Mantella
12-15-2006, 07:20 AM
the truth
My name is David Whitley. I practiced Jook Lum with Roger Hagood for a few years before he moved to China about 4 years ago.A while back challenge was issued under my name to a student of GFM named Richard. I did not make the challenge myself, but was asked if I would be willing to allow my name to be used and I agreed.
I do not know who did the actual posting and never attributed anything to Mike Feld, Rick Gamboa, Roger or anyone else. The outcome was about what I (we ) expected. A lot of typing and name calling, but nothing else. At the time I would have accepted the challenge had anyone showed up in person to follow thru with it. While in MN on business, I visited Gin Foon Mark in Feb. 2006. I had never met him, and since he was at one point my teacher's teacher, i wanted to. That was the reason for my visit to his school. Not to follow through on the challenge, not to "clear my name". I did say while i was here that i didn't make the challenge posts, because that is the truth.Did I care if Hagood agreed with my choice to visit? Why should I? Why should he have a problem with it? I wasn't sure I would be able to make the visit until last minute. I chose to go knowing that i might not be welcome. I went to GFMs school, told everyone who I was and that I was in town and wanted to meet Mark Sifu. I told them that my intententions were friendly. Everyone, especially Mark Sifu, was gracious and gentlemanly. Mark showed me around, showed my hundreds of photos of him & his students through the years and many of his paintings. He talked very friendly and openly with me about Lam Sifu, Louie Jack Man and others. It was a good visit.Afterward I emailed Roger and told him about it and he replied that he was glad things went as they did and that i got meet GFM. SO, RDH was OK, GFM was OK and I was OK. That should have been the end of it.Within a week i started getting emails from people asking all sorts of questions about me & my visit and the challenge. Then earlier this week i get an email from Hagood telling me that the forum mud slinging was happening again over here. I decided to visit and tell what really happened.Honestly, as i told Roger Hagood, My Sifu, in an email this week, I have neither the time, the energy nor the desire to sit on a forum and do internet kungfu. I have too much respect for Jook Lum as an art to participate in such silliness. I am a grown man, not a girl in middle school gossiping and whining because she heard someone said this or that.If anyone feels the need to challenge me personally in any way, save the time energy and gas money and just tell everyone you beat me. I have better things to do with my time than mouth boxing.I have nothing else to say on the matter.
My name is David Whitley. I practiced Jook Lum with Roger Hagood for a few years before he moved to China about 4 years ago.A while back challenge was issued under my name to a student of GFM named Richard. I did not make the challenge myself, but was asked if I would be willing to allow my name to be used and I agreed.
I do not know who did the actual posting and never attributed anything to Mike Feld, Rick Gamboa, Roger or anyone else. The outcome was about what I (we ) expected. A lot of typing and name calling, but nothing else. At the time I would have accepted the challenge had anyone showed up in person to follow thru with it. While in MN on business, I visited Gin Foon Mark in Feb. 2006. I had never met him, and since he was at one point my teacher's teacher, i wanted to. That was the reason for my visit to his school. Not to follow through on the challenge, not to "clear my name". I did say while i was here that i didn't make the challenge posts, because that is the truth.Did I care if Hagood agreed with my choice to visit? Why should I? Why should he have a problem with it? I wasn't sure I would be able to make the visit until last minute. I chose to go knowing that i might not be welcome. I went to GFMs school, told everyone who I was and that I was in town and wanted to meet Mark Sifu. I told them that my intententions were friendly. Everyone, especially Mark Sifu, was gracious and gentlemanly. Mark showed me around, showed my hundreds of photos of him & his students through the years and many of his paintings. He talked very friendly and openly with me about Lam Sifu, Louie Jack Man and others. It was a good visit.Afterward I emailed Roger and told him about it and he replied that he was glad things went as they did and that i got meet GFM. SO, RDH was OK, GFM was OK and I was OK. That should have been the end of it.Within a week i started getting emails from people asking all sorts of questions about me & my visit and the challenge. Then earlier this week i get an email from Hagood telling me that the forum mud slinging was happening again over here. I decided to visit and tell what really happened.Honestly, as i told Roger Hagood, My Sifu, in an email this week, I have neither the time, the energy nor the desire to sit on a forum and do internet kungfu. I have too much respect for Jook Lum as an art to participate in such silliness. I am a grown man, not a girl in middle school gossiping and whining because she heard someone said this or that.If anyone feels the need to challenge me personally in any way, save the time energy and gas money and just tell everyone you beat me. I have better things to do with my time than mouth boxing.I have nothing else to say on the matter.