...but here I am, begging for votes.

My name is Rob Capili. I am the head BJJ instructor at Team Take Flight in Salinas, CA. I began my martial arts journey at the University of Oklahoma in the 90's training Judo under Pat Burris and Ron Trip (Yes, THAT Ron Trip). But after blowing out my knee, I gave up the manly art of throwing people and became a lowly butt scooter.

I started training BJJ under Daniel Thomas in Monterey, CA in late 2004. Coach Daniel was a Black Belt under Claudio Franca out of Santa Cruz. I stayed with Daniel until purple belt, then switched to a sister school when I moved to a new city. I trained and taught at Kugtar MMA in Salinas, Ca for many years and was awarded my black belt by Vince Vanderlipe in 2017.

I left Kugtar to do non-profit work and currently teach BJJ at Team Take Flight in Salinas. The founder of TTF created the organization after his sister was murdered due to gang violence. He wanted a way for the youth to channel their energies in a positive manner, so he created TTF to provide free BJJ and MMA classes to the community. Since then, we have grown from a small hole in the wall gym to larger hole in the wall gym with an incredible community and mission. And, despite our humble circumstances, we have produced numerous local champions. You can check us out at @ttfmma on instagram.

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading. That's my story. If you have a moment, please vote for me and help me realize my dream of becoming a real internet black belt.