School Information

Danny Ives, a native of Philadelphia, has been training for 15 years in the Martial Arts. After watching a skinny Royce Gracie beat all his opponents using simple ground techniques, Danny, being a small kid, thought that this style would be perfect for him. Since then he has trained at many of top programs nationwide such as Renzo Gracie's gym in NYC, Militich's MMA in Iowa, and Brazilian Top Team in Rio de Janeiro. In 2005, Danny had a chance to come train with Master Lloyd Irvin in Maryland and has been there every since.

Over the years, Danny has won many Championships including a Gold Medal at the 2001 Pan-American Tournament (Adult Purple Belt Featherweight). He has also collected 15 titles in the North American Grappling Association, all in the Advanced and Expert skill divisions, from as light as Flyweight all the way up to Light-Heavyweight in both Gi and No-Gi. He is an undefeated Mixed Martial Arts Fighter and a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (Full competition credentials here).

Danny has been an integral part of the Children's Program at Team Lloyd Irvin since 2005 and now brings his experience to Crazy 88. He is a truly gifted Kids instructor.

Julius Park is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Brown Belt with 10 years of experience in both competitive grappling and teaching. He is currently the Owner and Head Instructor of Crazy 88 Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He began his training in 1998 with Renzo Gracie from whom he earned his Blue and Purple belt. In 2004, he began training with Team Lloyd Irvin, which was the #1 RATED team in both 2004 and 2006. He has competed and won in both GI and No-Gi tournaments all over the United States and continues to compete today (Full competition credentials can be found at the Adult Instructor Page). Julius is also an Ivy League graduate with a Bachelor's in Psychology. In addition to training and teaching Martial Arts, Julius also works a few hours a week in SAT Preparation and College Counseling.

Joshua Plaschkes is an undergraduate at UMBC where he is studying Environmental Science. Coming from a traditional martial arts background, Josh switched over to Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu upon visiting the main Team Lloyd Irvin Academy in Camp Springs. He is one of the top up-and-coming competitors in the Adult program. Due to his incredible work ethic, Josh quickly blew through the Beginner, Intermediate, and White Belt divisions. He was competing at the Expert level as a White Belt and continues to make rapid progress. He enjoys studying the Philosophy of Aesthetics and environmental issues.

A native of Kansas City, Brian joined the Air Force in 1989 and spent twelve years serving as an Intelligence Analyst. Throughout his career, he was stationed at various locations, including the Phillipines, Japan, Texas and Maryland. Brian is presently employed by Northrop Grumman as a Systems Engineer and does Configuration Management/Special Projects on various government locations.

Brian has played sports his entire life. While in the military he played baseball, softball, soccer, basketball, football and golf. Some of his athletic achievements include the following: while serving in Japan he recieved a Presidential Sports Award for Weight Training, Male Athlete of the Quarter for the base, and was nominated for Male Athlete of the Year. In Texas, Brian continued to particiapte in sports by playing baseball in the National Adult Baseball Association (NABA) where he was selected as the #1 overall pick in the 1993 draft. He has also enjoyed success in golf by winning various tournaments and entering the Maryland State Amateur in 2003.

Brian not only enjoys playing sports but coaching as well. While stationed in the Phillipines, he coached a youth league baseball team that consisted of 8 and 9 year olds. He continues to be active in coaching kids by helping coach his son Tyler's baseball team.

Brian came to Crazy 88 in March of 2007 and began training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Since that time he has been very active in helping with the kids program from organizing fundraisers to helping Danny Ives instruct the classes. Brian recieved his blue belt in October of 2008.

Cathy Tran-Zwanetz is a Maryland native, first-generation from Vietnam, who has made Martial Arts training a family affair. After training ten years in Tae Kwon Do and obtaining a 2nd degree Black belt, she now trains Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu full time at Crazy 88. Cathy comes from a family truly obsessed with martial arts and its philosophies; her father is a 3rd degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do, white belt in Kung Fu, and beginner Judo player; her brother, only thirteen years old, is a Red belt in Tae-Kwon-Do and now competes exclusively in Judo; Cathy’s husband also trains at Crazy 88.

Cathy began jiu jitsu in the Womens-only class in the hopes of learning ground based self-defense. However, with her love for children and teaching, it was not long before she found herself assisting Coach Danny with the Kids class. Ms. Cathy has fallen love with the sport and has worked hard over the last six months forging her own "top game” style and has made impressive strides thus far. Cathy graduated with honors from UMBC with dual degrees in Biology and Information Systems and now works for the Food and Drug Administration as a Regulatory Project Manager.