Master Jules

Life and death on the street is one thing, but a schoolyard fight is totally different. Ive had the good fortune of meeting and training with Professor Wally Jay at many of his seminars over the last 10 years or so. One of the things that he told me that has really stayed with me over the years was this.....He said that its actually very easy to hurt someone, but what is really impressive is to be able to fully control someone WITHOUT actually hurting them. That takes skill.

Karate isnt for you to be "the best"....or even better than anyone else. The true spirit of karate is for you to be better than you were the day before.

There is no such thing as too young OR to old.

Listen to Shorinryu's advice....kicks to the knees by a proficient martial artist can PERMANENTLY cripple a person. If you are considering this type of attack, be prepared to reap the legal ramifications that you will face. If you are a minor, as Shorinryu correctly stated, your parents can be held liable for what will wind up being a tremendous civil suit.

I havent noticed much of a change at all......I just keep training, and when Im told "youre gonna be tested".....I still just keep training. The only thing of signifigant difference was that after my 4th dan test, I was told that the requirements for my 5th dan test were to create a system of my own from all I have learned over the last 30 years, which I did, and I passed my 5th dan test.....but nothing else has changed.....I just keep training.

Id have to say the same.....If you have written books, articles, etc.....(and Im not saying you havent).....Id like to know where they can be found, because Im always looking forward to reading anything concerning martial arts or fighting theories in general.

Thats because they viewed the Okinawans as Chinese, considering that the history of Okinawa shows that it was founded by 36 Chinese families

For security personnel, especially bouncers....you definetely need to know how to "stand-up punch and kick", but grappling is a VERY big part of what youll wind up doing, so try to be well rounded in your knowledge base, because experience has shown me that ALL bar fights inevitably end up in a grappling situation. This does of course exclude the BANG !!!...one punch knockout kinda thing....which does happen, although not that frequently.

You can trace roots way back to India, from when Bodidahrma took his journey through China and taught the Shaolin monks the meditative excersises they needed to develop the strength for martial art study. But Karate is specifically associated with Okinawa. The Kanji for Karate, Kara, and Te, have come to be known as "Empty Hand", although their original meaning was actually "China Hand". The Japanese who occupied Okinawa had such a disdain for anything Chinese, that they actually changed the meaning of the Kanji, so as not to give credit, so to speak, to the Chinese.

Im curious as well.....and this isnt meant to knock you in any way Martial Artist, what style (or styles) do you base your "Pure Art" on. For example....part of the requirements that I faced for my 5th dan test was to create my own system, which I call "CQB Tactics", as in Close Quarter Battle.... I did this by combining what I thought were the most useful and effective techniques and principles of the several styles that Ive studied over the last 30 or so years....Goju Ryu, Jujiutsu, Aikijujitsu, Aikido, Judo, Kyokushin......what systems or parts of systems did you base your "Pure Art" on ?

Very traditional Okinawan Goju Ryu contains all that you have descibed Pondera.

No matter what style of martial art you train in, your ability to perform on the street is determined by the frequency and intensity of your training. It really comes down to the perserverence of the individual, and his/her desire to improve their ability and knowledge.

It seems that many of us share a common thread of "Bruce Lee"......for me it was 1973 when my dad took me to see Enter the Dragon. When we came home from the movie, I stuffed the laundry bag with pillows and began punching and kicking it like I saw Bruce do in the movie, loudly mimicing his "noises"...lol Mom looked in on me and said to my dad "maybe we should put him in a program".....that was almost 32 years ago....Im still punchin' and kickin'.....and makin' noises....lol

Ive been training since Im 7 years old (1973). Ive been in the bar business for almost 21 years. I started bouncing when I was 18. Ive also been doing executive bodyguard work for the last 11 years. I can definetely say without a doubt that my martial arts training has been more than useful in many situations. Not only in the ability to physically handle a situation, but the mental focus to assess situations BEFORE they happen, and the confidence to DIFFUSE a situation before it gets carries away.

If you mean "flashy"....The aerial kicks of TKD are flashy, Capoera is flashy......is that what you kinda mean ?

What is your definition of "showy" ?

Regardless of all the different colors that any given school may chose to use, everything still falls back to the kyu-Ho/dan system. 10th kyu starts at white belt, Ho denotes a "half step", and that counts down to 1st kyu. which is whatever color belt is directly under black belt (Shodan).

An excellent and very eloquently written post Harlan.....the best of which is the "Nardism of the day"..... I would just like to add that its not only "how he gets up", but what he does after he gets up...... Remember....failure is only failure if you dont learn from it.

I have 3....Frankie, Noodles, and Tigger....and they all said to say thanks for saving one of their own.

Good answer......There are certainly many "stand outs" in all areas of sports, but what JR had to endure was torturous, and basically opened the door for all black athletes......thats a pretty huge accomplishment.

When you bow in, your mind should be totally cleared of any and all outside influences. Your only focus at that time is the kata you are about to execute....not "perform".....its not a show.....you must become one with the kata, seeing, feeling, and being nothing but the kata. Practice it in every direction, so when youre in the dojo, you dont start focusing on "landmarks".....If you think it was confusing to just turn around and do it facing the other way, what would have happened if your instructor told you to turn 45* from your normal starting point ???? That would have really played with your head.....you should be able to do the kata with your eyes closed, and end up in the same finishing spot all the time.......just keep practicing.

OMG !!!! That was the funniest thing Ive ever seen....almost....I mean....I feel bad for the guy who fell off the ladder....that musta hurt....(thats gonna leave a mark...lol).......but the idiot with the sword ???....What the heck was he thinkin' ???? "lemme just smash this sword against the table cause thats probably a good idea...."

A lot of it has to do with nerves. Ive found that over the years, as my experience with fighting has increased, my ability to remain "calm" during an altercation has really helped. The more relaxed you are, the lower your heartrate will remain. This is something that can only come from more combative experience. Im not saying that you should be calm to the point of slipping into a coma....lol....but have you ever noticed that when higher ranks spar in your dojo, they appear to be almost "bored" ? Through experience, your ability to "read" your opponent certainly becomes much more proficient, and things just seem to come at you in slow motion (unless of course youre up against someone at the same skill level). Your confidence in an altercation increases with experience (unless youre always gettin your butt whipped...lol), and this gives you the ability to control your breathing and your heartrate.....again though, like anything in life.....experience takes time and repetition.

You simply do what you must.