Grand Master Jung’s 1st Visit to Pittsburgh, Pa.
The students of Komplete Martial Arts of Pittsburgh, Pa,
had the great pleasure of meeting and training with Grand Master Jung,
WHA President, on November 27, 2010. We were also joined by Master
Chuck Edwards of the “More Than Conquerors” Hapkido Martial Arts school.
Training began at 10AM, GM Jung had us loosen up by getting some reps in
rolling. We then began what was to be a progression from circle steps to
sensitivity drills and the rudiments of our lock flow basics to almost
the entire WHA curriculum up to black belt before the day was over.
Grand Master Jung’s power and speed of execution was phenomenal. All of
the attendees were extremely impressed with Grand Masters effortless
movements while delivering such stunning techniques. We were also
equally impressed by the well thought out and developed progressions
that had us all up more than a few notches in our locks and take downs
by the end of the day.
The other thing that impressed all attendees was the excellent person
that Grand Master Jung is and how he taught as if we had all been his
students for years. There was a lot of talk afterward about future WHA
events and more great training.
The event ended at 4PM with the KMA students presenting
Grand Master Jung with a plaque to remind him of how much we appreciate
him. I cannot say enough about the quality of all aspects of the
WHA organization. It has left me with a renewed vigor to teach and
train. I also want to thank Grand Master Jung for all of his time and
insight during our conversations and personal training. I was also
greatly honored when Grand Master Jung asked me to test for 3rd Dan at
the upcoming 2011 WHA Summer Camp in Austria. He has truly become
a guiding force and new friend in the martial arts for me.
Hapki!
Live to Train - Train to Live
Master Joe Cosentino
The author of Ch'ang Hon Taekwon-do Hae Sul - Real
Applications to the ITF Patterns: Vol. 1, 2 & 3. Stuart Paul Anslow, has
a great new online Taekwon-Do magazine that I highly recommend that you
add to your personal favorites.
Book of the month “A Killing Art: The Untold History of
Tae Kwon Do” By Alex Gillis
http://www.amazon.com/Killing-Art-Untold-History-Kwon/dp/1550228250/ref=pd_sim_b_1A
Killing Art: The Untold History of Tae Kwon Do
We are back from the World Hapkido Associations Summer Camp in Orlando
Florida. Students who attended are Mr. Dave Endlich, Robbie Magee, Glenn
Riddle and of course myself, Master C.
The event was held at a 8000 square foot facility with all you would
need for almost any martial art training. There was black belt testing
being held on Friday night which we went over to watch and it ended up
that Supreme Grandmaster Whang invited us into a smaller room for a 2
hour private lesson there was only maybe 8 to 10 of us. I had never met SGM
Whang and now I would never forget meeting him! He was absolutely
phenomenal. 72 years young with kicks and punches that would stop a
truck. His Hapkido techniques were absolutely pure, with very little
effort he would toss us about like screaming rag dolls. His message was
that techniques need to be a flowing movement and not just a technical
1-2-3 and lock then takedown. He use a flowing foot movement and subtle
weight transfer that was almost imperceptible until he stopped and
pointed it out to us. He was also one of the greatest characters I have
ever met in my life, just absolutely irreplaceable and funny. He had us
lakeside the next morning at 7 AM for a lesson in Tan Jon breathing
exercises, something I had been very interested in before but now I had
a SGM teaching me its techniques. This man floated in his motions and
had a very easy way to get to where you wanted to be in the breathing
exercises. Isn't that how it always is, the most knowledgeable seem to
know how to get straight to the point.
We then were off to the Dojang for our 8 hour seminar with SGM Whang, GM
Tae Jung and the rest of the WHA master instructors. This event was one
of the most organized events of this kind I have ever attended,
especially considering the large number of attendees. We were split up
among four master instructors and sent off to four different training
areas. My first station was with Grandmaster Jung. It was on rolls,
locks and throws. GM Jung was every bit the student on SGM Whang, he
again exhibited beautiful flowing movements as he tossed us around
flowing from one lock to the next in an endless string of energy and
pain(for us haha). He was meticulous in going over all the fine points
of each lock and flow not forgetting the most important thing of all,
the footwork. We exchanged techniques with our training partners and
input from GM Jung for the better part of two hours. Then we sent off to
station two which was grappling or BJJ. Again this class was run with
expert guidance. We exchanged guard passes, rolling escapes, in the
guard attacker punch control and some free sparring.
We then broke for about an hour. When we returned after lunch I was sent
to train with GM Jung for 3rd Dan and above instructors, we focused on
Korean weapons, the jang bong or five foot staff, jook-gum(aka kendo
sword) and the mok-gum or bokken. GM Jung is also a Master with weapons
specializing in Kumdo and jang bong. I absolutely loved this section of
training almost as must as the lock flow drills. This portion of my
training lasted about 2 more hours.
That evening we attended a WHA awards ceremony GM Jung was very gracious
and invited me to sit with him and SGM Whang for dinner as well as the
rest of the masters of the WHA. These people are genuinely nice people,
all are very approachable and warm. The dinner was excellent as was the
company. GM Jung gave our school and myself a very warm welcome and
a gift of appreciation.
The next day we were off again at 7 for breathing exercises with SGM
Whang then back to the Dojang for four more hours of flow drills and
locks. When we bowed out SGM Whang gave each of us a warm handshake and
a personal parting thought as well except Glenn he gave him one more
takedown to remember him by. LOL
I cannot say enough about the quality of all aspects of this
organization if has left me with a renewed vigor to teach and train. I
also want to thank Senior Master Piller for all his time and insight
during our conversations, he has truly become a new friend in the
martial arts for me.
Live to Train - Train to Live
Master Joe Cosentino
WE ARE
AT THE NEW SCHOOL!!!
It is
a beautiful facility and I am just overwhelmed with excitement!
So far
the student and parents response has been the same and
I am
sure we will be very happy in our new location.
Now
lets all kick it up a notch and train!
Guro
Melegrito’s Philippine Combative's Seminar
… held July 17th, Hosted by
Komplete Martial Arts
/
Master Joe
Cosentino … a
Great Workshop
featuring Double Stick, Single Stick, Empty-Hands and Knife Training …
Thanks to Guro Melegrito
for an informative, fast-paced day of Filipino Martial Arts. Thanks to
all the students who came out and made it a spectacular event. A special
thanks to Mataas Na Guro Hal Deily for his attendance and support. It is
not often that you will find a martial art that has such a brotherhood
of learning and acceptance or a Master martial artist such as Master
Deily that would come to a seminar of the same style.
I
could only be in awe as these two great masters got it on and dazzled
all of us with their skill and love for the art.
This Story is truly amazing and shows that if you really try that you CAN
make a difference.
A real display of Indomitable Spirit! He is my inspiration and new
personal hero!
Master C
Whitehall
Boy, 8, Saves Sister From Abduction Attempt
4-Year-Old Girl's Brother Wrestles Her From Attacker
POSTED: 9:31
pm EDT May 16, 2010
UPDATED: 7:08
pm EDT May 17, 2010
MYRTLE BEACH, SC. -- Police in Myrtle Beach, S. C., credit the quick
actions of a caring brother for saving a young girl from an attempted
abduction.
Police are
looking for the man who tried to abduct a 4-year-old girl vacationing
from Pittsburgh. The girl’s mother, Erin Kuhns, of Whitehall, told
Channel 4 Action News that on Friday, she was walking near the beach
with her three children when her daughter, Josie, ran off.
Kuhns said she
then told her son, Nathan, to run after the child. When the 8-year-old
boy caught up with his sister, Nathan said he saw a man trying to drag
the girl into his car.
"I screamed
because of the fact someone was trying to pull her in the car and I went
down there and beat the crap out of this guy," Nathan said of the
rescue.
According to
Erin Kuhns, the boy was able to wrestle his sister away from the
would-be abductor.
“[Nathan]
said, 'Mommy, I just kicked and I punched and I hit, and I just kept
doing it,'” Kuhns told Channel 4 Action News’ Shannon Perrine Sunday.
“[The man] kept grabbing her, and he kept pulling her and kept trying to
put her back in the car.”
Nathan Kuhns
was able to provide DNA evidence to police, because he scratched the man
so severely.
Neither child
was injured in the attempted abduction.
Myrtle Beach
police have not made any arrests.
The family has
since returned home from their vacation.
(Web site with
video of 8 year old hero's story.)
http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/news/23573993/detail.html
Hello students and
friends,
I have recently been inundated, as I know you
have with all of the negative campaign ads that are constantly on the
TV. You can’t sit down at any time to even watch the news without 10
minutes of news and 20 minutes of negative ads. I was very amused as I
was listening to one negative ad, as the word “Wanna-be” was used. I had
of course heard this phrase used before and wonderer where it had come
from and how it came to be so negative in meaning. So I started to
dissect it.
I guess the most common use is to use it as a
saying that indicates a person trying to be something they are not. Most
often being said by someone who thinks that they themselves are a person
who “Is” or an “I Already am”. Already achieving whatever it is that the
“Wanna-be” must be after.
So I thought more about the words or
statement and what it means to me and how could these words have changed
to become so negative.
My earliest thoughts of “wanna-be” would
have to go back to my childhood when I thought I “wanna-be” just like my
Father. Why? Because my Father always seemed to be sticking
up for the little guy, always fighting for whoever seemed to need help
regardless of whether they were right or wrong. He also was one of the
toughest human beings that I have personally ever known. Even now at 83
I would rather have him covering my back than anyone else. He is now and
forever my all time I “Wanna-be”!!!
Moving through life I can think of dozens of
other people I looked at and said that’s how I ”wanna-be”. Without a
doubt, second to my father I truly “wanna-be” just like Guro Dan
Inosanto. Why? Because he is the most talented yet humble martial artist
I have ever known. Every time I train with him I see new things done
with such skill I am always in awe. At the same time he constantly tells
us to seek martial arts knowledge in everyway that we can, to take it
all in then “Absorb what is useful and discard what is not”.
I have been training in Kali twice a week for 7
years now under Mataas Na Guro Hal Deily a true disciple of Guro Dan. I
still remember the first time that I went to train with Guro Dan. I was
a black belt in Tae Kwon do and thought that I would just fit right in
and be able to do whatever it was that these Kali people where doing.
Man was I wrong. I felt like a child in with giants. I thought I knew
martial arts LOL! I knew nothing!!! Humbled beyond humble! Guro Dan was
amazing and knew how many of us felt. I will never forget one thing that
he said to us. He said “He admired that we could come to him as white
belts because being able to be a white belt means that there is a new
journey ahead and new things to be learned. He said when he meets
someone that knows a martial art that he doesn’t makes him turn upside
down inside like a kid on Christmas Day”. He said “He believed in going
out and always learning new martial arts and in fact at his school it
was a requirement”!
Haha WOW! That’s what you call
self-confidence and true love of the art!
It is said that the student will know when he has
met his “Master” I knew that I had met my Master… No more questions
needed to be asked.
So am I a “Wanna-be”? Yes, and I really can’t
think of a better phrase to describe it.
Now I don’t know much about politics and smear
campaigns (I leave that to the politicians, corporations and unions) but
I do know something about martial arts. So I thought about what do I
have to compare this to, it came to me quickly. I remember an instructor
who used the phrase “Wanna-be” often because he thought he fit into the
” I Already am” description pretty well. We all know the type. The “I
know more in my little finger” and the “I forgot more than they will
ever know”.
His students listened to this type of talk
as well as other negative comments about almost every other martial art
for years. Unless you trained under him you didn’t “Earn” your belts and
you where only a “Wanna-be”. Then came a day when this “Master” had an
international test for his next rank and an opportunity to show everyone
that he was an “I Already am”. A show of skills and knowledge for the
martial art that he was a master of, to let his students and the world
know this is what you should aspire to be! A “Real Martial Artist”,
“Earning your belt”, “Leading by example”… Unfortunately the “I Already
am” “Master” failed to do this, in fact he failed in every way that a
master of his type of martial arts could have. Embarrassing himself and
his students. Of course he had excuses for his failure and of course it
wasn’t long before this “Master” was once again calling people “Wanna-be's”
and other names. He got his belt too. So much for the “Earning it”
and “Leading by example”.
The story I have told you here is to emphasize
that in real martial arts the truth will eventually come out, unlike in
politics sometimes you get duped and you may never find out that the
person wasn’t who they appeared to be.
One thing I can tell you is that being a
“wanna-be” is all I “wanna-be” because I know that my Guro, Guro Dan is
a “wanna-be” too. I would rather be the lowest “wanna-be” and be able
and tell my students of all the things that I have learned about the
martial arts. Training and traveling to meet new masters and learning
new arts, than to be the highest ranked “I Already am” and end up as a
“Never Was”.
Please my Students always be a “Wanna-Be”
Yours,
Joe Cosentino
Master Instructor
& Always a white belt.
Check out Guro
Deily’s new promo clip on You Tube with Sifu Cosentino and others.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=booBjJOHDR0&feature=player_embedded#!
I am happy to announce that KMA will once again
be offering a grappling class. Grappling is a requirement for the World
Hapkido Assoc. program and a necessity in any self-defense program.
It will be offered as “Introduction to Grappling”
on Wednesday evenings at 6:30-7:15 beginning in July. The curriculum
will include the WHA curriculum as well as dozens of techniques from BJJ
America under Master David Meyer. I was unable to grapple regularly for
the last year because of my abdominal condition, but because of my
recent surgery and it’s success, I am once again able to offer this
class. Master C
Reminder: Please make sure to look at the upcoming
Seminars and Events posted below. We already have a large number of
students planning on attending the WHA event in Florida. The deadline is
approaching and I want to make sure that you have all that you need to
make it an experience to remember.
Live to Train and Train to Live!
Let's
Restore the Dignity of a Black Belt
By
Joe Lewis
" In one aspect of what is called "martial arts", the MMA stuff, many
Black Belts come across as heavily-tattooed, cartoon-looking hoodlums,
who respect violence and feel free to curse and degrade others on
national TV.
The media completely ignored us during the early sixties but now
seemingly only grant visibility to those who believe that it is in vogue
to condone violence and/or that it is okay to send kids the message that
adults accept the use of violence as a means to resolve problems. This
is not the message that parents want their children exposed or taught to
value. Just as "Pro Wrestling" is not real wrestling; in a way, perhaps,
MMA is not real martial arts.
Violence by definition is a loss of self-control. Martial arts teaches
self-control; therefore, martial arts is not violent - people are. Guns
do not kill others-people do.
We must wake up, Black Belts are leaving the martial arts in droves. We
must re-evaluate and grant dignity to the old definition of Black Belt."
My
thoughts on this
It has been my experience that the bulk of the people that are
looking to train in "MMA" are typically ages 17-35. Unfortunately their
definition of MMA and mine are not the same. Theirs would be training in
three or four different martial arts styles in an abbreviated manner so
that they are capable of pummeling someone into oblivion in or out of a
cage fight. Hummmmm?
My definition of mixed martial arts is to train in two or three
different martial arts in a very traditional way with the hopes of
getting to Black Belt and then passing along your knowledge to others,
philosophy and all.
We do offer at KMA, MMA called Combative Essentials or the 5 Zones of
Self-Defense (Not Fighting) but it is taught with self defense in mind
and is typically our students learning how to put what they are learning
in our traditional classes to use on the street in self-defense
scenarios.
Many times these MMA players have only intermediate belts in a system of
traditional martial arts and sometimes no traditional training at all.
Some only have really hard heads!
Yes they are tough, yes they can fight but doing what's right in
the real world, getting up and going to work, being a responsible
parent, student, friend, spouse are more important and sometimes much
tougher to do. These are the things that traditional martial arts teach
along with the self-defense aspects and the physical fitness. Things
that can be taken with you throughout your life.
I would have to say that I couldn't agree more with Mr. Lewis'
assessment of MMA and it's pollution of traditional Martial Arts.
Master C
Quote of the Month
"Martial Arts without Philosophy is just Street Fighting"
Grandmaster Jhoon Rhee
Inosanto Kali Strikes Again! Densel Washington gets his Martial Arts
training from Guro Inosanto for the Book of Eli.
Check it out! Train in Kali only at KMA!
Quote:
Respond like an echo
Adapt like a shadow
Guro Dan Inosanto
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Martial Arts
Realism’s
1.
Where the head goes, the body will follow. A
ponytail, hooded sweatshirt, and jewelry all
make great
handles.
2.
If your head isn't working, neither are you.
Protect your head at all times.
3.
Keep your eyes open. Just because you can't see
it doesn't mean it's not going to hit you.
4.
Keep your mouth shut. Biting your tongue is not
just a metaphor.
5.
There's nothing about "eye poke" that doesn't
work.
6.
Every time you get hit, learn something.
7.
Size matters. So does attitude, intensity,
conditioning and ingenuity.
8.
The stronger you are, the harder you will hit.
Always work on the big 3: speed, strength
and endurance.
9.
Hydration: sweat is good. More sweat is better.
Water is your friend.
10.
Don't judge someone's ability by his
appearance.
For the
Advanced Students and Instructors
1.
Everyone walks in the door of a martial arts
school for reasons of self-improvement. People
stay for a vast
array of reasons. Someone else's reason may not be the same as
yours.
2.
Help out the beginners. They are the future of
the art.
3.
Don't hit the beginners. While it is fun and
easy, they are the future of our art.
4.
Don't partner your new small students with
really big students, or students training for a fight.
They'll
leave feeling beaten, and most often won't come back.
5.
Men new to grappling are just as freaked out by
having to grapple with a woman as new
women are by having to
grapple with a man.
6.
If you have new women in the class, keep the
grappling to a bare minimum, unless it's a
grappling class,
and train the triangle choke from the guard on another day.
7.
Breathe. Green, grey, splotchy and ash white
are not colorings you are aiming for. If you see
these colors
on your training partner or your students, make them slow down
before they
pass out, keel over, or throw up.
8.
Be nice to the really weird people. You may be
someone else's really weird person.
Etiquette
1.
Hygiene, hygiene, hygiene: soap, toothpaste and
deodorant are essentials to training.
2.
If someone says you smell, you probably do, and
not just on the day they mention it.
3.
If you inadvertently hit your partner in the
groin, get out of range and keep moving until he
isn't mad
anymore.
4.
Scratching your partner is a bad thing. Trim
your nails and wash under them.
5.
Bleeding on someone is bad form. Cover your
blisters, etc., before you start training.
6.
Running shorts are not good for grappling. Your personal parts will not stay
enclosed in the
clothing.
7.
A halter-top is not good for grappling. (See above.)
8.
Don't squish your partner in grappling just
because you can.
9.
Storage of sweaty clothes in the trunk of your
car should make them ineligible for the next
class. In a moist, dark environment, they
become a new life form.
10.
Wash your hand wraps and throw your gloves away
when they smell. (Dave)
11.
Don't make anyone else wash your blood off the
heavy bag, floor, Thai pads, focus mitts,
mat, etc.
Life
Lessons
1.
Don't quit unless you are injured, and don't
let anyone else cause you to quit.
2.
Don't quit because you are frustrated. Find a
different aspect of the art, or your motion,
to focus on and
develop.
3.
Anything you set your mind to do you can do.
4.
Each of us has a different and unique body,
which has different and unique attributes. Just
because you
want someone else's attributes doesn't mean you're going to
get them. It's
your job to develop the ones you were given.
5.
Don't compare yourself to those around you.
You'll either be way better or way worse in
your analysis,
neither of which is true, and neither has any bearing on your
own development.
6.
You can learn from anyone if you keep an open
mind. The answers will come from a variety
of people, styles,
systems and cultures.
7.
Your way is not necessarily the best way, and
is definitely not the only way.
8.
You will change through the training. Make sure
it is in a positive direction.
9.
Unless you absolutely have to (or have chosen
to in a sanctioned format) don't hit anyone
outside of the
gym.
10.
Anyone can do martial arts if they put there
mind and body into it. Don't quit, don't whine,
leave your ego
at the door and get to work.
11.
The body talks. Let how you move speak for you.
Regardless of your body and the skills you've got, you have to
establish your own credibility. Once this is done, move on;
it's done. Everyone has the same hurdles to overcome: too
skinny, too heavy, too weak, the wrong gender, too old, from a
different ethnic/cultural background, physically, mentally or
learning disabled, too big, too small, too tall, too short,
the list goes on. Don't let your issues get in the way; they
are irrelevant to everyone but you.
We are all going to
move differently, think differently, and impact others
differently. That is the beauty of Martial Arts. As men and
women in the martial arts, we are all part of a wonderful
experience that encompasses self-defense, health, fitness,
physical, mental and spiritual development and cultural
enrichment, as well as intellectual and spiritual growth. We
have the tremendous opportunity to improve ourselves and those
around us, both in and out of the martial arts environment.
The people with whom we come into contact will enhance this
experience and make our art and us better for it.
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