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Logan Skinner becomes first Brazilian Jiu-jitsu black belt in eastern Oregon
By BRETT KANE
East Oregonian
P
endLeTOn — nestled along Main
Street in Pendleton is the Solid Base
Grappling academy — a gym that
hosts aspiring grapplers of all ages.
and among them is one of the high-
est-ranked fighters in all of Eastern Oregon.
Logan Skinner, 27, is the gym’s first-
ever black belt recipient, which he earned
in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu. at 5-feet, 6-inches
and 160 pounds, Skinner’s accomplish-
ment came after a decade of rigorous
training.
“it’s pretty surreal,” Skinner said of his
achievement. “When I first started, I didn’t
think it was possible.”
The athlete that Skinner is today isn’t
at all like the kid he once was. Born in
anchorage, alaska, he and his family
moved to Pendleton when he was 2 months
old. He said his interest in marital arts
started at an early age, when he was first
exposed to the “Power rangers” television
series, as well as movies like Jean-Claude
Van damme’s “Bloodsport” and Bruce
Lee’s “enter the dragon.”
“(Lee) was the epitome of the art,” Skin-
ner said. “With him, it was technique over
everything. That’s what gravitated me
towards Jiu-jitsu. i like it because you can
get proficient at it faster than other forms of
martial arts. it’s grappling, but there’s not as
much striking. you won’t walk out of prac-
tice with brain damage. it’s more devel-
oped for small people grappling against a
bigger person. It evens the playing field.”
Brazilian Jiu-jitsu is a martial art cen-
tered on grappling and ground fighting. It
focuses on controlling the opponent until
they are forced to submit.
“it’s like collegiate wrestling,” Skin-
ner said. “i didn’t have the strength, but i
wanted to fight.”
But there was one thing in his way of
taking that next step:
Confidence.
“As a kid, I wasn’t very confident in
myself,” Skinner recalled. “i was small —
i didn’t reach 100 pounds until i was 16.”
Skinner said that his lack of confi-
dence in himself was hard on his personal
growth.
“i was good at making excuses for
myself,” he said. “i would always tell
myself, ‘He’s bigger than you are,’ or,
‘He’s faster,’ or ‘i’m just not feeling too
good today.’ When things weren’t going
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
Logan Skinner holds his newly earned black belt at Solid Base Grappling Academy in Pendleton. Skinner was the first academy mem-
ber to earn a black belt.
my way, I would try to find a way out of it.
But you can’t lie your way out of a fight.”
at 17, Skinner joined the St. andrew’s
gym in Mission, where he met Brandon
dames — an instructor from Pilot rock,
who would eventually be the one to award
Skinner his black belt.
“At first, he made me nervous,” Skinner
said of dames. “He was so big. But he’s
actually super nice. Our paths kept cross-
ing, and eventually, we became friends.
He’s really good at instilling confidence
in me. He helped get me to where i am
today.”
dames eventually moved to Florida,
and Skinner to Boise, idaho, where he con-
tinued his training at Combat Fitness and
received his purple belt in 2015.
But when his father got sick, Skin-
ner returned to Pendleton and back to
the Solid Base Grappling academy. The
academy, which first opened its doors
in 2011, is home to roughly 50-60 prac-
ticing fighters. Johnny Picard, the origi-
nal owner and instructor, stepped down
in 2015, placing his class in the hands
of Skinner.
Gorge Martinez, 28, took over as the
owner.
“He’s a hell of an athlete,” Marti-
nez said of Skinner. “i thought getting a
blue belt was hard enough. Ten years is
a commitment.”
and on Friday, June 7, that commit-
ment finally paid off.
dames made the trip all the way
back to the Solid Base Grappling acad-
emy to officially promote Skinner. A
small group of friends, family, and stu-
dents were in attendance.
“(dames) told me how proud he was
of me, and how impressed he was that
i managed to improve without other
black belts to train against,” Skinner
said.
and with that, Skinner became the
highest-ranked Jiu-jitsu practitioner in
eastern Oregon.
“i thought the black belt would
be the destination,” he said, “but
there’s so much more to achieve,
both in my technique and my coach-
ing. Honestly, i feel like this is only
the beginning.”
Skinner, who also works as a correc-
tions officer at the Umatilla County Sher-
iff’s department, has a few other goals
set in mind. He’d like to earn his certi-
fication in defense tactics for the county,
to start. He also wants to take his skills
to California, which he calls the “Mecca”
of the sport.
and as for the academy?
“everything we have here is just us.
i like the isolation,” Skinner said. “it’s
cool seeing people come in and watch-
ing them progress. i get a lot of pride in
helping them develop. i want to train and
coach as long as my body lets me.”
Pendleton All-Stars claim Oregon District 3 Little League titles
By BRETT KANE
East Oregonian
PendLeTOn — evan
Lehnert tallied 15 strike-
outs and gave up just one
run to aid in the Pendleton
10/11/12 all-Star team’s 3-1
victory over Hermiston on
Thursday.
With the win, the Pend-
leton Little League team
claimed the Oregon district
3 championship title.
Lehnert was key on both
sides of the ball for Pend-
leton, putting them on the
scoreboard early on in the
bottom of the first inning
when he sent a hard ground
ball to left field, scoring
Kaden Moore and anson
dressler.
although Lehnert would
end the inning stranded on
second base, Pendleton put
up their third and final run
two innings later. rylen
Bronson doubled on a line
drive to center field, scor-
ing Keegan Kline, who was
courtesy running for Tyler
Hall.
Lehnert posted a stellar
fifth inning as well, hurling
a no-hitter, including two
back-to-back strikeouts.
next up, the Pendle-
ton team heads to the state
tournament in Kalamath
Falls starting on Friday,
July 12.
and they’re not the only
team with a district title in
tow.
On Tuesday, Pendle-
ton’s 10/11/12 all-Star soft-
ball team defeated Grant
County 3-2 for a trip to the
state tournament in Keizer
on Saturday, July 6.
Pendleton’s 8/9/10 soft-
ball team will also vie
for a state title after their
Wednesday defeat of Pilot
rock. Their state run begins
on July 12 in Portland.
Photo courtesy of Pendleton Little League
Pendleton’s 10/11/12 baseball team poses after winning the Oregon District 3 championship
game on Thursday in Pendleton.
SPORTS SHORTS
Rapinoe stands by statement about not going to White House
PARIS (AP) — Megan Rapinoe said Thursday that she
stands by previous comments that she would not visit
the White House if the United States wins the Women’s
World Cup.
“I stand by the comments that I made about not
wanting to go to the White House, with the exception of
the expletive,” she said. “My mom would be very upset
about that.”
Rapinoe spoke at a previously scheduled news con-
ference a day after President Donald Trump called out
the U.S. women’s national team star on Twitter. Trump
referenced a video that surfaced on Twitter in recent
days, posting: “Megan should never disrespect our
Country, the White House, or our Flag, especially since
so much has been done for her & the team.”
Trump said he would invite the U.S. team “win or
lose.”
Rapinoe’s initial comments were made during an
interview for a magazine in January in which she was
asked if she was excited about the prospect of going
to the White House. In a video excerpt of the interview
posted Tuesday, she can be seen using a profanity when
she says she’s not going. She also expressed doubts the
team would be invited.
AP Photo/Anne Peterson
U.S. women’s national team soccer player Megan Rapinoe speaks at a
news conference on Thursday in Paris, France.