This seem like a good school?

[TKDStudy]

Hey, I've been thinking about starting WC.

http://www.wingchun-sf.com/

The Richmond class, btw.

Thanks all.

[TKDStudy]

No opinions...? :(

[ghostofwingchun]

Hey, I've been thinking about starting WC.

http://www.wingchun-sf.com/

The Richmond class, btw.

Thanks all.

I will bite . . . lol . . . I am thinking there is no such thing as good school . . . only good school for you . . . and so it is best to judge these things for one self . . . after all your goals are your own . . . and so you are in best place to tell if any school can help you achieve your goals . . . though this is most important but also meaningful is whole host of other considerations like attitude at school . . . how comfortable you are there . . . and so on . . . the main thing I have found is will you enjoy going there . . . regardless of your goal . . . since if you do not enjoy it you will quit . . . if it looks like fun and meets your needs then it is good school for you.

Thanks,

Ghost

[TKDStudy]

Well, thank you.

But I have no desire to be screwed over by a WC school that has a teacher who doesn't know WTF he's doing. And since I have no previous experience in WC, I have no idea what to look for when looking for a good (?)Kwoon.

[ghostofwingchun]

Well, thank you.

But I have no desire to be screwed over by a WC school that has a teacher who doesn't know WTF he's doing. And since I have no previous experience in WC, I have no idea what to look for when looking for a good (?)Kwoon.

My friend . . . it depends on what emphasis you want from your wc training . . . here is the easy test . . . is what you are looking for clearly evident in the kwoon . . . for example of you are looking to train wc for fighting do you see full contact fighting at the kwoon . . . if you do not see it then it is not the place for you . . . if on the other hand you want to focus on health or exercise are the people at the kwoon fit and healthy . . . if not then this is not the place for you . . . and so on . . . you can not expect others to tell you if some one has what you are looking for . . . wc has many facets . . . not everyone has every facet of wc . . . just check their lineage and see if their kwoon offers you what you want. As I understand it Lo Man Kam has valid lineage . . . but I can not say if he sells what you want.

Thanks,

Ghost

[miguelitoe]

I would not recommend this school based on the clips I saw from their website. I can't say that what the titled "sifu" was doing was incorrect, but it is different from what I learned. He's the teacher, so his form should not be flawed. Many times, I saw his hands leaving his centerline, and using big circular motions. Also, on the second and third parts of siu nim tao, it looked as though he severely lacked power. Like I said though, I may have learned a little different, but even still, his technique looked as though his doesn't adhere to efficiency or economy of motion.

[couch]

I would not recommend this school based on the clips I saw from their website. I can't say that what the titled "sifu" was doing was incorrect, but it is different from what I learned. He's the teacher, so his form should not be flawed. Many times, I saw his hands leaving his centerline, and using big circular motions. Also, on the second and third parts of siu nim tao, it looked as though he severely lacked power. Like I said though, I may have learned a little different, but even still, his technique looked as though his doesn't adhere to efficiency or economy of motion.

One thing that my Sifu does for us is, especially when starting out, to help us rotate on the centreline with relaxed power. Seemed like okay clips to me. The Sifu wasn't destroying his partner, as they were standing beyond arms distance and practising some light Chi Sau.

It also seems from the Bio of the instructor that he doesn't care for politics and takes what he feels is the best from each idea of WC. That's okay in my books.

Go check it out and talk about your concerns with the instructors. Either they'll prove to you that they are good enough or they'll fluff the answers!

Best,
Kenton

[amjg2000]

The guy you speak of in the video is my instructor - John Kang. He's very open minded in terms of training methods, basicially anything and everything taught is tested, questioned, and applied in progressive resistance (either through application, sparring, or other exercises).

I would encourage you to go visit him, discuss your training needs, pick his brain. You should also speak with the students, so that you can ascertain whether the school's culture and training methodology is for you.

As for what Miguelito said, regarding the form looking flawed.....

Everyone is certainly entitled to their own opinion, however I personally believe that the expression of one's wing chun is not based solely on adhering to robotic shapes, positions. Perhaps our SLT maybe off by microns in terms of how tight a tan sao or a fook sao must be in relation to one's center, but you'll find slight variances via different lineages.

Your comment about the 3rd section of sil lum tao lacking power, you can derive this visually? How does one test one's power? The logical view would be to be on the receiving end of a strike, or perhaps Chi-sao.

Here again, i am not trying to attack...Gung Hai Fat Cjoy to all.

And oh, if you are ever in the Oakland or SF bay area, stop on my the bay area branch. We welcome people from other lineages to come workout with us.

[amjg2000]

Oh yes, Couch said it best, we really don't play the politics game. The association was created to foster collaborative learning and evolution of the art, not to fight piddly political wars...

[Mr Punch]

Like I said though, I may have learned a little differentAnd so you're essentially commenting on something you have no experience of or understanding of. Thanks for trying.

BTW, your tone is sh!tty. To say you can't comment on something and then to say "what the titled 'sifu'..." is passive-aggressive bullsh!t. You may think you're just being honest but you're contradicting yourself and overstretching into something about which you know nothing.

TKDstudy: as someone who has experienced Lo Man Kam's lineage (branch of the wing chun style) though not from the same lineage and therefore probably a little more objective than some, I can honestly say that if I had the chance I'd really like the chance to go and check out John Kang's school, or any of Lo Man Kam's organisation's.

Even experienced wing chunners often have problems determining what's happening by just a video clip, so you really should go and feel what's happening for yourself.

Lo Man Kam's school do things a little differently from my lineage, but the principles are the same as any other mainstream (Yip Man derived) wing chun. As Migueltoe pointed out sometimes the movements appear to go against basic wing chun principles and they do sometimes seem more circular. Wing chun principles generally stick to direct attacks and straighter lines. But the slight circularity of some of the motions fit in very well with wing chun's body linking principles. Also, as advanced wing chunners will hopefully agree on, when sometimes, for example, you hand is moving in circular manner it is just a way of absorbing your attack onto the simultaneously coming straight-line of an elbow attack.

From here on is a bit of opinion which is very difficult to describe... but here goes nothing! I can honestly say that the Lo Man Kam student I have trained with on a regular basis has a heavy energy that will suck in your attacks quite easily. The school seems to work on a lot of downward energy, so you think the guy has overcommitted and you feel/see an opening only to have the downward motion leveling off into a very strong punch. Of course, it may have just been the individual I trained with but he was one of the most relaxed but powerful fighters I've come across in wing chun with a very good base.

Lo Man Kam is the nephew of Yip Man, the most famous modern day master of wing chun, and has taught police and special forces on Taiwan for many years. I would love to go and train there before he gets too old! If John Kang has a fraction of what Lo Man Kam has (and judging by his comments on this board - he used to post here - he has a very good understanding of wing chun) I certainly recommend you go and try him out.

[TKDStudy]

Thanks for the replies everyone. Unfortunately it'll be awhile until I can go out there because of conflicting times. (be rude to just dump off a teacher for another, especially when the teacher is a friend) Chung Do Kwan is fine for now but it's getting watered down...

By the way AMJG2000; di dyou guys spar at all?

[ไRui_Jingδ]

John is legit. Study with him. Stay away from the red flowers.

[amjg2000]

Hi there,

Yes, we do spar at the school. It usually starts off at a walking pace, moving up to faster progression.

In addition, we do lots of distancing and interception drills, to train one to move in and out of the W.C. range.

[Dee]

Hello everyone. This is my first post and was wondering since we are in this school subject. I have taken classes in WC in the Sacramento, CA area with sifu Eddie Chong. I no longer take classes as I relocated. It seems to me that he is a great instructor to follow (just my opinion). Anyone knows him or have an opinion about his school or a school in that area.

Thanks
dee

[Da_Moose]

TKDStudy,

As a fellow TKD student/practitioner who has also begun to study Wing Chun, I'd recommend that you check out the Hung Fa Kwoon in San Francisco. I think you'll find the teaching there interesting. You can check out more info at www.hungfayi.com as well as www.vtmuseum.org . GM Gee is a very knowledgeable instructor with lots to offer to anyone with an open mind. I'll write some more later, for now, its creeping up on bed time.