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Thread: Training at Wudang

  1. #91
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    Hobart Tasmania - Australia
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    Just found out im going for a few weeks in Sept next year - CAN NOT WAIT

    Had a longing for Shaolin as 2007 was my last trip but this will do

  2. #92
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    May 2011
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    Shanghai, China
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    If you want to train in China, my advice is to research where the style that interests you comes from: kung fu is usually regional.... learn some chinese and get a job teaching english there or apply for a chinese course at a local uni....

    the traditional masters are harder to come by, but you have two choices: get an introduction to them, or just get up really early and scout the cities parks or surrounding hills. most masters are more than happy to take on a westerner.

    i trained at a kung fu for westerners for a year... it was a really good experience, i made a lot of friends, became much fitter, stronger etc than before: but its true that they will teach mostly teach forms, supplementing it with hard physical training and basic sanda. if you find a master by yourself, the training may not be as structured or physically demanding, but you will be getting it not watered down

    as for shaolin temple and wudang i cant talk.... but i have heard there are very good masters there

  3. #93
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    Nov 2009
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    Melbourne, Australia
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    121
    Quote Originally Posted by Blacktiger View Post
    Just found out im going for a few weeks in Sept next year - CAN NOT WAIT

    Had a longing for Shaolin as 2007 was my last trip but this will do
    Nice! Hope things are well in Hobart

  4. #94
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    Quote Originally Posted by blackjesus View Post
    Nice! Hope things are well in Hobart
    Hey Mate - hows things?

  5. #95
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    Nov 2009
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    Melbourne, Australia
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    121
    Taking it easy after the surgery (march last year).
    So jealous with your Wu Dang trip!

  6. #96
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    Fremont, CA, U.S.A.
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    ttt 4 2018!

    This is dated and in Australia, but maybe Netflix will pick up this show (I only cut&pasted the Wudang reference).

    TV planner: Everyone’s a Critic; Body Hack, GLOW — best of the week
    The Australian3:00PM June 22, 2018
    JUSTIN BURKE
    JournalistSydney
    @justinburke

    Justin Burke gives his top recommendations for this week’s viewing on the box.

    Saturday, June 23rd to Friday, June 29th

    ...


    Todd Sampson in Bodyhack 2.0

    Thursday

    Todd Sampson’s Body Hack, June 28th, 8.40pm, Ten

    I applaud Todd Sampson’s brain, his physical courage and this entertaining series, but it does have a troubling modern conceit at its heart —
    the idea that you can “hack” anything; that is, use science and reason to find shortcuts. This week’s episode is a case in point: Sampson spends a mere two weeks in the Wudang Mountains of China “mastering” kung-fu. It’s as risible as Tom Cruise’s character becoming The Last Samurai during a movie montage. Can you hack your way to patience, I wonder? Or enlightenment?
    Next week, Todd becomes a firefighter.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  7. #97
    Wudang tried .

    That chick above is gorgeous.

  8. #98
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    Jan 1970
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    Our newest web article

    From when we could travel to China. READ Doing Not-Doing in Wudangshan by Cathy Fedoruk



    This article was slated for publication prior to the 2020 pandemic but was delayed with the closure of Kung Fu Tai Chi. In support of KungFuMagazine.com Cathy generously donated this article to fill the period until KungFuMagazine.com publication might resume.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  9. #99
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    Jake Pinnick

    ttt 4 2021

    Martial Arts /
    Kung Fu
    The kung fu way: Jake Pinnick’s journey from small-town America to China’s Wudang Mountains
    The 30-year-old left Kewanee in Illinois on a whim in 2010 to immerse himself in Chinese culture
    He now lives in the Wudang Mountains in Hubei province, with his wife and daughter, and hopes one day to bring Wudang martial arts to America
    Topic |
    Kung fu
    Patrick Blennerhassett
    Published: 8:00am, 29 Apr, 2021


    Jake Pinnick left Illinois to find himself, and ended up in China’s Wudang Mountains practising kung fu and Daoism. Photo: Handout
    American Jake Pinnick hails from a small town in the state of Illinois called Kewanee.
    It’s a perfect slice of Middle America, with fewer than 13,000 residents in a farming community about two and a half-hour’s drive west from Chicago.
    Pinnick said when he told friends and family he wanted to go to the Wudang Daoist Traditional Kungfu Academy in China to train martial arts, the response was typical.
    “I don’t think anyone really believed me,” said the 30-year-old. “No one really laughed at it, they were interested, but they didn’t really know what to ask, because it was so different. It’s not a usual thing to say, but it is pretty normal for kids to want to get out of a place like [Kewanee]. Most kids say something like they want to move to Hollywood and become an actor.”

    American becomes martial arts master in China’s central Wudang Mountains

    Pinnick had found the academy’s website, which was offering a five-year programme for foreigners, and after saving up money working two jobs, he got his visa, passport and booked a one-way ticket in May of 2010. He said the reason he wanted to go was simple – a love for kung fu of course – but he was also searching for deeper meaning when it came to life and philosophy.
    “When I first thought about it, it was daydreaming for myself,” he said. “I was like ‘I’ll just send [the academy] an email just for fun’ and I didn’t really believe it myself either. I could travel, learn something new, challenge myself, get some discipline, find a way to be healthy, lots of different answers to questions I had.”

    Jake Pinnick, who lives in the Wudang Mountains, said leaving the US some 12 years ago was necessary for him to find himself. Photo: Handout
    However, Pinnick’s trip to China was anything but smooth as a young 20-year-old who had never travelled outside the US. He ended up taking four flights, missing two of them, lost his luggage and ended up in Wuhan tired and dehydrated. From there he made his way to the Wudang Mountains via train, bus and taxi.
    “It was intense. I didn’t speak any Chinese. It was quite the adventure just getting there.”
    Once he found himself at the academy, Pinnick said acclimatising was softened by other foreigners who were in the area and a part of the school. They started teaching him Mandarin, showed him where to get groceries and all the best noodle shops. Pinnick said getting used to the way of life was surprisingly easy given the peaceful and serene nature to it.
    The Wudang Mountains are a famous geographical range in the northwest part of Hubei province known for Taoist temples, monasteries and as the birthplace of tai chi. The area also has a deep history with traditional martial arts, and kung fu in particular, the most famous being the Shaolin kung fu, which is still regularly referenced in popular culture.

    Jake Pinnick soon after leaving the US for China in 2010. Photo: Handout
    Pinnick said after a while, he found himself more at home in Wudang than he ever felt back home in America. He said locals were more than welcoming and willing to engage.
    “The culture shock wasn’t that bad. Surprisingly, I find I have more of that going back to America now … learning the language did take some time, but everyone around the school was familiar with foreigners so we had a lot of fun speaking broken English and Chinese back and forth at the start.”
    After he settled into a routine, Pinnick set about immersing himself in Chinese culture, including martial arts training. He also gravitated towards Daoism, a philosophical tradition most well known for the yin-yang symbol and the idea of living in harmony with the universe.
    Pinnick said he had to go home after the first six months and instantly wanted to return to China, feeling if it had now become his home more than America, and he had begun a process of rewriting himself as a person overseas.

    Jake Pinnick has even taken up the Xiao, a traditional Chinese bamboo flute. Photo: Handout
    “Everything fit and it felt like something was really challenging and helped me grow quite a lot really fast. And as cliché as it is, it helps you find yourself … I feel like this is a typical response. You can feel like you inherit your life, especially in the Midwest in America, you can inherit your belief structure, you can inherit your job, you can inherit your house, from material to metaphysical to philosophical to religious, it almost feels like copy and paste. And, for me, I wanted to see what would happen without that buffer.”
    Now he has a wife, whom he met in China, and a daughter, and said his life now revolves around training, teaching and studying. He graduated officially from the academy in 2014 and still helps teach there, a practitioner of the Wudang Wushu of the San Feng lineage, while also holding his own classes as well.
    Pinnick said the goal is to one day return to the US and teach what he has learned, opening a school of his own. Looking back on his amazing journey, Pinnick said he has grown leaps and bounds from a small-town American kid who had a daydream he could not shake.
    “Back then I had a phrase that kind of shot me into the path of coming here and that was to ask myself, ‘What if?’ And I would play these stories out in my head, and then I thought I should stop asking that question because it’s making me indecisive in life, and I pushed myself to ask the question, ‘What if now?’”

    Patrick Blennerhassett

    Patrick Blennerhassett is an award-winning Canadian journalist and four-time published author. He is a Jack Webster Fellowship winner and a British Columbia bestselling novelist. He has covered sport for the Post since 2018.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

  10. #100
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    Jake Pinnick

    Tai chi's unlikely disciple
    After leaving his US home behind 14 years ago, Jake Pinnick has dedicated his life to the sacred ways of Wudang Mountain

    Updated: 2024-02-20 09:36


    Jake Pinnick is a renowned practitioner and instructor of Wudang Sanfeng martial arts on Wudang Mountain in Hubei province. WU ZHIZUN/XINHUA
    As dawn breaks over Wudang Mountain in Central China's Hubei province, a tall figure is silhouetted against the 600-year-old Yuxu Gong Temple, also known as the Jade Void Temple, brandishing a gleaming tai chi sword. Despite his Western features, he blends seamlessly with the other Taoists residing on the mountain.

    The man in question is Jake Pinnick, an American who identifies as a 16th-generation disciple of the Wudang Sanfeng martial arts lineage, named after the legendary Taoist reputed to have lived on Wudang Mountain and to have invented tai chi.

    Annually, tens of thousands of foreigners make their way to the sacred mountain, yet Pinnick stands out as a permanent resident, who has made the mountain his home. He now serves as an instructor, imparting knowledge of tai chi and Chinese culture to a global audience.


    Jake Pinnick is a renowned practitioner and instructor of Wudang Sanfeng martial arts on Wudang Mountain in Hubei province. WU ZHIZUN/XINHUA
    'Stayed for the culture'

    For millennia, Wudang Mountain has served as a sanctuary for those in pursuit of Taoist enlightenment. Driven to study at the esteemed Wudang Traditional Taoist Kungfu Academy, Pinnick set off from his hometown of Kewanee, Illinois, in 2010, crossing oceans to reach the mountain.

    Back then, the absence of an airport close to the mountain and a less developed rail network in China posed significant challenges. Compounded by his lack of Chinese language skills and overseas travel experience, Pinnick's journey was fraught with difficulties, including lost luggage and disorientation. He credits the kindness of several Chinese individuals with preventing him from turning back.

    Now, fluent in Mandarin and with a Chinese family, Pinnick has become a familiar sight in his black Taoist robe, his long black beard, and hair styled into a bun. Whether carrying a long sword or a flute, riding a red electric scooter, or guiding international disciples through the mountain trails, he is a symbol of cultural integration.

    "Looking back, I realize I've overcome a lot of challenges," Pinnick reflects. His initial years were filled with obstacles: language barriers, dietary adjustments and the demands of rigorous training.

    No matter the weather, his daily regime began at 5:30 am, involving resistance training with bamboo sticks and physical conditioning through martial arts disciplines. Despite occasionally feeling overwhelmed, he found the strength to persevere.

    In his class of 24 international students, only 12 saw the program through to the end. Pinnick was among these resilient few, mastering disciplines such as tai chi, xingyiquan, and qigong.

    "I came here for martial arts, but I stayed because of the culture behind it," Pinnick explains.

    He emphasizes that Wudang martial arts focus on harmony — both internal and external — and the balance between strength and flexibility.


    Jake Pinnick is a renowned practitioner and instructor of Wudang Sanfeng martial arts on Wudang Mountain in Hubei province. WU ZHIZUN/XINHUA
    Inspirational force

    During a performance of Wudang Taihequan at the 2023 Wudang Tai Chi International Friendship Competition, a black butterfly unexpectedly joined him, captivating the audience.

    The video went viral on social media, with one netizen interpreting the scene as "Zhuangzi (the ancient Taoist philosopher) transforming into a butterfly to encourage him". Another commended his performance as "authentic and true to its roots".

    Pinnick clinched two gold medals at the event, while his two foreign students each secured a silver. However, he says: "Medals are not important to me; what matters is that people, through me, get to know tai chi and Chinese culture."

    He has harnessed the power of the internet to widen his reach. Over the past three years, together with his wife, Cao Ling, he has produced and shared hundreds of short videos, drawing fans from the United States and Europe into the orbit of his tai chi and bamboo flute practices.

    After three years of online classes with the American, Maurijn Bracke from Belgium finally had the opportunity for face-to-face instruction. "The study of tai chi involves martial arts, Taoist philosophy, classical music, tea art, and more, and Jake can explain them all clearly," says Bracke.


    American Jake Pinnick has wholeheartedly embraced traditional Taoist culture after leaving the US for China in 2010. WU ZHIZUN/XINHUA
    In touch with tradition

    Pinnick's dedication to Wudang culture is unwavering. Whether at home, traveling by train or plane, or even celebrating Christmas with friends, he remains clad in his Taoist attire.

    "Practicing tai chi is a way to start a new day that is even better than having coffee," says the American.

    Pinnick is proud of his book Introduction to the Dong Xiao: Learn How to Play the Chinese Vertical Flute, which was published in the United States in 2022. He says there are few English books on tai chi or Taoism and he feels obligated to create learning resources for the many enthusiasts worldwide.

    Currently, Pinnick is researching the ancient text Tao Te Ching and writing a book in English that includes his own understanding of the work.

    "Many people are curious about how I explain traditional Chinese culture in English. My answer is to learn Chinese first and then express it in English," says Pinnick, adding in Chinese that "traditional Chinese culture is profound and extensive, and I became fascinated. Learning for two or three years is not enough; it may take a lifetime, and different ages bring different understandings."

    Pinnick's Sino-American family lives and breathes Chinese culture daily. His 9-year-old daughter, Cao Linna, not only practices tai chi and Wudang Sword but also plays the guzheng and hulusi.

    Looking ahead, Pinnick's vision is clear: to establish martial arts schools in both China and the United States.

    "Many Westerners hope to study on Wudang Mountain, but they don't have the time and opportunity. So, I will take Wudang culture to the US," said Pinnick. "Except that I can't see myself living away from Wudang. This is my second home, where I have my family and my students."

    In his quest to promote tai chi, Pinnick has earned certification from the American Council on Exercise and is currently enrolled in a two-year online university course. His philosophy of life is simple: pursue your passions relentlessly. "I don't want to be an ordinary coach teaching ordinary students," he says. "I want to become a master, dedicated to carrying forward Wudang culture and nurturing the 17th generation disciples of the Wudang Sanfeng lineage."
    Nice write up on China Daily.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
    Support our forum by getting your gear at MartialArtSmart

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