Mantis efficience vs other arts and real world situations?

[NorthernMantis]

Previously on ER...uhh... err.. *cough* (clears throat) wrong topic

Ok on a serious note I would like to continue from the pm strength training thread.

Careful you'll let the secret out !! Besides if everyone did Mantis who would be left to lord it over ? hahaha

This was previously written by UM as a witty response to my post.

What I'm trying to get at is that I've seen a little too much over confidence on the pm board and that is very dangerous. Oh and I also dare claim that some of you here show arrogance towards other styles like southern styles **cough** egoextraordinaire-and-yushan**cough**. Ok tang lang is very effective ,that's true, but that doesn't mean that other styles are not.

From a while back all I see is that "x master" is the real deal and a lot of theory. Many times I see members points out to "x master" from the past to prove their styles efficacy. Ok.... that's great and all but what does that have to do with you? Let's face it , no one here is Lo Kwang Yu or Wong Long. I don't know what kind of sparring any of you do but I highly suggest that you sparr other styles before you go huffing and puffing about who's got it going on.

Only a few I have seen here that actually have gone out and see what worked and what didn't agiants other styles like Tainan and Art and UM (if my memory serves correct).

While we may go through countless of drills in class how many of you have acutally tried to practice in real world scenarios? I met another martial artist who was taught knife fighting techniques from a real war veteran among oother ma who studied kali and the likes. Well guess what I got cut fatally many times because I didn't traing realistically. 90 % of the time I did something stupid to get me kille and I don't even want to get into the gun defence.

I know I'm not as good as John (pong lai), tainan, or others but what I experienced is harsh reality and that is a better teacher than mostly any sifu. While I don't know about the more advanced members of this forum I don't want any of the begginers to think that mantis is the only true way and get caught in the depth of the art, because is it very deep compared to most IMHO.

For the first few years of my life I was a ****y little kid, like most when they start. I struted around like I knew everything about fighting untill I got humble. When I went up a wing chun sifu I got pummeled in more ways than one and walked off with internal pain. When I traded hands with a ba gua guy I almost got my neck snapped and thrown. When I went agints a hungar practitionr I waled off with bruises. those were the best moments in my life. When your sifu thinks your ready to go and sparr outside your style it's best that you do and get your head put in check.

[MantisifuFW]

NorthernMantis,

I understand your frustration. Often in our zeal for our chosen style and object of our obscession we can fail to give other systems their due.

At our school we do not require but do encourage our students to go out and fight other styles after a sufficient level of ability is gained. We have an agreement with some other schools in the area, (karate, kickboxing, MMA and others) where our students can go and spar there with their Tanglang. Students go and find out that these arts are not pushovers. It both keeps us grounded and enables us to learn the actual tactics of these styles. My senior students go with them, advise our students and I believe they learn a great deal from it.

Great point.

Steve Cottrell

[NorthernMantis]

Thanks for the welcomed reply. I was affraid that with my past on this part of kfo I wouldn't have been taken seriously, or well at all, and that fact that my post may have sounded a little preachy when I am in no position do such a thing.