AUSTIN, TX — Kevin Darrow, 34, a purple belt at Triangle Submission Fighting, confirmed Wednesday that he has been wearing the same rashguard since last Monday's session, and that his decision to flip it inside out on Tuesday constitutes, in his view, "basically the same as washing it." Darrow, who trains five days a week and owns seven rashguards, explained that the specific garment in question — a black-and-gray compression top from a brand that no longer exists — is his "best one" and that the others "don't move the same way." "It's fine," said Darrow. "I rinse it. I hang it up. It dries. That's essentially what a washing machine does." Teammates describe a situation that is, in their assessment, notably not fine. "I rolled with him Tuesday," said training partner Ana Vargas, 27. "I thought the smell was the mats. Then I realized it was him specifically. Then I checked and the mats are actually fine. The mats smell great. It's Kevin." Vargas said she attempted to address the situation indirectly by offering Darrow a sample packet of sports detergent after class, saying she had "extras." Darrow thanked her, put it in his bag, and was later seen using it as a coaster for his water bottle in the lobby. The packet remains unopened. Another training partner, Marcus Feld, 31, a brown belt, reported that he has begun structuring his entire warm-up around avoiding Darrow's side of the mat. "I just do my hip escapes facing the other direction now," Feld said. "I've actually gotten way better at switching sides. My coach commented on it. I didn't explain why." Feld added that the smell has a "timeline" to it. "Monday it's fine. Tuesday it's present. Wednesday you can identify him by scent from the changing room. Thursday it's basically a presence in the room. It arrives before he does." Darrow acknowledged that the rashguard had "maybe picked up some smell" over the course of the week but noted that everyone smells at jiu-jitsu and that this is "kind of the whole thing." When asked if he planned to wash it before Thursday's class, Darrow said he had considered it but that the rashguard was "still technically damp from Wednesday" and that putting damp gear in the wash was "wasteful." He then outlined what he calls his "rotation philosophy," a system he has been refining for approximately two years. It works as follows: the rashguard is worn Monday. On Tuesday, it is turned inside out. On Wednesday, it is turned right-side out again, which he considers "a reset." Thursday is "evaluation day," on which he makes a judgment call based on what he describes as "the sniff test" and "how the fabric feels." He has never failed the evaluation. "Friday I usually wash it," he said. "Unless I'm competing Saturday. Then I keep it because it's broken in." Gym owner and head coach Brendan Cho declined to comment directly but confirmed that the gym's hygiene policy — a printed sheet posted in the changing room — was recently updated. The previous version read "Please wash all training gear between sessions." The new version reads "Please wash all training gear between sessions. This means every session. Every single one. There are no exceptions. If you are reading this and thinking 'this doesn't apply to me,' it applies to you." The update was not prompted by any specific individual, Cho said, and then stared at a fixed point on the wall for several seconds. Cho also confirmed that the gym recently purchased an industrial-grade air purifier, which was installed near mat three, which is where Darrow typically warms up. The purifier was described on the invoice as a "precautionary environmental upgrade." It runs at full speed during the 6:30pm class, which is the class Darrow attends. Cho described the timing as "coincidental." Three members have reportedly quit in the last month. Exit surveys, which the gym started administering in January, reveal that two of the three cited "mat hygiene concerns" as a factor. One specified, in the free-response section, "there is a man." The rashguard has been identified in four separate Instagram training reels this week. In each one, it appears to be getting worse. One commenter wrote "bro is that the same rash from Monday." Darrow liked the comment. He did not reply. Vargas, who sits on the gym's informal "culture committee" — a group of four members who meet monthly at a coffee shop to discuss gym issues — raised the Darrow situation at last week's meeting. The committee drafted a proposed amendment to the hygiene policy that would require members to confirm, via a checkbox on a digital check-in form, that their gear has been washed since its last use. The proposal was sent to Cho, who read it, sighed audibly in front of two witnesses, and said he would "take it under advisement." Darrow, for his part, is aware that people have opinions about his approach. "I know some people think it's gross," he said. "But those people also wash their belt, which everyone knows you're not supposed to do." He was informed that this is a myth. He disagreed. He has since purchased a second rashguard from the same defunct brand on eBay. It arrives Thursday. He plans to add it to the rotation, which he believes will extend the wash cycle to "ten days, easy." He seems genuinely proud of this. --- *The Porra is a satire publication. Wash your gear. Please. For the love of everything.*