NightOwl

I feel ya- I was out all this week first due to pulling my quads- followed by my tonsils getting infected....dark times

For the uninitiated, PRIDE was one of the largest and most popular MMA competitions in the world based in Japan where it was hugely popular- audiences went to well over 50 thousand people for the big events. Early this year it was bought out by the same company that owns the UFC, and the plan was to have them as two separate leagues but occasionally do a cross over tournament (although many fighters, such as Chuck Liddel have already competed in both). Despite this, PRIDE has virtually vanished. UFC President Dana White mentioned maybe just taking the top PRIDE fighters and putting them in the UFC, while he also mentioned that Japanese TV networks are not willing to work with him (although the fact that he in so many ways bought out a Japanese company would make the Japanese reaction not too surprising). The only other news I have heard since is that the PRIDE office in Japan closed down and let go of all staff in october....anyone else know what's up? I really liked PRIDE a lot- and although it may have seemed like a good idea to buy it because of its popularity, they essentially killed it and limited the consumer's options for MMA events down to pretty much one (I am not counting IFL).

supposedly the curriculum is devised from Hatsumi himself- including seminars for visiting instructors. As such, I would imagine that not too much is being left out since what you are learning should in theory be from the lessons at the main dojo.

I need to get a sword so I can reenact this scene: http://youtube.com/watch?v=sV5VhI-dnKg um yeah...it's in Spanish but it's all I could find

Ah I hope so! The guy seemed to really emphasize it where you used your knees and quads. When I couldn't lift the other guy in a dead weight squat (or he me for that matter), he had us do 40 squats, then try a dead lift squat again...which of course I was spent by that point and could do even less than before. He seemed really puzzled, then decided that maybe we should do3 more sets of 20 squats. I told him," Um, perhaps can we do something else? Like work on foot sweeps?'. Which caused him to pause and then say, 'Well, why not?". However by the next day my quads were totally shot- today I can barely walk or get up/ sit down, and it doesn't look like I will be able to train again for a bit. Sorry for the rant- just a bit frustrated and needing another dose of Advil, that's all. It isn't discouraging in that I want to give up, but I just really really want to beat this thing and get it down.

Kung fu: Alright, I must admit I was worried about this one- after all, Kung fu is a catch all term and covers countless styles. While some of them resemble each other in many ways, others are quite different (like comparing Choy lee fut to tai chi or northern mantis). Unfortunately with this episode, I feel that all in all my concerns were realized. They start off in Beijing with some sort of demonstration, then for the first training segment they go to a...movie studio. Now, many martial artists did (and still do) participate in kung fu flicks, but the mecca of sorts for that kind of thing was in southern china such as at the shaw brother's studios. Either way, they learn a scissor kick that is hard to pull off without the help of wire, and in the end it is a bit like looking for tips from the guy who starred in Rudy for your next big game. After that they take a completely different turn and through the magic of reenactment cover a group practicing wing chun and doing their best to name drop bruce lee (they also just so happen to be training on the great wall). They cover the distinct punch, but all in all it felt to me like a bit of a wasted opportunity to explore something more...although the guy getting sick over the wall was a highlight. Finally, they throw in an aimless romp through the shaolin temple where they dress up and watch crazy human tricks, and then in what feels like a completely different episode go into sanda training. As for the final fight, Jason lost but was definitely the better fighter overall. Overall, they made a mistake in trying to take on too big a topic, and choosing strange spots to train. If they were going to stick to northern china, perhaps a look at wushu and sanda would have been the best route with maybe a look at shaolin. As it is though, it is probably the weakest episode in the series. Fortunately, there is.... Sambo My favorite of the three 'military' arts thus covered. I think that it did the best thus far on the pop history look at an art, and I at least felt that they learned a good range of complimentary moves. They start off with training with a bodyguard syndicate, go to various gyms, and even train with Russian version of the green berets. Another point of interest was the brief look at what they do between filming (it involves video games and laying down in cramped spaces with vodka) and just how much these guys go through. I personally could never keep up with the constant training and still be expected to be able to fight at the end of the week. Speaking of which, the fight was...interesting. It featured a newcomer picked by the legendary fighter Fedor, however the match was extremely lopsided, with Bill incorporating many of the things he learned in Russia to beat the challenger with a score of 9-0. The hosts themselves wonder why Fedor chose the guy he did, but either way it was an entertaining episode.

To come.... The Karate Kid Kung Fu Zombie Master of the Flying Guillotine The Prodigal Son Wheels on Meals Rocky

Ah- still loving it, although I had to miss a few days because of something called school. : ( I really am a slow learner. It takes me about 2X as long to learn something as the other students, but I don't mind that too much as long as I can get it in the end. The one thing that is bothering me though, is o-goshi : (http://www.judoinfo.com/images/animations/blue/ogoshi.htm) I started it tonight and I absolutely couldn't get it. The instructor recommended (or rather, told me to do) squats but does it really take that much lower body streangth? I've seen plenty of tiny women and old guys do it...so why can't I? Anyhow, if anyone else has tips, let me know...

I'm still working on mine

every day a week for 1 and a half hours a go (minus sunday)

Haha, that sounds awesome...you didn't save any food did you? I went with my girlfriend to disneyland and carved a fake pumpkin afterwards.

tonfa are used by a lot of modern police forces- I think that they have use. Also, shiruken aren't meant to be a primary weapon as it is hard to deal a killing blow with one. I'd have to say probably the rope dart or war fan. In japan, war fans were mostly used for signaling anyways.

This isn't really the place for a debate on ninja but... where are such claims? I couldn't find it on the site although there were more pages and links on ninjitsu on the Japanese site which I might go over later if I have the time. I am familiar however, with the Iga region and its claims, as well as those of the Koga (and have visited their sites for their ninja museums). Now there is what you could call 'Ninjitsu' in some of the koryu schools. This would include military strategy, stealth tactics, etc. However usually these are only taught to a select few students and even most instructors wouldn't know them. Also you have to keep in mind that- A: The students were originally samurai, in fact there is no record of someone being assassinated by ninja. There are however, numerous occasions of samurai assassinating other samurai and performing the role of a spy. B: The usefulness of such methods would have to be called into question. Sure, I could learn about how to mix certain herbs to create a secret potion to relive pain...or I could buy Advil for $5 at the store.

Keys- you don't really need to do any special training with them to use them effectively, just know how to punch. Since I don't carry a weapon, improvised is pretty much all I've (and most people) got to defend myself with.

Ah- started the first class today. The kodokan itself is a fairly unimpressive building that's easy to miss, however there is something very cool about have multiple stories of gym space . I get to train on the 7th floor gym, which shares space part time with black belt randori and a children's class. The instructors are pretty cool, and I like the guys I am training with. I kind of got stuck with the role of translator, which I would sometimes forget to do until I noticed the worried expression on the other foreigner who was just starting out with me- but other than that I got a rundown of gym etiquette, judo history, and some basics on break falling. I have a feeling that the next week or so will be on ukemi, as I really need to work on it. However, I'm going to be going every day except sunday, so I am hoping that I will be able to get it down soon!

For all around, I'd recommend JKD or an MMA gym. As for ninjitsu...there really isn't such thing. The word Ninja wasn't created until the Edo or Tokugawa period, which was after Japan's long feudal wars between competing daimyo trying to control various parts of japan. This would have been the time that ninja would have been used, however we can find little mention of them. It isn't until after the warring states period that it became popular to feature 'ninja' in books and pop culture as a sort of super secret shadow warrior, and it is from that fictional character plus kabuki stagehand clothing design that we get the ninja of today. If you look at wikipeidia articles, etc, many times you will find claims of an earlier origin of ninjas/ a more detailed history. However if you look at the sources of these claims, all the books that they are taken from are written by those who already claim to know ninjitsu, such as Hayes, Hatsumi, etc., and thus are not written by historians or any reliable source. To this day, no school of ninjitsu has been able to proof itself to a panel of scholars, martial artists, and historians as being Koryū, or a per-meji era school, and in the martial arts community of japan, 'Ninjitsu' is not thought of very highly (least ways, not nearly as popular as it is in the west). ...Sorry for the long spiel, I've been meaning to do an in depth look at who the ninja actually were/ weren't but I keep putting it off.

Barbarians or not, they knew how to make some fine BBQ....and if that is not a hallmark of civilization then I don't know what is.

Jet li's background is in Wushu (in fact, he was the best in china, winning numerous awards). I'd imagine that it is from his wushu training that he knew the style, and thus he would probably know the wushu form only.

A guy at my place starting out is 58- I'm only 20 and I feel old though : (

I read the article, and it looks like quite a style! I think of the many possible weapons you could train, the cane would be one of the most contemporary, and it'd be interesting to see this art revived ala pankration

ah- sorry that I missed the thread...I guess you got your answer eh? I had some over 13 years ago and they didn't hurt coming out as far as I know

Sounds great Scott! When do you start lessons? It seems like you found a great spot

Yay! Someone gave a vote for no-gi... and for the record, I have for the shoot to be extremely effective. Doesn't require a gi, and many people just don't see it coming if they have no training.

yeah, MMA and BJJ gyms- while actually I have found they have really nice people and teach you a lot, are usually on the expensive side. I got to do BJJ for $75 a month, and that's on the low end as these things go

My family has a dog- a black lab/border collie mix. I actually miss my dog a little bit more than my family...does that make me a bad person?