bushido_man96

Yes, they are. It's all about location, facilities, and affiliation. I'm sure training at Extreme Couture in Las Vegas is much more expensive than training at the average, local MMA gym. I mean, really...look at his floor plan http://www.xtremecouturemma.com/GymTour.asp I'm willing to bet those are larger and better kept facilities than 90% of the gyms around the world. I agree with you. That place is like an MA mansion! There is some truth to the adage of "you get what you pay for." Not always, but at times.

I'd guess, and its just a guess, is an addition to "Hapkido" because its another offshoot of Hapkido. This happens alot when people branch off from their former school and take their own, slightly divergent path in the same art.

I actually agree with this perspective. My problem is when a school claims a system that it clearly does not teach (there are only a handful of certified ninjitsu experts in the U.S.) or when they make outlandish claims such as teaching "an elite tactical system" but won't disclose the system name. My biggest problem with this is that they are lies. To begin a relationship based on a lie is never a smart idea. Good points made here. It could be he's using these names to try to sensationalize what he is doing a bit, and it could be for the advertising of it. Like he tries to put out an air of mysteriousness in what he has to teach. Or, it could be the opposite, which is no good, either.I've never heard of the bus pickup. I'd be a bit leery of my kids getting on a bus like that.

I can't disagree there. If you see a straight line coming at you, a slight movement off line takes care of it. Speed, timing, and combinations like straightblast and tallgeese mentioned come into play.

Thank you both for the suggestions! I enjoy the history related topics myself.

Ch'ang Hon Taekwon-do Hae Sul, Real Applications to the ITF Patterns, vol 2, by Stuart Paul Anslow. I read the first volume, and really liked it, and volume 2 picks up with black belt patterns, going from Hwa-Rang to Juche. Although I don't practice all the patterns listed in this book, I still found the technique walk-throughs interesting, and I do like the most of them. Also of worth are the intro sections on the names of the forms; if Anslow could do expanded works on just the history of the forms themselves, I'd buy that, too! I realize there are TKD practitioners out there that probably don't agree with the route Anslow has taken on interpreting the ITF forms, and he has explained how he has extrapolated the interpretations he has made. Whether you like them or not, they do make you think, which is good for anyone. And even though my organization has variations on some of the techniques in these forms, I still find the applications useful, even when it comes to modifications for the way we do things. I impatiently await volume 3!

Spot on for the predictions, Bob! As for the commercials, they were ok. I really liked the Paul Harvey/Ram commercial. Other than that, I wasn't overly impressed, either. My kids were watching when the Go-Daddy commercial came on. That was a bit much, I thought.

Welcome!

Welcome to the Forums!

I can see both points of view from ps1 and tallgeese. The main thing for me is that the person being taught has to want to change. If they don't, then no amount of self-discipline and respect that you try to teach them is going to amount to a hill of beans to them. They have to really be feeling a connection to the style you teach them, and that connection has to be so strong to them and create such a desire that they are willing to give up what they were doing in order to replace it with what you are willing to teach them. Many times, that replacement value isn't high to kids like this; especially repeat offenders. I think it can be a noble attempt to do what is right. Could it work? Sure. I just don't think the success rate would be that high.

I think its the melting pot, really. You just get such a cross-section of differences.

I wholeheartedly concur!! Learning curves vary from student to student. Demonstrate any said technique as many times as necessary until that student has their AHA moment; understand it first before exploring its many avenues. Agreed. Keep repeating over and over.

1/30/2013 Lunges: 3x10, alternating. 10 minutes of Wrestling with Kendall: elbow block/shoot; inside cradle (had to use our 3 year old for a partner on this one...he loved it!); rolling to reverse. 1/31/2013 TKD Testing: 6:30 - 8:00. Went pretty good. We've got some young pups that got really intense on the sparring. We've got some promising students on the rise; I just hope they stick with it. Prior to testing, I spent some time working on Yoo Sin with some of the other new 3rd dans.

Those are some interesting interpretations. Thanks for sharing the video. Whether those were old or new, they still are good for getting one thinking. As for the chamber positions of blocks, we do a crossed arms chamber. It can also be a cover for a haymaker or other such shot thrown to the head.

Well, we got back on the tourney ride this weekend, 2/2/2013. Kendall competed in another open tournament, and there were 4 kids in the bracket, all faces we had seen and Wrestled with before. I signed him up at 73# this week, because he was 70# the night I weighed him for the deadline, and didn't want to take a chance of missing. It didn't really matter, because the 70/73# classes were combined again. First match was with the kid from our club. Its always a tough match, regardless of how the score looks when its over. Kendall won, 9-3 after all 3 rounds. He also earned a little battle scar on his left cheek, which made him look pretty bad. Second match was with the kid who slammed him earlier in the year, and he's always tough. This one was close, but a 7-9 loss. There was also a teaching point here. Kendall really shoots great takedowns, but for some odd reason, even though I told him 14 times to shoot in low on this kid, because he is taller and likes to charge in up high, Kendall still decided he'd play the tie-up game with this kid. He didn't try to shoot on him once. He would tie up, and then try to toss him over, or get tossed over, and then it would be a scramble for position. He was upset after this loss, so we had to take some time to discuss it, and get it out of our system. Match 3. I was afraid that the loss was still in his head, and he wasn't focusing at all. So, I tried to not talk Wrestling at all, and just let him be for a while. When the match rolled around, coach talked him up, and he was ready to go. He Wrestled a kid he competed against in his first novice tourney this year, and he ended up winning, 15-3. But still, he didn't shoot; wanted to grapple high. He was lucky, because he was able to get away with tackling this kid up high. After all the matches were done, we had 3 kids with 2-1 records, and so we had to see how the placement shook out with tie-breakers. This was interesting. The only kid that had a pin was the one who beat Kendall. Kendall lost to that kid, but that kid got beat by the other kid from our club, who Kendall did beat. So, it was confusing. I think one coach's wife told me it went head-to-head, points, pins, but I'm not sure. At any rate, Kendall ended up 3rd, the kid he got beat by ended up 2nd, but the other kid from our club, who Kendall beat but beat the kid that beat Kendall, got 1st. Overall, I was happy with the way things went. I told Kendall we were definitely going to work on takedowns, and we got some experience with the tie-breaker system. Stay tuned for next week's tourney!

Great post, ps1. Thanks for sharing it!

Any technique can be effective, if it lands. Like jumping 540 degree spinning hook kick. Effective, if it lands on the noggin. Efficient, though? Not really. It takes a good setup, and is a long technique.

That's awesome! Have a good time!

I don't think necessarily, but also kind of in a way, yes. Confused? Me too. Everyone really has their own style and method. You are taking what you've learned and your experiences and using them to mold your self-defense. So, what you do may be a bit different from what others do. So in a way, it is your own style. But, does that constitute the creation of a new style? Not necessarily. I could take the Hapkido I've done and add it into what I've learned with TKD, but I don't think that would necessarily mean I've created a new style. Just a different method and approach.

My dad had introduced me to the MAs as a young boy, probably 8 or around there. He took me to a few of his classes, but nothing really stuck then, but the seed was planted. As I got into middle school, I was bullied some, and had low confidence. My 8th grade year in 1993, a buddy invited me to his TKD class, and that was that.

I don't think I can tell this very well. If I see someone bow at the door or something, then that's usually a dead give-away. But I've never really been able to just spot them like that.

I think that's a good way to make the distinction. Aren't some of the bigger-named MMA gyms expensive to train in, as well?

Thanks for sharing this portion of your journey with us, Danielle. I think you'd do great as a teacher!

I always loved learning a new form. Right now, I actually dread the form I'm doing. I just can't seem to make it flow properly for me. But, I'll just keep at it, since I have to test with it coming up. Learning a new form is always a blast for me. I love putting the new stuff together, the challenge of the new techniques, the new combinations, and all that good stuff.

Congrats!