Saturday, July 30, 2011

$1,999 Kali Stick for Sale

Interested in adding a Kali Stick to your collection that was used by Guro Dan?  Well you can pick it up on Ebay for only $1,999!  That's right - one thousand nine hundred and ninety nine dollars! :)

BTW - if this stick sells for anything even close to that I'll have to dig out all of my training notes with Guro Dan's handwritten notes on them as well as the training equipment that he's signed or given me over the past 25 years.  I could pay for Mak and Jak's tuition this year... maybe!

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Hubud Lubud Training - Part I

Look very closely and you might see some of the techniques that we have been working on in class in relation to the Hubud Lubud.  No, really... look really closely because you might miss it! :)

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Sherlock Holmes - A Game of Shadows

I've always been a fan of Sherlock Holmes and have read all of the original stories and several of the contemporary ones as well.  Most people don't realize that Sherlock was as quick with his hands and feet as he was with his mind... and he was pretty good with a cudgel as well.

If you haven't seen Robert Downey's first foray in the Sherlock Holmes character be sure to watch the first  one (made back in 2009).  The next movie will be our in December 2011 - for now you'll just have to settle for the trailer (note all of the fight scenes as well!):

Monday, July 18, 2011

Atillo Balitawak Escrima

For those of you who attended the Guro Dan Inosanto seminar this past weekend this is the Balitawak system that he was introducing us to (Atillo Balintawak).  The following video shows Guro Dan working with GM Atillo at the Inosanto Academy and demonstrates both structured and unstructured flows in the Atillo system.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Guro Dan Seminar Preview

The following video is from an appearance that Guro Dan made in Washington, DC for the Smithsonian Institution.  He was invited to give a presentation on the Filipino Martial Arts and the video captures most of the action.  NOTE: I've seen Guro hundreds of times at seminars over the last 25+ years and I can almost guarantee you that you'll see a large percentage of this material at the seminar... so watch closely!

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Dan Inosanto vs. Steven Seagal

I remember hearing stories about Guro Dan (and others from the Inosanto Academy) working with Steven Seagal over the years. Guro Dan can share quite a few about Seagal's early years teaching Aikido here in the United States. There are also a few good ones about filming the fight scene below for "Out For Justice". If you get a chance ask him about it this weekend at the seminar.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Too Accurate?

The following is from John Farnam and is a good read for anyone that is interested in defensive pistol-work or the martial arts:

I counsel my young and energetic students, as a "general rule,"to be always "too accurate, rather than too fast." That is, they are advised to ever-error in the direction of being excessively accurate, rather than inordinately fast.

However, I also encourage them, during training, to "push the envelope" in an effort to see how fast they can really be.  Knowing how fast you can run your trigger, and still get desired results, is a judgment that only comes from experience, mostly negative experience. Put another way, you need to fail regularly (in training) if you want to really learn anything. Who "play it safe," never risking missing a shot, will never know how fast they can go (while  maintaining accuracy to an acceptable degree).

There was a time when we all carried six-shooters, and reloading, even with revolver speed-loaders, was a relatively tedious and slow task.  We had to remind ourselves that every shot had to be effective.  Rifles were similarly limited.

Today, our pistols are fourteen, fifteen, and sixteen-shooters, and reloading them is smooth and fast.  Our rifles now have thirty-round magazines. With these magnificent technological improvements, many of us have become complacent and lazy, thinking all that firepower will somehow compensate for personal incompetence.

So, once again, here is the caveat: Missing is triply disastrous -
  1. It doesn't stop the fight!  The longer this fight goes on, the more hurt I'm going to get.  When there must be a fight, the only kind that interests me is a short one!  When my life is endangered, I want the  threat(s) neutralized immediately.  Missing fails utterly in that  regard. In addition, missed shots will embolden your attacker(s).  When they conclude (correctly), from your slovenly shooting, that you are  personally incompetent, they may well press their attack, rather than  voluntarily disengaging or surrendering.
  2. It provides me with one fewer round with which to solve my tactical problem.  Yes, I may have lots of rounds, assuming my gun(s) continues to function normally, but there may well be several individuals who all simultaneously represent lethal threats to me, and, accordingly, all must be neutralized quickly.  I might just need all those rounds, every one. I can't afford to miss, with any of them!
  3. When one of my rounds fails to hit something I wanted it to hit, by definition, it will hit something I didn't want it to hit!  "Sloppy  shooting," as manifested by missed shots, missed shots that went on downrange to cause unintended injury and property damage, are never dealt with kindly by investigators, nor prosecutors, nor juries.  When one of your bullets ends  up in an "unhappy place," you're the one who will have to explain how it got there.  At that point, your "intent," no matter how sincere, is largely irrelevant!
Competent Operators hit consistently.  They know how fast they can hit, and go just that fast, but no faster.

SHOOT LESS.  KILL MORE!

Friday, July 8, 2011

The Bretzel 2.0

Most of you heed my advice to work on your mobility (and any asymmetries you might have) on a regular basis.  One of the cornerstone mobility exercises that I recommend is called "The Bretzel".  It is a unique mobility drill that enhances thoracic spine mobility and helps to even out asymmetries in the hips and shoulders.  The following two videos, featuring Gray Cook, discuss The Bretzel in detail and explain some fine-tuning that will help you get the most of it.  Watch them both and put into practice what you learn - you will be better off because of it!


Thursday, July 7, 2011

Illuminate

Charles Shyrock (a friend of Martial Arts Koncepts), along with his brother John, and a group of very talented martial artists are premiering their show called "ILLUMINATE" this weekend in Washington, DC.  According to their Web site the show is "Karate Kid meets Star Wars. Others say it’s a karate rave.  ILLUMINATE showcases martial artists who strike, dodge, jump, break, and battle in the dark with LED equipment.  The lights go out and we witness a hero’s walk from student to master."

So if you're downtown this weekend be sure to check it out!

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Killer Elite

When I saw the title of this movie I assumed it was a remake of the James Caan / Robert Duvall movie 1975... but after watching the trailer I'm pretty sure it's not.  (NOTE: according to the press release it is based on a "true story" of an ex-special forces trained officer who has to facilitate the release of his friend/handler by killing three high;y-trained assassins.) Either way it looks like it will be packed with fight scenes that focus on the athlete abilities of Jason Statham and Clive Owen.