Competition Kenpo Forms

[brianhunter]

How do some of you select which form you will perform at a tournement or for competition and why?

Do you select what form you are currently working for your belt level?

Do you select a form that suits your way of performing the art?
(i.e. your a black belt who has long 5 but you really love short 3)

 

[jfarnsworth]

Form 4 would be my guess as a competition form.

 

[Nightingale]

I compete with a variation of long 2... higher kicks, and a leopardstrike at the end instead of an elbow. other than that, the same. Just playing to the traditional judges a bit because they like stuff like that. In a kenpo division, I do the form its original way.

I'd compete with 4 if I knew it.

 

[Elfan]

I just like short form 1.

Although if I went to a tournament I think I would do short 3 as some judges might not apreciate short 1.

It seems that form 4 is by far the most popular.

 

[Nightingale]

Short 1 is a complex form, and often unappreciated. It teaches a lot.

 

[Klondike93]

How come most kenposists feel the need to change the form when they compete with it?

I know a 4th degree here that uses a modified form 4 and wins with it all the time. Why not use the form unmodified, because it's not as flashy and usually doesn't win.

Now having said that, most TKD people will change their forms too, adding some flash to it.


:asian:

 

[Nightingale]

Originally posted by Klondike93

How come most kenposists feel the need to change the form when they compete with it?

I know a 4th degree here that uses a modified form 4 and wins with it all the time. Why not use the form unmodified, because it's not as flashy and usually doesn't win.
:asian:

I modify Long 2 for the exact reason you quoted... because it makes it flashier and more likely to win.

In brown belt womens competition divisions, I always end up competing with the same people. If I use the modified version of the form, I place higher CONSISTANTLY than if I use the unmodified version (I did it both ways several times with the same competitors to test the theory). In a traditional kenpo division, however, I use the form in its original state...and usually lose to flashier Lima Lama forms done by the same girl who I had just beat in the open forms division with my modified form. she does the same form in both divisions... I have no idea why Lima Lama forms are allowed in traditional KENPO... Lima Lama doesn't look like kenpo to me...( I thought kenpo was parker (or variations), Tracy (or variations) or chinese) but I'm probably wrong.

-N-

 

[Hollywood1340]

Fellow Artists,
Should be noted if you change a form in a traditional forms competition, you're pretty much out of the running. There is a diffrence

 

[Nightingale]

provided you have judges from your style who know your form...

that said, I never alter a form in a traditional division.

 

[Klondike93]

Originally posted by Hollywood1340

Fellow Artists,
Should be noted if you change a form in a traditional forms competition, you're pretty much out of the running. There is a diffrence

Not qute true. I see "traditional" forms altered all the time and won with. You see the kicker is that very very few do a form by the book. Some will punch higher or kick higher to make themselves look a little better than the other person. Also you may have been taught the same form differently than the other person. In watching TKD forms I have seen at least 4 different versions of the basic white belt form Chon-Ji. So what is "traditional"?

At an open tournament the kenpo judge doesn't know the proper way to do a TKD form so a TKD judge wouldn't know how the kenpo form is to be done. So why not change it some to make it look a little cooler, they won't know anyways.


:asian:

 

[Hollywood1340]

That's what I do I guess it's the tourney your at, would you agree?

 

[Klondike93]

I would agree.

Go to a TKD tournament you better do it by the book (but even here do they really do it by the "book"?).

An open tournament, anything goes in my book, just have great stances, balance, power and focus to go with it.


:asian:

 

[Nightingale]

at a lot of the tournaments I compete in:

traditional means: no gymnastics, and have a normal looking uniform

open: anything goes

traditional kenpo: kenpo forms only...they usually try to find kenpo judges, which is nice.

 

[Michael Billings]

Since I came out of TKD into Kenpo some 20+ years ago, all the forms were "traditional". They had few modifications until the early 80's with musical and non-traditional forms (made up or modified specifically for tournament) entering the arena. You know the cute kids with weapons, splits, and loud little kias.

My instuctor encouraged us to use traditional forms, but let us blend two together. An example was Finger Set (back then "Poison Hand Set") followed by Short #2 or Short #3. This was the Soft then Hard sorta approach. From personal experience, it was a winner. As a Brown Belt I used Long #4 with my back up form being Poison Hand / Short #3. At Black I used Tiger and Crane with Long #4 as backup. Then finally I got the 6, which was another winner. I would then be able to chose between Tiger and Crane, Long 4 or Long 6, depending on my competition. My strategy was to play to the differences in style, so long as I felt strong that day. Seemed to work.

Have fun in tournaments, I forgot how much I enjoyed them.

-Michael
UKS-Texas

 

[Dun Ringill]

Does anyone still do Poison Hand or Bookset that is of the Parker line? Not specifically for competition but as a belt requirement?

 

[Blindside]

I do Book Set, and since I come off the Tracy's I am of the Parker line. It is a requirement for our Green Belt. Book Set is still an official requirement for one of the Brown Belt ranks according to the Tracy homepage.

We also have a "Finger Set" and "Moving Finger Set." The Tracy's don't seem to require them anymore, but our line diverged several decades back.

Lamont

 

[Blindside]

How come most kenposists feel the need to change the form when they compete with it?

Because we want to win. On our circuit we don't have "kenpo only" divisions, we get lumped into the "soft style" divisions with the kungfu guys. If you think going against a wushu stylist with virtually any kenpo form is a winning proposition, well good luck. I actually don't compete with any of the "official" forms, I make up a tournament form instead. It is mostly kenpo techs, but I throw in a bit of "animal" and a couple of high kicks. I mix hard and soft, and have done pretty well in competition since I started competing.

Now that being said, I got beat last year by a guy doing Short 4, and damn he looked good doing it. Of course he lost to the wushu guy, so what does that say. Given a "straight" form, I would go with Short 6, Long 6, or Short 4. I think that in many ways Long 4 is too long (for competition), and you have to modify it anyway or you spend half the time with your back to the judges.

Lamont

 

[jfarnsworth]

Where are you getting all of the short forms at?

 

[Blindside]

Where are you getting all of the short forms at?

One of my instructors picked them up from an AK instructor several years ago.

Lamont

 

[bdparsons]

the IKCA Master Form.

Repects,
Bill Parsons