LauGar KungFu Origins - any evidence?

[laugarkuen]

I asked Steven (my sifu) about the two man stick form for 3rd degree. He says it has been there for as long as he can remember and he has been doing lau gar for 20 odd years.

On a different note I have had my first two students grade for white sash today and they both passed.

[DaveTart]

I asked Steven (my sifu) about the two man stick form for 3rd degree. He says it has been there for as long as he can remember and he has been doing lau gar for 20 odd years.

On a different note I have had my first two students grade for white sash today and they both passed.

20 years would take you back to '86 - Roughly the time Kevin Brewerton, Humprey Broome and alot of others split - So it could be possible it came in shortly after that? Especially as I'm guessing your sifu wouldn't have been a Black Sash by then, So might not have seen it until a few years after that? I'm going to one of Humphries Tournaments tomorrow and see if I can ask him.

And congratulations - Go you!

[DaveTart]

I asked Steven (my sifu) about the two man stick form for 3rd degree. He says it has been there for as long as he can remember and he has been doing lau gar for 20 odd years.

On a different note I have had my first two students grade for white sash today and they both passed.

20 years would take you back to '86... And I'm guessing your sifu wouldn't have been a Black Sash by then, So might not have seen it until a few years after that? Mid eighties was roughly the time Kevin Brewerton, Humprey Broome and alot of others split - So it could be possible it came in shortly after that?

I'm going to one of Humphries Tournaments tomorrow and see if I can ask him.

And congratulations - Go you!

[laugarkuen]

Sorry, I meant 20+ years but I'm not sure how many, I'll ask him.

[DaveTart]

Spoke to Humphrey, His club does do the dual-man stick form. He said he split from the BKFA in about 1990 and the form was "just coming in then".

I'm not 100% sure when Kevin Split, but his society UMAI (United martial arts International) was formed 1989 so I'm guessing it was just before that. Looks like it's entirely possible Jeremy Yau added that form around the time Kevin left, so we never learned it.
Heh ho.

Now all I need to do is work out what "Lau Gar throat locking stick" (on the syllabus for 3rd degree Black Sash as well) is, and I'm sorted. Humphrey says he's never heard of that one!

[Su Lin]

I started training in the early/mid 90's with the UMAI under Kevin Brewerton based in Farnham (Hampshire). Like lot's of people, Kevin split from the BKFA in the 80's.
During the wilderness years surrounding university I trained in all sorts of clubs/styles including two BKFA clubs, one in exeter and one in Cardiff. I'm now back in Farnham which is currently headed up by Damien McLoughlin now that Kevin is back in the states.

Ta Dave,I'm just interested as my club isn't a BFKA one either,so following the thread with interest!

Thanks
Louise

[DaveTart]

Fair enough. If you want to know more, just send me a private message. I think you are up north, preston? Is it the Ormskirk Club?

Love to know your syllabus etc.

[laugarkuen]

Now all I need to do is work out what "Lau Gar throat locking stick" (on the syllabus for 3rd degree Black Sash as well) is, and I'm sorted. Humphrey says he's never heard of that one!

I'm second degree now so only just learning throat locking stick. Its basically a staff form with a rat tail pole, which is a tapering 7 foot staff.

Post more later.

[laugarkuen]

Actually it is no surprise that there are more stick forms later on. Go on just about any lau gar website and there will be a bit somewhere stating that lau gar excels in stick work. It always made me kinda think, where???

[DaveTart]

Actually it is no surprise that there are more stick forms later on. Go on just about any lau gar website and there will be a bit somewhere stating that lau gar excels in stick work. It always made me kinda think, where???

Lol. This is indeed true. Though it seems (at least in the throat locking stick case) that these only came in after 1990 - so where on earth did they come from?

[laugarkuen]

I was talking to Steven about this on Saturday and I think he said that there used to only be about 3 degree grades then it was reorganised to the current 6 so I am theorising that maybe some of the stick forms etc were still in the syllabus but in the then 2nd or 3rd degree. It also depends on how far your sifus got and how open master Yau was about what the higher grades entail. Maybe i was quite closed door.

Or maybe he knew them as part of Lau Gar but it wasn't then part of the syllabus.

[DaveTart]

That backs up what I know (3rd Degree BlackSash was the highest grade back in the day) and AFAIK Kevin was a 3rd Degree when he left. So it seems odd that he could get to that level without knowing the full syllabus. Which again makes me think these things were additional to the core syllabus but have now been integrated, especially as we do all the other weapon forms, seems odd to miss those out.

I think it boils down to the what is LauGar, and what is the BKFA syllabus. I know (based on the Martial Arts planet forum discussion) that Yau added bits onto Kay Bon So Far, and changed bits about here and there so it might be that these stick forms have become part of the BKFA syllabus, while not being "true" LauGar. Bit like the Chin Na form that they do, but isn't (yet) part of the syllabus.
(though of course, according to him, everything he does is "LauGar" so it all gets a bit semantic at this point!)

I'm still waiting on a guy in the states who studied the Mainland Chinese version of LauGar to let me know what their syllabus is like, be really interesting to see how it compares.

[Kaylun]

[QUOTE=DaveTart;719886]That backs up what I know (3rd Degree BlackSash was the highest grade back in the day) and AFAIK Kevin was a 3rd Degree when he left. So it seems odd that he could get to that level without knowing the full syllabus. Which again makes me think these things were additional to the core syllabus but have now been integrated, especially as we do all the other weapon forms, seems odd to miss those out.


The syllabus changed in 1984 (just before I took my 1st black sash) Brewerton Wasnt 3rd then,

Lau Gar Soar Hou kwun is in my old syllabus book circa1978

You keep saying about Brewerton leaving Lau Gar did he jump or was he pushed?

And i Know the answer!

[laustick]

29 years ago the syllabus listed for 3rd black soar hou kwun and the dual
stick form.
Also there was an article in fighters magazine which was well over 30 years
ago which listed the weapons of lau gar which included the eyebrow hight
staff, and the 7 and half foot staff, kwan do, spear, butterfly knives, board
sword, ratten shield, tiger fork being the main weapon of the style,
but also saying the style is from the five families which i don't know.
but in all the history they claim linage to three eyed lau who if i'am
right is said to be the founder of the lau gar five families

[DaveTart]

The syllabus changed in 1984 (just before I took my 1st black sash) Brewerton Wasnt 3rd then,

Lau Gar Soar Hou kwun is in my old syllabus book circa1978

You keep saying about Brewerton leaving Lau Gar did he jump or was he pushed?

And i Know the answer!

Care to share the answer with us? Might help get to the bottom of things...