotion’s 27th installment, Bienia ground out the win with amazing cage work, Jiu-jitsu, ground-and-pound, and relentless determination. 
The bout began with the two trading heavy blows in the center of the cage.  Wyatt used his reach advantage to win several of the exchanges, until Matt pressed him into the cage at about 30 seconds into the round.  Matt positioned for a takedown and Wyatt defended well until 1:16, when they separated and immediately began throwing punches again.  This continued until Matt pushed Wyatt into the cage again and scored a nice double-leg takedown at 2:00.  Matt jockeyed for position and began to land vicious “ground-and-pound” strikes from above for the next 40+ seconds.  Many people felt that the fight should have been stopped at that point, but it probably continued because the title was on the line.  Just before the round ended Wyatt caught an arm-bar, but Matt defended beautifully and attacked again as the horn sounded.  The crowd was electrified by the pace, intensity, and strategies that were happening in this co-main event, and the level of noise rose significantly. 
Round 2 also started the with the two exchanging blows, and Wyatt opening up and connecting more.  At 46 seconds, Matt set-up and executed a textbook double-leg takedown in the center of the cage, and Wyatt sprawled to counter.  Matt continued to press forward, got mounted position against the cage, and began to ground-and-pound heavily again.   Wyatt eventually escaped, starting an animated grappling exchange ending with Wyatt in “side-control.”  The two were visibly tired and Wyatt spent the better part of the next minute attempting to strike and improve his position while Matt defended well.  Matt eventually escaped and “up-kicked” Wyatt back, then began to attack again just before the round ended.  Wyatt was slow to get up and return to his corner.
In Round 3, Matt quickly began to press Wyatt into the cage.  Wyatt used lateral movement and hooking punches to defend, but Matt was relentless, trapping Wyatt against the fence at 23 seconds in.  Matt then methodically got the takedown, went to the mount, and began an incredible barrage of strikes until the referee stoppage at 1:10 of the round.    
In an amazing display of respect, the two warriors met in the center of the cage after the fight and exchanged bows and hugs.  The crowd went wild in appreciation for what they had just seen.  Matt’s coaches, training partners, and the 40+ fans from Team ZenQuest were all ecstatic about the win.  The official announcement was made, and the belt was placed around Matt’s waist.
Matt worked extremely hard to prepare for this fight, and THAT is largely what got him the win.  Several people helped him prepare in the team trainings including, of course, Neil “Beast Mode” Von Flatern...and a HUGE thank you goes out to those people.  In a way, every student is a part of this accomplishment, and can feel good about their gym being the home of champions like Matt Bienia! 
 

​Demian Maia will enter the UFC octagon again on Saturday, August 27 in his pursuit of the Welterweight title.  Professor Maia will face former Interim UFC Welterweight Champion, and WEC Welterweight Champion, Carlos Condit.
Nicknamed "The Natural Born Killer," Condit is regarded as one of the most ferocious finishers in the fight game.  An astounding 28 of his 30 professional wins have ended via stoppage, including knockouts of Rory MacDonald, Thiago Alves, and Dong Hyun Kim. Condit holds just a 2-4 record since late 2012, however two of those losses came in title fights, and a third arrived when Condit blew out his knee in a 2014 bout against Tyron Woodley.
Maia (23-6), on the other hand, is one of the division's hottest contenders. The 38-year-old jiu-jitsu master has won five consecutive fights, highlighted by absolutely dominant performances over Neil Magny, Gunnar Nelson, and Matt Brown. Known for his mat wizardry, Maia is 8-2 inside the UFC since dropping down from the middleweight division to welterweight in 2012.  A win over Condit would likely earn Professor Demian a long awaited title shot, and solidify his place in MMA history.
Ask about our viewing party at M&M’s Tavern on the 27th, too!