Roy Harris is one of the first-ever American black belts and is part of the infamous ‘dirty dozen’ as he was one of the first 12 Americans to achieve the rank. Currently living in San Diego, California, Harris originates from Minnesota and started training BJJ at 28 years old. He originally got into Jiu Jitsu after being told it was good for ground fighting, as he puts it “In the 1980s, I had tried a bit of wrestling, Judo and Shooto. But because the people I trained with were so much better than me, and because they trained so intensely, I developed a lot of bruising and a dislike for the ground. But, because my Jeet Kune Do instructors told me I needed to learn how to fight on the ground, I decided to give BJJ a try”.
Now a 6th degree black belt, he received this rank at age 55 years old and says “I was very honored because I was one of two Americans to have obtained that rank at that time.” With this said, Harris is clearly a veteran of the art. He currently trains at Master Joe Moreira’s Academy, who was also one of the first Brazilians to reach the US and start teaching.
We asked Harris about his involvement in the ‘dirty dozen’ and what it meant back in the day, he claimed “In the early days, things were very different than they are now. There wasn’t any emphasis on throws, takedowns, or cross-training. There weren’t many schools or choices where to train. The details of techniques were often ‘hidden’. Having trained with some of the first generation American students, I remember the hard training sessions we went through. I remember being told NOT to practice outside of the academy (so we wouldn’t develop bad habits). I remember the in-house competitions between schools (long before the IBJJF and other organizations). I remember the ‘Gracie Challenge.’ I remember the stories from Rickson, Royce, Royler and Rorion. I remember when wrestlers and Judokas first started attending classes.”
In brief, he is a bit of a history book when it comes to BJJ in America – and has some fascinating stories to show for it.
When playing guard, Harris prefers the Butterfly position – and states “My favorite guard position is Butterfly guard, mainly because I have incorporated legs locks, striking and wrist locks since mid-1991. My favorite sweep is the knee push sweep – mainly because I am not forced to lift my opponent’s body up and off of the mat. I have found this to be a much more efficient sweep for my students and I”. He also enjoys hunting for wristlocks and Kimuras when submitting, adding “It would either be a bent wrist lock or the Kimura. I like both of them because they are high percentage and I can find them from almost every position (for example top of the front mount, bottom of the front mount, top of the side mount, bottom of the side mount, inside the guard, someone inside of my guard, etc.)”
Elsewhere, he also has developed a few concepts whilst passing. Focusing on the over under pass, he uses this position until getting through his opponent and has a certain philosophy behind the move – claiming “In my own training, I have taken guard passing to another level. Instead of focusing on ‘technique’, I have found another – more efficient method that works very well for me and the students and instructors who train with me. I pass the guard on my knees from one of twelve positions. And, I don’t try to pass until I reach these positions. I only use the basic under the leg guard pass and the basic over the leg guard pass – it doesn’t matter which guard my opponent uses. Also, I have one concept running through my head when I pass the guard – rather than wondering which of the 57 guard passing techniques should I use now.”
It seems like many practitioners, Harris has his own style and mentality which has served him well down the years.
Being decades deep into BJJ, Harris has also competed many times down the years and currently weighs in at the Ultra-heavy category under IBJJF measurements. When asked about his toughest ever opponent, he says “Vernon ‘Tiger’ White! Having sparred with thousands of people on this planet, I can say that, pound for pound, Vernon was the strongest person I have ever competed against. Now, add to his incredible strength a good grappling foundation given to him by his coach, UFC Legend Ken Shamrock, and you can see why I was so exhausted at the end of our match. At the end of the match, we shook hands and hugged. As we embraced, he said, “Now I know why they call you The Boa! Thanks man.”
However, as with many seasoned competitors, he has had a number of injuries and lists his worst as breaking a rib and a pinched nerve at the base of his neck. Having said this, it is not a bad record for someone who has had a lifetime of martial arts and years of training under his belt!
We also asked him about his thoughts on modern-day guards such as the Worm guard position. Harris was open-minded in his response, but also believes fundamentals are successful for a reason, adding “As a practitioner, I do not keep up with all of the new guards coming out. But as an instructor, I have to remain aware of some of these new innovations so I can help my students with them. However, with an understanding and a working knowledge of the fundamentals of Jiu Jitsu (and of movement), there are very few things that can be a great surprise.
Personally, I think one of the drawbacks to Jiu Jitsu is that there has been so much evolution with one position – the guard – and very little to no evolution with the other positions. In the years to come, I’d love to see the next generation of practitioners develop and polish the other positions in Jiu Jitsu. For me, I have focused my own personal evolution on the ‘other’ positions. I have done so for two main reasons: My own struggle with neck problems and that so many students have come to me from other associations with neck, back and knee problems. While the guard is an amazing position, the manner in which it is over-emphasized and trained can be (and has been) injurious to certain students. So while I teach and emphasize the four primary guards to my students and instructors, I also encourage them to work on and develop the other positions – rather than follow certain trends.”
He goes on to add:
“One last point: The manner in which I present the guard simplifies the process of passing. Therefore, it doesn’t matter which guard a training partner does. The guard passes will end up being the same. Let me give you an example: I had a student at a seminar ask me for my thoughts on the new “Worm Guard” when it first came out. I told him, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I asked him to show me and he did.
He went through 8-9 movements to untangle my leg and arm, and then asked me how I would pass this guard. I said, “Do you honestly believe I would sit here and allow you to do all of those movements before I began the process of passing the guard? Let’s try this. You lie on your back and place me inside of your guard. Someone from the sidelines will say, ‘go.’ When they say go, you start your worm guard and I’ll start passing. Then we will see what happens.”
Long story short, he couldn’t take the cloth and entangle me fast enough to make the Worm Guard effective. So I told him, “I’m not saying the Worm Guard doesn’t work. All I’m saying is all that entanglement the way you showed me is very time-consuming. If I stay still and don’t move for several seconds, you have a great chance of completing your entanglement. But if I move into my pass positioning, which only takes me 2-3 movements, then your Worm Guard is going to suffer. Think about this as you begin to invest yourself into this new innovation. Some innovations are awesome pragmatically, and others are only awesome artistically.”
What guard passing did I do on this brown belt, Worm Guard specialist? I performed the basic under the leg guard pass on my knees. Nothing fancy”
He continues…“To me, saying the words ‘martial arts is like saying the word, ‘Vehicle’. It’s really non-descriptive. In martial arts, and more specifically Jiu Jitsu, training has so much to offer people that it can’t be confined to one way of thinking. For example, if some students want to focus on sport, then that’s great. If other students want to focus on self-defense, great. And if other students want to focus on tradition, philosophy, artistic expression, or physical fitness, those are also great!
But I also think it’s important to be honest about one’s pursuit. For example, being involved in an artistic or tournament-oriented endeavor is not self-defense. And, showing video footage of your practitioners picking fights with other people on the beach is not self-defense – it’s just another form of bullying. So because I believe Jiu Jitsu can help students meet their needs and reach their goals, I think it’s awesome that students focus their attention on the things that matter most to them. And if they are happy and become fit in the process, even better! Good for them.
What I think is missing in martial arts and Jiu Jitsu training is the idea that it is a very personal journey for all of us. And if we can reach our goals through this means, then that’s all that matters. In martial arts and Jiu Jitsu, as a hobby and a vocation, BJJ has given me a way in which to have fun and stay in decent shape, a way to meet new people and become great friends with some of them, a way in which to make an honest living and travel the world, a way in which I can keep myself safe as I travel the globe. ( I have used my training on more than one occasion) and a tool which I have used to help me become more efficient in other areas of life.
I want to encourage all who read this to find and pursue your own journey – because Jiu Jitsu, Kalis Ilustrisimo, Jeet Kune Do, and all of the other styles I have trained have provided me with many life-enriching friendships and experiences. For all of these things, I am very thankful”
Away from the specific details of his game, we asked Harris about his biggest achievements in BJJ. He responded in saying “On the professional side of things: I inspired the BJJ community to take an honest look at leg and wrist locks. Secondly, I inspired many within the BJJ community to consider taking a more structured approach to teaching and training in Jiu Jitsu. Thirdly, I simplified BJJ for the ‘Over 40’ and ‘Over 50’ practitioners. On the personal side of things: I helped troubled youth turn their lives around to become productive members of society. I helped talk several students through suicidal thoughts and watching them become positive and productive again. I also helped reunite a handful of married couples who were on the verge of divorce”.
It is clear after listening to this, that Harris really lives and breathes the Jiu Jitsu lifestyle and has had a massive impact on many people’s lives, both on and off the mat. Interestingly however, he claims Roy Dean as the most influential practitioner on his style. This shows the full circle of BJJ, as Harris was Dean’s teacher. As the saying goes, this is a good sign of a good teacher; when the student can begin teaching their own instructor at some point.
Like Roy Dean, Harris is a fan of the traditional grading system and Harris was actually the man who bought the system into BJJ and says “Yes. I made a grading system for BJJ. I did this back in 1997-1998. I did so because I got tired of all the favoritism I had witnessed. I also did this because – except for Rorion Gracie – no one had ever presented Jiu Jitsu to me in a structured manner. The subjects taught in class were all over the map and was very difficult to follow. Let me give you an example, one of the first group classes I ever attended presented the following techniques – A couple of head lock escapes, a knee bar, a front mount escape, and an arm lock. And then, we sparred! Can you see how confused I was at the end of this class? So, after experiencing this again and again, I decided to do something about this chaos!”.
As he previously mentioned earlier, Harris takes pride in adding structure into the BJJ curriculum. Whilst training is widely structured in this manner today, it may not have been had he not been involved and it’s easy to take a systematic lesson for granted compared to the days of sporadic teachings with various moves shown at once.
We also asked about his possible falling out with Brazilians such as the Machados to which Harris claims is in the past now, stating “Yes, back in the early 1990s there was some bad blood because of how I was treated and what people said about me. But I have moved on from this and have chosen to focus on the good and the positive. I am grateful for what my former instructors taught me!”.
This is one of the benefits of training BJJ, learning that sometimes it’s better to move on and be grateful for the good things in life.
Finally, he adds “I plan to focus more efforts on my international cadre of instructors as well as put more digital content out there. In the winter of 2020, I plan to add more articles, iOS and Android apps, more online courses, more books and more free YouTube videos! Please watch www.royharris.com for more details.” You can also find his book here.
