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Get this. In the 80s Wing Chun became all the rage. It was recognised as the "most effective fighting system" but only because the theories seemed to add up. Grappling wasn't even a consideration, as we all "knew" that a good srtiker would not let a grappler near to him. What a bunch of tossers we were.
Anyway, I started to train at a Wing Chun club in a town called Burslem (near Stoke in the UK). There were three colour sashes before black (red, green and brown) with three grades at each sash (making 9 in all). There were two instructors (one of whom is now active in British JKD) under a "Master" called Samuel Kwok. He is also still active.
Anyway, I did train hard and happened to be a student at a nearby University. Before 6 months was up the instructors (who I had invited to the University to teach in an effort to boost membership) asked me to open my own club there! I could not believe it! How could I teach anyone anything! I had only been doing it for 6 months, and Wing Chun is not the simplest art by a long way. Many of the concepts are quite detailed and complicated.
It was all just a money making exercise for them I guess. I left not long after that. The straw that broke the camels back was this. We were doing a drill were we could lightly smack each other in the face. The now JKD instructor didn't take kindly to the fact that I tapped him once or twice. I think he actually took it as an insult. He started to up the contact level, and I used nothing but Shukokai Karate to smack him again and again.
My point? Finding a genuinely good instructor in a genuinely good art is like finding a needle in a haystack. If and when you get one, hold onto them for dear life!
Anyway, I started to train at a Wing Chun club in a town called Burslem (near Stoke in the UK). There were three colour sashes before black (red, green and brown) with three grades at each sash (making 9 in all). There were two instructors (one of whom is now active in British JKD) under a "Master" called Samuel Kwok. He is also still active.
Anyway, I did train hard and happened to be a student at a nearby University. Before 6 months was up the instructors (who I had invited to the University to teach in an effort to boost membership) asked me to open my own club there! I could not believe it! How could I teach anyone anything! I had only been doing it for 6 months, and Wing Chun is not the simplest art by a long way. Many of the concepts are quite detailed and complicated.
It was all just a money making exercise for them I guess. I left not long after that. The straw that broke the camels back was this. We were doing a drill were we could lightly smack each other in the face. The now JKD instructor didn't take kindly to the fact that I tapped him once or twice. I think he actually took it as an insult. He started to up the contact level, and I used nothing but Shukokai Karate to smack him again and again.
My point? Finding a genuinely good instructor in a genuinely good art is like finding a needle in a haystack. If and when you get one, hold onto them for dear life!
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