Tom Yum

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8gEBDyUtYw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ydNSltuoCM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j92PkIXF3Bo

What do you guys think?

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Furniturepal

I used to really have Wing Chun in my sights, but then I took into consideration that there wasn't a single school in my entire state, as well as that it would probably be too hard for me personally to learn.

That instructor in the video looks like he could give an attacker a fair ass kicking for his troubles though.

It's certainly a flashy martial art.

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Red Rum

Why do you think it would too hard for you to learn?
Wing Chun is one of the easiest things to learn. I found learning Karate harder. In wing chun the movements are linked and flow from one to the other

A good student takes around a year going once a week (depending on what school you go to) to learn the basic movements of wing chun. And that, to be honest is all you need in a fight

I can't see the videos myself, but I don't put my faith on the reliability of videos. We have videos on our website, but I still advise people to come down to a class and see it in person

No schools in your entire state? Sounds like an opportunity for some of the American wing chunners out there to open up.....

Thai Bri

Clip 1 - oh yes, those well known WC moves of side/back kick to the body, guillotine and knee to the body. Not.

Clip 2 - not sure what was going on there. Looks like Master Wong can flick his wrist into someones chest and they fly backwards through the air! Amazingly bad choreography.

Clip 3 - Whooooah! Now we're getting serious! He's a JKD body weapon now! And he wears combat pants!

You know what? I've seen precious few of these moves in real fights, even in competitions where people are supposedly doing Wing Chun.

Great showmanship. Great for Kung Fu films.

But maybe not so great when you're opponent doesn't know how to jump backwards quite so far.

Tom Yum

I know what you mean, Bri - but these are demonstration videos.

Can you imagine a demonstration video, where someone like TKD GM He Il cho launches a full-power, full-speed spinning wheel kick into his training partners head? Or heavy weight boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard throwing explosive jabs through his partners face? lol

The techniques are done with light contact, probably at 60% speed for teaching purposes.

Advanced rank TKD practitioners often knock each other out, break ribs or collarbones fighting full-contact.

The closest we'll see wingchun in free-fight competitions are through the likes of guys like Alan Orr, whom uses chain punching and simple wing chun work in stand-up, infighting range to stun and move their opponents back.

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Thai Bri

Demonstration videos of what?

Presumably he is demonstrating moves that he recommends people use. Of course he is not hitting at full power. But all that wrist flicking could not be done at that speed with any power even if he wanted to.

SmallThought

I only viewed the first video and have to agree that it didn't look all that flash, but then i certainly wouldn't be training under that instructor.

All i can say about the self defence efficiency of Wing Chun is that after about a year of training it helped me fight off 5 guys. Ok, they were only about 19 or 20 and drunk, but i could hardly walk i was so drunk! They decided to have a go at me as i was walking home from a long night catching up with old friends in my home town pub. I only "knuckled" one of them, the rest just got some open hand strikes to warn them off. None of them actually connected an effective blow. Growing up where i did and having parents who sent you to ballet instead of football, you had to learn to fight, so that may play a part along with the Wing Chun training.

Not condoning drunken street brawls, just saying that real Wing Chun principles & techniques; when "trained in" correctly to be an automated response; can be effective self defence.

Mind you, since then i've also been beaten senseless by an attacker who knew my skill level and came at me from behind when my attention was directed elsewhere; but then, i don't know of too many systems that teach you to actually have eyes in the back of your head. The guy was a psychotic and the attack was retribution for me humiliating his Kempo & years of street fighting experience in a "friendly" sparring session the week before. After two years of trying to get me to "spar" with him, he finally succeeded. I knew all along it was a bad idea to spar a poor loser.

There's also the time when i was in a home town pub and a local decided to have a go at me because i was chatting with a girl he fancied (a typical country town scenario... she'd probably never even looked at him, but in his mind she was his!). Even thought i was in the midst of telling the guy i didn't want to and wasn't going to fight him; being a "non-local" (hadn't been to that pub in years and the bouncers didn't know me), i was the one "escorted" from the premises. The bouncer didn't like it when his attempted arm bars wouldn't hold. I told him to keep his hands off me and i would leave the pub. He didn't listen and kept trying to restrain me as i made my way to the door. No matter how hard he tried to restrain me he couldn't get hold. Even with two other bouncers trying to grab my arms and the bar manager punching me in the side of the head on the way out he seemed to find his way to the floor at least twice. I never threw a punch or tried to strike anyone and continuously called out that they desist as i was attempting to comply with their request that i leave (i know enough about the law to know that striking any security staff in "the execution of thier duty" is asking for an assault conviction). It was just my natural response to break a grip or attempted restraint. In the end they did get hold and got me to the ground, but that was only once i was out side the pub and went to casually walk away at which point they rushed me again; it only took 4 people 5 minutes to take down one guy who wasn't really even fighting them.

Witnesses later told me they couldn't believe a guy my size could fend off three bouncers and an angry bar manager with out throwing a punch. One even said i looked like "the rubber man" for the way my fluid limbs evaded capture. All thanks to three years of Wing Chun training as a fultime student; or is this just more evidence of useless chi sao training.

Come to think of it, it may have been easier on the side of my head if i had have trained at one of those ineffective Wing Chun schools and been subdued/restrained more easily. It may have even been better for my pretty boy face if i had taken the F#@K YOU ALL i'm the TOUGHEST mentallity of some schools and actually fought these guys instead of the non-contentious philosophy i was taught.

Just another story of country town Australia.