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Thread: Is anyone else paying attention to the YMAA Retreat Center program?

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    Is anyone else paying attention to the YMAA Retreat Center program?

    For those unaware, Dr. Yang Jwing-Ming started what essentially is a Kung Fu boot camp 5 years ago in northern California called the YMAA RC (Yang's Martial Arts Association Retreat Center).

    It's pretty rad what Dr. Yang has done. He set up a 10-year program for students to become fully certified in Long Fist, Southern White Crane, and Yang style Taiji. The curriculum includes other things like Chinese language, guns, projectile weapons, horseback riding, Chinese history, business. Here's the full set-up.

    The disciples (they become disciples of his at the beginning of the 10-year program) have to go through a crap ton of body conditioning. I think that makes up the bulk of what they do each day. They are tested each semester on fitness and things like finger/hand speed (for qinna). They also train 5 1/2 days a week

    To help the RC make money to support itself, Dr. Yang had the disciples put out two DVD's on body conditioning and showed them how to edit it and everything.

    All in all, I think it's an amazing program! Though it's not all sunshine and roses up there. Dr. Yang has invested a lot of hist own money in to the RC and says that if it can't support itself by the program's end (5 years from now) that he's shutting it down.

    He did recently start a 5 year program and from what I understand, it's basically the same except a lot less body conditioning.

    I think it's so awesome what Dr. Yang is doing and it'd be great if another master from the old-school set up something similar. Unlikely to happen, but it would be nice.

    If I was perhaps 10 years younger and thought I would make a living off of Kung Fu, I'd totally sign up. But... that's not the case

    Really, though, I hope that Dr. Yang's program is successful and he is able to keep the next generation's skill and knowledge on par with what we're used to seeing from the old-school.

    edit: I forgot to mention that the disciples enrolled in the 10 year program will graduate with a legit Master's Degree in Martial Arts
    Last edited by Kymus; 06-28-2013 at 02:30 PM.
    Quote Originally Posted by bawang View Post
    like that old japanese zen monk that grabs white woman student titties to awaken them to zen, i grab titties of kung fu people to awaken them to truth.
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    You can discuss discrepancies and so on in people's posts without ripping them apart. So easy to do sitting behind a computer screen anonymously, but in person I'm sure you'd be very different, unless you're a total misanthrope without any friends.

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