Excellent seminar all the way around.
Sal, as usual, hosted events without a hitch. Beverages and snacks were, as always, included in the very reasonable price of admission, and there was not a paperwork hang up in sight.
Attendance was good, with several participants making the trip from the DC area. Sal had the full support of his club, and most of my current students were present as well. Bruce Benson trotted out his training group for the first time; I was very impressed; good work big guy!
Special mention to farthest traveler Rich Parsons who came and spent the day with us (even saying kind words about my Ford product!)
Last, but not least, a good turnout from the University of Pennsylvania; thanks for the support gang!
On to the heart of the subject; Tim Hartman taught two related sessions. Both were targeted towards uniforming and streamlining the WMAA curriculum, but the application was not limited to those training in the WMAA program. The morning session focused on a streamlined method for teaching disarms and attacks. The material was not earth-shattering, but I found that the presentation was much improved. I felt that a novice player would gain true ownership of the material in a much faster time frame with the new format (and in fairness we had no novice players; even relative new comers kept pace well and allowed us to move at a fast clip!)
The afternoon session shifted focus from stick self-defense to stick fighting, that is to say contending with a more trained attacker or a duel type scenario. The material again progressed in a fast and furious manner, but all present seemed able to stay on top of it and attain at least a basic familiarity.
The highlight for me was seeing a preliminary roll-out of where the WMAA is headed. Clearly Tim has put a lot of thought into how to maintain and preserve Professor's legacy while still allowing the art to evolve. Also in play is Tim's continuing exploration of Balintawak which does shape his interpretation of Modern Arnis.
The next year will be interesting, and I strongly encourage anyone in the area who missed out to join us in the DC area on the 30th.
In summary, it was a great day seeing a lot of old friends and watching the art grow,
artyon:
