Hung Suen Wing Chun

[straight blast]

Hey guys!

I haven't trained W.C for about a year and a half now due to being horribly disillusioned by my last WC experience. Even to the point that I gave away all of my gear and for the first time since I was 7 I quit martial arts.

That said I can resist its siren call no longer. I have been researching fairly intensively and I am really interested in Hung Suen WC, Rick Spain lineage. My question for the forum is:

In Australia Hung Suen has an excellent reputation. Does anyone overseas know any info on the organisation or its reputation? Has anyone here trained it and have any feedback?

Thanks.

[sihing]

Hey guys!

I haven't trained W.C for about a year and a half now due to being horribly disillusioned by my last WC experience. Even to the point that I gave away all of my gear and for the first time since I was 7 I quit martial arts.

That said I can resist its siren call no longer. I have been researching fairly intensively and I am really interested in Hung Suen WC, Rick Spain lineage. My question for the forum is:

In Australia Hung Suen has an excellent reputation. Does anyone overseas know any info on the organisation or its reputation? Has anyone here trained it and have any feedback?

Thanks.

I've never seen Rick Spain in action, but have heard only good things about his skills and the dedication he has towards teaching effective WC and his students abilities. I would definitely check his school out and take classes there to find out more about his organization.

James

[Shadowboxer]

Check with anerlich here.

[anerlich]

straightblast,

what can I tell you? I've been with him longer than any currently practising student with the exception of Alf del-Brocco.

[straight blast]

what can I tell you? I've been with him longer than any currently practising student with the exception of Alf del-Brocco.

That is great! Alfredo del Brocco is who I am wanting to train with! Can you share any experiences/opinions or general feel of your training? I just really want to train with a system that focuses on actual fighting with no bullsh!t. I have read several of Alfredo's articles and really relate to what he is saying.

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

[kravi]

I learn from Rick Spain too..

While i have no previous martial arts experience, and have only been a student for a short time, i find him to be an inspirational and EXTREMELY dedicated teacher. My observations of his teaching methods (without actually speaking for him) are that he avoids x + y = Z scenarios where, as he puts it, there are "perfect starts, middles and ends"...

I think one of the most useful teaching tactics he encompasses is when he will place students within a compromising scenario and work from there... ie 2 on 1, or ... dealing with a surprise attack that changes the course of one's "fight logic"... I think fight logic is something that is being dealt with in the classes a lot more lately... the analogy used most often is that of a game of chess. ie strategy battle

As i said, i don't have much experience outside of this school, but..from what i hear/read... most teachers are not ballsy enough to question their own system.

Anyway, if you want an opinion - the system is evolving, and the guy at the forefront has been in enough 'situations' to know what works and what doesn't..

hope that helps..
kravi

[anerlich]

SB,

Alf's a great instructor, as are his own instructors of the satellite academies in Queensland. He has a different outlook and personality to Rick Spain (as you might expect, who wants to be a clone?), but is a fine instructor in his own right. He worked security for a long time, and has had a share of street defense situations in which he came out well. I've met few people more committed to the system and making it work.

His wife Rachel is a great proactitioner and instructor as well, having won the Australian KF championships twice last century, and doing very well at blue belt competition in BJJ as well.

Qld is the mecca for MMA in Australia at the moment, and a number of students have had successes in novice and intermediate level shows there.

I think basically we're about making WC and other arts work in practical rather than theoretical situations, and developing a level of athleticism.

Give it a shot - worst thing that can happen is that you won't like it.

[Ultimatewingchun]

I can also attest to the fact that during his years as a student of Willam Cheung, Rick Spain was regarded very highly within the organization.

Andrew: What do the words Hung Suen stand for?

[duende]

Red Boat...

(and another thumbs up for Anerlich's school)

[anerlich]

duende is correct ... and I appreciate his thumbs up

[shammy]

I thought Sijo Spain (and Sifu DelBrocco) were from Grandmaster William Cheung's lineage. Where is their connection to Hung Suen Wing Chun? Did he/they train further with people from the Red Boat lineage? Is it spread any further in Australia as well?

Thanks

[ghostofwingchun]

I thought Sijo Spain (and Sifu DelBrocco) were from Grandmaster William Cheung's lineage. Where is their connection to Hung Suen Wing Chun? Did he/they train further with people from the Red Boat lineage? Is it spread any further in Australia as well?

Thanks

According to legend all wc descends from red boats . . . so we all practice hung suen wc . . . lol . . . people can call their wc what ever they want . . . it reminds me of Herman Heese novel Steppenwolf where the steppenwolf hears musician at club and goes up to him and asks 'it that jazz' . . . musician says 'if you need to put a name to it.'

Thanks,

Ghost

[anerlich]

Ghost is basically correct, though it'd be nice if he left the question to someone who actually knows the people involved and what happened.

Rick Spain and Alfredo del-Brocco are indeed former students of William Cheung. Alf is really Rick Spain's student, though he did train under GM Cheung directly for some time as well.

The name Hung Suen was basically chosen for the usual reasons, product differentiation and marketing. The idea was originally spawned by the passing resemblance between TWC and HFY, then called Hung Suen WC in "Complete Wing Chun" and a story going round at the time that GM Cheung had had secret training in manland China. Alfredo and Benny Meng corresponded for a time, and collaborated on an article together, though any connection between the two systems is now discounted by pretty much everyone on both sides.

Pretty stupid-sounding I know, but not as ridiculous as some other recent writings and happenings in the WC world.

No one's brought a lawsuit yet. As Ghost said, Hung Suen could describe many if not all lineages and is arguably generic.

It's still TWC - it might look different to some, but Sifu Spain maintains that the "differences" came from seeds planted by his Sifu, which his Sifu got from his, etc., not stuff he made up out of thin air. WE train BJJ and a few other things as well, but the WC remains TWC. We're nontraditional in many ways, but not where the core of the WC we do is concerned.

Shammy, we're basically restricted to Southern Queensland, Sydney, and Ulverstone, Tasmania. We also have a representative in New York, Maurice Llewellyn.

[ghostofwingchun]

I am sorry Mr Anerlich if I step on your toes . . . and that I get answer right . . . guess what . . . I do know some of wc history . . . great thing about history is we do not need to live it or know the principals to know what happened . . . but I am still sorry if you take my attempt to answer question as invading territory that belongs to you . . . no offense meant.

Thanks,

Ghost

[shammy]

for your background on my question. Was curious, as you don't see too many WC schools being specifically listed as Hung Suen, or Red Boat WC. I suppose that would help to differentiate one's club from other WC schools, in the "sea" of WC schools that abound nowadays (pun intended).