Dog Brothers.

[searcher]

I was wondering if there is anyone here that studies with any of the Dog Brothers? If you do, which pack are you with? Who is your instructor?

 

Have you gone to a Gathering of the Pack?

 

The reason I am asking is that I have been considering going to a Gathering. I want to here of some first hand accounts of what to expect. I have had a great deal of respect for the Dog Brothers way of sparring at the Gatherings for a very long time. I have been in contact with Guro Crafty about coming and have always felt welcomed.

 

For anyone reading this post who does not know about Dog Brothers you can get some good info at https://www.dogbrothers.com .

[cathal]

Is that website a joke?

[tommarker]

No, it is not.

[searcher]

They ARE the real deal. If you want all out FULL contact, they are the ones to get in contact with. As Crafty has said, "it is not for most people." Depends on what you are looking for in your training.

[tommarker]

Let us know how it goes.

 

I personally think some of their work is a little skewed (when they talk about the stick versus other weapons) and they tend to gloss over when someone using a "Traditional weapon" breaks the mold and beats them.

 

I think there is a video on the site where the guy weilding the bokken breaks a rib on the other guy, and they call it a lucky shot or something

[bart]

Hey There,

 

I'd suggest going to one of the Gatherings. I watched two Gatherings and then I fought in a Gathering in the Fall of 2000. It's more of a combative exercise than a tournament. It is actually quite friendly and geared toward personal growth and development. I should point out that growth is sometimes painful People are really trying to hit you. People are really trying to choke you and kick you. It seems apt to say that they are NOT playing around, but actually they are just playing REALLY rough.

Let us know how it goes.

 

I personally think some of their work is a little skewed (when they talk about the stick versus other weapons) and they tend to gloss over when someone using a "Traditional weapon" breaks the mold and beats them.

 

I think there is a video on the site where the guy weilding the bokken breaks a rib on the other guy, and they call it a lucky shot or something

 

I have to disagree with this statement. The guy with the bokken is one of their exponents and he is employing their methods to do that. If you wanted, you can go in there with any weapon and a good friendly attitude and play. They are an equal opportunity show when it comes to who to beat on. On occasion aside from sticks, people have used staves of varying length, daggers, and even a chair. They do skew in favor of contact. They say that contact is important for development, not a light touch, but full contact fighting practice. This grows out of the ethos of the arts they study and teach, most notably those from Southeast Asia and South America.

 

And by the way, in FMA the stick is a "traditional" weapon.

[tommarker]

Hi Bart,

 

I'm sorry if you got the impression that I don't like what they do, just sharing my feelings from one of the tapes. I think these guys are peeling away a lot of the fluffy layers of martial arts.

[bart]

Hi Bart,

 

I'm sorry if you got the impression that I don't like what they do, just sharing my feelings from one of the tapes. I think these guys are peeling away a lot of the fluffy layers of martial arts.

 

I respect your opinion and I didn't feel any negativity. But I did sense some misconceptions about what the ethos of that group is. The part that I was referring to in my last post was:

"they tend to gloss over when someone using a "Traditional weapon" breaks the mold and beats them"

 

I wanted to make clear that nationality or tradition of a weapon doesn't matter and there is no mold there to be broken. Also I wanted to point out that the bokken is not any more traditional than a stick in the environment of the Gathering. It is however understood to be a Japanese. As a practitioner of non-chinese, non-korean, non-japanese arts I often find that "traditional weapons" mistakenly are used to only refer to weapons from those countries. Albeit this is KarateForums, but I just wanted to point out that distinction. Thanks again for your input.

 

 

 

'

[searcher]

Thanks for the input from both tommarker and bart. You both have class and respect in your posts.

 

On a side note I have done weapons sparring with the traditional Okinawan weapons and I have done Kenjutsu. I have also competed in knockdown karate matches, where my opponents were trying to do harm.

 

With that said I understand that it is like comparing apples to oranges.

 

Bart, in your oppinion would sparring in some WEKAF tourneys help in preparation for the Gathering?

[ShotokanKid]

I liked the promo vid. With the sticks