ArmorOfGod

From what I have seen of him, you about got it right. His moves and stances are terrible, even a joke, and that is even considering his age. He is often in the magazines wearing his black gi and black army boots thowing bad looking kicks looking quite silly. As for his claim to his martial arts hall of fame: which one? Right now you and I could make a "hall of fame" and appoint people to it. AoG

Someone just mentioned https://www.martialartssupermarket.com I have been using them for over ten years and their prices cannot be beat. I don't know if the ship to Greece, but you could email them and ask. AoG

I don't like Century, but I love their c-gear gloves. I wear those and some standard sparring boots by KWON. AoG

To get that link to work, knock off the last part: http://www.crane-mountain.com/ AoG

Do you have a backyard? If so, I can send you the plans to build a heavy bag stand like the one I have. I don't have a beam under my carport to hang mine, so I built a bag stand out of 4x4's & a whole bunch of carriage bolts from Lowes. If you want me to email them to you, just say so. I saw a Gold's Gym heavybag at Sears for about $50 (I think it was a 50 pound bag) and I saw a 30 pound heavy bag at kmart.com for $30. Also, check craigslist.com and your local trade papers. You can get hanging bags (and Wavemasters) for good prices that way. AoG

Actually, I think everyone is a little too crititcal of wavemasters. I don't think they are as good as a hanging bag, but they are great for those (like me) who don't have a good beam to hang a bag from. Get one; you will like it. Some have a tendancy of "walking" while you are using it, but if you fill it right with the water, that should help. By the way, Kmart has one made by Everlast that is just like a Wavemaster and you may be able to save a good bit of money by buying it from your local Kmart rather than ordering a Wavemaster online. Wavemasters are $119 from Century (then you have to pay shipping), but Everlast freestandings are $99 from Kmart. Here it is: http://www.kmart.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=150804&Ntt=boxing&Ntk=All&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&N=1152&Nty=1 AoG

Well, he may have the trophies and not display them. He may only compete at tournaments that don't give out trophies, but instead give out ribbons and certificates (I have been to one like that). Also, if a teacher has trophies, how do you know they are real? You can buy a four foot trophy for around $25 at the trophy websites. Bottom line: overall, trophies are unrelated to quality. AoG

http://www.karatedepot.com/cl-ac-20.html Those are chevron patches. They would be perfect for the sleeves and wouldn't require removing when new rank was attained. You could do different colors for rank, or multiple chevrons for higher rank. AoG

I really like this idea. Century martial arts has some here: http://www.centuryfitness.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10051&storeId=10051&productId=12337&langId=-1&categoryId=13501&top=y but the Century ones look a little silly. You could simply put a small colored iron on star like these: http://www.martialartssupermarket.com/index.cfm?action=showProd&subid=484 You could put those on the sleeves of the shirts. They are very inexpensive and can be bought at local outlet stores that have a sewing section. AoG

A local boxing club near me kicks students out of the boxing club if they get in a fight at school. Should martial art schools do this? If not, then what kind of punishment (if any) should a karate school give. There are two scenarios to my question: one would be a student who was fighting in self-defense, the other would be a student who was starting fights. I do want to add that in the school systems in my area, ALL students are expelled and arrested who were in the fight. Even if they were sucker punched in the back of the head and did not see who hit them, they still are arrested and expelled. All fighters are punished at school, so should a karate school punish them farther? AoG

Just look for whatever is available. Training over there is a lot like over here in this day and age. Just open up their phone book and find a local dojo and check it out. If you are there for only a few months, then you just need to pick something and go with it. A few months will be enough for just a little exposure to the martial arts in Japan and not much else. I guess there will be two types in general: traditional karate and mixed martial arts training (like for the UFC, K-1, and Pride). Just pick a place and go with it. AoG

I started teaching in a park under a covered picnic shelter and ran the school there for almost a year. Fairly often, we would meet in my backyard. After a year of that, I moved to a church gym, but missed (and prefer) the non-training hall setting. I have a buddy in Tampa, FL who teaches out of his garage and is quite good. I have a tendancy to like people who teach out of their garages and backyards, so this topic excites me. AoG

http://martialarts.about.com/b/a/240586.htm?nl=1 February 02, 2006 Another Martial Arts Tragedy - Carlson Gracie Sr. Passes Away at 72 Carlson Gracie Sr. passed away in Chicago after suffering from complications of kidney stones and diabetes. His body will be sent back to Brazil for burial. Carlson was born in 1935 in Rio de Janeiro. He went on to become a superstar in the world of Vale Tudo. He is responsible for training many of the mixed martial arts stars we know today, including Vitor Belfort and Mario Sperry.

I could not disagree with that statement more. If you have your hands, what good are your hands (and feet) against a guy with a knife, trash can lid, and five buddies behind him ready to help him out. If someone attacks you, how do you know what he has in his pocket? What if you are jumped by three guys at one? What martial art is going to help? That is where a licensed firearm, pepper spray, or some kind of legal weapon comes into place. To believe that your hands are enough is asking to die. AoG

There are thousands of jkd (jeet kune do) schools nationwide. Bruce Lee certified three people in jkd: James Lee, Taky Kimura, and Dan Inosanto. James Lee is dead; Kimura runs some schools, and Inosanto has certified hundreds of people himself. Here is one school in Maryland: http://www.martialartskoncepts.com/ Here is another: Club Name: Jeet Kune Do Academy of Fighting Arts and Sciences Style: Jeet Kune Do, Address: 14621 Jaystone Drive, Silver Spring, Maryland, Montgomery, USA, 20905 Contact Details:, (301) 879-6837 And another: Gary Johnson 4209 Ferrara Dr. Wheaton, Maryland 20906 Certified WJKD instructor. Here is a small list of jkd schools in the US: http://www.google.com/Top/Sports/Martial_Arts/Jeet_Kune_Do/Schools_and_Instruction/North_America/ As a side note, Bruce Lee certified many other people in Jun Fan Kung Fu and Wing Chun Kung Fu, but I don't have any lists of those. If you search some of those out, they might be interesting to train from. Hope that helps. AoG

What did you find out about the legality of using nunchucks in a self defense situation in South Carolina? By that, I mean how are the arresting officers going to react after you call them (after you defend yourself) from an attacker? AoG

I HIGHLY recommend Mikio Nishiuchi's videos if you want very traditional katas. I have two of his bo tapes, tonfa, nuchaku, and kama by him. He is so traditional that it will blow your mind. Nothing fancy, nothing flashy--every move has an application so there is no wasted movement. I know you can get them through Century's website and may be able to get vhs format on sale right now. Defenitely check him out. AoG

I have got to say though, be careful. I live in Georgia, but am only a few miles from South Carolina (where you are from) and if you pulled out nunchakus or throwing knives and used them, you are going to jail--even if it is self-defense. There are legit self defense items, such as pepper spray, a registered hand gun, a walking stick/cane, and some tactical knives, but none of the things that you are carrying. Please be careful. I hate to say it, but only people looking for trouble carry things like nunchuks. Don't be one of those people. AoG

Just a quick addition I want to add: I ran a school for over a year that only took adults. I ran classes from the local community center and adjacent park during hours that children would be in school (mornings). It was the most enjoyable learning experience that I ever had in the martial arts. If you don't want to teach kids, kudos to you. Leave teaching kids to those who enjoy it. AoG

Is your friend a "self-taught" person himself? If so, work out with him and you will see why that does not work out well. Of course, he will tell you he is great, so you would have to find a few experienced guys for him to spar or demonstrate his moves against. It will not go well. Still, it would be a good idea for you to find a few experienced people to work out with in the park. It will give you an idea of which style you would want to try out (if you decide you want to train at a school). AoG

Does anyone here go to a martial arts school that made them fill out any kind of form listing medical problems? If so, what did the form look like and say? AoG

My suggestion is to listen to your doctor and not a whole bunch of people in an internet message board. If you can't drive or fish, how are you going to do martial arts? Do you have children? If you do, then why aren't you worried about being there for them over testing for a belt? If you have another heart attack, or complications, it is your fault since you ignored your doctors. Family is more important than martial arts. AoG

Buy her some pepper spray and maybe send her to a one time women's self defense class, but leave her out of your martial arts group. It is actually good in a relationship to have things or pastimes that are "just yours" and "just hers." Also, you said that she does not like you taking Goju "at all." If she ever insists that you stop taking it, break up with her. Women (or men) who insist that you stop doing something you like for their own selfish reasons are not worth staying with. Just my opinion..... AoG

On the edge of Augusta, GA. AoG

Mine are spending time with my wife and 2 beautiful twin boys, LOTS of church, some reading, and internet surfing. AoG