I got back earlier this evening from a superb seminar in Independence, Ohio, conducted by Gm. John Pelligrini and a fine group of Combat Hapkido instructors from the area, organized by our own Drac and Master Steven Fine. It was an all-around outstanding experience for me, not least because I had the pleasure of actually meeting Drac for the first time there. The venue was excellent, the organization went like clockwork, and everyone seemed to me to be extremely happy with the event by the end.
The big reason for that was pretty obvious: Gm. Pelligrini is a terrific teacher. Anyone who carries no more than 160lbs on a very slender frame, but can drop lean, muscular 200lb Marines (a contingent of whom were participants) to the floor with the most minimal movements—and they weren't compliant when they went down; my partner was one of them and when he applied them to me, there was no question that I was heading south!—has enormous credibility from the get-go. So there was the sense that we were in the presence of a combat master, someone with superlative technical savvy. But equally important was Gm. Pelligrini's presentation of the material: it took the form of a coherent, systematic set of increasingly complex drills and defensive methods, starting from a simple deflection/counterattack in response to a typical punching attack, focusing on the pros and cons of going inside vs. outside in response; adding on traps and locks, then armbars, to the earlier techs; single- and double-hand defensive movements to grabs and punches that could be ramped up into controlling moves, and finally some fairly advanced deflection/counterstrike/trap/throw combinations. We went from 10 a.m. to just about 5, with an hour off for lunch and a couple of 15 minute breaks along the way; but mostly it was nonstop CH, and my only regret is that my poor brain couldn't possibly retain more than a small fraction of what we covered.
I was very struck by the degree to which Gm. Pellegrini's system resembles in many respects the kinds of bunkai that people like Iain Abernethy, Bill Burgar and Rick Clark have provided for karate kata on the basis of painstaking research and `field-testing' under realistic conditions in simulated assault situations. It leads me to think that there really is a common core of defensive technique which underlies all martial arts—a point that Gm. Pellegrini spoke to very informatively in discussing the origins of the various Asian fighting systems and the thorough cross-pollination among these that have lead to their modern forms. He made some other crucial points as well—particularly, the need to practice self-defense moves repeatedly until, as he insightfully observed, fine motor skills and pattern become in effect gross motor skills. And his humor and good nature, evident throughout the seminar, made his serious message about the fundamental principles of self-defense strategy that much more effective.
All in all, totalling up the cost of the seminar, travel and lodging, I feel I got an incredible bargain. And kudos to Drac and the CH gang in the Cleveland area for putting on such a great show!
The big reason for that was pretty obvious: Gm. Pelligrini is a terrific teacher. Anyone who carries no more than 160lbs on a very slender frame, but can drop lean, muscular 200lb Marines (a contingent of whom were participants) to the floor with the most minimal movements—and they weren't compliant when they went down; my partner was one of them and when he applied them to me, there was no question that I was heading south!—has enormous credibility from the get-go. So there was the sense that we were in the presence of a combat master, someone with superlative technical savvy. But equally important was Gm. Pelligrini's presentation of the material: it took the form of a coherent, systematic set of increasingly complex drills and defensive methods, starting from a simple deflection/counterattack in response to a typical punching attack, focusing on the pros and cons of going inside vs. outside in response; adding on traps and locks, then armbars, to the earlier techs; single- and double-hand defensive movements to grabs and punches that could be ramped up into controlling moves, and finally some fairly advanced deflection/counterstrike/trap/throw combinations. We went from 10 a.m. to just about 5, with an hour off for lunch and a couple of 15 minute breaks along the way; but mostly it was nonstop CH, and my only regret is that my poor brain couldn't possibly retain more than a small fraction of what we covered.
I was very struck by the degree to which Gm. Pellegrini's system resembles in many respects the kinds of bunkai that people like Iain Abernethy, Bill Burgar and Rick Clark have provided for karate kata on the basis of painstaking research and `field-testing' under realistic conditions in simulated assault situations. It leads me to think that there really is a common core of defensive technique which underlies all martial arts—a point that Gm. Pellegrini spoke to very informatively in discussing the origins of the various Asian fighting systems and the thorough cross-pollination among these that have lead to their modern forms. He made some other crucial points as well—particularly, the need to practice self-defense moves repeatedly until, as he insightfully observed, fine motor skills and pattern become in effect gross motor skills. And his humor and good nature, evident throughout the seminar, made his serious message about the fundamental principles of self-defense strategy that much more effective.
All in all, totalling up the cost of the seminar, travel and lodging, I feel I got an incredible bargain. And kudos to Drac and the CH gang in the Cleveland area for putting on such a great show!
