Angus

I reckon that to come out after a cardio class and say that u have any proper knowledge of how to defend yourself is ludicrous. It's dancing for cryin' out loud. Angus

That's why most people stress speed as well as strength in their strikes. F = MA or Force = Mass x Acceleration. Ya gotta love science! Angus

It's a striking art with a self-defence section in the syllabus which allows for wrist locks and some take downs. Hap Ki Do (not spelled Hapi Ki Do) is a korean art, yes. It also includes multi-directional self-defence in which locks defence and throws can be used. Strikes are the primary aspect though. Much like TKD only we used our hands a bit more. Angus

Karateka - we've already established that point... BAS - i don't understand ur viewpoint man... That's a nice piece of philosophy u wrote, but one bit is wrong. Kata isn't the centre of martial training - it's the centre of karate training. There's a difference. My martial training has consisted of everything but kata, which i consider to be time better spent on sparring. Angus

You're being ripped off.

Nah man, i pretty much agree with everything u said. But u stated that the bunkai for the kata takes many uears to learn or something, that's why i don't enjoy it, cos it taked too long to do one thing. I'd rather learn one thing easily and proficiently and then move on to the next. I just don't see the point of using up all my time on one single thing. Meh, Angus

My locus of control is in my hand when i'm changing channels on the t.v. Angus

Ahh, u gots the goods bro... remember, if u wanna evade, don't go backwards, go to the sides of their attack and then counter from the side position, probably with a rear lerg roundhouse or a ridgehand. Until next time, take it easy bro. Angus

YES! I do indeed, dear sir, have the gall to say that they are ineffective (in their natural state)... The blocks i practice and the blocks taught in most freestyle places now are basic deflections with less rigid application and more practicality. The rigid blocks are out of date. It's like replacing a horse with a motorbike. Much more effective! I don't think my 'friend' Kyoshi Sama Bob Jones (7th degree master and founder of the Zen Do Kai Martial Arts System) was stuck with a bad teacher. He learned ther hard way, and discovered that practicality is better than tradition if you're looking to save your life. I'm not gonna give u his life story. U can read ity at http://www.zendokai.com.au if u have any interest in what a REAL fighter is like. (I might just add that this dude is everything i wanna become when i 'grow up'). And kickchick - i respect that some people just like doing the kata for fun and the philosphical side and grace and all that. That's cool... But at least they aren't fooling themselves that they are effectively teaching themselves to fight. The people that train in kata for 3 hours a day in order to learn to defend themselves better are simply not putting their time to the best use they can. Blah blah blah, i've said it all before and i'm too tired to say it all again. Angus

I get my information from 7th degree Master Geoff J. Booth, the head of the Australian HapKiDo Group, the man that i trained in HapKiDo under for a year and a half. I don't know where YOU get YOUR information from. I don't see how HapKiDo could be practiced so differently. Sure it has takedowns, but it's primarily a standing style. It's almost a freestyle martial art. Angus

Look, HapKiDo is NOT a ground fighting art for the last time!! International books on this style by masters such as Bong Soo Han even depict it as a striking art! Do Brazilian Jiu Jitsu if ur sick of TKD. It's a totally different experience and it will rock your world. Angus

Heh, i don't like that generalisation that smaller people should do Kung Fu or Karate or Tae Kwon Do. A lot of people say it depends on the student, and i might agree and disagree with that - cos mostly i reckon it would lie with the teacher. U might have a real ass-hat teacher in one art who doesn't care what u do and then u have a full-on dude who pushes and pushes and pushes... Bah! Angus

Heh, wel that stuff is all good and nice, and it may work in theory - it may even turn u into a philosophical master. But i for one don't enjoy walking around in my slippers all day quoting Niesche and Vultare. I've seen too many 'karate black belts' get beaten up to take this stuff (that being 'grace, humility, fluidity, application blah blah blah) seriously. A bloke down here called Bob Jones (founder of Zen Do Kai) was a bouncer before he started the martial arts. He then went on to do Goju Kai, which taught kata and rigid blocks and all that. He would practice his rigid blocks for hours and hours, but the thing was he started to get hit more and more when he was doing his bouncing jobs. Why? Not because he was bad at karate (he practiced every day and had received his black belt when he came to this conclusion), but karate was bad for him. He tried doing the rigid blocks and all that when wild punches were being thrown, but they just weren't working. So, since i think 1967 or 1970, Bob has been the head of the largest martial arts group in Australia. He did away with the traditional crap that was getting him into trouble. Although we still have katas, they are modified and we never once go thru the whole thing without being asked what each move is doing. Look, a lot of people by the philosophical crap that the karate guys feed us, but i don't. I'm out to look after number one, me, and i'm gonna be realistic and spend my time on more constructive things such as bagwork and sparring. Angus

McGee, have u done HapKiDo before? Cos u said almost the complete opposite of what it really is. I've studied HapKiDo under the Australian HapKiDo Group, so i can tell u what it is. Unless my 7th Degree Master didn't have a clue what he was teaching. Aikido is Japanese with joint locks and all of that, but HapKiDo is a 20th century martial art developed by a korean dude. It is a mix between Aikijujutsu (aikido's ancestor) and Tae Kyon (Tae Kwon Do's ancestor). It emphasises strikes but has a self-defence component which uses locks and throws. It's a 50/50 art. I hope nobody decides to argue the point with me about what HapKiDo is, cos that's like trying to tell a Thai Boxer that Muay Thai is 80% ground fighting. I've heard a couple of people on this board liken HapKiDo to Judo, and i don't know where they get it from. Angus

I'm not a big fan of shadow boxing either. I like to use it as a warmup but i'd much rather use a bag to work technique. And obviously nothing beats sparring. Shadow boxing for too long can teach bad habits i reckon. Angus

Well, it sure sounded like u were implying that ground fighting was a waste of time and only effective in the UFC... That's how it sounded to me dude, i dunno what other people thought. I still don't know where u got 99% of fights end up onthe ground. I would have said more like 40-60... Also, i agree and disagree on the issue of no superior style. There are obviously superior techniques, but now i am once again undecided on the issue of superior style... Angus

Aw dude, that's rank! Angus

Uhuh, i know what's going on! They're idiots and they will find that they will have to shut down because they will have no students worth having. Angus

Hey, tigersclaw... would u ming telling us what MA's u do? Angus

They were sneering at me... It makes my blood boil just to think about it. Angus

Uhuh, riiiiight.....

Yeah, i'm sorry pal. I reckon it's all the World Karate Organisation's fault for trying to keep their students closed minded and all that. They aren't allowed to enter competitions against other styles and all that. It's lame. Ah well. Angus

I knew if i started explaining stuff then i would have lost my cool (i'm not a very patient person when it comes to fighting) and ended up yelling and screaming and essentially making myself look pretty damn bad. I just came to the conclusion that i don't care what they think anymore, and i went off to work (i was 2 hours early but i needed to vent my anger my packing and unpacking crates). For all those "Adventures of Angus" fans out there (of whom i know only darkmonkey) i am sorry. I could have written how i decimated the dude but since it didn't really happen then i wouldn't be able to sleep properly knowing i was a fake. I could have lived without no full-contact to the head and groin and knees i guess, but the point where he said no grappling just pissed me right off... Gah! Angus

Chang.... ergh.... i swear if i wasn't a sensei on this board.... I'm not gonna have a long winded response cos i'm really sick of saying the same thing over and over again to someone who has obviously made up their mind before trying an art. Rickson Gracie, of Gracie Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a master in action. He is literally a master. I think he's 7th dan or something. He has never been defeated with his style. Nobody has even come close to it before. I'm not for one style or the other... oh bugger it, whatever i write won't change your closed mind. >too annoyed to sign off my name as a courtesy<

SO ANGRY!! After all the crap i went thru it ended up being a load of ****... I went there expecting to duke it out with this dude and then the sensei started to tell me all the rules i had to abide by... rules? RULES!!?!???!?!? Sonofa*****!!!! I calmly looked at the sensei, then the dude i was gonna fight, and calmly said "well then gentlemen, i bid you fairwell". I didn't even explain to them why i was leaving. What an anti-climax! I wanted to come back and tell a story of either glorious victory or bitter defeat. I didn't wanna write some broing crap like a no-fight. They wanted no full-contact to the head/groin/knees... No grappling... It was crap. How can i prove my theories when they trim my entire fighting style? Sorry guys. I'm thoroughly annoyed! Angus