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I'm not a regular forum user, but there seems to be some good discussion around here so I thought why not sign up.
First I am a huge fan of martial arts, especially mixed martial arts and the current fight circuits higlighting it.
When I was younger I was quite the scrapper, but never really got into organzied fighting. I had some (translate -- very little) classic boxing, karate, and wrestling training but nothing to make me competitive in those areas. None of them really worked for me. I didn't really like trading blows or holds, if I had to fight I wanted it over quickly. In my late teens and 20s I spent some time as a door man in French Quarter of New Orleans. This is where my real fight training took place, and where I got first hand experience that a mixed style was far better than a single fight style. There was always the trouble maker warning he was a black belt in (fill in blank), which was basically the biggest telegraph punch you can give. We knew exactly what to expect, and acted appropriately.
In the bar/club scene you have to act quickly to keep others from getting involved and creating a fight you can't control, so I started working out with some of the other doormen and bouncers around town to improve my reliability to the club.
I learned a lot in those days, and it would prove to help me from time to time as I travelled around the world, but a true martial artist I never became.
Mainly because the biggest lesson I learned working the club scene was -- "I don't like to get hit."
Now I am quite a bit older and rarely find a situation I can't talk my way out of instead of throwing a punch or taking someone to the ground. However I have four sons, two of which have outgrown me, so I do get a little mat practice in once in a while. And so far the oldman has been able to handle both of them quite well.
I also occasionally get to work concert security with some of my friends from the old days when they need a hand, but drunk fighters in a crowd at a concert go down with a twist of the wrist and usually give up pretty quickly. If the wrist doesn't drop em, a size 12 boot to the shin works well.
Most of my fight interest today is done from the armchair. I try to keep up on some of the young men I have worked with on their quest for Olympic wrestling medals or national championships, and take quite a bit of interest in the son of an old friend who is working his way up through the karate ranks. I love the MMA Competitions on television, and tend to get most pay-per-views.
I may take up some fighting again when my youngest son starts doing some fight training, but right now he is too young for me to even decide waht training he will get.
So for now I will continue to watch from the armchair or ringside seat, and keep telling myself -- I can take him.
First I am a huge fan of martial arts, especially mixed martial arts and the current fight circuits higlighting it.
When I was younger I was quite the scrapper, but never really got into organzied fighting. I had some (translate -- very little) classic boxing, karate, and wrestling training but nothing to make me competitive in those areas. None of them really worked for me. I didn't really like trading blows or holds, if I had to fight I wanted it over quickly. In my late teens and 20s I spent some time as a door man in French Quarter of New Orleans. This is where my real fight training took place, and where I got first hand experience that a mixed style was far better than a single fight style. There was always the trouble maker warning he was a black belt in (fill in blank), which was basically the biggest telegraph punch you can give. We knew exactly what to expect, and acted appropriately.
In the bar/club scene you have to act quickly to keep others from getting involved and creating a fight you can't control, so I started working out with some of the other doormen and bouncers around town to improve my reliability to the club.
I learned a lot in those days, and it would prove to help me from time to time as I travelled around the world, but a true martial artist I never became.
Mainly because the biggest lesson I learned working the club scene was -- "I don't like to get hit."
Now I am quite a bit older and rarely find a situation I can't talk my way out of instead of throwing a punch or taking someone to the ground. However I have four sons, two of which have outgrown me, so I do get a little mat practice in once in a while. And so far the oldman has been able to handle both of them quite well.
I also occasionally get to work concert security with some of my friends from the old days when they need a hand, but drunk fighters in a crowd at a concert go down with a twist of the wrist and usually give up pretty quickly. If the wrist doesn't drop em, a size 12 boot to the shin works well.
Most of my fight interest today is done from the armchair. I try to keep up on some of the young men I have worked with on their quest for Olympic wrestling medals or national championships, and take quite a bit of interest in the son of an old friend who is working his way up through the karate ranks. I love the MMA Competitions on television, and tend to get most pay-per-views.
I may take up some fighting again when my youngest son starts doing some fight training, but right now he is too young for me to even decide waht training he will get.
So for now I will continue to watch from the armchair or ringside seat, and keep telling myself -- I can take him.
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