News & Events

Summer Camp
July 26, 2010

LINXX Academy of Martial Arts recently hosted the first of two summer camps for academy students. The fiveday camp was designed to enhance their martial arts training through a variety of fun-filled activities and events. The itinerary for the week included workouts, team-building exercises, games, and field trips to Mount Trashmore, First Landing State Park, the Virginia Beach Law Enforcement Training Academy, and the Virginia Beach Rock Gym.

According to Ryan Russo, general manager at the Kempsville location, “Our instructors focused on activities that promote self-confidence, teamwork, respect, and discipline. We encouraged a relaxed yet animated atmosphere all week.”

Daily Activities Each day started with a light morning run and ended with martial arts training and physical conditioning. Total Defense students received lessons in grappling techniques from guest Jiu-Jitsu instructors. The students were taken on daily excursions throughout the Virginia Beach area to provide relevant experiences outside of their normal training environment. The campers also enjoyed playing dodgeball and sparring with each other. For lunch, the hungry campers were served appetizing, healthy meals from Tropical Smoothie Café.

Field Trips For the first field trip of the week, the students were taken to Mount Trashmore. When the van doors opened, a group of happy campers emerged, and the air was filled with lively conversation and camaraderie. Even after four hours in the sun, the camp attendees were still beaming with energy and excitement.

The next field trip was to the Virginia Beach Rock Gym, where students and LINXX instructors alike enjoyed almost two thrilling hours of rock-climbing. Energetic instructors assisted the LINXX team as participants rappelled off the practice tower and the facility’s 32-foot main wall. Large, obtrusive boulders were on site for the campers to practice endurance and technique skills without the belay and harness.

On the next day, the students were shuttled to both martial arts locations for clinch work, sparring, and boxing. This particular trip included more training sessions than any other day of the week and helped bring the focus back to the overall goal of enhancing the students’ martial arts skills.

After the morning run on day four, the students had a run-in with the police! The LINXX team arranged a special visit to the Virginia Beach Police Department’s Law Enforcement Training Academy. The campers were given the opportunity to navigate a real-life obstacle course that included:

• Running up and down stairs
• Scaling a six-foot wall
• Climbing a ladder
• Jumping over a four-foot hurdle
• Crawling through a trail
• Crossing a balance beam
• Jumping through a window and off a ramp
• Running a 50-yard sprint
• Scaling a chain-link fence

On the last day of camp, the students were taken to the First Landing State Park. After the morning run, which was held on one of the nine trails at the park, students hit the sand and surf for a training session on the beach. All LINXX summer camp attendees were given a certificate of completion and credited 16 hours towards their classes. This helped to accommodate family vacation plans while maintaining eligibility to test and advance in rank. The first LINXX summer camp was clearly a success for everyone involved and the LINXX team is already preparing for the second summer camp in August.