Picture Slideshow

I mentioned to some of the students that I had put together a slideshow with a bunch of pictures that I had (mostly from tournaments). I guess this is one way to get them posted for the class to see. Enjoy!!!

Flashy Forms vs. Regular Forms

As I teach Fut Gar Kung Fu I am often reminded that there are much flashier forms in other styles than the ones we use. Even with that disadvantage our students continue to command attention and be complimented as we perform or compete. How is this possible? The answer is simple. We look for precision of execution which can be a thing of beauty to the eyes of the trained martial artist. Yes, I teach some flashier forms but encourage the students to use the true forms of our style when competing. I believe that achieving a good result with a normal traditional form is a true measure of a student's kung fu skills. Those that have taken Fut Gar Kung Fu and complained about how it looks compared to some other styles have simply not studied the style long enough to perform the techniques in a manner that looks good. I have unfortunately seen schools that seem compelled to add some flashy forms to help their performers/competitors and have even seen schools that have fabricated forms to give their students a flashier look. I think it is ridiculous that schools create forms instead of perfecting the ones they know to the point of looking great. I would like to encourage the traditional schools to stick with your forms and train harder to perfect them.

What Does This Move Do?

When learning kung fu at my school, the students often ask about the applications of a technique. How is the technique used in a combat situation? This is a good question but when I was a student I was often given the answer "What do you think it does?" This is not an attempt by the instructor to avoid the question or an indication that they do not know the answer. I do know what the techniques are for and I can feed the answer to the students but prefer to have the students think. My real answer is that the application of a technique is correct if you are able to execute it the way you believe it should be used. Although there is an intended purpose for a technique, I do not believe that there is only one answer to the question "What does this move do?" I prefer students to think about the technique and try to figure out the answer to the question first. I am there as a guide for those that really cannot think of an answer and will happily discuss the advantages or disadvantages of a potential application. I would like to encourage all martial artists to think beyond the obvious and look for the "hidden" techniques of a style. Ask yourself questions such as why do I circle my arms twice instead of once or why do I raise my knee when executing this technique. Thinking this way will bring out new possibilities in your fighting.

CCKSF Tournament Crew

A small group of students competed this weekend in the CCKSF Kung Fu tournament. Along with a great chance for Kai and Kevin C to get some tournament experience, we had some medal winning performances from a couple of the more senior students in the group, Jason and JP. Great job guys.

Medals won were:

• Jason - Gold in Advanced Long Weapons
• Jason - Bronze in Advanced Hand Forms
• JP - Gold in Advanced Short Weapons
• JP - Bronze in Advanced Hand Forms
• JP - Bronze in Fighting (Heavyweight Division)

More important was once again recognition from judges that the proper use of techniques by our students (in both forms and fighting) was a good example for other competitors moving forward. Even in fights that were not victories, the students did a great job of controlling techniques and producing a great technical fight. In these tournaments, I believe this is the true indication of the success of the students and a strong endorsement that our training methods will produce proper martial artists in the long run.