American Kenpo Karate, Ed Parker style???

[CD Lee]

What experience do you guys have on legitimate American Kenpo as taught in the Parker system?

I met a nice guy who teaches it for 20 years by coincidence, and he wants to teach me. However, I must say, while I think karate can be very good stuff, I am not attracted to the harder approach that seems to come with a lot of the teaching.

I am sold on the traditional Chinese methods of blocking and deflection, alignments and other ins and outs of some internal arts.

Is it practical to think that good karate blocks could be developed in a Chinese fashion? Taking elements from both in a way? Hey guys, I am just thinking out loud here. I would love to hear from some experience, and am not interested in the Kung Fu is better or worse than Karate discussion.

I also know a good teacher can make things work.

Thanks for any input, thoughts, or ideas.

[JWTAYLOR]

Well, I hope I'm the first to jump in here as I've been doing American Kenpo for about 19 years now.

You will find that American Kenpo Karate is hardly karate, but it's also not kung fu. You will find it more closely aligned with say, Hung Gar kung fu than you will with say, Shotokan.

You will find a big emphasis on flow, on multiple strikes, on off angling and mobility. You'll see allot of deflection, and very few dead on hard blocks. You should be sparring allot in AK, and most schools do full contact sparring as an integral part of their curriculum.

But, as with everything, schools vary in curriculum and quality. What teacher are you talking about? I know, or my instructor, Brian Duffy, knows just about everyone around.


JWT

[CD Lee]

JWTaylor:

The guys name is Bruce Sanders. He says he has been doing Kenpo for 30 years, but teaching only 20 or so. He is an older fellow, but that does not matter. So far, Kenpo sounds like it uses a lot of traditional softer principles. I know from younger years with the harder blocks, they hurt like %^$$#. I also know that once their force comes into me and I meet it hard, they can collapse my center line effectively with more force.

I noticed an article on this home page, not in the forum talking about Kenpo and Tai Chi. Pretty interesting.

What kind of sparring do you guys do in your training? I am intested in street defense and have no interest in sport type sparring, where you stand back with room, and poke at each other. Maybe there is a place for that, depending on exactly what you are trying to accomplish with sparring. I am sure sport sparring is fine, if you know what your learning and not learning. Thanks!

[JWTAYLOR]

Again, sparring depends on the school. But many American Kenpo schools put on protection and beat each other until time is over or until someone gives up.

Bruce Sanders really rings a bell. What city?
JWT

[JWTAYLOR]

Ah no, I'm thinking of Steve Sanders.

JWT

[CD Lee]

He lives in HEB area (Hurst, Euless, Bedford). Our kids are freinds, and I know he trains out of his home only, with just a small handfull of guys.

[Dark Knight]

You will find that Parker Kenpo does not look like Karate or Kungfu. It is very complex as you get more involved with it, 10 years a go I worked with one of Hucks students in the Boston area. The biggest thing I recieved from my time with him was the conceptual side of the arts. Its def street orientated, and if you have a good instructor you will get more information than you know what to do with.

[JWTAYLOR]

DK, describing American Kenpo Karate is always really hard for me because of the word "Karate" in there. Even Ed Parker said that only 10% of the modern system he taught was the material he originally learned. He kept "karate" becuase people kind of understood what "karate" was, but they had no idea what kenpo meant.
Some schools then called it American Kenpo Chuan Fa. Which is kind of redundant. But those schools wanted to point out that it was not karate, so they associated it with kung fu.
Unfortuanltey, it's not karate, or kung fu, it's just American Kenpo, as sytem in and of itself.

I went to a Huk Planas knife seminar just last Friday. Mr. Planas is known in American Kenpo circles as "The Encyclopedia" in referrence to the amount of techniques and forms he's learned. So you got someone who likely knew allot if you had one of his students.

JWT

[Dark Knight]

it was pretty cool working with someone like that. We spent more time talking concepts than actual physical worouts. We would do half hour to hour of workout and another hour of concepts.

I miss working with someone with that kind of knowledge. I have tons of information myself, but its nice to have someone to talk to.

[txwingchun]

Originally posted by JWTAYLOR
DK, describing American Kenpo Karate is always really hard for me because of the word "Karate" in there. Even Ed Parker said that only 10% of the modern system he taught was the material he originally learned. He kept "karate" becuase people kind of understood what "karate" was, but they had no idea what kenpo meant.
Some schools then called it American Kenpo Chuan Fa. Which is kind of redundant. But those schools wanted to point out that it was not karate, so they associated it with kung fu.
Unfortuanltey, it's not karate, or kung fu, it's just American Kenpo, as sytem in and of itself.

I went to a Huk Planas knife seminar just last Friday. Mr. Planas is known in American Kenpo circles as "The Encyclopedia" in referrence to the amount of techniques and forms he's learned. So you got someone who likely knew allot if you had one of his students.

JWT

Did you go to the planas seminar here in S.A?

[JWTAYLOR]

Yep, Abernathy's place last Friday. You there?
JWT

[ewallace]

Ah no, I'm thinking of Steve Sanders.
I swear we are related.

[txwingchun]

Originally posted by JWTAYLOR
Yep, Abernathy's place last Friday. You there?
JWT
Yeah a buddy of mine goes to his school so I went on fri and sat. So I can learn all your secret kenpo techniques.:D

[neito]

the name "american kempo karate" makes it sound so cheesy, it makes me think of kids paying money for different color belts/badges, and fat guys with mullets.

[rogue]

JWT,
Something that I've been wondering about for awhile. What's the deal with all of the 10,11,12,13,14,15th degree black belts in American kempo? Did Parker Sr. set up the high ranks or are these guys just going nuts trying to out dan each other?

Also which guy teaches closest to what EP taught?