A Spy in the Master's House

[shanmonster]

I just got back from kung fu classes with the new instructor, and I'm a bit confused. On the one hand, he does seem to know what he's talking about (although I'm a bit dubious of his title as Master, but what do I know?). On the other hand, there were only six other students in his class, and they were all rank newbies, with the possible exception of his wife.

When I arrived, he was just finishing up with a t'ai chi class, where he was teaching a group of students a sword form. All of those students looked like novices, too. When I arrived a bit early, he asked me to just take a seat until the kung fu class began. "T'ai chi is slow," he said. "Kung fu is fast and hard."

No problem. I mean, how could he know about my martial arts background, right?

So class begins. He is teaching an 18-move form called Hong Ga. First of all, he demonstrated the form. It's very short, and looks a little bit like fook fu, so I suspect it may be a Hung gar form (hong ga sounds an awful lot like hung gar, dontcha think?). Then he gets all of the students to do a blocking exercise using the first two movements of the form. So far, so good. It's basically a mirror hand block done with closed fists. He pairs me up with his wife. She punches, and I block. She winces. She punches again, I block again, and she winces again. She pauses for a moment to go take off her wristwatch (WTF???). We continue, and she winces more. She's wearing a stone bracelet on her other wrist. It doesn't come off. Maybe she put it on as a child, because there's no way that thing will come off without a few dislocated bones or without breaking the bangle. So I tell her just to punch with the other hand, and that way I won't hit her bracelet. She smiles and nods, and we continue that way, but I can tell she's hurting. I ease off a bit with the strength of my blocks, but I guess it's not enough.

The instructor cycles another one of his students over to me. This one is a strapping young lad with forearms almost as big as my thighs. Ahh, I think. I can use some force again! So I go full force on my blocks, and he winces, too.

I cycle through pretty much every one of the students, and I think I beat the crap out of each of them with my forearms of terror. Those arms are swollen now. I'd better find the tiger balm....

Then we work on the next move in the form: stepping forward into an arrow stance while simultaneously doing a sun punch and a mirror hand block. Sifu's arrow stance is high, so I assume the movement is supposed to be done high. But then he explains that the stance is done according to one's degree of strength and flexibility. So when he says that, I decide to go into my usual low arrow stance. I'm the only one there with a low stance. The stances of the other students, aside from being high, are atrocious. I don't think any of them have ever been taught stances before. They either stand like they're on a tightrope, or they're open so wide in the front a transport truck could drive through. Warning bells are sounding in my head.

Then we work on applications for this movement. I'm to punch at my partner while he deflects and punches back. However, and this is a big however, we are not actually supposed to touch the other person with our punch. However, we're still supposed to punch straight for the centre line. Wha? How am I supposed to do these things while doing blocks properly? So my buddy punches at me, I step forward in an arrow stance, block the punch and throw another simultaneously. In just stepping forward into the arrow stance, I'm already close enough to touch him with the barest extension of my arm. How am I supposed to exercise the technique if I'm not allowed to touch my opponent? So I decide to do the full punch, but to my opponent's side.

Sifu comes over and says no, no. Aim for the centre line. So I do, but since I can't extend my arm for the punch without hitting the guy, I have the lamest, bent arm punch, ever. Ick.

Despite all the things I didn't enjoy about this class, the instructor was able to correct my movements during the form in a way that made perfect sense to me.

I'm really not sure what to think about this class. He's been teaching for at least a year or two (I've seen posters up that long), so where are his experienced students? I'll keep with him for the month, but as soon as I can get back to my kwoon, I'm outta there.

Comments

[miraba.livejournal.com]

If he's really been teaching that long, I suspect his students leave once they figure out there's better in the area.
I ordered the tea sample months ago (perhaps you remember, perhaps not), and it hasn't arrived. I'm rather sad.

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

Perhaps. Or maybe his senior students train at a different time. I really couldn't say for certain.

Too bad about the tea! Ah well.

[superbrad.livejournal.com]

Hmm...sounds dubious alright. But you never know. I always get the impression that Karate is a lot more popular around here than Kung Fu.

About your blocks: I'm not meaning to criticize, but I'm curious: when you block correctly, in Shotokan Karate anyway, it's more of a deflection than a "block", as in you flip your attacker's strike away with a rotation of your arm as opposed to battering it away. Of course, being unskilled, I tended to batter, but I occasionally got one right and it felt very different (and nice in that it didn't hurt). Is the way you're trained to block different?

[phil-in-a-box.livejournal.com]

DUDE! Yes! Haha, my Shotokan instructor taught the same thing, and the Aikido instructor whose club shared our space taught it far better.

[superbrad.livejournal.com]

Heh, yeah, it works very well, it just requires skill.

Aikido is excellent, that's one to learn. I was also impressed by Shotokan in the time I took it. There is a very good dojo here in Fredericton, tons of black belts who really know what they're doing. It was exactly the opposite of what Shan experienced, in that more than half the members where high-ranking belts. Of course, this could indicate a "belt-factory", but in this case it didn't, there were just a lot of people there with a lot of time invested and skill learned. When I was last in contact with them we were practicing at the YMCA, though I have no idea if they are still there.

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

The Wei-Chin kwoon where I normally train is a good mix of upper and lower levels. I train(ed) regularly with three black sash, several brown sashes, and a mix of other levels all the way down to novices. I have a green sash, but I suppose I'm probably blue sash level with my current level of knowledge. I really don't give a shit about sashes or belts, though. I just want to learn.

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

There are different sorts of blocks. The particular block I was doing is a hard block rather than a deflection. It is not my favourite style, but it was the application of the first two moves of the form, hence the drilling.

[phil-in-a-box.livejournal.com]

Total ick. Instructor's wife wearing jewelry in a class?? >_<

I know how ya feel about bruised forearms after blocks, too. Why were y'all blocking so hard? I mean sometimes a hard block is what's called for ('cuz nothing else will stop the attack), but isn't the goal usually just re-direction of force rather than hard deflection? (I always admired how the Aikido people used this to their advantage, for example.)

[tlatoani.livejournal.com]

I can't speak for Shan, but when I studied Kung Fu, the answer was "sometimes." Sometimes you want to softly redirect, sometimes you want to grab, and sometimes you want your block to also serve as a strike against the attacking limb.

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

Exactly. It depends on the sort of block. In Hung Gar, many of the blocks are hard stops, rather than deflections. I prefer sliding/pushing deflections, but this wasn't the exercise in question.

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

I don't understand people (aside from absolute newbs who wouldn't know better yet) who wear rings/watches/bracelets to a martial arts class. Even if they don't get injured or cause an injury, they run a risk of having their jewellery ruined.

The hard block in this particular instance was the application. I prefer deflections, but that wasn't the move in the form. This is another reason why I'm pretty sure the form I'm being taught is a Hung Gar form (also, Hong Ga sounds suspiciously like Hung Gar, don't you think?). Hung Gar incorporates a lot of brute strength, which is why it's probably a style I'm not best suited for, being long and lean rather than short and solid. I think I'm built more for styles like Mantis and Wing Chun which are more about speed and accuracy than strength and fortitude.

[snowy-kathryn.livejournal.com]

I knew it! Your kungfu people are just crazy!

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

They sure are! Ain't it great?

[zombienought.livejournal.com]

It's kind of like one of those affairs
people have where they realise the
grass isn't really greener, eh?

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

I never considered for a moment the grass might be greener. I wanted to continue training with my regular instructors, because I know they're good. I started studying with this guy because I wanted some formal instruction, and I won't be able to receive any for a few months with my kwoon because of my shitty work schedule.

[morriganswitch.livejournal.com]

If he can't watch his students long enough to realize how much more advanced you are, then He not only doesn't deserve students, he certainly can't call himself Master.

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

Like I said, his corrections to my form were much more precise than the gross corrections made to the other students. But I am dubious about the Master appellation.

[mysteryelfx.livejournal.com]

There's a bellydance teacher in my area, and while she's a very beautiful woman who's been teaching for at least 4 years in this area, she doesn't have more than a few students who have been with her more than 2 years. For some reason (I have my opinions) she doesn't retain students and is just constantly teaching new beginners all the time. Sounds like the same kind of thing with that guy. WHY doesn't he have more students who have been with him from the beginning? I think you have already figured that out. Good luck with your classes. Maybe just use this series as practice, and maybe he or his students can learn something from you...

[shanmonster.livejournal.com]

I've been teaching for about five years here, and I have three longterm students. I think I've lost a bunch of my newbies along the way when I had to change teaching locations several times, although they should know where I am (I send out email notifications).

I don't necessarily believe it is a teacher's fault for having few advanced students. I find the average student, in whatever area of study, lacks the drive to continue. I think it takes a certain amount of tenacity for people to continue past the introductory stage.

Of course, it can also mean the teacher sucks. Heh.