MARTIALARM martial arts supplies MACHINE

Author: Master David Cheung
There is good news for people over 40 years of age. Special training is being organised by applying 24 years of martial arts experience and 12 years of teaching experience. In fact, some M.A.P.’s have already started training – they couldn’t wait!

It is a misunderstanding that martial arts are only for youths, which is why many people give up when they get over 40, or never get started. Actually that age is a good time to start because they have already reached maturity of mind and body. They know what is right to do, and what’s wrong to do with their art.

Master David Cheung will guide them to develop self-awareness of the positive and negative energies around them, and a better approach to deal with mental and physical obstacles.
M.A.P.’s are not only an easier target for crime, but also a ‘bigger fish’ in gener­al for the criminals. If they could devote a little time to training martial arts, they would begin to feel more confident through looking younger, healthier, and creating more harmony in their lives.

In general, martial arts offers the power of mind, spirit and body, but some styles are too hard and some too soft. Since the Wing Chun system was developed by a woman to fight on an equal footing against stronger and bigger opponents, we believe that it will achieve the same when applied to M.A.P.’s.

Master Cheung has had past experience in helping people up to 65 years of age successfully achieve in the training of mar­tial arts.…

Author: Terry P. Hill
LARRY HARTSELL is one of a select few of the original Bruce Lee students still teaching and promoting the Master’s unique fighting principles, Jeet Kune Do. Hartsell’s speciality is to tie you up, tear you down and rip you apart.

A good boxer to boot (excuse the pun), Larry Hartsell was one of the first of the ‘Contact Karate’ Fighters back in the early 1970’s. He fought in a number of ‘Toughman’ contests as well, and was very successful in keeping his features intact. (Although they weren’t that pretty to start with).

Larry’s been there, done that (includ­ing a tour of duty in Vietnam) and he knows whatit is all about. The ‘it’, we are referring to, of course, is ‘physical conversation,’ with a touch of aggression. Fighting, to the less educated, is one of the most basic ingredients in all our makeup and one thing that is substantially re­sponsible for man’s constant evolution.

Hartsell is a good fighter. And a very knowledgeable one at that. He comes from a good school, though, with some of the finest exponents and teachers (Bruce Lee, Dan Inosanto, Richard Bustillo and Chai Surisute) the Martial Arts world has ever seen.

“The problem with most people (Mart­ial Artists) is they don’t understand ranges of combat” explains Larry. “The entering and grappling are more often than not the finishing scenario to a fight. If you can’t grapple you’re just playing with your­self.”

This man has trained and studied with the best and some of his personal acquain­tances read like a who’s who of Martial Arts. Mr Bruce Lee and Guru Dan Ino­santo, ‘Judo’ Gene LaBell, Hayward Nishioka and Professor Wally Jay. This man has been in with the best and one of the things these people are best at, is grappling and its variations.

Larry has a great deal of knowledge and untold diversity with throws, locks and counterholds. He can truss you up like you’d never believe, and tear you a new hole if needs be …
His boxing, Muay Thai and Kali cover the other ranges of combat and …

Author: RICHARD KAY
THE DAY of departure fOr the most recent Goju-Kensha Australia training tour of Japan finally dawned, after many months of build-up. Fund-raising, meetings, clothes fittings and associated preparations were now a thing of the past.

We all met at the airport at 7.30am on Sunday, October 13th, checked in and then wasted time before finally departing to a chorus of, “Have a good time”, “Be good”, “Don’t you dare do so-and­so”; “Don’t catch anything”; and other concerned (or jeal­ous) comments. After a 30­minute delay we lifted off, hoping this wasn’t going to set a precedent for the trip.

Approximately 24 hours, two countries and several clim­ate zones later, we arrived at Narita Airport at 8.00am on the Monday morning. To our surprise, we were met by Suzuki Sensei and Momose Sensei. After introductions and re-acquaintances we caught a bus and taxi to Shintomi, in Tokyo, where Ohtsuka Sensei was (patiently) waiting for us at the dojo. We checked into our hotel (about two minutes’ walk from the dojo), had a quick lunch and then went to the dojo to meet Ohtsuka Sensei, who lives upstairs. Once inside (after removing our shoes, a custom we were quickly to become accustomed with), Ohtsuka Sensei greeted us all and sat us down in his lounge room with tea and cakes. Once we were comfort­able, he calmly told us that in a few hours he was leaving for Australia – where he was staying for a week for his pol­itical duty! (He has been a counsellor for the city of Tok­yo for 16 years). Luckily, James Sumarac was sitting down, as this was totally unex­pected …

Anyway, we chewed the fat for a while, during which time Larry received a phone call from a friend in Japan who had tracked him down. (Nice one, Larry!) Ohtsuka Sensei ar­ranged for us to have a bath at a local Japanese bath-house, so off we went. Following that, we went to the dojo for our first training session with Momose Sensei (6th Dan). That evening we fairly col­lapsed in our futons, eager to rest …

Author: Dino Karabeg
It was due to bears and an unusual play of circumstances that our hiking trip to Denali, Alaska, was brought to a premature end. But two days later, quite unexpectedly, I felt happy for what had happened. As a hitchhiker in the back of a pickup truck, on a narrow dirt road in the vast Wrangell-St. Ellias National Park, I knew that I was about to do exactly what I had wanted all along-to go into the majestic and wild Alaskan nature alone.

I thought about the years that had passed since I arrived from Yugoslavia, to San Diego, California, for graduate school. The move away from the security of family and friends to this country, where possibilities seem limitless, offered an excellent opportunity to strengthen and mature. I took advantage of that opportu­nity by working diligently on my studies and training in endurance sports.

Graduate school meant more than just getting a degree. I strove to be a tnle, creative researcher. Being one of those active, bright people meant to be saved from stagnation and decay.
Tae Kwon Do teaches us to follow a path of continued self-improvement. This path seems to have been mine always, although it has never been straight. Frequently I stubbornly tried to leave it by closing my eyes to some important realizations, and each time circumstances would develop which would force me back.

In San Diego, I learned how to strive, how to stretch my limits, never get tired and never be defeated. But that was not sufficient. As I was apparently successful, I knew that I was still far from my best. While I was trying to be a success in my career while trying to perform and to conform, something essential in me was suffocating. And as I tried to ignore it, most of my undertakings were coming to a dead end. Like many times before, I realized that I had no choice but to let it hap­pen.

Let “what” happen? I knew that true creativity, true clarity must emerge from the inside and that I had to somehow …

Author: Dr Greg Story
ELITE ATHLETES require elite preparation for a World Championship, and that is what the Australian Women’s Karate Team received, thanks to the ANA Hotel at Surfers Paradise on the fabulous Gold Coast. In a special sponsorship arrangement worth over $15 ,000, the ANA Hotel accommodated the Women’s Team for ten days in Five Star surroundings.

The Gold Coast was selected as the premier training venue for the Australian Women’s Team preparing for the Fukuoka Women’s World Championship in Japan, to assist with the team’s acclimatisation for the humid June Japanese summer. As they say about the Gold Coast, “beautiful one day, perfect the next” – just the training venue everyone would prefer!

Utili sing a split training routine of two days training, one day rest, National Sen­ior Kumite Coach Alan Murdoch was able to strike the correct balance required between intensity and recovery. The re­covery factor is particularly important for a World Championship event, as over­worked athletes can quickly become underperformers.

Returning from the morning rigours of training and being able to choose between a few relaxing laps of the hotel’s heated pool, the spa bath, the sauna and a few rounds with the hotel masseuse, enabled these elite athletes to rest tired muscles sufficiently, to be able to maintain the intense workout rate required for the afternoon session.

A training environment where your non-training time can be divided between calmly staring out the window at the blue Pacific, relaxing in a beautiful Five Star hotel room, with courteous staff to tidy up after you, or shopping and taking in the sights of Surfers Paradise, made a world of difference to Team Captain Christine Ferguson, Gold Medalist from the Open Division last year and Bronze Medalist in the Middleweight division this year.

Christine recalled: “The cooperation of the ANA staff was just fantastic; we were really spoiled. Being able to use the facilities of the hotel made such a differ­ence to our preparation. I used the spa and the masseuse to balance the demands of the training and with everything else fully catered for, I only …

Author: Mike Clarke
THE COLLINS DICTIONARY describes a fanatic thus: ‘Filled with abnormal enthusiasm’. For anyone who ‘walks the middle path’ of the Martial Arts, it is a condition that one should never find oneself in.
If a person can be described as fanatic­al about training then I would have to believe they are either new to Martial Arts, or they have, as they say, missed the plot. That’s not to say that some people don’t maintain a high degree of enthusi­asm for their art over a long period of time. Far from it. Indeed, if it were not for such people we might not have anyone to show us the way. But you see, there is a big difference between someone who has a deep love for their art, and a person who is fanatical about it.

With love comes understanding, com­passion, forgiveness. With fanaticism comes a kind of tunnel vision that ex­cludes everything except the perceptions of the fanatic. This is as true in life as it is in the Martial Arts, for if you are a fol­lower of Judo, Aikido, Karatedo or any other art that teaches more than just tech­nique you are bound to follow the middle path. This is what the do means.

To love another person is to try to understand them and all their moods. To forgive them their faults, and to be com­passionate should they need your help. If you love your art, the same is true towards other Martial Artists. If you know your art and feel secure with it, should it really be a problem to mix with others freely and openly? To try to understand their way of doing things instead of dismissing it out of hand? And to offer a helping hand should the need arise? I think not. You see, if you know your Art well there is no reason to feel threatened by someone else’s views or opinions.

However, if you have not come to understand the art you practise then you might feel it needs defending. This is a common reaction among beginners who, rather …

Author: Vernon Low, 5th Dan
IT IS NOT every day that a Martial Art practitioner is promoted to 5th Degree Black Belt. Especially within Rhee Taekwondo. So it was a great honour to reach this milestone – and more importantly, it was presented by the Father of Australian Taekwondo, Master Chong Chul Rhee.

Many thanks must go to Master Rhee for his continuous guidance and encouragement over the years.

Master Rhee’s achievements in Australia, New Zeal­and and the Pacific Region – since he established the art in this region over 20 years ago- has been truly phenomenal. Over that period, virtually single-hand­edly he has developed Rhee Taekwondo into one of the strongest, most influent­ial and biggest Martial Arts of the Aust­ralasian and Pacific region.

The multitude of followers is a true indication of the popularity and strength of Rhee Taekwondo. And Master Rhee would be one of the most well-known and highly respected Martial leaders in this country. So it is natural that I’m extremely proud to be the first Rhee Taekwondo 5th Dan Black in Australia/ New Zealand. It has taken many years and total dedication to the art, which I started learning when I was in my teens and, because of my enthusiasm, I be­came very seriously involved in train­ing. I later started instructing profess­ionally, and have also produced quality instructors.

My life of Rhee Taekwondo in South Australia has been very challenging. The art having been established in South Australia for over 20 years now, Rhee Taekwondo is highly recognised and respected here. Training centres have been established throughout the state­a very strong and substantial network­and our membership is growing daily.

In terms of the art and conduct, Rhee Taekwondo sets high standards. This is important in today’s environment of ever-increasing numbers of various Martial Arts clubs, including some in which discipline is, unfortunately, lack­ing. So I believe it’s great to be involved with Rhee Taekwondo, not only be­cause of the accreditation and popular­ity that the organisation is enjoying, but even more so with the trust, sincerity and honesty that is instilled throughout Rhee Taekwondo, from our …

Author: Nick Capozzi
THE MULTI-FACETED Filipino Martial Arts of Kali/Eskrima/Amis etc are currently enjoying a substantial surge of popularity in Australasia and around the world – due, in no small part, to the energetic promotional efforts of such internationally renowned ambassadors of their styles as Masters Dan Inosanto, Cacoy Canete and his family, and Remy and Ernesto Presas.

The no-nonsense, combat-effective approach of the Filipino systems are relatively easily learnt, and seem quite compatible with most of the traditional Karate, Taekwondo, Kung Fu and eclectic styles. To reflect the growing acceptance of the Filipino systems among the more ‘mainstream’ Martial Artists, AFA is publishing a special series on accomplished local instructors of the combat arts of the Philippines.
This issue’s featured instructor is Mr Nino Pilla, Chief Instructor of the South Australia-based Australian Filipino Kali Academy. He is qualified in both the Filipino and Iun Fan Martial Arts, as taught by Guro/Sifu Dan Inosanto.

Nino is the Australian representative for the World Eskrima-Kali-Arnis Federation (W.E.K.A.F.) and co-ordinator of the National Filipino Martial Arts Association of Australia. Through his classes in Adelaide and seminars interstate, Instructor Nino Pilla teaches the broad concepts found in the Filipino Martial Arts system.

In this photo-sequence, Nino demonstrates the first five basic stages in the single stick lock flow. “There are many factors that will determine whether a given technique will work in a given situation”, Nino explains. “Which is why, when attacking or defending, it is important that you can flow into another technique when one doesn’t work or give the response you are looking fOL .. ”

Nino’s partner in this combination is Stephanie Curtiss, current Australian Women’s Amateur Lightweight Kickboxing Champion, former Taekwondo Contact Champion, and a qualified Filipino Kali instructor.…

Author: Situ David Crook
WITHOUT MEANING to sound too parochial, I’ll stick my neck out slightly and say that Chinese combat methods are renowned for the wide variety of their hand techniques. Most Kung-Fu styles use a wider range of hand/arm weapons (such as claws, gouges, palms, backhands, punches, backfists, hammerfists, forearm, elbows and shoulder strikes) than their Japanese, Okinawan and Korean counter­parts.

In addition to the actual number of natural body weapons used there is also a tremendous range of different applic­ations due to the regionalised develop­ment of Kung Fu styles and the different approaches taken by “hard”, “soft” (or “rigid” and “not-so-rigid” as the Large, Hairy One would say) or internal/external styles.

In this article, I would like to give you an overview of Chinese hand/arm tech­niques – dealing mainly with the most common types and their broad uses, the tactical framework within which we use them and the slightly different approach to power development that we use. In future articles, I will be concentrating on individual natural weapons and going into a lot more detail on their practical applica­tions in various situations.

Tactical framework

The importance ofhand/arm techniques to Chinese stylists can best be summed up by using the old “Infantry/Artillery” anal­ogy. In this analogy, the legs are used as the body’s heavy artillery, while the hands are the body’s infantry. In a military en­counter, it is common to use artillery to soften up the enemy and to provide a moving cover behind which the infantry can advance to seize and hold disputed territory. Without the benefit of the artill­ery, the infantry would take heavy casual­ties.

However, artillery on its own cannot seize and hold territory – a major bom­bardment may drive the enemy out, but they would only return, unless the infan­try seized their territory. So it is with arm and leg techniques – we often use our legs to soften up the opponent and to enable us to bridge the gap until we can close in and finish the fight with hand/arm techniques. It is rare to see any kind of inter-personal conflict resolved by …

Author: D. & K. KIRKWOOD
Opportunities in life are rare and many people don’t make the most of them. Fortunately this is not the situation for the numerous perceptive students who have already embraced the character building principles and practices of Cheah Advanced Taekwondo.

Originating as a traditional martial art C.A.T.A. incorporates the fundamental tenets and practices of Taekwondo, which alone produces strength of character and exemplary physical skills. However what makes it unique and has allowed it to lead the way in Taekwondo in Australia for the past 25 years is the contribution of its founder, Master Steven Cheah, who has had the initiative to advance the existing techniques. By simply utilising the full potential of every facet of a technique Master Cheah has produced a dynamic and realistic “state of the art” fighting style.
Master Cheah possesses a wealth of experience and knowledge as he commenced his training in 1965 in Malaysia under the vigilant instruction of Grand Master Choi Chung Ruen who was the right hand man to General Choi Hong Hi the Founder of Taekwondo. Master Cheah also had the privilege of training under Grandmaster Choi Kwang Jo the former Chief Instructor of the famed I.T.F. T.K.D. Federation’s 20th Infantry. Grandmaster Choi Kwang Jo also had the duty of training the Korean police and is the founder of a new art, Choi Kwang Do.

In 1968 Master Cheah gained Instructor certification with the International Taekwondo Federation and started his first club in Me:bourne. By 1970 he was promoted to Qld. Chief Instructor where he initiated the art using Townsville as his headquarters.

After resigning from the I.T.F. in 1975 t pursue his vision of encapsulating his wealth of experience and knowledge into a unique and practical style, he organised the Cheah Advanced Taekwondo Academy in 1976. C.A.T.A. has no political ties with any federation thus allowing students and instructors to concentrate on the art not the politics. However Master Cheah personally holds current 6th Degree W.T.F. certification.

The art has evolved into its present practical form as a result of identifying the need to advance the …