Mr. Mike

the chase scene in the streets had me laughing my butt of till my sides hurt. Way cool. Now I just have to see it in English.

typically a few hours every day, but I spend about twice that at the school due to my duties. I feels like I live there.

I have a set of foam nunchaku(the real ones still hurt too much), a bokken, cane, Samurai sword, and another on the way.

karate simply means 'empty hand' or the way of the empty hand, and really is just a generic term to describe any of the weaponless fighting systems...TKD, Judo, BJJ, Muay Thai, Tai Chi, etc...all could be considered karate by its very definition... I know I will catch some flack from you dedicated types that harbor stereotypes, but so be it. Karate is empty hand combat system to japanese what Kung-fu is to chinese. All the same. Different names, same premise. So, to say that Kenpo/Kempo came from Okinawa and hence could not possibly be termed Karate, is grossly negligent and flat-out wrong. 'Chuan-Fa' or 'fist law' originated in China and eventually found its way to the Okinawan islands, Japan, and other outlying lands. Sorry if this offends, but you have some facts to check.

yeah, I sometimes go to Il, but usually stick to Wisconsin. My school is the governing body for our tournament association, so I usually get a heads up and a ride there.

I go to about 10 or more...usually place in top two...I should slow down a bit...the lady is getting tired of the trophies all over the place

some home courses aren't all that bad...it all depends upon the testing structure...if all you have to do is 'learn' the material on the honor system, then I wouldn't give it another thought, but for example, the IKCA in California has a video course that you have to send in your tests and yes, you will fail if you suck. The testing requirements are very strict. It isn't designed as a home course, but as a course of study for people who don't have access to the system where they live.

yeah, pretty much guilty on all counts...I go over techniques and corrections I need to do when I'm in bed...I never make it through all of them before I doze off. Practice kata in your mind incessantly... Another thign I do is what I call wargaming...while walking around, I think 'what would I do if this guy does this or that guy does that' and come up with counters. I also do alot of what-if'ing. If somebody did this, would this work as a counter.

I thought it was funny

ours goes white, yellow, orange, purple, blue, green, brown, black. I've been there for a year and a month now and will be getting my green the first week of May. Not that it has been easy...the rest of my life has been put on hold for my training. ALmost nonstop, except for the 1st month of the year, which I had been sick as a dog for. I've worked till I ached and then went past that point. Hard damned work...is my school a mcdojo? No, I have to test under the guidelines set forth under my international association, and am held to a higher standard by my instructor. I've also had years of previous experience, so most of the moves are repetition...I don't have to spend countless hours learning a new foot transition since I already know them.

30 strangepair03- 30 is way better than 20...you'll see.

I think your sensei was right, you should wear a mask. To prevent further injuries, it is a good idea. He shouldn't have to pull back. Plus, he's only looking out for your safety. If you got popped, you should have covered...sport or not. Mine pops me once in a bit, but then I figure out how to cover/counter. would I wear a facemask??? no. I pay good money to get hit. In our line of work, it's expected. If I take a lump or two, so be it. But again, I also get a few in on my instructor. I cut his forehead one night and he just wiped it and said "Hmm, you're getting better!"

what's promised, and what's delivered are two different things. You are promised all the secrets to learning how to fly, and secret techniques and the like, but if you read the actual description of volume 1, you will notice that it contains knowledge that you can find under any google search...what comes after that? Who cares? Certainly not the seller, who has just raked in $127 for every sucker that bought into it, and even those who wanted to debunk it. He doesn't even need to produce the extra volumes...and if he did, he could simply give more "secret" information that isn't really too secret. Constantly leading to your buying another book and onother after that...SCAM. You want secrets? You shouldn't be in the martial arts. You need to slo-mo the Jet Li movies.

to be quite honest, some of the best motivated are the handicapped...they have something to prove. It sounds to me like thsi girl simply doens;t want to be there. she needs an attitude adjustment...just like BA Barrackus always talked about

hmmm...after browsing his site, I can honestly say that I wouldn't join his school. I have a hard time with anybody calling themselves a 9th degree grandmaster of a system that they created themselves...heck, anybody could do that.

welcome, welcome

it's just way too high risk. I wouldn't even attempt to kick the head unless they were on their way down, or on their knees but still coming after me.

the situation would dictate the application. If I needed to, I would snap a joint clean through, or if needed to use a lock to get attention or to escort, then I could do that too. I guess it depends upon the level of the threat...if somebody comes at me with intent to kill, and won't stop till the get there, I won't bother trying to escort them or have them submit. If it isn't life-threatening, and they just need a gentle reminder to leave a situation alone/act like a gentleman/whatever, then sure, use the lock to get their attention without having to strike them, or lock up and go for the ground.

that was kinda cool.

with any sort of altercation, you have to be ready to accept that a weapon may come out...but don't get in the mindset of thinking that just because we have MA training, we can school a streetfighter. One of the earlier posts about incarceration and a not so savory earlier life hit home...I've walked both sides of the fence. Without my MA training, I would have still gone up against a trained MAist and held my own. It all boils down to experience. I know how to take hits, I know how to look for openings, and how to srtike hard, fast, and lethally. When I started taking my MA training, I was walking the higher belts in sparring class to the point that the only competition I had was the instructors. Now, I teach my art to others, and also let them know what to look for in the streetfighter. Bear in mind that in an altercation, we most likely wouldn't get picked by a streetfighter as mentioned in the opening post...most likely it would be a drunk idiot, some road rage Ahole, or a small group of grown-up bullies looking for a quick score. Now that I'm done rambling, I'm going to eat my BBQ chicken before it gets cold

just guessing here, but I would say she is in her teens. You have to let her know how good of a job she IS doing. You will have to bolster her self confidence. Sounds like she is dealing with low self esteem. Just tell her this "You can always do better than you think you can!" And then help her to believe it. We also have a student promise that we make the students pledge to...mostly in tyhe 7-14yr class, and it goes like this: "I promise to do what I have to do, when I have to do it, whether I like it or not." that helps too. good luck.

well, your master would be the best judge of that. If he feels so, then stop beating yourself up over it...just KNOW you are ready and ace that test.

welcome.

I can't answer that, but I do know that I practice one main kata, called the Kenpo Master Form. This is a homogolation of all of our techniques with different transitions implemented. With each belt level, we add the newly learned techniques to the form in their correct order and direction...the thinking is that by the time you reach the level of black belt, you will have all the tools and weapons of Chinese Kenpo in one form. And we practice that form over and over and over and...

kata is necessary. It is a way to practice your moves again and again and again. Would you pracctice a simple foot shuffle over and over like a hundred times in a day unless you were told? No? Neither would I. So, they stick it in kata along with other movements, and you practice them over and over without too mucc complaint. if you don't like kata, try boxing.