bushido_man96

At my school, I am on contract. We have a belt testing about every 2 months, except at times during the summer, when things slow down a bit. We pay for the testings. These things alone don't make a McDojo. Contracts don't automatically mean McDojo, either. Contracts are an easy way for an instructor to not have to be the guy who runs down checks every month from all the students. He just has to worry about teaching. There are a lot of people who don't like contracts in the Martial Arts. For some reason, monthly services like cell phones get a pass, but not the Martial Arts. Contracts are not a bad thing. Take into account the school as a whole when considering what the school is.

So after the Plainville tournament, we took a few weeks off. During that time, we practiced lots, at the gym on our own and with the club, and learned a few new things, including what they called the Iowa. Its great on a sprawl, or off a head snap. Kendall really likes it, and it has been a good technique for him, and you'll get to see it run a few times. He came back from the break kind of recharged and refreshed. I was a bit nervous about taking two weeks off prior to our local tournament, because it is one of the bigger ones in the state, with around 1300 kids coming, and typically brings in tough competition. The next tournament we went to was our local club's tournament, the Western Kansas Classic, right here in Hays, KS, America. 3/8/2014. Match 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-z1VL0bFIw At the beginning of this match, you get to see Kendall run the Iowa. He fights off a single leg attempt, then once he gets his leg free, he sets it in, and runs it off in a twisting motion. You can see how he gets one hand under and one hand over, then runs it with a twist. He is able to sink it in deep, and the way it runs puts his body in really good balanced position to hold for a pin. He does get the pin, in the first period. A good start, but a ways to go yet. Match 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfJmSH6-VZ8 Its the same kid we have faced a few times already, the one from Phillipsburg that likes the headlocks. This kid is just tough. Kendall doesn't start great, letting the kid get to his back and 2 points. The kid does a really good job of controlling Kendall, too. Kendall starts to sit out, but isn't able to get free. Then, he reaches around the back (NOOOO!) while trying to switch, but it doesn't bite him too bad. He did manage to get up, and get a nice takedown (even though it had a headlock), but it went out of bounds and he didn't get points for it. He did get reversal points, though. On the reset, he almost nails a cradle, but ran out of time. Period 2 Kendall starts on bottom. Now, I want to say this. There was a time last year when he would cringe and whine a bit when told to go on bottom. Now, he has improved enough that he knows he can get out most of the time, and get his points and reverse. This has been great improvement on his part. He ran a pretty good switch, and went fast, but didn't quite get it set, and ended up with the kid on top of him, which was bad...then the headlock takedown happened. To be honest, I don't know how Kendall didn't get pinned here, but he held his shoulders off, and fought for a loooong time, til the end of the period, to avoid the pin. Period 3 starts from neutral position. I would guess this kid likes to start in neutral, where he can try to work a headlock, but that's just a guess. At any rate, that is what he tried to set up, but Kendall was able to turn it against him and get a takedown. Kendall got nearfall points from there, wasn't able to pin, but did win by points to move onto the final. Match 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTL1dj-YfP4 This match was against a fellow club member, which was cool to see our club wrestling for 1st and 2nd in our local tourney. There were three Hays wrestlers in this bracket, too. Kendall starts with a single leg attempt that he doesn't finish, but he does get him down and gets his two points. He does do a good job of keeping him in the ring, knowing where he is at. Period 2 starts with Kendall on top. He does a good job of breaking down, and runs a half over for a pin, taking 1st place at the home tournament! And a great showing for our club, going 1-2 in the bracket! Next tourney up, sub-districts at Phillipsburg!

Looks like fun! It would be a blast to learn. On a side note, in the movie The Patriot, with Mel Gibson, he fought with a knife and tomahawk combo. I know its a movie, but I wondered if perhaps they sought out someone knowledgable with the two for somewhat accurate fight scenes?

Plainville tournament, 2/15/2014 (I think...) Match 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlY7OlU_xoY A rematch with the kid he lost to the previous week, who likes to headlock. He doesn't start well on the takedown, and you can see where he reaches back around to grab the leg. That's a no-no. He needs to reach inside the leg if he is going to reach, otherwise he gives up a half-Nelson to a savvy wrestler. But he fights back, reverses, and does a better job of switching sides. We made sure to practice that together. He gots called on an illegal hold again, when he switches he tends to run a half on each side, making an illegal full Nelson. When they reset, he tries to ride him from directly on top, not getting to a side, and that was a theme at this meet you will see again. Period 2 starts with Kendall on bottom. He nails a really sweet switch (except for reaching on top instead of under the leg), and get 2 for reversal. He runs the half over, but loses it, and then ends up high trying to pin. He does a good job of switching sides when the kid is rolling, and ends up holding him for the pin. A great match, and he learned not to get tangled up in that headlock. Match 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVaMmnBgULs This match is against the kid Kendall beat by tech fall in Norton. He has vastly improved, too. This match is for 1st/2nd place. Kendall had a good sprawl, but then got into a headlock match with him (still not running the Iowa yet). Keeping hold of the head cost him, and the kid reversed. He had to fight off the half-Nelson for the rest of the period. He was in a bit of pain from that, too. Period 2 started with Kendall choosing to go neutral. I don't recall the points here, but it was close, 2-1 or 3-1 or 0 for the other kid. More headlocking, but he made it work. I think he got 2 there, but was still down a point. He foiled a single leg, but then ended up running that standing half again, not keeping much control. When they reset, with Kendall on top, he had a cradle in his head, and wanted to run it. The problem is, its tough to run if he doesn't break them down first. We've remedied this by making sure he goes to a tight waist and ankle pick to break them down first, and riding behind the elbows so they can't post his hand and sit out. Period 3 starts with Kendall on top, where he is usually pretty good with control. The kid ran a switch that he almost got, but Kendall stayed on the head. The kid did get one of Kendall's legs, and Kendall tried to get a leg to cradle, but couldn't with his leg trapped. Kendall just couldn't gain control to get back points, and the other kid ended up winning the match by a point, and Kendall got 2nd place. Kendall was a real mess after this match, and trying to talk to him was a losing battle. We are working with him on trying to be a bit more graceful at losing. I did tell him I never saw someone get so upset for getting 2nd place. He didn't see the humor there.

Nice article. It does make a lot of sense. I think people are getting smarter about their training, and when the contact levels go up, its important to be smart about training. Thanks for sharing this.

That looks like it was a total blast! I'd rather have heard what you guys had to say as opposed to the music, but the videos were great!

Money gets mentioned a lot here. But, don't assume that just because a school makes a nice profit that it is a McDojo. If you see people passing gradings that clearly shouldn't, and things like that, it could be a clue. What is the most important aspect of your training is if you enjoy it, and if you feel you are getting quality instruction. If that is the case, then nothing else really matters.

Ok, here we go. Ellis tournament, 2/8/14. He had some ups and downs in these next two tourneys, and I am trying to get him to deal with defeat in a more graceful manner. Its tough going. Match 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUIoe12As6g This kid is a tough customer, and he likes to throw headlocks. It tends to be his bread and butter. Kendall has been having an issue with the headlocks, and tries to stay in a headlock fight with a kid until he can shift their weight and take them down, or fall on them, which goes about 50/50, which isn't good. We've been working with him to stay out of headlocks, keeping low and shooting, to nullify the headlock attempts. You can see the tie up early on, and how he gets worried about what the hands are doing, instead of working to shuck them off and shoot. The other kid ends up ducking and hitting a single, but they got out of bounds and start over. Kendall had a good sprawl, and moved to the back to get his points, so a good start. But then he gets called for illegal hold, a full Nelson. He starts again on top, and doesn't control well from behind. He tried to set a half Nelson, but didn't move to that side, which we have worked on more. Period 2 starts with Kendall on bottom, and a caution. What's funny is you hear my wife saying "fat man roll, Kendall," and when he reached for the elbow, that's what he was going for! On the restart, he has trouble getting up, I think mainly because the kid was heavy on him. A switch might have been better than a standup. But he did get a reversal and back points, but no pin. Period 3 starts in neutral, and he jumps right for the head! But, he got him down and got two, but then got in a bad position trying to run a half Nelson from the side he wasn't on, and got rolled to his back. The kid sucked in a tight headlock on top, got back points, but Kendall escaped, and they went back to neutral. But he went into a headlock again, and the kid tossed him over, and that was the death knell for this match. Two for takedown, and then the back points, and that was it. Kendall was leading this match big time, by like 9 or 10 points, but the headlocks and near falls did him in. So, we go work the back side of the bracket for 3rd. Match 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dW28zQgJR3k He did a little dancing here, but did finally kind of secure a takedown, although he could have shot a bit cleaner, he got his two, and some back points. But the kid was hard to stick. He kept trying to hold on to half Nelsons while standing, and it kept getting him into trouble. He got taken down and put on his back again, but did reverse for two. Period 2 he starts on bottom. He escapes and eventually works a takedown, but the kid bellies out real good. He finishes the period with back points. Period 3 he starts on top, breaks him down with an ankle grab, and rides to a half Nelson and gets nearfall points. He tends to ride a bit high, not getting chest to chest and getting his weight on the kids, which hurts him pinning at times. He also needs to scoop the head when he loses the half, which he does better now. He finishes this match out with a pin. Match 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hQdHmyG4fk This one is against a fellow club member. He has had quite a few of them this year, at one point with 4 of them being in the same weight bracket. This kid likes to go to the head straight away, and isn't much for takedowns. Kendall took advantage, went low, and had a nice takedown. Kendall got some back points, but also called for locked hands. He was getting to where he was riding high, not behind the elbows, but we've worked on that, and hopefully got that taken care of now. Strong and smart guys can get away from that. I don't know where he got that far-side half-Nelson idea, but boy, it makes a mess of things. Period 2, Kendall opted to start on top. The usual way to go is to start on bottom, reverse, get points, and then go, but, I don't mind at times when he opts for top position when he has a good lead and knows he can control well from the top. He did a good job of controlling, but didn't pull off any back points. This kid is tough to keep on his back, too. Period 3, Kendall starts on top again. Kendall did get him rolled over, got some back points, but lost the half and didn't get the head scooped up. But it was a good points win. Match 4: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdFfOymxRfA This was the third place match, against a tall, skinny kid we hadn't wrestled before. He got a good hold on a single leg, but the other kid secured his leg, and they kind of stalemated. Kendall was able to work to a good front position, and if he had known how to run an Iowa at that time, he had a good spot for it, but instead, he got reversed onto his back. He got back to his base, and got reversal. Period 2, he starts on bottom. He tried a switch, but the kid went with him, but he kept working and moving, and got his reversal. He sucked the kid up tight this time, and pinned for the win, and took 3rd place! I don't like for Kendall to lose, but there is something to be said about having to work the back side of a bracket to get 3rd place. He also gets to wrestle more matches. For any wrestlers out there with advise, I'd love to hear it. I know he needs work on stuff, and we keep working together to improve, but I'm no wrestler, and any advise would be appreciated.

These are great opportunities to learn and grow as a Martial Artist. In today's Martial Arts environment, you don't see nearly as many people staying within their own MA bubble as seemed to happen in the past. Opportunities like this are good ones, so long as everyone that attends has the same ideas in mind, and is taking the same learning approach to the session. Hopefully, everyone comes to the session with an idea of what they would show that day, making for a fun exchange for all.

He makes kicking look rather effortless. Its fun to watch people like that, no matter what their endeavor is.

I agree. They could both use improvement.

I think that Shotokan is more of a progenitor than TSD, which itself is kind of an offshoot from Shotokan as much as TKD is. I think you are generalizing a bit here, referring to Kukki or WTF TKD, which is heavily sport based, at least in sparring. But almost all sparring is, to some extent, sport based. Its what makes it safer to do, whether it be the point sparring of the ATA, or MMA competition. However, many schools, ITF, WTF, ATA, or others like mine, aren't necessarily geared towards sport, and many have a solid self-defense component. It just depends on the school you find.

Personally, I don't view the MAs as a tool that should be used to unite much of anything. When we start talking about these aspects in the Martial Arts, they have more to do with the views and beliefs of the persons who study said style, as opposed to the style itself. Then, such people use their "style" to bring other people into their fold and to propogate their belief system onto others.

You should recommend that guy to a Dog Brother's event. Then see if he is interested in weapons "challenges" again.

Thanks for sharing. Life gets busy, and its tough to train at times. This is great motivation.

That sounds like it was an awesome experience, Alex. What a great opportunity to work with and get exposed to so many great stylists. Awesome, and I envy you! You mentioned the punch block sequence. I'd be interested to see it, and if its the same that we do at our DT club. I've learned lots of good stuff there so far, and had blast teaching it to my department. I keep looking for other options, too, and hope to get exposed to some more training, like yourself. Congrats on your milestone! Its great to be able to meet new people and experience new ways of training. Get those batteries recharged, and keep after it!

Thanks for the kind words, Bob. We keep working hard, trying to get better, and I think it is paying off. Here is the next tourney, at Norton. This one ran an 8 man bracket, like Salina did. Match 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjdX5vF6prY Unfortunately, he started this match with a headlock takedown. Fortunately, it worked for him. We have worked a lot at getting away from that move. He wasn't very clean in keeping the kid on his back, and we work on covering, too. But, he gets first round pin. Match 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUstulLgmhE This match was against a kid Kendall had not wrestled before, but has since seen at every meet we've been to. He's a taller kid, seemed a bit thicker, too. Kendall tried a shot, but stayed to high up (didn't hit his knee), and got tangled in a headlock. Kendall was able to work it to his favor, but this kid was hard to hold down. He kept the headlock, and had a nice toss with it really, but couldn't finish with a pin. He got some good back points, but needed to clean up the pinning. He starts period 2 on top, and has trouble because he doesn't stay behind the elbows and ride the waist. He wants to do cradles, but needs to break them down to set them up. He did have a nice belly to back takedown, though. In the 3rd, he started on bottom, and got up decently, but had trouble breaking the grip. But, he was able to turn into the other kid when falling, coming out on top. Kendall got lots of back points in this match, but this kid was tough to hold down. Kendall ended up winning by technical fall, and didn't allow the kid to score any points. Match 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_X2-oNgrxE This was against a fellow club member, which is always tough to do. This kid likes to go right for the head, and stands up straight. I try to get Kendall to duck under and hit the takedowns, and sometimes he does. And sometimes, he trys to stand up and dance, instead (like this time) . He did get him taken down, but this kid is hard to pin, too. He is really strong, and rolls around a lot. I have been working on Kendall with "popping" up and over to get into a better position to run a half or reverse half, depending on how the kid rolls. Here, he just kind of crawls over him. I think we've got that figured out, now. He starts 2nd period on top, and he still gets high, in front of the elbows, and he can't hold strong kids down like that. More of the same in the 3rd. But, he doesn't get reversed, and makes it through for the win, taking first place.

I wasn't aware that Bartitsu was still around. That would be fun to do.

I did hear about this. Its a tragic thing. I'd be interested in learning how well ran the African circuit that this MMA fight was conducted on is, as far as treatment of the fighters before and after, etc. With that said, I don't think there are many rule changes that need to happen in MMA. Unfortunate things like this will happen. It happens in lots of different sports; pitches hitting batters in the head in baseball, race car drivers dying in crashes, football players dying on the field, and the list goes on. For the nature of what MMA is, the death rate is really low when compared to the number of competitors. Like I said, it is tragic, and it deserves to be investigated, but I don't think it requires over-reaction and immediate legislation to totally re-write the rule books on MMA competition.

I guess whether it has a place or not is irrelevant; its apparently still around, and it will be up to each individual as to how they plan to deal with it. Now, when it comes to things like this, there are all the regular thoughts to keep in mind, like what Bob mentions, but you also have to consider the liability of injuries, especially in dualing with weapons. Its not worth any "honor" if someone is going to come back on you with a law suit. Too expensive.

Do this at least.I understand where everyone here is coming from, but there is the other side of it, as well. But unless he is offering you his services for free, then I don't see why you should feel like you should offer your services to him for free. You are his customer, and at this point, it sounds like he is your customer. If you don't want to charge him, then don't; its your choice, especially if its your business. Its a very nice gesture to offer him this for free, and hopefully it reciprocates for you in some way.

Ok, back on track here, I hope. Here are the clips from tourney 5, the Salina Tournament of Champions. Match 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDvh7l16ZF8 Kendall is on the right. He stuffs this kids shot pretty well, but has trouble cross-facing his way out. He doesn't cross-face a whole lot, and we need to address that. He was fending the kid off, but got whistled for an illegal hold. (Sorry for the tech difficulties here!) Next, he tried to shoot, but was too tenative, and didn't drop and drive hard like he needed to, and got stuffed on it. On the next time they were stood up, he got to a spot where he might have put an Iowa twist to use (I think that is what its called), but he hadn't really learned it yet. He knows it now, and is pretty good at it. At some point in the match, the coach said the other kid was awarded back points with Kendall on top of him! Not sure how that worked, but oh well. He tried to be aggressive, but just never really could gain control during the match. He lost this match. Match 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSrVmml_tA0 Well, he started this one out be trying for a headlock. I think he called for an illegal headlock, because he didn't have an arm in. It also put him in a bad spot, too. Then, he got thrown in a headlock, and pinned. This was a tough tournament, and we knew it would be. There were a lot of studs at this one, and I think it was good for Kendall to see this kind of competition. He didn't think so at the time, but in the long run, I'm sure he'll come to understand.

3/3/2014 Defensive Tactics club: 1:30 - 2:30 pm. Taught headlock defenses, including disengagements and also cuffing variations from simple pain compliance to armbar variations. Did free standing variations and variations against the wall. Taught TKD: 6:00 - 7:30 pm. Basics, Forms, One-steps, and kicking shield work. Continuing to review all forms as much as possible.

Rough deal, training with a broken toe, Alex! Hope it gets better soon for you. 2/26 and 2/27/2014 DT for Department: I taught two sessions for our deputies and jailers over two days. 6:00 - 9:00 pm on day one, and 7:00 - 10:00 pm on day two. I covered a lot of the GRACIE stuff, review standing punch blocks, disengaging, and getting into clinch and takedown from behind. Also worked 2 reversals with bad guy mounted (either choking/restraining or postured up and punching), and elbow escape. From there, we worked disengaging or getting to mount to restrain with an Americana. With the second class, I had a better group that really moved along, and we got to really cover a lot more stuff. We got into some guard work, praying out for Kimura, and the weapon retention version of Kimura from guard. I felt like we had some really good sessions, and the even better news is that the Sheriff would like for me to conduct monthly training sessions, so our guys and gals can stay somewhat fresh on the stuff. I know I'm missing something here that I went over, and if I think of it, I'll come back and edit.

Yes that's true ... thanks for the advice the only thing is I cant kick with my left leg as the impact come to my torn ligament exactly and it's really painful ... currently I am kicking in the air to get the technique right ! Kicking the air is ok. Its easy to control and you don't have to worry about impact. But, I do think kicking the air hard and fast can be a detriment to the health of one's knees. So be mindful when you do free kicking like that.