When a roadside bomb blew his legs off below the kneecaps during a tour in Iraq in 2007, it seemed logical that strenuous physical activity would no longer be a major part of Army Spc. Josh Wells’ life.
Now, Wells is on the cusp of helping Epic Martial Arts master instructor Chris Holmes revolutionize the practice and outreach capabilities of Brazilian jujitsu through a project called Operation Armbar, an online community dedicated to supporting disabled troops through martial arts instruction.
Wells’ best friend, Jason Pine, piqued his interest in the class when he was rehabbing his legs in Texas. When he returned to southwest Mississippi, he decided to give give it a shot.
“(Jujitsu) has always been an interest of mine,” Wells said. “I wanted to see what I could still do.”
But proving what he could still do wasn’t easy at first. When Wells began classes more than six months ago, he was wheelchair-bound, and Holmes didn’t know where to begin with him.
The problem wasn’t the material, as Army combat training includes the equivalent of a crash course in Brazilian jujitsu. The problem was modifying jujitsu moves for Wells’ situation.
“That night after class, I got online and started looking for resources to teach him because, without feet to stand on, the leverage is completely different,” Holmes said. “The first night, I didn’t find anything. There’s just not any good resources online for disabled martial artists.”
The lack of useful resources on the subject led Holmes and Wells to experiment with technique modifications on their own, with varied success.
“He’s come up with ideas, I’ve come up with ideas,” Wells said. “We’re kind of guinea-pigging it. Between us and others in the class, we’ve figured out ways I can pretty much do the same thing without the use of legs.”
Holmes said after Wells mastered the first altered move, the breakthroughs have happened more frequently.
“Either I figure out something, how to modify something for him, or he figures out how to modify something the other guys are doing,” Holmes said. “It was almost a physical transformation once we made that first technique, modified it and made it work for him. It was like a lightbulb went on. There was a complete change to his demeanor.”
Now, Holmes is looking for an avenue to pass on the knowledge he and Wells have acquired to others.
He is in the process of having a Web site developed that will feature video technique demonstrations from some of the nation’s leading martial arts instructors, including kaikito masters Steve Seo and James Allison, and his own teacher, Carlos Machado. Ultimate Fighting Champion B.J. Penn also may contribute.
“We’re going to help martial arts instructors and disabled veterans learn martial arts,” Holmes said. “The idea is to come up with a repository of videos of techniques and a members’ section where these guys can get on there and talk with each other and support each other.”
The other goal of Operation Armbar is to get martial arts instructors to provide free martial arts lessons to veterans coming home from war zones.
“It’s been proven that martial arts, or some kind of strenuous activity, helps them deal with trauma and stress of being in combat,” Holmes said.
In the meantime, the breakthroughs are still coming for Wells. About three months into his training, he was fitted for prosthetic legs. He is fully self-sufficient, but cannot use the legs in jujitsu.
Holmes said he and Wells have modified 20 to 30 jujitsu moves, and he projects the list will continue to grow.
Holmes is proud of the progress Wells has made and sees it as a launchpad for the the project itself.
“I want it to be a national or international program because there’s not very much good stuff on the Internet,” Holmes said. “I’m the kind of guy that is going to do whatever it takes to make it work.”
