Jon Funk

[mickey]

Greetings,

I do not know how many guys here remember back to the late '80's and early 90's During that time Jon Funk was respected, his sun was on the ascent. It was only after he started writing articles that warned people about the "fake Shaolin monks " coming to America and the "fake" chi king masters making their rounds in America did he suddenly come under close scrutiny. His lineage and legitimacy was called into question: if Al Cheng did not achieve the right to teach, then how could he suddenly call himself a Sifu (or, HOW DARE HE talk about us when.....). Simply written, Jon Funk was given a pair of black eyes for endangering "certain" economic interests. And I do not think he has healed from it. Yet, I see people jumping on the bandwagon to stomp him without knowing the true origin of their own assaults.

nfboy, you do not seem like a bad guy. You may want to try info gathering this way:

Hi, I am from Vancouver. Who is the baddest mantis mothertrucker out here?

Only a suggestion.

Peace

mickey

[scottdurand]

I remember he often had articles in IKF magazine seems like around 84 and on. He was one of the main ones writing Mantis articles back then.

[YouKnowWho]

When I asked questions Jon seemed to get annoyed with me thats it, I was not rude to him,

I had met him in person once when Brendan Lai taught his class in the park. He seems to be a friendly guy.

I once asked an 80 years old man, "What's the purpose to move your hand like that?" The old man said, "just to perform." He won't speak to me after that.

It dosen't take much to upset a CMA guy.

[-N-]

I had met him in person once when Brendan Lai taught his class in the park. He seems to be a friendly guy.

You were there that day?!

I must have almost met you back then.

[mooyingmantis]

GM Lai seemed like such a gentleman. He came up and complimented me on my performance after I demonstrated in a master's demo at one of GM Yang Shu Ton's tournaments years ago. He made my day!
You were so lucky to train with him.
The only other time I had met him was back in the 90s when he was traveling with/promoting (?) a Wushu group that visited Akron, Ohio.

[YouKnowWho]

You were there that day?!

I must have almost met you back then.

Brendan taught a student a combo - 8 moves with 3 forward hops that day. I liked it very much and I stole that combao by watching. That combo looks like this:

- right hand on the wrist.
- left hand on the elbow.
- right palm hit the right side of opponent's head (hop in).
- left hand re-block opponent's left hand,
- right palm hit the left side of opponent's face (hop in).
- right hook pull back opponent's right wrist.
- left hook take over.
- right back hook hits straight on opponent's face (hop in).

May be you were that guy who did that combo that day. By the way Brendan Lai was the vice-president of the "International Shuai Chiao Association" at that time. He had sponsed a large Shuai Chiao demonstration in San Francisco in 1982.

[Syn7]

They "learned" from Video tapes produced by Jon Funk

i'll never understand the whole video tape thing... i think even making one is ignorant, unless its an aid for you students... but to sell it outside the school??? wtf... i just dont ge it... its a pure cash grab, nothing more... to claim you know something because u bought the tape is rediculous... to teach it afterwards is immoral and criminal... and even making a tape facilitates all that... being a video student is just stupid... maybe a touch less so with live webcam classes, but still stupid none the less...

making a video is a blackmark on your character, imo...

[Syn7]

I had met him in person once when Brendan Lai taught his class in the park. He seems to be a friendly guy.

I once asked an 80 years old man, "What's the purpose to move your hand like that?" The old man said, "just to perform." He won't speak to me after that.

It dosen't take much to upset a CMA guy.

yeah thats a problem in tcma... egos are rediculous... why should i believe anything just because some guy said so??? earning respect goes both ways... you take a chance with a teacher or student and you go from there...

[mooyingmantis]

i'll never understand the whole video tape thing... i think even making one is ignorant, unless its an aid for you students... but to sell it outside the school??? wtf... i just dont ge it... its a pure cash grab, nothing more... to claim you know something because u bought the tape is rediculous... to teach it afterwards is immoral and criminal... and even making a tape facilitates all that... being a video student is just stupid... maybe a touch less so with live webcam classes, but still stupid none the less...

making a video is a blackmark on your character, imo...

I disagree totally.

I make videotapes available for my students all the time. Every form, every combination, every drill is videotaped to serve as a reminder of what they learned in class or in one of my seminars. I post them on YouTube so my students in Indiana can experience the same lessons that my students in Ohio enjoy. Though I don't make everything available for the public.

Explanations are done in such detail that if a half way decent martial artist couldn't pick up the tape or watch the video and learn the form or technique with a partner, then I failed in teaching it properly.

I also encourage students to videotape themselves working out so they can better analyze their own movements for errors. One of the first things I teach my students is to PROPERLY OBSERVE what is going on in class.

I think the idea that one cannot learn from a tape is kind of outdated. Though it does take very good observational skills and one must know WHAT to look for.

Heck, some peeps are getting Master's Degrees online, are we martial artists that big of morons that we can't learn through observation? I don't think the average martial artist of adult age is.

I think videotaping in the kwoon/guan is a important today as practicing in front of a mirror was in the past.

So, I don't criticize others for making tapes to sell. At least they are making a permanent documentation of things that may someday be lost otherwise. Too many styles have been lost already. Imagine if we had tapes to refer back to made by Lam Sai Wing or Fan Xu Dong!

[Syn7]

I disagree totally.

I make videotapes available for my students all the time. Every form, every combination, every drill is videotaped to serve as a reminder of what they learned in class or in one of my seminars. I post them on YouTube so my students in Indiana can experience the same lessons that my students in Ohio enjoy. Though I don't make everything available for the public.


Heck, some peeps are getting Master's Degrees online, are we martial artists that big of morons that we can't learn through observation? I don't think the average martial artist of adult age is.

thats okay if its for students u teach in person...


yeah the online masters argument doesnt fly with me... its not the same thing when physical techniques are concerned... i wouldnt want to get surgery from some guy that did his whole medschool online and passing video back and forh...

videos should be nothing more than aids for existing students and for personal use for mapping progress and whatnot... or purely demonstrational... IMO... i stand by that...

[-N-]

Brendan taught a student a combo - 8 moves with 3 forward hops that day. I liked it very much and I stole that combao by watching.

Nice combo.

That combo looks like this:

- right hand on the wrist.
- left hand on the elbow.
- right palm hit the right side of opponent's head (hop in).

Grinding palm using ou lou tsai method.

- left hand re-block opponent's left hand,
- right palm hit the left side of opponent's face (hop in).

Leaking palm like in Plum Flower forms with left side / right side palm attacks. He did not teach us those forms until many years later.

- right hook pull back opponent's right wrist.
- left hook take over.
- right back hook hits straight on opponent's face (hop in).

Ou lou tsai using reverse mantis claw down the center(instead of more common outside line) after the left/right setup.

Can follow up with easy takedown using head and wrist control.

May be you were that guy who did that combo that day. By the way Brendan Lai was the vice-president of the "International Shuai Chiao Association" at that time. He had sponsed a large Shuai Chiao demonstration in San Francisco in 1982.

Chinese guy, 5' 10", medium/heavy, needed lots of practice was me.

I heard the story from my Sihing of our teacher meeting your teacher. He had the highest respect for your teacher.

[Mi Hou Tao]

Brendan taught a student a combo - 8 moves with 3 forward hops that day. I liked it very much and I stole that combao by watching. That combo looks like this:

- right hand on the wrist.
- left hand on the elbow.
- right palm hit the right side of opponent's head (hop in).
- left hand re-block opponent's left hand,
- right palm hit the left side of opponent's face (hop in).
- right hook pull back opponent's right wrist.
- left hook take over.
- right back hook hits straight on opponent's face (hop in).

Sounds like "San Lu Mei Hua Zhang" 2 man drill

[BeiTangLang]

More than likely didn't like that I removed the very rude post & direspectful post he originaly posted & removed the others on his own.
As always, I will allow discussions of anything mantis, including unfavorable opinions, if they are at least respectful and not libelous.

Best wishes to all,
~BTL

[SoCo KungFu]

thats okay if its for students u teach in person...


yeah the online masters argument doesnt fly with me... its not the same thing when physical techniques are concerned... i wouldnt want to get surgery from some guy that did his whole medschool online and passing video back and forh...

videos should be nothing more than aids for existing students and for personal use for mapping progress and whatnot... or purely demonstrational... IMO... i stand by that...

People learn CPR from videos everyday. There's a difference between surgery which is much more than just a physical technique, its all the detailed didactics that are behind it; anatomy and so on. That's what is difficult. But anyone who can eat their own food should know how to use a knife.

There is nothing at all complicated about martial arts in terms of detail. Its all about physical programming through repetition. The mental stuff is simple, it just takes a good sparring partner and time doing the physical stuff. Its the fact that martial arts are simple physical movements which require little preparation (we all move in our bodies everyday) that makes it so easy to pick up from a tape.

Martial arts are not difficult. They aren't complicated. Its no more difficult to learn kung fu from a vid than it is to learn to play football or hockey or soccer or CPR or how to build a table or how to replace an alternator.

And the simple fact that when he was alive Evan Tanner could kick all our asses just proves that you can learn martial arts from a video....

[KC Elbows]

People learn CPR from videos everyday. There's a difference between surgery which is much more than just a physical technique, its all the detailed didactics that are behind it; anatomy and so on. That's what is difficult. But anyone who can eat their own food should know how to use a knife.

There is nothing at all complicated about martial arts in terms of detail. Its all about physical programming through repetition. The mental stuff is simple, it just takes a good sparring partner and time doing the physical stuff. Its the fact that martial arts are simple physical movements which require little preparation (we all move in our bodies everyday) that makes it so easy to pick up from a tape.

Martial arts are not difficult. They aren't complicated. Its no more difficult to learn kung fu from a vid than it is to learn to play football or hockey or soccer or CPR or how to build a table or how to replace an alternator.

And the simple fact that when he was alive Evan Tanner could kick all our asses just proves that you can learn martial arts from a video....

No, fighting is more complex than physics, or else Einstein would have had a chain of particle physics dojos and raked it in on fusion fees.

I hope I have adequately put down your heresy!