delta1

American Kenpo is a ballanced art, with circular and linear, hard and soft. And it works angles. We know how to go toe to toe, but prefer to move to a position of advantage. 0' is just another angle to us. I think you'l enjoy it. But give it time. At first, it will seem static and robotic. But sooner than you thing, even the most unlikely techniques will start to flow.

Techniques teach principles, which improves your technique.

Feels different most times. Sometimes, the lights just go out and you don't remember the hit. Sometimes, you feel it, but it doesn't really hurt 'till a few seconds after you come to. Sometimes, you get a vague feeling of starting to go down, then you wake up in a heap. Others, you sort of know you're going down, but aren't really aware what it means, or what's really going on- it's sort of hard to explain. Try it- it's fun!

Apportioning guilt and liability only applies in civil cases, where someone is seeking compensation for dammages. If you kill him, you will in all probability be charged with a crime (murder, manslaughter, ...). Then, there is no apportionment. You will be found innocent or guilty, and either walk free or be sentenced. Not necessarily. If you can show mitigating circumstances, you may be justified in useing more force. Also, equal force is a judgement call, very subjective to an extent. Yes, and no. Technically, the law applies the same to her as to a man. But, since you are dealing with perceptions as much as facts, there's a good chance that the she would not be held to same standards. Depends on the circumstances, and how good his lawyer is. No. In some circumstances, you would be within the law in attacking him first. Also, he doesn't have to corner you or even touch you in order for you to legally respond with force. Laws today are written intentionally complex and confusing. They also varry from one jurisdiction to the next. But, like martial arts, they are based on principles of law. Your best bet, and really a necessary part of martial training, is to study the law and how it applies to you. You don't have to become a lawyer, just get a basic familiarization with it.

Well, that's sure to offend somebody! But, since you asked... American Kenpoists hunt them with our bare hands, though I have to admit that we don't usually take on grizzlies until black belt! And very few of us hunt polar bear because we don't have white ghi's.

Yes. Two posts ago! Any school that issues something like that is a fraud. There's no such animal.

Might, if your opponent is extremely stupid and slow. He only has to rotate his wrist in order for your foot to contact the blade. Your foot has to travel how far?

'Punching air' is bennificial in some ways. You can work on technique and ingrain memory. You can concentrate on different aspects of your technique. But like everything else, you need to ballance your training. You need to hit things to understand hitting. You need to hit moving things to understand hiting moving targets. And, every once in a while, you need to hit someone who is trying to hit you to understand fighting. I don't know what your instructor was talking about when he said you are the only ones who hit pads. But, I've worked out with several different systems, and they all hit pads. Most also take great pleasure in hitting each other!

Abstain Good guide for what works when two fighters square off. Too limitted (sporty) in that it doesn't address a lot of the attacks you might face on the street. But this is not to be confused or construed to mean that UFC fighters can't handle themselves in these situations. Many or most have probably studied arts which include these defenses. And I wouldn't attack one of them if you gave me one free swing with a baseball bat!

For an overview of the law, fet "The Law and the Martial Arts" by Carl Brown, who is a Judoka and a trial lawyer. For specific laws in your state, you'll have to research that yourself. But read the book (above) first, so you'll have a better idea what you are looking for, and a better understanding of what you find. A knife in skilled hands is an excellant self defense weapon as far as the technicalities and applications. But, it can be considered an offensive weapon, and carrying it may show intent on your part. You are dealing with perceptions, not truth, when dealing with the courts. Another thing to consider is that the mere presence of a weapon, whether deployed or not, immediately escalates the threat level in any conflict. The second you pull it, you are useing deadly force. If you don't pull it, and he gets the upper hand or gets your weapon, you are facing deadly force- which means that you have to consider any conflict as potentially deadly. When armed, you have to swallow your pride and walk away from even more than you do as just a martial artist, or face jail and civil suits. If you want to carry a knife, I'd suggest a small folder with a good grip and a bullet-proof lock, and one that can be opened quickly with one hand. Make sure you have a good utility reason for carrying it. These are less likely to be recognized and taken in a fight, and are not as easily used by some lier (I mean lawyer) to show intent.

I once made the mistake of trying some sensitivity drills with a few TKDers I was working out with. Didn't go over too well! However, many systems do sensitivity drills similar to chi sao. But the drills are adapted to work with their concepts, not copied from another style. I think this is what the WCers here are trying to get across. If you do not have a solid grounding in principles and concepts, and cannot modify the exercise to work with your system, it will do you verry little good. I've done sensitivity drills similar to chi sao in Taiji, Kenpo, several FMA's, and with other stylists. But they all had their own methods. The drills were designed to work with their systems and the principles, concepts and methods they emphasize.

karatelok, are you talking about opening a school? Most of the instructors I know don't earn their primary living from their school. Your return over investment will depend on several things: Market in your area- are there people who want to learn your martial art? Do they have enough disposable income to pay for instruction? Is there a large enough population base to support the inevitable turnover? Overhead- does your climate require a heated building part of the year? Can you make most of your own training equipment, or must you buy it? Can you teach out of your home, or a park? What about insureance? If you are in a large town, you may have to advertise to get people in. Your skills and abilities- are you proficient enough to instruct? Do you have good teaching skills? People skills? Are you a good business manager? Are you financially in a position to operate the school ata loss while you build it up? I don't think anyone can tell you how long it will take for you to turn a profit. But most will tell you that, initially at least, you are going to have some lean times. And there is no guarantee that you will make it. Are you prepared to deal with this? Most importantly, do you love what you are doing? Do you have a desire to pass your skills on to others? If not, it will show in your instruction, and you will loose students. It will also be easier to get discouraged. There is nothing wrong with being in it for the money. But, if that's all, or even just the primary reason you are in it, then your chances of making it are slim. I'd say also that if you absolutely don't care about the money, you won't make it either. These are the first questions I would answer if you are thinking of investing in starting a school.

Well, for a ramble, that wasn't too bad! I think we pay our instructors back by doing the best we can, and passing the knowlege on to others, as you are doing. Good point about learning from your students. I used to be in charge of all the ambulance crews in a hospital district, trained the crews initially and for CE. I also tought basic first aid to the public. I have never given a class that I didn't learn something from my students! You get out of anything what you put into it.

Different schools have different philosophies and requirements. If the student was told from the start that this was a requirement in this school, then he should either compete or find another school. If this is something that is sprung on him later, he might consider the integrety of the instructor and look elsewhereany way. So, I guess what I'm saying is the student should compete as required, or leave.

Even if you broke it down to the variouse kinds of speed, I doubt anyone hee would know the answer to this question. Even if you get a few opinions, how is this relevant to- or what is it relevant to?

My wife and I are donating to a couple of charities. We looked for nonpolitical organizations that used less than 2% for admin. One of these is Doctors Without Borders, and we chose them because of their honesty and dedication. They said they had adequate funds, for the time being, to deal with the Tsunami relief effort. But whenever something of this magnitude happens, donations to other relief efforts fall way off. We are sending one donation to help in these other efforts, in addition to a donation to help the efforts in the tsunami disaster.

Congrats, Master Jules! Welcome to the Rainbow Warrior Club!

Pretty good. Sifu Gary Lamb's clip had a lot of things in it that we use in Kenpo. The cranes, crossing his arms to his chest, and the takedowns. There were also some similarities to Taiji. But WC are the undisputed masters at tieing you in knotts in close! Thx f/ th clips!

I've seen ma's who do forms competition spin the knife in their fingers. Looks good, but I don't recomend doing it ina fight- which means I don't recomend training it either. Same with tossing the knife hand to hand (though it could have limmited use if your weapon side is injured). There is a big difference in just doing things to look good and performing them under seriouse stress, when you've lost your fine motor skills and your perception of time is altered. If you must do these switches, I recomend practicing a simple flip. The simpler the better. And practice them with a training knife. Put something on every sharp edge that will leave a mark on anything it touches. Lipstick is good on dull metal trainers. If you end up with marks on you, you've just injured yourself. This is a good thing when practicing your moves also. You'll quickly learn that double edged knives should only be used in a saber or hammer grip, so learning to flip your grip with them is pointless any how. One last thing. NEVER pick up your knife if you drop it! Train to attack and kill, or use it as a decoy or feignt if his eyes follow the knife. But you fight how you train, and under stress if you've trained to bend over and pick it up, that is likely what you will do in a fight. Have fun!

Thanks! 2 out of 4 ain't too bad, I guess!

Yes, but there are some good schools out there which have went past what Mitose taught. I believe Kajukenbo incorporates Karate, Judo, Kempo, and I don't remember what the bo stands for. As for Mitose, he was a controversial figure in US/Hawaiian martial arts. Some swear by him, some swear at his name, and whenever the topic comes up everyone usually ends up swearing at each other! So I'll just give the advice to cautiously check out the school and see for himself- which is the same advice I give to anyone looking at American Kenpo or modern dance schools.

To compare all distance learning to a couple of obviouse frauds is a stretch. Some do maintain high standards. Like I said earlier, I used to think along similar lines, but I have since seen video courses work. Those fraudulent IKCA distance guys cleaned up at Nationals a year ago. I've also met some really tough competitors in MMA and other full contact venues who do the IKCA carriculum for their striking art. I met one tough cop from LA who does IKCA Kenpo, and instructs self defense classes for his and other departments. These people are hardly 'armchair quarterbacks'. More like one man offensive lines!

I saw a couple of things I'm not sure about in the clips; riseing in stance and a little weak in form Long One. But I wouldn't want to judge solely on that. Few schools are perfect, even in advertising clips! I also see some influences from the other systems they incorporate, which can be good. Things I'd ask about: How do they incorporate and marry the principles used in the different systems? This is especially important since they list Tracy Kenpo in their lineage. Do they spar, and sometimes with hard contact? I'd personally be a little concerned that they list Mitose in their lineage. Ask if there is any Kajukenbo influence in their system, and if so did it come directly from Mitose? There are some Good Kajukenbo systems and Kenpo offshoots out there, but I've heard nothing good about Mitose or his Kenpo. You already hold rank in one martial art, so I'd agree that you should check out the school. Go with your gut feeling on whether it is legit, and if it is for you. Good luck!

Primarily slip and counter strike. If I block, the block would be more to do something to or with his arm than to defend, and it probably would not be that block. But something a little similar could be useful to cover and launch an elbow strike from. So I'm not voting. I'll just say 'Whatever works at the time!'

Video testing, like any testing, depends on the integrity of those involved. I used to dislike the idea, but I've seen it work. Videos pick up everything, and can bererun to fine tune more than personal instruction. I like the way the IKCA does theirs. Absolutely NO stops or breaks are allowed. They can (and will) fail or pass conditionally, or just pass with a lot of critique. They do not charge to retest, and they do require work with a partner (though not necessarily someone doing their system). Video testing offers one advantage not found in just testing in person. You can watch your own test with the instructors notes and see exactly what he is critiquing. I recomend useing a video system even when testing in person for this reason. And you'd have the advantage of sitting with the instructor as you review it, if he'll do that with you. Any type instruction and testing is only as good as the system, the student, and the instructor. But there are a lot of charlatans out there trying to make a fast buck selling worthless rank and videos. Same is true of schools. Whichever you do, I'd beware. I still recomend training and testing in a school when possible. But I have seen schools that video tape their tests and won't pass or promote before those videos are reviewed. Video is a good testing and training tool.