How to generate interest in Hung Gar

[todi]

This is my first post to the forum and I'm looking for some advice/comments to my training situation. Has anyone here had to learn their art in this way, training alone with no formal school? Currently, I study Hung Gar from a teacher that is highly regared in the the traditional CMA community. I started studying from him in the mid 70's when I was young and dumb and.... well, you know. Sifu had a small school here where I live and he taught well. I studied Hung Gar for approximately 3 years under him before a combination of events curtailed my studies (I sustained a problematic foot injury that took forever to heal and there was a falling out in the school with a senior student who defected wtih other students). Sifu had then left town, the school disbanded and my foot slowly healed.

I then tried studying Wing Chun from the student that had defected from the school and, after a year of that, decided it wasn't the right style for me. Despite this being a university town, it remaines devoid of any other traditional Chinese Martial Arts, except Wing Chun, and I had no desire to try any of the local store front karate studios or the other hybrid martial arts floating around. For the next almost 25 years I stayed in shape with running and lifting weights.

My studies in Hung Gar back then had led me into a life long interest in physical fitness and I always regreted not trying harder to continue my studies in Hung Gar when I was in my early 20's. Fast forward to 2001 and I'd become a physical therapist. I always wondered what had happened to Sifu and was unsure if he was still teaching or not. One day out of curiousity, I typed his name with kung fu in Yahoo search and immediately came up with a hit for his school here in the states and in Europe. I e-mailed him wondering if he still remembered me and he e-mailed right back. Sifu and I had become good friends back in the day and had a few adventures together so he had wondered what ever had happened to me.

That New Years, he and his very talented daughter came and stayed with me for a couple of days and rekindled that old desire to study Hung Gar again. He agreed to take me on as a student once again but he would only be able to come 4 or 5 times a year while traveling to Europe, Asia, and his schools in the states, to visit for a few days and teach me. When he is here, I video tape on the last day he is here so I can study from the video after he is gone. He has also taught me some Tai Chi forms and I'm very interested in combining the Tai Chi with my Hung Gar study.

So, I find myself studying Hung Gar again - by myself. I get up during the weekday at 5 a.m. and spend an hour with Tai Chi and Hung Gar forms and then spend another 2 1/2 hours in the afternoon training. This has been going on for about 2 1/2 years with the idea that eventually, I can get his old Hung Gar school resurrected here again. Here is the problem: Lately, I'm wondering if I can pull that off. I feel that I'm going to progress slowly studying on my own and I have no idea how to attract students. I have looked all around this town for others interested in traditonal CMA but the only other school here is the vestiges of that Wing Chun School I studied at in the late 70's. I want to also seriously study Tai Chi, but the only Tai Chi offered here is through the Taoist Tai Chi Society who teach Tai Chi stripped of it's martial applications.

The other issue is my age - which isn't an issue with me - I'm currently 51, well past the "ideal" age to start learning anything but Tai Chi. I'm not going to find students to train with in my peer group and I'm going to have a hard time finding someone to study with because of my age. I'm not a "venerable old sifu" and I'm wondering, despite the fact that I can still do a pretty good workout, how anyone would feel training with someone twice their age. So, lately I've started wondering if this is possible - to generate an interest in traditional CMA in this community at my age and level of study. How good can I expect to get studying on my own? I spend a lot of money paying for Sifu's trips here but he still cuts me a lot of breaks. He's not getting rich and has never gotten wealthy in his 30 + years of teaching. Getting a school together would help me financially and boost my training but I have no idea how to get people interested. Any thoughts on my situation?

Thanks for each and every response.

[hskwarrior]

hows it going,

First, to generate interest in people to study martial arts you have to plant "seeds". and what i mean by that is go out to a public place like a park with a lot of kids and such and practice your gung fu where they can see you. if they are interested they will ask questions.

You can also put out flyers up all over the place. at first it will take some hard work, but anything worthwhile will not come easy.

Now about your age, people have a tendency to believe an older person before they would a younger one. if you work it right, show them a few techinques that they can take with them and invite them to come back to train. word of mouth is the best advertisement. See, one of the places that i teach is at a park, and i get alot of people inquiring about what i do all the time.

Now, training by yourself definetly has some benefits to it. for example, no distractions period. as long as your sifu is correcting your movements and you keep practicing you will no doubt greatly improve. Don't ever stop your training regardless of your age, learning is endless, and that also includes how to keep up your training in advanced years.

however, this is only my opinion, and i hope i made some form of contirbution here.


frank

[todi]

Frank,

Thanks for the response and good advice, it was right on target. I've been hitting one of those plateaus in my training and the doubts start to surface and sometimes you need that extra push to get over them. I have vowed that I plan to stay with this training this time as I consider it very fortunate to again have access to good Sifu.

Your suggestions on "planting the seed" are good ones. In fact, I now remember him commenting that when he is here again he will just go out ot a park to practice and then explain what he is doing to the curious. I think with patience and continued commitment, it will come around.

You bet Sifu corrects my movements.... that is a form of training for me in itself. I practice something over and over thinking to myself that I'm doing okay and then when he visits and watches my form, my ego gets flattend like a pancake.

[hskwarrior]

sometimes it helps when you videotape your training sessions for future reference while he's away.

do try the park thing, people are curious naturally, just like yesterday, i am training my students at the park and an older man from boston asks what i am teaching because they didn't have that where he's from.

so just do your thing, talk to people at work to participate, and that will gain a little more attention.


happy to help

frank

[TenTigers]

nude classes, and free beer. Works every time.

[hskwarrior]

don't tell my secrets to running a successful school!!!!!!!!damm you! :mad:

[cbishop]

do you have a training partner to practice applications with?
you indicated that you weren't really interested in MA that is stripped
of it's martial qualities. if you don't find someone to practice applications
with, that's exactly what you'll have. (even with the perfect sifu who
corrects your every mistake)

have you considered finding a mixed gym to cross train in,
and test yourself before trying to teach others?

[hskwarrior]

are you suggesting that this guy goes out and beat up a few people? :confused:

I agree, having someone as a partner to practice is always good, but it is not necessary to have a partner. with you mind and the proper training equipment you can train yourself properly. the only thing lacking is that human interaction which helps with timing and such.

todi, no need to go out and prove yourself to the world, just practice hard, not just physically, but mentally as well.


See, thats why everyone on earth needs to smoke a blunt, no need to go and beat someone up, put it in the air man!!!!!!! :D

[cbishop]

i'm not suggesting that he prove anything to anyone but himself.
if you haven't tried yourself against another "live" person, you need to
before you go passing advice on martial arts. you could be WRONG.

solo practice will make you a good dancer. dummy practice and other conditioning
devices will make you strong. drilling these techniques against a cooperative and
then resisting opponent will make you a better fighter and martial artist. all three
of these along with a heavy dose of contemplation are necessary.

smoking a fatty is the vital ingredient for contemplation that leads to knowledge
and understanding, and ultimately wisdom. fire it up. i always smoke before
pushing hands.


i practice my form by myself. i practice drills with my training brothers in the grass.
i test myself against boxers, wrestlers, bjj, mt, judo, karate and others at a local
gymnasium. afterword i go backk to the drawing board to examine what worked,
what didn't, and how i can improve myself. (usually under the influence of a fat stick)

[hskwarrior]

;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;)

[PangQuan]

the training partener is a good idea.

Were I you, I would find someone I know who may be interested in learning gong fu. If money is not too big of a deal, offer to start teaching them for free.

This will give you two things:

1) Your first student, with which you can judge where you stand as a teacher. You will also be able to evaluate where your skill set lies compared to one who has no martial training.

2) A training partener, with which you can practice applications and other various two person drills.

Then when you are in the park "planting seeds" the others will be able to see you sparr, which they will totally get a kick out of. As well as see the difference between a beginner and an advanced practitioner.

Build it and they will come...

[todi]

Free beer could work.... don't know if I have room for all the Harley's at my house though. I don't think nude classes are going to help me one bit at this point; depends on who shows up to them.

I have tried to train with another person in this town for the reason of having someone to spar with. Problem was, he was into being an instructor as he had just been promoted by his teacher out in Arizona as a student instructor. He studied some form of Chinese Kempo which had very little similarities to Hung Gar. When I went to train with him at his invite, it turned out he wanted me to be a student. I've got enough to learn with Hung Gar right now than to start as a begining student in another style. I respect other styles but I'm not at a point to where I can start mixing it up and this guy was into some rough training (he liked to talk about how many times he'd been knocked out and, because of a fractured cervical vertebrae, he couldn't look up anymore). I'm 51 and I don't heal as well as I use to and being injured is the bigest waste of time to me if I don't have to be injured. Sifu even talked to this guy and offered to teach him Hung Gar so that he could help me with two man techniques. He didn't want to learn Hung Gar and I didn't want to learn his Chinese Kempo so that ended that episode.

I do agree that I need to have someone to practice applications with and this would help a lot [ this is what I want to do. That is what my goal right now and I will follow hskwarrior's advice on getting others interested. I do full realize though that you have to test your skill. Sifu was a strong full contact fighter back in his day, he knows the value of being able to use technique correct. I can't go that route so I have to do it with fellow students.... when I find them.

[todi]

PangQuan,

Good advice on getting a first student. Your absolutely right.
More than anything, I need to get Sifu to get some of his students from up North and come down to perform a lion dance followed by a demonstration here in a public function. That would serve two purposes, teach people around here something about traditional Chinese Martial Arts and attract some potential students.
.... I need to talk to him about this.

[PangQuan]

The lion dance is a very good idea. Perhaps there is a local temple who would appreciate the service, or maybe a new business.

Hung Gar is a nice powerfull style, a little representation should get people interested.

You sound like your getting going in the right direction.

Above all else remember that any way you carry on the tradition of the style is better than none. Just give it your best, and im sure you will be well pleased by the fruits of your labor.

[hskwarrior]

oops! :( :confused: :mad: :eek: :cool:

[hskwarrior]

todi, thank you for taking my advice into consideration. become a kung fu gardener. before you do, you may want to kinda start spreading the word that you will be out there in the area to some of your friends and offer to show them some things. maybe start speaking to parents to get their kids involved.

trust me, on "planting seeds" i speak from experience. just recently out in texas my students and i were putting figthing applications on Hung SIng Choy Lee FUt on film. afterwards, people began showing their interest and starting asking questions. see, i was lucky, the seeds i planted began to grow the very same day i planted them. hopefully, with any luck the same will happen to you.

good luck Todi.........

p.s. keep us updated on your progress.

Hskwarrior