Baaad Uechi-ka, no grabbing!

[KentuckyUechi]

My students and I went to a "Martial Arts" tournament last Saturday. My son and I were scolded repeatedly for "grabbing". The judge even went so far as to playfully bop my son on the head and say "This is Tae Kwon Do, NOT Karate. Most of what we were scolded for were actually scooping open hand blocks that redirected the kick or spun the "kickee". My son however was guilty of some real grabs. And although I don't encourage breaking the rules...........
My son was sparring in the black belt division for the first time and he was facing a very talented TKD fighter, that seemed quite capable of removing one's head with any of his kicks. So when my son trapped/grabbed these kicks with ease and followed up with effective hand techniques...... IT WAS BEAUTIFUL! (Is there a tear in my eye?)

http://www.facebook.com/#!/photo.php?pi ... 1671594258

(seems the above link must be cut and pasted to see photo, otherwise it just takes you to the main page.)

[gmattson]

No question. . . they are different. . .

But they weren't always so different. Back in the 60, 70 and 80s, TKD and Karate students competed together and afterwards, celebrated and partied together.

There are reasons that today's TKD is so different. It has much to do about controlling Olympic sport karate/TKD and having lots of political power backing this "new" form of non-fighting.

[KentuckyUechi]

TKD and Karate students competed together and afterwards, celebrated and partied together.

I must say, although we were the only non-TKD students there, I received many compliments. I was complimented on my kata. Many said they liked it, and they had never seen it before. My opponent in sparring and his Dad (owners of a large TKD school) invited my son and I to visit their black belt class and share some of my Uechi techniques.

[Bill Glasheen]

Strange how Facebook messes everything up like that.

Congratulations on your success. And remember - you know what they do, but they haven't a clue what you're about. That's always an advantage.

See you in Kentucky!

- Bill

[KentuckyUechi]

See you in Kentucky!

Sounds good, I've warned my students about you ...... I mean my students and I look forward to training with you. Let me know when you get "settled in".

[Panther]

... I've warned my students about you ...... I mean my students and I look forward to training with you. Let me know when you get "settled in".

Bert

[Bill Glasheen]

Be afraid! Be very afraid...


... of good times!

- Bill

[KentuckyUechi]

I just got back from watching 3 of my students compete in an open martial arts tournament. The good news is, none of them were scolded for grabbing.

However, one of them used some good shin and downblocks, and his opponent was soon hesitant to kick with his preferred kick (a right roundhouse). He was obviously hurting. At one point, he even removed his SHINGUARD to rub his leg.

Mind you I take no pleasure in anyone's pain. But........I must say I was smiling a bit on the inside. My student without the shinguards was quite comfortable.

Is that bad? I'm thinking it's just a Uechi thing.

[Bill Glasheen]

Is that bad? I'm thinking it's just a Uechi thing.

It's bad - in a good way. Who's bad???

We should not look to sport karateka in open tournaments to dictate how we do our art. Many wise modern gurus of martial arts and reality-based self defense (Rory Miller included) have been doing their best to communicate the Venn Diagram of activities that many of us call "martial arts." Sport karate is sport. Modern non-contact or light-contact tournaments are nothing more than sophisticated games of tag. Karate aerobics is an oxymoron. "Traditional" karate may or may not be about diving deeply into the martial roots. What you learn to be a good LEO isn't the same as what you learn to be a good soldier, or what men used to learn to protect their families in times of lawlessness. And finally - and this message is reinforced by what I've read in Rory's Meditations on Violence - defending oneself may or may not have anything to do with what most would recognize as karate or martial arts.

We are about conditioning. That defines Uechi Ryu. I will say that many take this to an extreme with their Sanchin "shime", and this is ignorant, dangerous, and counterproductive. But I am a big, big proponent of give-and-take partner conditioning as well as a mix of classical and modern Uechi Ryu resistance training methods.

And... I've always taken great pride in not looking like a knuckle-dragger when I put on a white shirt and tie. My hands look normal, and frankly I've had a few women tell me they are jealous.

It doesn't help when I walk into light fixtures and give myself a black eye...

There are several things we have all over the ubiquitous taequondo crowd.

• We grab
• We strike to the face
• Uechika should excel fighting in bad breath range. A run-of-the-mill taequondo fighter hates when you charge in while jamming their defensive kick (with a crane leg) and then never lose contact with them (by any means) until the fight has stopped.
• We kick legs, and we are immunized against leg kicks.

So when a karateka feels a need to arm up from hands to feet with equipment that Jhoon Rhee and his predecessors made famous, just smile. The true cruelty IMNSHO is the instructor who refuses to train his students how not to get hurt when sustaining contact, falling down, or being thrown. That's their problem, and not yours. And it should be your advantage when going head-to-head.

Just make sure not to get stupid about it, such as when in a self-defense situation involving a blade. Some kinds of contact should be avoided.

In a fight, pain is a great behavior modification tool. The early Thai boxers - and even Western boxers vs. karateka - made that point pretty remarkably when they showed how difficult it was to hurt them. And lets not forget how getting hurt on someone tends to discourage the attacker in a most amusing fashion.

- Bill

[KentuckyUechi]

We should not look to sport karateka in open tournaments to dictate how we do our art.

True. Having said that, my students and I don't have many "outlets" in this area. So on occassion, I let my students know if there is a local tournament going on. Then a couple of weeks before the tournament, they get the lecture. The one that explains the difference between what we do in our dojo, and what happens at a sport tournament. Then I let them practice point sparring, up until the tournament. After the tournament, it's back to traditional Uechi. In the last 2 yrs. we have been to 3 tournaments. These are the first tournaments I've been to in 16-17yrs.

It seems something interesting has happened over the last 15-20yrs, at least in this area. Years ago, if I went to a tournament, It seems my students and I could be assured that we would never place very well in the forms division.
But something seems to have changed, possibly due to the MMA Revolution. People are quite interested in what we are doing. We've had several invites to other schools, multiple compliments, and everyone seems interested in learning more about what we are doing. Interestingly enough, my son decided not to compete in this tournament for the same reasons you spoke of. He does not want to change his fighting style to comply with tournament rules. While at the tournament, the head instructor from the host School asked if he was going to compete. When my son said no, he said he really enjoyed watching him fight, that he was very good. He then said "Is there any way I could change your mind? I know the guy who runs this tournament. "

So when a karateka feels a need to arm up from hands to feet with equipment

We strike to the face

This brings up something else I was curious about. What does everyone else out there do in regards to sparring gear?

I have my kids wear Headgear (we practice on a concrete/tile floor), handgear,footgear, and groin cups for the guys. My son and I sometimes use only mma grappling gloves. We do punch (and sometimes kick) to the head, but I discourage face contact. We're discussing boxing type headgear, so we can punch to the face more without messing up our beautiful mugs.

And lets not forget how getting hurt on someone tends to discourage the attacker in a most amusing fashion.

Pain can have all kinds of effects on us. Shortly after I had received my black belt, I was sparring with Padded hand and foot gear for the first time (my original instructor did not allow/require it). Anyway since we had always sparred without gear there was no head contact. The guy I was sparring was very good with his hands and hit me in the nose. It hurt like hell, made my eyes water and my nose bleed slightly. The next time we sparred, I KEPT MY HANDS UP! I also started using my kicks to keep this guy at bay. Despite the footgear I broke a couple of his ribs with a roundhouse kick. We both took our lumps, learned valuable lessons and remained friends.