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I have trained with burton richardson (jkd unlimited) and I think that he is a good JKD practitioner...not the best...but good...

I agree...I think that sano is a little 15 year old who is trying to sound better than he is...he probably doesnt even know what full contact is... If I was a moderator I would close this POST because stuff could get ugly!

Traditional hapkido is closely related to Aikido...actually the Korean Word and the Japanese word are written exactly the same in their respective language... Korean Character (in Korean) = Japanese Character (in Japanese) Bong Soo Han does a different traditional form of Hapkido

That whole bowing while looking at your opponent thing came from karate kid. You look down as a sign of respect toward your opponent...not stare at him with distrust!

Those are ITF Forms. the WTF uses the TaeGueks...the old WTF TKD forms were the Palgwe forms...

<<<>>> You know that comment might be the most intriguing comment that I have read on this whole board ever! Thanks Cheeky! You know...I find it to be sad that you look at a person, (whether they are good or bad) and pass judgement on them... You know I could look at you and say that you do a poor sidekick, and take that to another level saying that since you do a poor sidekick your training has been terrible because you cant even do a good sidekick...and your teachers is awful because he couldnt teach you to do a good sidekick...and that your style sucks because if a sidekick isnt important training then you are learning a bogus art...and I could say that you arent a real martial artists because you are a Black Belt and you dont care if you do a good sidekick or not... The point of that...is...you have a bad knee and cant ever do a good sidekick... NOW WHAT? You passed all that judgement onto someone who can do no better... I think that poor black belts are the ones who pass judgement...we are told not to pass judgement on other styles...but if it is a person in our style that is OK? I think not... Cheeky got it right when he said some people give it their all and some dont... Look at yourself...which one are you?

I think that I would QUIT if there was only 4 Belts, and I went a year or longer without testing... Belts are used as goals... I dont know why some people cant see that! Goals help people grow...4 goals, doesnt help as much as 10 or 12 or 15...especially when all of 'these particular goals" end in the same spot, black belt!

You know... I have been on this board for a little while now...and throughout all the boards, in the Korean Forums, and the General and everything and I hear people downing TKD because of the high kicks and how people cant kick and blah blah blah... Could someone tell Jhoon Rhee that kicking high isnt a good thing...and that older people cant do it... I know some 50 year olds who have started at 50, and can kick higher than some of the 20 year olds... That doesnt make them any different or special... Anyone can kick high, older people and the young alike...it takes training... I would rather be flexible enough to kick you in the head, than only flexible enough to kick you in the knee...

Do you really think that you are ready to learn at 7, I dont think that a 7 year old has the comprehension of wether or not he WANTS to learn something... Learning = Bad I have to give a lot of credit to my parents...there were times when I was forced to go to 'karate' class and there were times when I couldnt get out the door fast enough to get there... I think that anyone who starts, no matter what time, or what age, is doing something that they will never understand... I have been doing this for almost 18 years, and let me tell you, I havent even begun to understand...

<<<>> You couldnt be more right, all throughout my life I was dedicated to this one thing. For me it is more than just doing the martial arts it is living the martial arts. I find myself thinking about things non stop, every other second is thinking about something... I have notebook and notebooks of stuff that I just feel the need to write down. I am finding it more difficult to train more than 3 times a week now that I am have been in college for the past couple years, and med school is going to make things more difficult (if I get in)... But I have been lucky, and I have had no life!

you if you train in a standup style like WC, I would suggest doing a ground style such as JJ or Judo... I recommend this only because you can learn 20 different standup styles and still be an incomplete standup fighter...but I would rather know 1 standup and 1 ground style, than 20 standup and 0 ground... My opinion only tho!

I was lucky enough to start at 3...it wasnt a formal training as most of you know, (teaching a 3 year old can be difficult), but when I was 5 I got moved into the normal 5-8 year old class and began actually training without the games and such... I got my first junior Black Belt at 7 and I got my junior 2nd degree at 9, I got my junior 3rd at 12 and I got my 4th at 17 and I am 21 now (well the 17th I turn 21...) In the midst of training I got my Combat Hapkido 1st degree at 14 and I got my 2nd degree at 14 and 3rd degree at 17 and 4th at 19... I have been training in Jeet Kune do Concepts, for about 5 years and I have done some Wing Chun, and I am currently a purple belt in BJJ under the Machado brothers.... That is my training... It sounds like it is more than it really is...

budomaru, without sounding rude... Where the heck did you get that information?

I disagree with most of the consensus...you are saying that you should hold children back because of age.. That is like saying: teach your kid the rules of baseball but dont let him play a game until he is 16 I think that is proposterous...if an instructor trains a student from the age of 3, and that child turns 7, and he knows the forms, he knows the kicks, he know the rules of that style, he can understand what it means to be testing for a blackbelt...then by all means give him the damn belt. he deserves it... Now granted this might be a rare occasion, but you can let kids enter into high school, and you cant let those same kids become Black Belts, that is an egocentric age discriminating viewpoint. I know that there will be some students who dont deserve it and if the instructors hold true to the TEST then the student wont get it... I have seem 50 year old men not preform to Black belt level. But because they know the material and might not be able to do it like a 20 year old gymnast or genius ...should they be held back. And no one can understand what it means to be a Black belt until the become one... Of course your style requirements shall dictate. But everyone deserves a chance...

I agree with the posts above... Any martial art can be Combatative...you just need to change the focus... Remember you learn the rules first...then you learn to break them...

I feel that I began learning at white belt...I have Black belts in a few different styles, and there is always something to learn. Someone said once that: You have to live a lifetime before you live at all... And I believe that is a good quote for training...

4th TaeKwonDo 4th Combat Hapkido Phase 3 Intructor JKD Concepts Wing Chun Instructor (Francis Fong) 1st Dan Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under the Machado Bros I have been doing this a long time!

I agree with some of your guys comments, but I think that self defense can work with Mutiple Opponents... I dont know tho...I have been in the MA for a long time and this has always plagued me... Keep em posting...

I agree with Kumite... I think that 3 years is an appropriate age (I am biases cause that is when i started)... But it cant be full curriculum...because they wont get it...and they will quit... Games and Fun Focus Drills and such should be incorporated...

Well I guess I am a little different than all of you... I was lucky enough to start at 3...it wasnt a formal training as most of you know, (teaching a 3 year old can be difficult), but when I was 5 I got moved into the normal 5-8 year old class and began actually training without the games and such... I got my first junior Black Belt at 7 and I got my junior 2nd degree at 9, I got my junior 3rd at 12 and I got my 4th at 17 and I am 21 now (well the 17th I turn 21...) In the midst of training I got my Combat Hapkido 1st degree at 14 and I got my 2nd degree at 14 and 3rd degree at 17 and 4th at 19... I have been training in Jeet Kune do Concepts, for about 5 years and I have done some Wing Chun, and I am currently a purple belt in BJJ under the Machado brothers.... That is my training... It sounds like it is more than it really is...

Do you think that martial artists who have no been in either situation have a misconception about them... When I think and teach and train in self-defense situations, it is the most practical...not for an all out streetbrawl...I teach to help people deal with kidnapping, muggings, and such... I do not teach people how to go to a bar and fight, I do not teach people how to handle multiple opponents (atleast not in my self-defense class) What do you think?

Anytime, that is what we are all here for...!

It is phenomenal for self-defense...but again it is not a complete 'art'... It is modernized from traditional hapkido to remove the unuseful parts and find what works... It relys on joint locks and manipulations for self defense purposes only, but the spectrum is broad with that it teaches...from ground techniques to standup to trapping to striking... But again, Not Complete...there is no WORKOUT WORKOUT...it does not get you in shape is what I am trying to say...so it needs something to complement it...such as a more cardio workout...I teach it with TKD and I mold it into a JKD Concepts class that I teach... But for self defense purposes, this is one of the best that I have found. Of course, my opinion only.

Hapkido is a traditional style, and Combat Hapkido is a modernized version...with no forms, it is very self defense oriented...

if you go to the website http://www.ichf.com you can find a whole lot of information about this particular modernization of Hapkido.