A
amk
Guest
First off I am not putting anyone down, nor saying that any one is better than any one else. I have been fortunate to have trained with many different instructors one on one, and in seminars as well.
So let me ask this:
What is American Kenpo?
According to many, it is the Study of Motion. You learn techniques and the motion that is used in the techniques from 3 points of view, being 1st doing the technique (i.e. Delayed Sword), 2nd doing the attack (i.e. Front right hand lapel grab), and 3rd watching 2 other people practice the technique in 1st and 2nd person situations.
Now the time that I spent with Mr. Huk Planas, he told me and others that American Kenpo is: "The Study of Motion."
Mr. Planas talked about the old days and how they had 3-8 variations on every
technique, and when Mr. Parker wanted to make manuals, they then
condensed the information to make it more acceptable for a manual, which
was the way Mr. Parker thought he could spread the art further. He also added that
they all had writers cramp from just doing one variation. New techniques were created
to complete categories of motion.
This seems obvious to be a new system of learning Kenpo based on motion, which would be a "Motion Kenpo" or "Commercial Kenpo" system to me, whatever you want to call it. A system that was developed not inferior to anything else, as the quality of student does directly relate to the level that their instructor delivers to, and demands of their students.
Now according to Mr. Sean Kelley, Mr. Parker vary rarely taught after this new system was developed. The reason I can make this statement is that according to Mr. Kelley, Mr. Parker was on the Road with Elvis most of the time in the Early 70's, and that would mean that under the new guidelines that most of what was taught was based on Motion, not by Mr. Parker, but by his students. Mr. Parker's students were heavily involved in creating the new system, as Mr. Planas helped with the category completion, and writing of the technique manuals.
What does all of this mean?
Well basically it means that prior to this time period of the Early 70's when this was created, would have been different in the teachings. So if people like Dr. ChapƩl, Mr. Michael Pick, Sigung Steven LaBounty, etc. were studying Kenpo before this time frame it wouldn't have been "Motion Kenpo".
The main difference between the two can be summarized by the following viewpoints as well:
According to Mr. Planas: "Karate is supposed to be a secret, and if you do get in a situation that you have to use it, that surprise will be 10% of it, and the other 90% luck." "Their is no write or wrong way to do a technique, as long as you obey the rules of motion."
According to Dr. ChapƩl, American Kenpo Sub Level Four is learned and practiced in a way that forces you to do things that increase the likely hood of victory. Rearrangement and other aspects of "Motion Kenpo" are removed to stack the odds in your favor, like Positive and Negative Body Posture, Destructive Sequencing, and other aspects that can't be rearranged with out removing those advantages given to us through sciences of body mechanics. In my time with Dr. ChapƩl, he has taught me to train under stressful realistic situations, and deal with people that really know how to attack properly, or even at an expert level where they grab you in a wrist lock before you know it, and then what to do. That is different than my time with Mr. Planas, as he liked to talk about reading (reading the attack), and he recommends that you train using a two step approach, to give you time to read the attack.
Dr. ChapƩl, has given me material, and experiences to make techniques real, having been K.O.'d by him, and had more than above par training with his students as well. Basically he has given me more of the internal aspects of the Martial Arts / Sciences than anyone else, even going outside Kenpo.
Clearly their are aspects of the Martial Arts that are just missing from many instructors in the Martial Arts, that Dr. ChapƩl has addressed within American Kenpo; Destructive Sequencing, Anatomical Alignment, Positive Body Posture, Negative Body Posture, etc. I have friends that have studied for years in Long Fist, Aikido, Hung Gar, Choy Li Fut, White Eyebrow, and many others that have been amazed at what I have shown them that Dr. ChapƩl, has taught me. I think they have slanted foreheads from all the Homer Simpson: "Douuuu!" with a slap on the forehead, when I tell them why they are doing something the way they are. The truth is, that I only know of it because of Sub Level 4 training.
One more story that has been passed down by Mr. Sean Kelley, is a story that Jimmy Woo used to teach at the Pasadena school, and he talked of internal aspects of the arts, and even talked of one in which you could avoid death via strangulation or hanging, and someone he told this to, died of asphyxiation attempting the technique. Mr. Parker found out about this and their relationship ended as the students were obviously not ready for this type of information. So who is to say that Mr. Parker didn't think that some were ready for some the information and passed it on to some and not others. Just as he did with the knife material, and other aspects that Mr. Parker taught different things to different people.
Enough of me being on my soap box, I just feel that some people have been unfairly ganged up on, and stories twisted and turned, without fully trying to comprehend what is being said. These people have taken some of the information and taken offense to it, as if they are doing something bad, and that is not my statement. I am saying that using logic and common sense you should be able to determine that their has been more than one system of American Kenpo, and that many people know many different things. Also having met with some of these people's instructors it becomes more clear that they attack because they have lost many students to Dr. ChapƩl, and the fact that many have ben Black Belts makes it hurt even worse.
These are my observations, no offense is meant, I just needed to state the things I have witnessed and felt.
So let me ask this:
What is American Kenpo?
According to many, it is the Study of Motion. You learn techniques and the motion that is used in the techniques from 3 points of view, being 1st doing the technique (i.e. Delayed Sword), 2nd doing the attack (i.e. Front right hand lapel grab), and 3rd watching 2 other people practice the technique in 1st and 2nd person situations.
Now the time that I spent with Mr. Huk Planas, he told me and others that American Kenpo is: "The Study of Motion."
Mr. Planas talked about the old days and how they had 3-8 variations on every
technique, and when Mr. Parker wanted to make manuals, they then
condensed the information to make it more acceptable for a manual, which
was the way Mr. Parker thought he could spread the art further. He also added that
they all had writers cramp from just doing one variation. New techniques were created
to complete categories of motion.
This seems obvious to be a new system of learning Kenpo based on motion, which would be a "Motion Kenpo" or "Commercial Kenpo" system to me, whatever you want to call it. A system that was developed not inferior to anything else, as the quality of student does directly relate to the level that their instructor delivers to, and demands of their students.
Now according to Mr. Sean Kelley, Mr. Parker vary rarely taught after this new system was developed. The reason I can make this statement is that according to Mr. Kelley, Mr. Parker was on the Road with Elvis most of the time in the Early 70's, and that would mean that under the new guidelines that most of what was taught was based on Motion, not by Mr. Parker, but by his students. Mr. Parker's students were heavily involved in creating the new system, as Mr. Planas helped with the category completion, and writing of the technique manuals.
What does all of this mean?
Well basically it means that prior to this time period of the Early 70's when this was created, would have been different in the teachings. So if people like Dr. ChapƩl, Mr. Michael Pick, Sigung Steven LaBounty, etc. were studying Kenpo before this time frame it wouldn't have been "Motion Kenpo".
The main difference between the two can be summarized by the following viewpoints as well:
According to Mr. Planas: "Karate is supposed to be a secret, and if you do get in a situation that you have to use it, that surprise will be 10% of it, and the other 90% luck." "Their is no write or wrong way to do a technique, as long as you obey the rules of motion."
According to Dr. ChapƩl, American Kenpo Sub Level Four is learned and practiced in a way that forces you to do things that increase the likely hood of victory. Rearrangement and other aspects of "Motion Kenpo" are removed to stack the odds in your favor, like Positive and Negative Body Posture, Destructive Sequencing, and other aspects that can't be rearranged with out removing those advantages given to us through sciences of body mechanics. In my time with Dr. ChapƩl, he has taught me to train under stressful realistic situations, and deal with people that really know how to attack properly, or even at an expert level where they grab you in a wrist lock before you know it, and then what to do. That is different than my time with Mr. Planas, as he liked to talk about reading (reading the attack), and he recommends that you train using a two step approach, to give you time to read the attack.
Dr. ChapƩl, has given me material, and experiences to make techniques real, having been K.O.'d by him, and had more than above par training with his students as well. Basically he has given me more of the internal aspects of the Martial Arts / Sciences than anyone else, even going outside Kenpo.
Clearly their are aspects of the Martial Arts that are just missing from many instructors in the Martial Arts, that Dr. ChapƩl has addressed within American Kenpo; Destructive Sequencing, Anatomical Alignment, Positive Body Posture, Negative Body Posture, etc. I have friends that have studied for years in Long Fist, Aikido, Hung Gar, Choy Li Fut, White Eyebrow, and many others that have been amazed at what I have shown them that Dr. ChapƩl, has taught me. I think they have slanted foreheads from all the Homer Simpson: "Douuuu!" with a slap on the forehead, when I tell them why they are doing something the way they are. The truth is, that I only know of it because of Sub Level 4 training.
One more story that has been passed down by Mr. Sean Kelley, is a story that Jimmy Woo used to teach at the Pasadena school, and he talked of internal aspects of the arts, and even talked of one in which you could avoid death via strangulation or hanging, and someone he told this to, died of asphyxiation attempting the technique. Mr. Parker found out about this and their relationship ended as the students were obviously not ready for this type of information. So who is to say that Mr. Parker didn't think that some were ready for some the information and passed it on to some and not others. Just as he did with the knife material, and other aspects that Mr. Parker taught different things to different people.
Enough of me being on my soap box, I just feel that some people have been unfairly ganged up on, and stories twisted and turned, without fully trying to comprehend what is being said. These people have taken some of the information and taken offense to it, as if they are doing something bad, and that is not my statement. I am saying that using logic and common sense you should be able to determine that their has been more than one system of American Kenpo, and that many people know many different things. Also having met with some of these people's instructors it becomes more clear that they attack because they have lost many students to Dr. ChapƩl, and the fact that many have ben Black Belts makes it hurt even worse.
These are my observations, no offense is meant, I just needed to state the things I have witnessed and felt.
