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A Grappler's Smorgasbord [Figuratively & Literally] by Mark Hatmaker


RAWarriors, just as we have been doing with resurrecting some little-known or forgotten Old School Boxing and Frontier Rough ‘n’ Tumble, it’s time to dust off our wrasslin’ ar
cheology.


We’ve got a tooooon of old-school grappling fun we’ve been sitting on but a deal [book/video] has held up a bit of the unveiling of this material. But now…we’ve got the go ahead for us to start shoveling some fun for the RAW Crew only. [No freebie video that is the producer’s stipulation.]


I offer a few nuggets below.


A familiar quote we should all hold utmost in our mat-lovin’ breasts: “Conditioning is the best finishing hold.”-Gene Lebell


Here’s the great George Tragos, mentor of the also great Lou Thesz on the what he considered The Four Linchpins of Grappling Education: “Leverage, balance, holds, and counter-holds.”


It is with “counter-holds” in mind and George’s teaching tactics at his gym nicknamed “Tragos’ Torture Chamber” where he made it a practice for the grappling pupil to spend more time in bad or down positions than top or “peach” positions that we’ll always make room for escapes and counter-holds on upcoming RAWs.


Or in the words of Mr. Tragos himself: “Any fool can start on top, if you start on the bottom you learn to wrestle!”
Wait till you get a load of some past hurt like Knuckled Power Halves, Deep V Neck-Cranks, Re-Crossed Leg Scissors, Wicked Whizzers, and on and on and on. We’ll start this unveiling with RAW 202, first up- The Roman Sleeper. Ouch!


We’ll be running the grappling portion of the RAWs like you’ve just finished a day of chores at the Zbyszko Brothers farm in Missouri and it’s time to step into the Barn for a little “stretching.”


As for the titled mention of a literal smorgasbord, I offer an old-time grappler’s favorite recipe, [just one of the many odd and entertaining bits uncovered in research.]


This was a favorite of Edouard Carpentier [Edouard Weicz.] He may not have been a pure grappler, but real-deal hardmen such as Lou Thesz respected the hell out of his conditioning [he could go and go and go], his work ethic, agility, and ever-growing skill set. That skill-set must have been formidable indeed as Ivan “The Russian Bear” Koloff, who knew a thing or three about wrestling compared Carpentier to Billy Robinson in that he was not someone you wanted to cross. High Praise.


Rabbit, Saute Bourguignonnes

2 lbs. rabbit cut into 3-inch pieces

1 sliced onion

1 lb. young peeled onions

½ cup cubed salt pork

½ cup flour

1 raw carrot, sliced

Few springs rosemary

2 stalks celery sliced

1 bay leaf

1 qt. dry red-wine

2 teaspoons salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 cup ripe olives
Place rabbit in earthenware jar. Add sliced onions, carrots, rosemary, celery, and bay leaf. Cover with red wine and let stand overnight.
Remove meat from mixture, wiping it dry. Season and roll in flour. Place oil in frying pan and sauté rabbit until golden brown. Then add rest of flour. Stir together until flour is brown.
Place rabbit in casserole or saucepan. Then add wine and vegetable mixture in which rabbit was soaked overnight and let simmer slowly until tender.
Meanwhile, place salt pork and onions into pan in the oven until onions are braised and brown. Remove from the pan to casserole. Add olives. 

 Take rabbit meat from sauce and place in casserole with braised onions. Strain sauce in which rabbit was cooked though a sieve. Bring slowly to boil, skim and serve.
[For more Rough& Tumble history, Indigenous Ability hacks, and for pragmatic applications of old school tactics historically accurate and viciously verified see our RAW Subscription Service.]

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