Brad and I had the pleasure of attending the Military Arnis Seminar hosted by Karate Five Dojo in Morristown this past weekend and all I can say is we were impressed.
Impressed with the knowledge of Colonel Lisa McManus and Grandmaster Jeff Delaney. Impressed with the quality and dedication to training. Impressed with the group of youth in attendance. Impressed with the way the Karate Five went out of there way to make us feel welcome and a part of their family. And very impressed with the Scruggs Barbecue!!!!
It's going to take Brad and I months to process all of the great concepts and knowledge thrown at us in two days. Everything from sticks, knives, empty hand, grappling and ground work but we both left excited with all of the new training possibilities.
It's tough to describe what a great experience we had without going through a minute by minute account so let me just list a few highlights that Brad and I discussed on our drive home ....
Scruggs Barbecue ... if you haven't had it you're missing out!!!!
All the one on one time we had with Colonel McManus, Grandmaster Delaney, Grandmaster Wilson and Grandmaster Lee .... with a hundred plus in attendance we were amazed with the time and attention they gave us.
Grandmaster Ogle working with the youth on break falls ... As most of you know James Ogle doesn't raise his voice, so to see 50 kids working breakfalls in unison with dead silence was impressive.
Master Lee Jr. on the mat ... Amazing!!! If you have never had the opportunity to see his demonstration you have missed out on something special...
Thanks so much to the Karate Five for allowing us to be a part of there family and to Master Sieber for making it possible for us to attend in the first place.
Great stick class last night if not my best showing ... ended up with two acorn sized pump knots on my forehead for my efforts but sadly those trophies had vanished by morning. Big thanks as always to Master Grinnell and Bowers ... if it takes a few bumps and bruises to have the chance to learn and spend time with these guys I'm getting the better part of the deal .....
When I was a young green belt we would go to every Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris movie, along with a hundred other students from all the Dojo's around town, and upon exiting the theater we would hope against hope that someone would look at us the wrong way so we could test our new found skills.
Now when confronted by an idiot the possible conflit plays like a movie in my mind and I walk away.
Great class last night with a couple new faces that were truly welcomed .... Our very own shy reserved Christian Marlow lead us through what he called a warm up ... there's a sadistic side there that I didn't know about ... needless to say every muscle in this poor old body aches!!! Guess it's time to get back to cardio and calisthenics ....
Thanks to all who showed up ... it was great seeing the mats filled up for a change!!!!!!
Great Arnis class last night!!! It's funny how enthusiasm is infectious .... after my weekend study session I was so pumped up with some of my epiphanies (better late than never) that I just had to show Evan before class, which of course lead us into a discussion on kata and bunkai that lasted most of the class ... nice to give those brain cells a workout from time to time in the dojo!!!!!
Which is more valuable? A- Someone who tells you want you want to hear? B- Someone who tells you what you need to hear?
I've always thought it was B but sadly I've been proven wrong more times than not the last couple of years and lost a few I considered friends ... none the less ... when dealing with me I'd prefer what I need even when it's not what I want to hear ..........
Had a really good weekend of Kata study ... Thanks to Master Seiber and Master Grinnell for their time, patience, knowledge and willingness to work with me and to Master Mitchum and Master Advincula for their informative dvd's I finally have a deeper understanding of kata and it's benifits.
By taking my notes from my one on one sessions with Masters Seiber and Grinnell and comparing them with the dvd's of the 1st generation Masters then going to the source with Master Shimabuku's videos I was able to make alot of minor corrections that have been holding back my progress for years....
Guys whatever you've been told in the past, take it from me, in the martial arts it's the small stuff that counts!!! A slight adjustment of angle, correct body mechanics, proper bunkai, exact targeting .... all of these are what make up martial arts and all of these are contained in our kata .... If you're willing to search it out ......
Last night started out to be a normal night. Then in walks Master Rick Breeden with one of his students, Donald. It is always a pleasure to see Rick. His young student, Donald, was a complete joy to work with. He was a ball of energy. Rick said he was recovering from a knee injury but his foot seemed to find its way to the side of my head just fine. His elbow also found its way to my mouth and I have a nice cherry looking spot on my bottom lip. It looks very nice against my skin tone I want to thank Master Breeden for stopping by and he knows he is welcome anytime.
