Caffeine King Posted December 20, 2002 Share Posted December 20, 2002 First things first... I know next to nothing about the technicalities of TKD. Come to think of it, I know next to nothing about any other martial art save Aikido - which I'm not very good at, even now. I have also never ever been involved in a street fight - and I really don't plan on it either!! I have been punched in anger - though only ever whilst playing rugby. I know for a fact that it hurts too... Also, a few years ago, I had the pleasure of dating a woman who knew her TKD inside out so I do have a little idea of what a decent TKDist is capable of. Now please don't flame me folks as I'm pleading ignorance right from the start but a lot of these posts focus on X being better than TKD or TKD being superior to Y and Z... I favour a 'paper, scissors, stone' attitude to all of this - as in real life, I expect that there will be WAY too many variables to pick reliably a winner in a brawl. I've seen a black belt in Karate being dropped in a bar-fight just as he stood up because he was hit from behind with a bar stool (nasty!). I've also seen stories in the newspapers where trained martial artists (men, women and children) have beaten off multiple attackers with their skills. Having said all this, if I was ever attacked in the street - touch wood that I never am - I would like the luxury of a black belt in TKD and *most importantly* plenty of fighting savvy/common sense to go with it. We can all agree there, can't we?? The best thing about being an adult is that you can run with scissors(!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KickChick Posted December 20, 2002 Share Posted December 20, 2002 Plain & Simple Caffeine King,.... You betcha! .... (is that why I have so many friends???) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caffeine King Posted December 20, 2002 Share Posted December 20, 2002 Could be... Having said that, I'm guessing that you probably can't apply that black belt and fighting savvy/common sense to me from where you're standing right now. Lack of reach!! That must mean that you're probably just the likable sort... A bit like me!! The best thing about being an adult is that you can run with scissors(!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobias Posted December 21, 2002 Share Posted December 21, 2002 It's probably the single most debated subject in all martial arts forums on the internet, is TKD effective in a street fight? My humble opinion, it is certainly no less effective than any other classical martial art like Shotokan, Isshin Ryu, Goju Ryu, Shorin Ryu, Tang Soo Do....whatever. Like other posters have stated, it all depends on what your instructors are teaching you. I don't care what style you study, if all you do is punch and kick in the air, practice kata ( hyungs for my Korean style pals), and do non-contact sparring, you can't possibly expect to be effective in a fight. It's just not going to happen. TKD in and of itself does not put you at any inherent disadvantage in a fight. It's your method of training that makes the difference. That goes for any style. My background is Japanese and Okinawan karate and I feel the same about those systems as I do the Korean ones. They are no better, no worse...just different. Classical systems are fine. Kata and non contact sparring DO serve a purpose, but you have to train realistically, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramymensa Posted December 23, 2002 Share Posted December 23, 2002 i fell like id be wasting my time by this point enlightening another one ever since ive been on here this same thread comes up over and over..the only people who know just how excellent of an art taekwondo is are those of us who practice it dilligently..its mostly a bunch of kids now on here anyway who dont know any better..but wanna talk as if they have sooo much experience..what are you gonna do??Liked your LONGGGGGGGGGGG post Great Unfortunatelly you are speaking to the wind ... Some won't listen. And we'll have to go on the same road again Twwnty and mant years? My respect and admiration. World Shotokan Karate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Radok Posted January 3, 2003 Share Posted January 3, 2003 probably in Korea it would be, but it is so sport oriented over here in America, not to mention that 90% of schools are mcdojos. If you can't laugh at yourself, there's no point. No point in what, you might ask? there's just no point.Many people seem to take Karate to get a Black Belt, rather than getting a Black Belt to learn Karate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammyrai Posted February 2, 2003 Share Posted February 2, 2003 ok, i would like to point out that many of you saying that tkd is useless in a fight are also neglecting the fact that WE HAVE MORE THAN JUST HIGH KICKS. we can shatter a knee with the best of them. who do you know that will keep fighting with a busted knee? having a fast kick can end a fight fast if you kick to the groin. also, we can punch, elbow, knee. tkd is not just head level jump or spinning kicks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammyrai Posted February 2, 2003 Share Posted February 2, 2003 point sparring. many of us tkd artists are told not to go full swing, (even then sometimes it really feels as if they are, your legs are just that strong!!) we dont want our sparring partner in a hospital. one of the big epmhasises (?) in my school is control. just make contact for the point, dont blast through them. you could, but in point sparring the idea is to get points, not beat the crap out of yoru opponent. whoda thunkit??!?! the kicks will work in real fights, if you use them correctly and smartly. namely dont rely on a 360 wheel kick. knees are wonderful targets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramymensa Posted February 3, 2003 Share Posted February 3, 2003 Agree ... In Shotokan we do the same thing. I sparr with you, apply a technique in a 'lighter" form ... enough power to demonstrate you it could get nasty Full speed and still some control, Nobody gets in to the hospital and when I'll have to send someone to the Intensive Care unit, trust me, I'll do it These days I had the opportunity of doing some training with a TKD BB. Well, the guy rocks My deepest respects to him and to your style. I still think shotokan is the greatest (FOR ME, not in general), but I do respect martial artists from whatever style if they prove me they deserve my admiration and, if they worked to become good, they have already got my respect World Shotokan Karate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirves Posted February 3, 2003 Share Posted February 3, 2003 ok, i would like to point out that many of you saying that tkd is useless in a fight are also neglecting the fact that WE HAVE MORE THAN JUST HIGH KICKS. That's true. And one more important element is the person. What's his knowledge and mind set. Some TKD students really have been grown in a vacuum as far as martial arts are concerned. They think a street fight is just like a tournament fight and act accordingly - big mistake. Some TKD students on the other hand meet other martial artists, read a lot, go to camps and seminars of different arts and teachers. They get a wholesome view of the fighting arts and their tactics and differences in general. Such a person can make TKD work a lot better then the one grown in a vacuum. This all come down to the age old issue: if you think your art is the best and never look beyond it's boundaries, you're going to stay narrow minded, limited, and possibly lose a fight at some critical moment in your life. If on the other hand, you accept that no single art has all the answers and keenly go beyond the limits of your own style, get interested in what other people do, how they do it, why they do it, and what good is it to you, then you are on your way to mastery. And that's why it's said it's not the mastery but the way there that counts. You get to meet new people, see places, learn and experience new things. That's the fun part of being a serious martial artist. See where it took Chuck Norris, a man who started with Tang Soo Do, added some Hapkido, Judo and other arts, now studies seriously BJJ among other things. He is a great role model. His way to mastery must've been rewarding. Just think where he'd be now had he stuck himself to Tang Soo Do only and refused to learn anything from anyone else! Notice, that isn't to say TSD isn't a good art, it's just that with such an attitude he would have missed great interpersonal relationships and experiences that were the key to his eventual greatness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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