New Asian-American magazine is tops

 

Read a review of All Men Are Brothers: Blood of the Leopard

Read a review of Judo: Heart and Soul by Hayward Nishioka

Read a review of Fist of Legend starring Jet Li

Read a review of Chinese Playground by Bill Lee

Read a review of Karate-do: My Way of Life by Gichin Funakoshi

Archived Headlines

March 5 2004

Solo Boxeo

Right now I'm watching Johnny "Mi Vida Loca" Tapia take on Freddy Archuleta in Las Vegas, New Mexico (yup, New Mexico - look it up). Pretty good fight - Tapia's 37, paunchy and losing, but the 26-year-old Archuleta looks a little hesitant, a little intimidated.

I highly recommend all fighters to study Western boxing. I'm not talking about cardiobox - I'm talking about the real thing. It will make you think about your hands in a totally different way. Plus it makes boxing matches a lot more fun to watch, since you know what's going on a little bit.

February 25 2004

The Calendar has Moved!

The event listings page has been migrated to a new, easy-to-read calendar format at calendars.net. You can view events by week, month, year, and there's even a search function. Click http://my.calendars.net/martialartsny to view the new calendar or click here to add your event to the calendar.

Check out this video clip from "Wing Chun in Action," a show I'm watching right now on MNN public access (Time Warner channel 67 in Manhattan. It's Sifu Grados of Grados Wing Chun.

February 19 2004

Army Manual of Self-Defense

A dedicated reader sent me this fun link to the U.S. Army's self-defense manual. It covers everything from stretching and warmups to takedowns, strikes, and "field-expedient weapons" such as the "entrenching tool" (aka folding shovel). It's a real mixed bag, and incorporates everything from boxing techniques to low kicks to elbows, grappling and takedowns, and some of the most popular ground submission techniques. At right is a demonstration of "three-foot stick against knife."

Since a stick can be found almost anywhere, a soldier should know its uses as a field-expedient weapon. The stick is a versatile weapon; its capability ranges from simple prisoner control to lethal combat... Effective striking points are usually the wrist, hand, knees, and other bony protuberances. Soft targets include the side of the neck, jugular notch, solar plexus, and various nerve motor points. Attack soft targets by striking or thrusting the tip of the stick into the area.

Link

January 27 2004

Starrett Judo Pictures

Sunday, January 18 was a snowy day, but there was still a great turnout for the 2004 Starrett Judo Cup. See the pictures in convenient directory listing format.

Coming up this weekend are two NYC martial arts events. Saturday we have the 7th Annual Masters of the Martial Arts Exhibition at South Bronx High School, presented by the Bilalian Ryu Jujitsu Organization. Scheduled to appear, among others, are Grand Master Papasan Canty, Master "Buddha" Bunch, Master "Mo" Mahaliel Bethea, Sensei Rachel Rocky, and Master Abdul Aziz. The next day, over in Bayside, Great Grandmaster Aaron Banks and Shihan Robert Ornes are putting on the 27th Annual United Nation Open Karate Tournament. See the calendar for details.

January 22 2004

Updates Coming Soon!

Coming soon are pictures from last weekend's Starret Judo Cup, new school listings, and new calendar events. Your webmaster has been incredibly busy lately but hasn't forgotten Martial Arts NY - if you submitted school information it'll go up soon! In the meantime, head over to NYKK Gym this Saturday for some amateur san shou action. Click here for address and time. Cheers.
December 17 2003

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Qi Magazine

I found another website to share: Qi Journal. The subject is internal arts like taijiquan, baguazhang, and xingyiquan. Lots of content to explore. Only here can you see skeletons parting the horse's mane.

USA results of the Fukuoka Judo Championships

Fukuoka, Japan

This is a women-only event.
Reported by: David Matsumoto

48 kg: Sayaka Matsumoto (Richmond, CA)
Sayaka lost her opening round to Ye of Korea by Ippon. She was caught with right seoinage at the 2:38 mark of the match. Korea beat France next, carrying Sayaka into the repechage. Sayaka then met Lafont of France in the repechage. She threw Lafont twice for two kokas, and then got called shido for false attack. At the end of the match Sayaka then threw Lafont for wazari with uchimata, and entered osaekomi with tateshihogatame. match time ran out with the osaekomi on, and Lafont escaped but time had already run out. Sayaka then met Perc of Slovenia in the repechage finals. Sayaka threw Perc once for koka with a counter, and then Perc received a shido for non-combativity giving Sayaka two kokas. But Sayaka got caught with Sumigaeshi for yuko and lost the match, giving her 7th place.

52 kg: Liz Burns (Scotia, NY)
Liz met Harnichard of France in the first round, and got caught with uchimata for ippon at the 2:11 mark of the match. Harnichard lost to Nishida of Japan in the next round, eliminating Liz.

57 kg: Carrie Chandler (Scotia, NY)
Carrie had a bye first round and then met Iwafuji of Japan in the second. Carrie played a tough match taking it to the time limit, but lost by two yukos to Iwafuji's uchimata. Iwafuji made it to the semi finals, sending Carrie to the repechage. But she was thrown twice for two wazaris by Wagner of Japan, eliminating Carrie from the competition.

USKBA in Japan

At the end of the first round, Vlad delivers a perfect jumping back kick to Kenichi's chest. The bell rings to signal the end of the first round. In the corner, I advise Vlad to make a big blow with left body hook to the liver as I see a big opening on Kenichi's defense. Round two. Here happens something I would never expect to occur. At the beginning of the round, Kenichi is faking a right straight to the head and blows left inside low kick right into the Vlad's left knee. Vlad goes down and gets up and referee right away gives first standing 8 count.

Click here for the whole story...

C.K. Chu Interview

Finally, take a look at this interview with C.K. Chu of Chu Tai Chi. It's in pdf format.
December 7 2003

Everything in Proportion: An Interview with Dr. Leslie Russek

This month, Kristina Castro brings us an interview with aikido sensei, physical therapist and university professor Leslie Russek of Clarkson University. Clarkson is way up north near Canada, but it is a part of the Empire State. Enjoy!

The shift in values occurred because of my participation in the martial art of Aikido which teaches that the warriors learned their skill so that they could serve and protect people. I felt that I had a lot of knowledge but it wasn’t necessarily doing anybody any good. Physical Therapy was a way that I could take the knowledge that I have of the human body and how the human body works and apply it in a way that would touch the lives of those I come in contact with and actually make a difference to real people rather than the pursuit of knowledge for its own sake...

Click here to read the whole interview

November 24 2003

Bok Lei Po Trading Company

While wandering through Chinatown last weekend, I found another martial arts store on Mott street: Bok Lei Po Trading Company is at 63A Mott, below Canal. It looks touristy from the outside, but it's got a great selection of books and instructional VCDs and DVDs. They also have an extensive website with a section called "Chinese Healing Music." This section features CD's like "Acupuncture for Mind" and "Music for Cultivating Health in Winter," which claims that it "helps to invigorate the body, helping to counter the temptation to succumb to the fear of activity that occurs in Winter."
November 14 2003

DJ Rectangle Breaks It Down

You remember those old cheesy kung fu flicks - Hong Kong in the 60's, pre-Bruce. You remember the so-bad-its-good dubbing, the wires, the trampolines, the outrageous bloody kung fu. Well so does DJ Rectangle. I found this MP3 on the web somewhere and thought I'd share. It's a scratchalicious mixture of beats, hooks and kung fu samples.

DJ Rectangle - Turntable Terror mp3 2.75 mb

Enjoy!

November 5 2003

"Shaolin Monks of China" to Perform at Beacon Theater

Saw an ad today in the Village Voice for a Shaolin monk show coming up next Wednesday. I'm sure you all know by now some of these "Shaolin" tours are of dubious lineage. But that doesn't necessarily mean it won't be a fun show. If anyone goes, let us all know what you thought.
November 4 2003

NY1's New Yorker of the Week: Tai Chi teacher Lester Fong

NY1's Andrew Siff introduces this week's "New Yorker of the Week," an 86-year-old New Yorker who is helping other older New Yorkers live longer, healthier lives through Tai Chi:

Six months ago, Dorothy Walker had to rely heavily on her cane to get around, and the idea of group exercise was too intimidating.

"I was the only one in the class that used a cane and limped around," she said. "I was a little self conscious."

But then she met Lester Fong, her Tai Chi instructor. He convinced her that she could do just as well in his Tai Chi class sitting in a chair as those standing. She gave it a try and has made significant progress.

Read the full story here - you can also download the TV segment and watch it on your computer with Realplayer. You can still catch this segment on TV through Thursday.

October 25 2003

Kill Bill, Soy Pudding and the Rundown

Saw Kill Bill the other day - I give it a 6.25 out of 10. The fight scenes are very average - how many times can you watch Uma Thurman stab somebody with a samurai sword? Director Quentin Tarantino overdoes certain chopsocky staples - take the dramatic pause. We know this scene from countless kung fu movies - a break in the action, and the principals stare each other down, perhaps with new respect. Tarantino seems to think that if one dramatic pause and stare-down is exciting, then three or four must be even better (it's not).

Also, I just don't buy Uma Thurman as a heartless killer bent on revenge. At one point, after taking down a gang of samurai sword-wielding henchmen, she says "Those of you who have lost limbs, leave them. They belong to me now." I guess it's supposed to sound tough, but the line falls flat.

The movie is definitely cool. Blood erupts in geysers from chopped-off heads and limbs, the music is great, and Lucy Liu's twisted teenage henchgirl swings a spiked ball and chain like a nine-section whip in the best fight scene. But it's missing something - with each shot, I feel like Tarantino is saying "Look at me! I'm so cool!" So what?

The Rundown, starring The Rock and Seann William Scott, is big stupid fun. One fight scene makes the movie - The Rock versus Ernie Reyes Jr. You may remember Ernie Reyes Jr. from such films as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze and Surf Ninjas, but forget that trash and focus on this awesome fight scene! Reyes pulls out the funkdoobiest capoeira moves most people have ever seen, swinging from vines and thrashing The Rock good until, in classic fight scene form, the hero (The Rock, in this case) fights back and earns the respect of his opponent.

Speaking of which, soy pudding has earned my respect. Take a look.

October 19 2003

Taekwondo Assistant Instructor Needed

Hey folks, American Dragon Taekwondo is looking for an assistant instructor:

Owner/Master of American Dragon Taekwondo in Woodmere, Long Island seeking a Red/or Black Belt instructor as part time assistant in our school ~ Aprox. 2 hours daily. If you can be of assistance, please call for further information. My thanks in advance,

Master M. Guzman
American Dragon Taekwondo
516-295-0015 or email rborriel@optonline.net including a contact phone number.

October 14 2003

New York Judo Clubs Grab 10 Medals at U.S. Open

Congratulations to the veteran Celita Schutz of Kokushi Budo Club on her silver medal at last weekend's U.S. Open in Las Vegas. Big-ups are also in order for Dynell Pinder of Starret Judo Club, who nabbed a silver in the 60 kg class, and to New York Athletic Club stalwarts Alex Ottiano and Jimmy Pedro, who pulled silver in the 66 kg and 73 kg weight classes, respectively. Jimmy Pedro, of course, won Olympic bronze in 1996 and won the World Championship in 1999. That's right, you heard me.

Upstate Jason Morris Judo, the eponymous club of America's former Olympic silver medalist (1992), placed five people, while Judo America, Morris' former club, also had a medalist in the women's +78 kg division.

For full results, click here.

October 8 2003

Aikido Lecture and Demo by Steven Seagal's ex-Wife

Plus a fundraiser for kid's healthcare by the American Sambo Association, and Hapkido classes in Queens. Keep up with all the latest news in our Press Release section.

October 5 2003

Check out the new press release section

We have news from the folks at King of Sanda: USA and from Action Martial Arts Magazine on our news page. You'll also notice that the navigation bar has changed slightly - Tournaments, Interviews, and Press Releases are all under the News bar; otherwise it remains the same.

October 4 2003

Welcome to MartialArtsNY.com!

Yep, we finally sprung for a domain name and moved everything to an ad-free server. Enjoy! Remember to reset your bookmarks and change your links to:

http://www.MartialArtsNY.com

Soy Milk Update

We've got two new soy milk reviews up - check 'em out!

October 2 2003

Wong Fei Hung All Kung Fu Championships

The Wong Fei Hung Northeastern All Kung Fu Championships were held on September 27 at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, New Jersey. Things got going around 11 a.m. with three different lion dance troupes. The drums, cymbals and lion dances energized the crowd (many of whom were affiliated with Yee's Hung Ga - if I had to estimate I would say up to half the competitors were from a Yee's Hung Ga, which has kwoons in all five boroughs, as well as upstate and New Jersey), and at the end Master Frank Yee jumped in and tossed the lion head around a little too.

After the lion dances, Sifu Pedro Cepero and Master Yee (both of Yee's Hung Ga) stood in front of the head table as the announcer made a long speech about how martial arts is like a family. A good father is... a good son is... Master Yee has been a good father to us... Sifu Cepero has been a good son to Master Yee... it was all very nice, but I was wondering what the point was. Then came the kicker - "As of September 19th, 2003, Sifu Pedro Cepero will be known as Pedro C. Yee!" Master Yee legally adopted his student! They embraced in a bear hug for almost a full minute as the applause swelled. I could feel the emotion running through the gym - truly a beautiful moment.

September 23 2003

Bruce Lee Pics

A reader writes in:

The url below is a gallery of Bruce Lee photos by a fan. Some I have seen before some not. I think you will find it interesting. You have a great website.

http://www.worldisround.com/articles/9762/index.html

There are hundreds of black and white photos of Bruce Lee here, many informal family pictures and publicity pictures, as well as "behind the scenes" pictures from the film sets and some movie stills. Great for the Bruce fans.

Afghan Girls Practice Tae Kwon Do: Martial Arts Class Defies the Old Guard

By Pamela Constable
Washington Post Foreign Service

KABUL, Afghanistan, Sept. 21 -- Their head scarves kept slipping with every high kick. Their toes and knuckles scraped the concrete floor during warm-up stretches. Their lungs and muscles, unused to any exercise, tired easily.

"Try to take as much pain as you can stand," urged Mahbooba Rezahi, 17, the instructor of the only martial arts class for girls in the Afghan capital. "Breathe deeply . . . keep your elbows bent." She glanced up from a deep bend with a mock frown. "No giggling!"

Click here to read the whole story (free registration at washingtonpost.com may be required)

September 19 2003

North American Sanda Championships Plus 4 Other Tournaments

San shou mania is sweeping the nation! San shou (also called San Da) is the modern, sport-oriented full-contact fighting style of Chinese wushu. It is similar to kickboxing and muay thai with a few differences. Kicks, punches, and throws are all allowed, while groundfighting is not. Sometimes knees and elbows are allowed, sometimes not, depending on the venue.

Coming up in November is a huge event at the Rexplex in Elizabeth, New Jersey (exit 13 from the turnpike, right next to Ikea). In addition to the North American Sanda Championships, there will also be a karate tournament, a muay thai tournament, a "continuous contact" championship, and a full-contact kickboxing tournament. It's all organized under the auspices of the United States Kickboxing Association, which has called the event the USKBA Action Sports Championships.

Take a look at USKBA.com.

September 18 2003

Village Voice Martial Arts Article

A round-up of various women's self-defense classes around the city, on newsstands now.

Although a quickie self-defense course may expose you to a role-playing scenario in which you'll be attacked, training in a combat style will give you the skills to counterattack. "Women learn faster; they're more coordinated and flexible, and less egotistical," says (Sifu Peggy) Chau, who's a petite powerhouse herself, proving that with the proper training, the words "You fight like a girl," aren't necessarily an insult. Here's a sampling of martial arts styles taught locally, bound to fit different personalities and needs.

Click here to read the whole article

September 12 2003

Goodland Martial Arts Closing

Goodland Martial Arts (823 6th Avenue btw 28th and 29th St.) is closing. They'll be closed by the end of December, if not earlier. Everything is currently 20% off, so go get those pads you've been saving up for. They say they might re-open in a different location, but nothing's been decided yet.

September 5 2003

Igor Zinoviev in The Village Voice

This one slipped under my radar - a feature from July 9th about Igor Zinoviev, a mixed-martial art champion who teaches in Brooklyn and Manhattan. Here's a sample:

He's a Soviet-trained expert in several martial arts, a former Red Army commando, and a veteran of illegal bare-knuckle fights held in discreet locations in the outer boroughs. For three years in the late 1990s, he was a middleweight champion in the more regulated form of this sort of scrapping, known variously as extreme fighting, ultimate fighting, no-holds-barred, or mixed martial arts. He's spent the past few years as a personal trainer, a bodyguard, and a stuntman for television shows, preparing intently for the day when he might regain his crown. It's quite a life story...

Click here to read the whole story at villagevoice.com

August 26 2003

New York Press Article - One With Heart NYC

Congratulations to Bantoe Sam Duffy of One With Heart NYC (Manhattan) on getting written up in the New York Press (New York's other free weekly newspaper). It's a full-page, first person article about the Indonesian Breathing Workshop put on by One With Heart, and is very positive. Here's a sample:

At One With Heart, they practice an unusually beautiful form of martial art known as Poekoelan. It stems from ancient fighting forms of the Indonesians based on the body language of the tiger, monkey, snake and crane. Remember the Karate Kid saving the day while behaving like a rampaging flamingo? That’s the idea. I’ve seen people who’ve mastered Poekoelan move in the most exotic and explosive ways, some more Martha Graham, others more Discovery Channel, but all kickass. So we too were going to learn to behave like jungle creatures–only not when they’re breaking necks, just breathing.

The article is on newsstands this week, or you can read the article online.

August 21 2003

Website Update: Journal of Chinese Martial Science

Wayne tells me he has fixed the virus on his website, so it should be safe to navigate all over. Some of my favorite articles include Wing Chun and the Thai Connection, his summarized translation of Dr. Leung Ting's book on the historical relationship between Wing Chun and Ling Lam, the secret system of Thai martial arts, and The Rise and Fall of Kyokushin. Check it out.

August 18 2003

Website Review: Journal of Chinese Martial Science

This is a great website by a Chinese guy named Wayne who lives in Singapore. He is especially interested in Muay Thai and Sanda/San Shou, and chronicles the development of the King of Sanda pro circuit in China and the various challenge matches that Chinese Sanda has undertaken. His English is excellent and, except for a few spelling mistakes, very readable.

Wayne is certainly biased in favor of Sanda, but openly admits this and writes remarkably balanced articles dissecting the advantages of Muay Thai and makes suggestions for how Sanda can learn from Muay Thai.

He has also written articles about Mas Oyama's only defeat (at the hands of a Tai Ji Quan master), Wong Fei Hung, and the art he studies, Ba Ji Quan. I haven't fully explored the website yet, but each article I've read so far has been engrossing and fun to read. Wayne also sells VCDs of Sanda and Muay Thai fights that are hard to obtain here in the U.S.

WARNING!!! When I clicked on the link for "Tournament and Instructional VCDs" at the very bottom of the page, my Norton AntiVirus popped up a window which said a virus had been found. Fortunately the antivirus software was able to find and defeat the virus. DO NOT CLICK ON THE "Tournament and Instructional VCDs" LINK! I do not think this is intentional on Wayne's part, his site may have been hijacked by some kind of virus. I emailed him and let him know about the virus, hopefully he will be able to take care of it. Everything should be fine if you avoid this link.

Please don't let that warning scare you off. This is a great website, just avoid the aforementioned page!

Link: http://crane.50megs.com/index.html

August 9 2003

Hi-Yaah! - from N.Y. Post

By Mark Bulliet

As the American waistline bulges ever further over the American belt buckle, New Yorkers buck the trend, lifting more weights and buying more diet products than ever before.

Record numbers of built, cut, jacked, diesel, ripped and yoked individuals live in Gotham. But on the street, when it's after midnight and we get off at the wrong subway stop, are we tough?

Read the whole article...

August 6 2003

Interview with Master Wang Rengang

Master Wang teaches Dachengdao kung fu, praying mantis kung fu, and xingyi in East Elmhurst and at the Fighthouse in Manhattan. He is also a level one wushu judge, certified by the government of China. Recently we had the opportunity to talk to Master Wang.

"The principle that guides me is to change the world through kung fu instruction. When you change a student and they develop good energy, this will affect all those in contact with them. Hopefully the good energy that spreads will bring peace and harmony to the world. First to the individual student, then their friends and family, then their community, then to surrounding places, etc."

Click here to read the whole interview...

July 21 2003

Queens Martial Arts Instructor Dies in Tragic Motorcycle Accident

Curtis Battle, 2-year-old girl die while 6-year-old clings to life

Curtis Battle, head instructor of Static's Complete Martial Arts Academy, died Thursday when his motorcycle collided with a Hyundai at 121st Avenue and Springfield Boulevard in Queens. Janae Versai Ford, a 2-year-old girl who was riding in the Hyundai, was also killed in the crash. 6-year-old Kaia Williams has undergone emergency brain surgery and is in critical condition.

For complete stories, click these links.

July 7 2003

Martial Arts NY now featuring Andrew's Hardcore Martial Arts Movie Reviews

I found Andrew Allwander's hilarious martial arts movie reviews on the internet. His writing may not have the best grammar or spelling, but it sparkles with a youthful enthusiasm that can't be beat! Andrew has agreed to have his reviews hosted here at Martial Arts NY (you can see all of his reviews at Andrew's web page, www.geocities.com/ninjadeathclan). Without further ado...


You will be like "Dude what the heck? Check out my Dragon Fist!" And he will be like "Oh that is so good, but check out my Karate kicks and Drunken Crab Ninjitsu!"
"Hi! my name is Andrew! I live in Louisville, Kentucky and I am 21 years old. I am obsessed with martial arts. Martial arts and being a good fighter are the only things in the world that matters. And the whole purpose is to rule the martial world and protect it from evil! I am a 2nd degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do and I collect martial arts movies. So I know what good martial arts are and what bad ones are. I just started collecting so I only have a few. Here people who love martial arts movies can see reviews of movies I own and what you should buy and what you probably shouldn't buy. If you want to contact me my e-mail is whitedragonawa@yahoo.com."

July 1 2003

Kyokushin All-American Open and Women's World Championships

By Jonah Ewell

Saturday, June 21st was a freakishly wet day. The wind and rain pounded Manahttan with the fury of an Okinawan typhoon - how appropriate, then, to have the Kyokushin karate championships that same day. I checked into the Hammerstein Ballroom around 3:30, in time to catch the beginning of the men's competition.

I've watched a few traditional karate tournaments in the past, and thought they were a little awkward. Points were awarded for punches that didn't hit anything (but they did have perfect form). Kicking from the front leg was frowned upon, and creativity generally discouraged.

The Kyokushin tournament was a welcome change. Matches were one round of full-contact, no-pads fury. Full-contact to the torso with hands and feet and full-contact to the head with feet only. That's right, folks, no pads, not even those little grappling gloves. Just a little tape on the wrists. Of course, what would you expect from a style founded by Mas Oyama, who tested his power by breaking the horns off live bulls? (As one website says: "Today of course, the animal rights groups would have something to say about these demonstrations, despite the fact that the animals were already all destined for slaughter.")

The men's tournament was open-weight, and the heavies often waded in to trade blows to the ribs, with seemingly little concern for blocking. A popular combination was a three punch hook-hook-overhand right to the body, followed by a roundhouse to the leg, over and over again. The lighter weights mixed it up with spinning hook kicks, but I was surprised to see so few sidekicks and front kicks.

The eventual winner of the men's tournament was a tall, rangy Brazilian by the name of Ewerton Teixeira. He had a good combination of power and agility, adding front kicks and knees to his stinging overhand right.

Unfortunately I had a dinner obligation I couldn't break, and had to leave around 6 p.m., just as they were setting up the breaking demonstration. That means I missed what was no doubt some fierce competition from the women's teams. In the stands, I was sitting next to where the Hungarian women's team was stretching out - one of them had brought her baby! Now that's dedication.

The tournament I witnessed was a great success, with great athletic ability and sportsmanship on display. If you want to see a circus, go to the next heavyweight boxing championships. If you want to see dedicated amateur athletes and bone-jarring punches, you could do a lot worse than Kyokushin.

Web Links:

  • Kyokushin Karate New York Official host of the tournament
  • Official results from the tournament.
  • Mas Oyama Official Homepage In Japanese only.
  • Mas Oyama biography from fightmaster.com. In English. Reveals that Oyama was born Yong I-Choi in Japanese-occupied Korea in 1932, and the first style he studied was Chinese kempo. In 1938 he moved to Japan and changed his name to Oyama, and remained a Japanese patriot until the day he died in 1994.

June 17 2003

Kyokushin All-American Open and Women's World Championships This Weekend

The place: Hammerstein Ballroom, 34th St. and 8th Avenue. The date: Saturday, June 21st. The scene: Top competitors in Kyokushin karate, one of the hardest of the hard styles, lay it all on the line in full contact fighting. How do you get in? See the official website.

N.Y. Press feature article on Grandmaster Aaron Banks

I'm a little late with this one - the article came out last week, and new papers will be on newsstands tomorrow. But you can still read the article online. Sample:

"It was total brutality," remembers Banks. "You had blood on the floor every night, because that’s the way it was in Okinawa. There was no protective equipment. None. The only protective gear was a cup—if you wanted it. If you blocked [punches and kicks], you blocked them bare armed. So we’d just be banging on each other. My teeth were all loosened. Every one of them."

Read the whole article...

June 12 2003

24-hour Martial Arts Channel Coming Soon

It's called Blackbelt TV, and you won't be able to live without it. President Josh Wexler, in an interview with UGO.com, says: "We have the largest martial arts library in existence today, with over 15,000 hours of programming. You're going to see the classics, like Enter the Dragon, Out for Justice, you know, The Karate Kid. You'll see things like Pedicab Driver, starring Sammo Hung, that probably has never aired on television, from the Chinese Golden Harvest film library."

We'll also be seeing some fights, says Wexler: "You'll see competitions from China, Thailand, Korea, India, Russia, I mean, everywhere. Everywhere two people get into a ring to compete, you'll be watching stuff."

June 8 2003

Soy Milk Showdown: Zen Don Organic vs. Kwong Hop Tofu Inc.

Soy milk is good for you. Find out what kind you should drink!

Some new links for you:

June 4 2003

Looking for Late Night Martial Arts Class

A major publication covering New York City has contacted us looking a late night martial arts class - one that goes past midnight. It's for an article about late night activities. If your school offers a class like this, shoot me an email at martialartsny@yahoo.com. It could be great exposure for your school.

Bruce Lee Remixer

This you've got to try. Imagine a keyboard where every key produces a different Bruce Lee yelp, Hi-yah! or memorable movie line. Someone has made such a keyboard, and put it on the web. Try it out at skop.com/brucelee. It's incredibly fun! Turn up your speakers.

May 14 2003

Animated Kung Fu Madness!!!

Xiao xiao fighting is off the hook! Someone has made these stick figures look incredibly realistic as they put Jet Li to shame and send Bruce crying to his mama! To access these great animations, click the picture and scroll down to the bottom of the page. Some of them are interactive games, some are just for watching. Be sure your sound is on!

May 10 2003

Whither Shaolin?

The Shaolin Temple in Henan province of China, which so many kung fu schools in the United States claim lineage from, is undergoing some serious changes. People in China know that the Shaolin name is popular overseas, and have made a cottage industry out of selling trinkets with the Shaolin name, mostly to martial arts tourists. Martial arts schools have also sprung up near the Shaolin temple, all claiming to teach Shaolin style kung fu.

Head Abbot Shi Yongxin, also a National People's Congress Deputy, is cracking down on those using the Shaolin name, at least in China. Recently everyone in the Shaolin village has been evicted. To the villagers, this means they have to find a new way to support themselves. Shawn Liu was recently attacked by angry villagers in the Shaolin village who thought he was associated with Shi Yongxin. To get the details, see this month's issue of Inside Kung Fu magazine.

Is this a long-overdue action, which will lead to better regulation of people using the Shaolin name worldwide? Or is it just another case of squeezing the little guy? To see some opinions and related stories, take a look at the stories below. If you have any comments, send us some email.

Health News

The Los Angeles Times

A Better Balancing Act with Tai Chi

The martial art has become popular among older Americans trying to prevent bad falls

By Benedict Carey
Times Staff Writer

April 28, 2003 - Claire Cohn figured it was just a matter of time before another bad fall. She had already lost her balance once while riding the bus, leading to a serious knee injury. Surgery relieved the pain but left her knee joint feeling less stable. In her early 70s, Cohn felt her sense of stability further tested by arthritis in both knees.

There was no avoiding the steep stairs to her Santa Monica apartment, or the day's chores, or the climbing onto footstools to reach high cabinets or change lightbulbs.

"I live alone, and I need to do for myself," she said. "I knew how bad a fall could be, and I also knew I wasn't getting any younger. So I began to worry about my balance."

May 2 2003

N.Y. Seibukan Travelogue


Take a look at the webpage of N.Y. Seibukan (click on the picture at right). They have a travelogue of their training trip to Japan, with some nice pictures.

p.s. If you haven't seen Better Luck Tomorrow, go see it today!

April 29 2003

Martial Arts Meetup in New York and Long Island

Have you heard of meetup.com? This is a free community service in the vein of craigslist. Their website says "Meetup is a new, free service that organizes local gatherings about anything, anywhere." Anyhow, someone has organized a Martial Arts Meetup in New York, on Thursday, May 8 @ 7:00PM (2nd Thursday of every month.) I'm not going, but I'd be interested to hear how it turns out.

April 6 2003

Queens TKD Intructor Sentenced to 10 Years for Sexual Assault (October 2002)

This story may be old news to some of you, but I just found it on the Net. Like any case of child abuse, it's a terrible story, but it's even worse for us that Paul Edwards was a TKD instructor.

Read the story from New York Newsday here.

Note: Paul Edwards is a very common name, and I easily found a few other Paul Edwards TKD instructors on the net. Just to be clear: this is Paul Edwards of Queens, whose school was located at 201-06 Linden Boulevard in St. Albans.

Martial Arts Legislation No Real Threat

According to this website, Assembly Bill A04415 is dead in the water. Sponsoring Assemblyman Richard Straniere (R-Staten Island) is a Republican in a Democrat-controlled Assembly, and the members of the Higher Education Committee are too busy working out the details of SUNY funding to be bothered with this bill.

April 4 2003

Job Listing: Martial Arts Instructor

Hey everybody: I was browsing craigslist and found this job announcement. I contacted them and they gave permission to list it here. Good luck!

NYC Martial Arts School needs part time instuctors to teach martial arts in after school programs. Tae Kwon Do preferred but will consider all martial arts. The hours are usally 2:30-5:30PM and the pay rates vary from $15 - $20 per hour. For the right person there will be a lot of opportunity. We are very flexible, and it's a great place to work. We are all about fun and family. NOT hardcore at all. Must love working with kids. Email interest/resume/etc. No phone calls please. To reply, send email to Nycborn673@aol.com.

April 2 2003

TV Review: Black Sash

The WB Dips a Toe into Orientalism

This is a tough moment for any under-represented minority: support a show because it depicts, however inaccurately, some aspect of your life; or speak the truth about how bad it sucks? Black people faced a tough choice with shows like "Martin," Asians had to endure a half-season of Margaret Cho's ill-fated "All-American Girl," and now Latinos have "The George Lopez Show" to deal with. Martial artists, the time has come to choose!

WILL YOU: watch a show that features little old Chinese men speaking in fake accents? WILL YOU: watch a show that revolves around a martial arts school that teaches the "art of changing palms," works out on a raised octagonal platform, but never mentions the words bagua zhang? WILL YOU: endure painfully bad writing and see-thru plot twists? WILL YOU: watch skinny Jennifer Garner lookalikes dance through bagua sets with stiff shoulders and scrunched-up facial expressions that say "LOOK AT ME I'M CONCENTRATING"?

Finally, will you, oh TV-watching martial artists, be able to tolerate Russell Wong's leaden acting and mealy blandness in one-hour doses? For me, the answer is no.

March 23 2003

Bokafu on Manhattan Neighborhood Network

The other night I was flipping around the dial sometime after midnight and came across some vintage 70's martial arts action. The program was called "Bokafu" and is described in the MNN program guide as "traditional martial arts with a practical approach," but it wasn't an instructional program. It was a documentary-type program that profiled some famous martial artists of the 70's, including Moses Powell, Fumio Demura, and a very young Chuck Norris.

Search MNN for upcoming martial arts programs. You can even make one yourself! That's the whole idea of public access: instead of just watching, now you can make TV!

March 17 2003

Important: New York State Assembly Bill A04415 to Require Licensing of Martial Arts Schools

Attention all martial artists: Assemblyman Richard Straniere (R-Staten Island) has introduced a bill requiring the commissioner of education to set "minimum standards" for the education of martial arts instructors. If this bill passes, all martial arts instructors will have to become licensed, or go out of business.

The bill reads, in part: "Minimum education requirements must be established to protect students, many of whom are young children. Instructors who are not properly trained can cause serious injury when instructing students, many of which are young children."

I'm all for protecting children, but I'm opposed to this bill for several reasons. First, who will determine what is an appropriate level of training? The commissioner of education? The National Athletic Trainers Association? The National Association of Professional Martial Artists? Martial arts is a highly diverse, individualized practice. Should a part-time tai ji instructor be required to know the same things as a full-time tae kwon do instructor?

Second, many martial arts instructors teach part time, and make little or no profit from teaching. If they are required to pay an additional licensing fee (the current fee for athletic trainers is $150) plus take time-consuming classes that have little relevance to what they teach, it will mean the end of many classes. That would be an immeasurable loss for the thousands of people who take martial arts classes for health, self-defense, and recreation.

Third, there are already many national organizations which regulate martial arts. Judo instructors have three national organizations to choose from: The U.S. Judo Federation, the U.S. Judo Association, and U.S. Judo, Inc. Many traditional Japanese and Okinawan karate styles have highly structured organizations with direct links to worldwide organizations in Japan. Taekwondo also has strict promotion requirements which ensure quality instruction.

Should martial arts schools be licensed? Maybe just full-time instructors, or instructors who work with kids? Tell us how you feel at martialartsny@yahoo.com.

Please let Assemblyman Straniere know how you feel about this bill. Also, tell your Assemblymember to vote against A04415.

Full text of bill A04415
Find your Assemblymember by name or zip code

Assemblyman Robert A. Straniere
Send email to stranir@assembly.state.ny.us

DISTRICT OFFICE
182 Rose Avenue
Staten Island, NY 10306
718-667-0314

ALBANY OFFICE
LOB 448
Albany, NY 12248
518-455-4495


Sponsoring Assemblyman Richard Straniere

  Assembly Bill A04415 has been passed along to the Higher Education Committee. Tell the committee members how you feel about this bill!

Higher Education Committee Members

Health News

The New York Times

MANILA, March 12 — A wave of obesity is sweeping through Asia as its population shifts into vast new cities where the food is faster and fattier and the lifestyle more sedentary.

As it did in the West a generation ago, obesity is bringing with it a range of ailments led by cardiovascular disease. Once uncommon in Asia, diseases of the heart and cardiovascular system are now the continent's leading killers.

Most visibly and most dangerously for the future, obesity is spreading among children, bringing a severe form of diabetes and putting them at risk for years to come.

March 14 2003

Now Accepting Donations!

Now you can donate to New York Martial Arts News with PayPal. PayPal is a secure online transaction service that lets you send money via the web. Please drop a dollar in the tip jar (to martialartsny@yahoo.com) if you like what we're doing here. Thanks!

March 9 2003

Casting Call for Nike Print Campaign

Nike is looking for athletic Asian women ages 20-28 with authentic experience in the following areas: yoga, kickboxing, karate, and more. I'm guessing they're not looking for professional models who just happen to be athletic, but actual athletes who just happen to be good-looking. This could be your chance!

For more information, contact
Madeleine Stannus
Producer/Casting
Walter Schupfer Management

w. 212. 366.4675 (office hours)
c. 917. 913. 5017
Madeleine@wschupfer.com

Taika Seiyu Oyata Demonstration at the Japan Society

Martial Arts Demonstration & Reception
Friday, March 21
6:30 - 8 pm

Speaker: Taika Seiyu Oyata, Founder of International Ryu-Te Renmei

Taika Oyata has been a martial arts practitioner for close to 60 years. From an aristocratic Okinawan family dating back to the 17th century, he learned the indigenous arts used to protect the Shuri kings. He began his training after service in World War II, and since then, Taika Oyata has constantly analyzed the human body and the traditions he inherited. He now has a strong following in the U.S., with students in more than 26 U.S. states, Japan, Israel and Poland, and he recently began training the U.S. Sky Marshals. He teaches “life-protection arts” drawn from the history and practice of Okinawan arts, including pressure-point striking and joint locking, the meaning behind the empty-hand kata and use of various traditional weapons. This respected and renowned master will demonstrate his extraordinary art and discuss his belief in and teaching of martial arts as a defensive and protective, rather than destructive and violent, skill.

Followed by a reception.

Tickets: $25, Japan Society members, Ryu-Te Renmei members and Young Professionals Network $20.

For more information and to register online, go to the Japan Society website, or call 212-715-1218.

February 27 2003

A Big Thank You!

New York Martial Arts News has reached 10,000 hits lifetime (10214 as of this writing, but who's counting)! We now come up fourth on most search engines when you type in "new york martial arts." We have finally broken the double century mark for school listings. I think this is pretty impressive for a site that started just last August. Thanks to everyone who has written in with school listings and tournament and seminar announcements, and to everyone reading this right now! I plan to keep on expanding and improving the site. My goal is to get a real domain name and get rid of those annoying geocities ads before the year is out (I dislike them even more than you do - I don't need to find old high school buddies and I don't need to refinance). We'll also be expanding content-wise with the long-promised NYMA News interview finally becoming a reality in 2003. Stay tuned and keep practicing hard! Thanks again.

February 26 2003

Due to a technical problem with my email account, I have not been receiving the results of the "add-a-school" form found here. The problem is now fixed - if you have submitted your school through this form in the last 30 days please resubmit it. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. I have been receiving regular email sent to my yahoo account.

On another note, here is a great link I found to archived martial arts articles from various magazines, including Inside Karate and Martial Arts of China.

Bonus browsing tip: I discovered how to make links only underline when you run your cursor over them. Give it a try, it makes every web page you view look cleaner. Go to Tools, then Internet Options... and click on the Advanced tab. Scroll down until you see Underline links and choose Hover. Click OK and you're done!

January 16 2003

All Men Are Brothers: Blood of the Leopard

A Classic Brought to Life This movie is an adaptation of one chapter of the classic Chinese novel Outlaws of the Marsh aka The Water Margin aka All Men Are Brothers. Written in the fourteenth century and set roughly two hundred years earlier during the Song dynasty, it tells the story of a band of outlaws who live in the marshes of Mount Liang. Although they are certainly criminals in the strictest sense of the word, none of them are evil by nature...

January 13 2003

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