Do you study martial arts?

[Arcane Runes Press]

In college one Friday night, I was in my dorm, and a bunch of us started talking about martial arts. We were goofing around -- doing touch sparring with open hands and stuff, laughing, having a good time. Then another guy from the dorm came into the room. He wanted to get into it, too. As soon as he started with me, I could see that a) He was drunk, and b) He was swinging hard, uncontrolled, trying to clobber me, and ignoring the fact that I was tapping him repeatedly on the chest, head, stomach, and ribs.

I REALLY wanted to flatten him. I had been having such a fun time playing around, and here he was, drunk and stupid and trying to take my head off, and only the fact that I was, well, good at what I was doing had kept me from getting hurt. It would have taken one punch. One Punch. Not even in an ungentlemanly area. One punch to the gut. One shot to the solar plexus.

I stepped back, dropped my hands and said, "Okay, you're drunk. This is over." He looked around with this goofy smile at everyone and then glared at me and wandered away. I felt like the world's biggest loser.

-Tacky

Ayep.

That's why my sifu always stresses the fact that you should never spar/goof around with people who don't train.

It ALWAYS seems to end up in the situation you described above, with some jackass who's absolutely desperate to prove his "toughness".

It's happened to me too and, like you, I found that swallowed anger tastes pretty damn bitter.

So, I never bother to show people anything of my training, and always divert questions about how "good" I am at martial arts to some other topic.

It just isn't worth it.

Ah well. You did the right thing. Not the gratifying thing, but the right thing nonetheless.

Patrick Y.


PS: I'm glad to see this discussion maintain its civility. Discussions of Martial Arts online usually disintegrate quickly, like blind men arguing about the color red.

 

[Magic Rub]

Sorry, I know it's just a typo, but your "inner clam"?

Now everyone in my office is wondering what I'm doing over here, giggling to myself.

ROTFLMAO oops!

Calm

 

[LGodamus]

Ninjutsu.

Dark....care to elaborate..what tradition? Are you part of the Bujinkan....if so who is your teacher?

 

[Creamsteak]

Did Bruce Lee wright the books on his own style, which was to take the part you like from every other style and work them into your own, and not feel so limited to one form?

I could be wrong, but I think this would be the book to read if you think your style is better than all others.

 

[LGodamus]

Did Bruce Lee wright the books on his own style, which was to take the part you like from every other style and work them into your own, and not feel so limited to one form?

I could be wrong, but I think this would be the book to read if you think your style is better than all others.

Yeah, the first one is called the "the tao of jeet kune do"

it explains the basics of his art, jeet kune do, hence the title....you can probably pick it up at barnes and noble or walden books.

 

[Ds Da Man]

No amount of training replaces real experience. You can train at the best dojo all your life, but until your in a real dust up with individual(s) who are determined to hurt you, and who will not stop when the sensei says to, you don't know how you will react.

Those who've been there, understand.

The most accurate statement here! Some are tough, others aren't! No amount of MAT is going to help that!

 

[Magic Rub]

No amount of training replaces real experience. You can train at the best dojo all your life, but until your in a real dust up with individual(s) who are determined to hurt you, and who will not stop when the sensei says to, you don't know how you will react.

Those who've been there, understand.

True dat is.

 

[ancient_ones]

Wing Chun and Kali here.

If your into old M.A flicks and stuff like that also you might want to check out:

http://www.kwoon.com/

Thier motto is "Good kung fu, Bad acting."
it's some good stuff

 

[takyris]

Did Bruce Lee wright the books on his own style, which was to take the part you like from every other style and work them into your own, and not feel so limited to one form?

I could be wrong, but I think this would be the book to read if you think your style is better than all others.

Bruce Lee did indeed write the Tao of JKD. It has been used as an excuse for lazy and undisciplined people to take one or two years of a whole bunch of martial arts and then declare themselves masters.

Here's the thing that everyone forgets when they go on and on about the no-style deal. Bruce Lee did all that experimentation and exploration AFTER he had a solid foundation in an existing art. Like I said: Multiclassing. A wizard3/cleric3/monk3 gets his hat handed to him by a wizard7/cleric1/monk1.

I COMPLETELY agree that experimentation and "finding your own style" are things you should do. In fact, that's what I'm doing at this belt level. It's built into my style. Part of my sixth-degree black belt test will be to show twelve existing techniques from white to brown belt that I have altered or changed, and then explain and defend my reasons for changing them.

Example: In "Jaws of the Tiger", I didn't like the fact that I had to do three defensive moves (to break a wrist grab) before I hit the attacker. I changed the technique to position myself more defensively and added leg checking to mess up the attacker's balance. The revised technique would be far too complex for a white belt (when the technique is first taught) to learn, but it works just perfectly for me. The original technique works well as a simple and effective way for a novice martial artist to break a hold -- but I can do it more effectively now.

So I AM finding my own style. Changing things, checking out Jujitsu as a complementary form, sharing tips and tricks with friends at other schools.

Bruce Lee NEVER said "Only train for one year in each school." If you do that, you'll be learning all the basic moves over and over again. You'll know ten different variations for a basic fighting stance, and none of the advanced stances or movements they teach you after the first few years. You'll know the basic blocks or parries for ten different styles, and none of the advanced stuff that builds off those basics. You'll know ten different types of introductory katas, sets, or forms, and none of the advanced ones that use what you learned in the beginning ones to do cooler stuff.

I know, I know. Ranting. But there seems to be this mindset that "Bruce Lee said that dabbling in everything was the key to mastery," which is simply not true. He became a great martial artist by taking his many years of Wing Chun training and incorporating elements of other styles into it. You need a good solid foundation style to integrate other elements into, or you're just going to be the ultimate multiclassed wimp -- a cleric4/rogue4/bard4/monk4/wizard4 who knows how to get his backside handed to him in five different styles.

-Tacky

 

[Darklance]

Dark....care to elaborate..what tradition? Are you part of the Bujinkan....if so who is your teacher?

....I actually feel a tad bit inadequate with the tradition a such. I just started 3 months ago but I believe the tradition would be "Shidoshi" but I couldn't say for sure.

I go the New England Ninjutsu. The whole place is run by a great guy named Greg Kowalski who trained in Japan under (I think) Hatsumi Sensei.. he is supposedly the unofficial current living master. He has tons of pictures with the guy. Anyway...I believe its all legit because he has quite a few hand painted "rank sign things" hanging around the Dojo. It's in Wallingford Connecticut.

BTW. The Dojo is advertised as a "Bujinkan Dojo", any idea what it means? Perhaps that's the tradition?

I'm actually having quite a bit of fun learning this stuff. The whole concept of "let them hurt themselves" really appeals to me. I'm kinda mad I only found this place now. I'll be going off to college next summer and then no more Ninjutsu. I hear this type of teacher is hard to find.

Sorry I can't be more specific.