sihing
09-25-2006, 03:47 PM
As some of you know, a small seminar was held on Sept.23rd & 24th/06 with Sifu Gary Lam of Los Angeles CA, in Ajax, Ontario, Canada. This was Sifu Lam’s first seminar in this Country and will definitely not be his last.
On a personal note, all I can say about this Wing Chun Sifu is WOW. The skill he possesses is on a very high level, but is equalled by his skill in passing along the information so that others can achieve similar skills as well. Sifu Lam is unique in the fact that he is possesses 3 qualities not very common to Martial Artists and/or people interested in the fighting arts. He is a fighter, first and foremost. He is also a technician in the fact that his effectiveness is not just based on his physical attributes like size, strength or speed, nor is it based on luck, but rather on his ability to actually utilize what he teaches. Lastly, he is a skilled teacher, a person that can explain to various groups of people of different skill, interest level, what Wing Chun is all about, so that they too can gain skill in the art (this is an art form alone).
Back in March of this year, I met Sifu Lam for the first time. He was very gracious, gentle with me, and patient too. He invited me into his home and made me feel very comfortable in the process. This last meeting was very much the same in feeling. I was able to spend time with him and experience his Wing Chun for many hours, but this time the level of intensity was higher and I was exposed to much more than what I learned during our time together in LA. This is partly due to me having more understanding of the concepts behind his Wing Chun, but it is also due to Sifu Lam’s keen senses as a teacher. I was hungry for the information, and he was eager to give it away. This is Sifu Lam’s greatest gift to the Wing Chun community IMO, his willingness to give the information away for very little cost. He is so free to discuss anything you want to talk about that it makes you tired by the end of a session with him, like you are going to school studying mathematics or geometry, a mental workout per say. He is a virtual encyclopaedia of Wing Chun information and is able to answer any question that you may have regarding what the system teaches you and how you can use it in practical world.
The topics covered during the seminar were the basic 1st level material in Sifu Lam’s curriculum, among other things as well(visit http://www.garylamwingchun.com/index.html for more info) . At least it is basic to him. For me, even with 18 yrs of consistent Wing Chun training and instruction as a teacher under my belt, it was very advanced. I'm not going to go into specifics about the material taught, that would be a waste of time as my understanding is not high enough to do an adequate job and lately I've realized that only person to person contact can a concept be passed along. If you want specifics feel free to buy one of Sifu Lam's DVD's, as they are of the most highest qualtiy. Helping Sifu Lam during this seminar was one of his students, Werner Leuschner, a long term Wing Chun practitioner (like over 25yrs), who discovered Sifu Lam’s Wing Chun system (similar to myself) within the last 2yrs. Well touching hands with Werner, a virtual newcomer in this system, is like trying to push a tree from a BC forest (very wide trunks), he just stands there with the greatest of ease while you try to remove, trap, and escape his bridge arms. Now, just so you know, I am taller/larger than Werner and workout at the gym on a regular basis. Werner does not, so in all essence it is fair to say that I am stronger physically than he is. I was unable to move, trap or escape his bridge arms while in contact with him, and if he decided to display any type of aggressive actions towards me, the result would have been worse. In addition, the man has just recently begun to start to train seriously again. When Sifu Lam engages with Werner the result is reversed, and Werner becomes me, the helpless doll. Yeah, I guess the two of us could have really started to turn up the heat and try to crash through the bridge arms with various boxing, grappling or low line kicking/striking manoeuvres, but so could have Sifu Lam, or Werner with me. You see the difference IMO between what Sifu Lam teaches and what most other Wing Chun Sifu’s teach is that it is better to have control over you opponent than to just try to hit them to death. If all you have is striking, and if the element of luck is not on your side, your chances of success are even/even. When you have control, you have just given yourself an extreme advantage over any opponent, as now you have choices with the element of “Time” on your side, not luck. These were just a few things that were taught over the weekend.
In closing, I would like to thank David and Ellen in Ajax, for hosting the event. The venue was great. I would also like to thank Sifu Lam for taking time away from his busy schedule to train us beginners. You are a great Wing Chun Fighter/Sifu sir, and a wonderful person to be around (he’s very funny and personable when your in his presence). I look forward to training under your guidance again soon. Thanks to Werner also, you are an inspiration to me and I look forward to building our friendship to a much higher level.
Future seminars in the Greater Toronto Area are planned for the New Year, when dates and times are set, a notification will be made on the forum here. Don’t miss out on the next opportunity all you Wing Chun practitioners that reside within the area, you won’t be disappointed…
James
On a personal note, all I can say about this Wing Chun Sifu is WOW. The skill he possesses is on a very high level, but is equalled by his skill in passing along the information so that others can achieve similar skills as well. Sifu Lam is unique in the fact that he is possesses 3 qualities not very common to Martial Artists and/or people interested in the fighting arts. He is a fighter, first and foremost. He is also a technician in the fact that his effectiveness is not just based on his physical attributes like size, strength or speed, nor is it based on luck, but rather on his ability to actually utilize what he teaches. Lastly, he is a skilled teacher, a person that can explain to various groups of people of different skill, interest level, what Wing Chun is all about, so that they too can gain skill in the art (this is an art form alone).
Back in March of this year, I met Sifu Lam for the first time. He was very gracious, gentle with me, and patient too. He invited me into his home and made me feel very comfortable in the process. This last meeting was very much the same in feeling. I was able to spend time with him and experience his Wing Chun for many hours, but this time the level of intensity was higher and I was exposed to much more than what I learned during our time together in LA. This is partly due to me having more understanding of the concepts behind his Wing Chun, but it is also due to Sifu Lam’s keen senses as a teacher. I was hungry for the information, and he was eager to give it away. This is Sifu Lam’s greatest gift to the Wing Chun community IMO, his willingness to give the information away for very little cost. He is so free to discuss anything you want to talk about that it makes you tired by the end of a session with him, like you are going to school studying mathematics or geometry, a mental workout per say. He is a virtual encyclopaedia of Wing Chun information and is able to answer any question that you may have regarding what the system teaches you and how you can use it in practical world.
The topics covered during the seminar were the basic 1st level material in Sifu Lam’s curriculum, among other things as well(visit http://www.garylamwingchun.com/index.html for more info) . At least it is basic to him. For me, even with 18 yrs of consistent Wing Chun training and instruction as a teacher under my belt, it was very advanced. I'm not going to go into specifics about the material taught, that would be a waste of time as my understanding is not high enough to do an adequate job and lately I've realized that only person to person contact can a concept be passed along. If you want specifics feel free to buy one of Sifu Lam's DVD's, as they are of the most highest qualtiy. Helping Sifu Lam during this seminar was one of his students, Werner Leuschner, a long term Wing Chun practitioner (like over 25yrs), who discovered Sifu Lam’s Wing Chun system (similar to myself) within the last 2yrs. Well touching hands with Werner, a virtual newcomer in this system, is like trying to push a tree from a BC forest (very wide trunks), he just stands there with the greatest of ease while you try to remove, trap, and escape his bridge arms. Now, just so you know, I am taller/larger than Werner and workout at the gym on a regular basis. Werner does not, so in all essence it is fair to say that I am stronger physically than he is. I was unable to move, trap or escape his bridge arms while in contact with him, and if he decided to display any type of aggressive actions towards me, the result would have been worse. In addition, the man has just recently begun to start to train seriously again. When Sifu Lam engages with Werner the result is reversed, and Werner becomes me, the helpless doll. Yeah, I guess the two of us could have really started to turn up the heat and try to crash through the bridge arms with various boxing, grappling or low line kicking/striking manoeuvres, but so could have Sifu Lam, or Werner with me. You see the difference IMO between what Sifu Lam teaches and what most other Wing Chun Sifu’s teach is that it is better to have control over you opponent than to just try to hit them to death. If all you have is striking, and if the element of luck is not on your side, your chances of success are even/even. When you have control, you have just given yourself an extreme advantage over any opponent, as now you have choices with the element of “Time” on your side, not luck. These were just a few things that were taught over the weekend.
In closing, I would like to thank David and Ellen in Ajax, for hosting the event. The venue was great. I would also like to thank Sifu Lam for taking time away from his busy schedule to train us beginners. You are a great Wing Chun Fighter/Sifu sir, and a wonderful person to be around (he’s very funny and personable when your in his presence). I look forward to training under your guidance again soon. Thanks to Werner also, you are an inspiration to me and I look forward to building our friendship to a much higher level.
Future seminars in the Greater Toronto Area are planned for the New Year, when dates and times are set, a notification will be made on the forum here. Don’t miss out on the next opportunity all you Wing Chun practitioners that reside within the area, you won’t be disappointed…
James