A Stranger Approaches And..
Here’s some background on how the stranger approached us: From the spring of 2008 to July 2010, I worked on a contract basis in downtown Toronto for the Law Foundation of Ontario, while Terence was working at TD. Normally, we would get together for lunch…
Bamboo Shoots
The Bamboo Shoots program is designed for children ages 4 through 7. It is part of Bamboo Spirit Martial Arts. We focus on instilling respect, confidence, courtesy, and discipline in children. We teach stranger awareness, personal safety skills, escape techniques, conflict management, and goal setting…
May 2009 Modern Arnis Technique of the Month
In the May 2009 Modern Arnis technique of the month, I demonstrate an old-style tapi tapi sequence. Techniques included in this sequence are the same side bait and a center lock. The elements of this sequence include: Typically, one training partner will practice this technique…
Master Chuck Gauss Seminar Review
Master Chuck Gauss’s second seminar took place on Saturday, November 8th. It was a fun-filled and energetic time. Master Chuck arrived in Oshawa on Friday night with his good friend and student, Steve. We went out to eat and then to the basement for intensive…
2008 Toronto FMA Workshop
Kudos to Mike Cooper for a great job in putting this together! I enjoyed the 2008 Filipino Martial Arts Workshop, which was very well organized by Mike Cooper and featured myself, Sean Tyler of FCS, and Punong Guro Rudy Cosico of Arnis Canada. I kicked…
Book Review: Warrior Arts of the Philippines by Reynaldo Galang
As I have several books on Filipino martial arts, I will regularly review them. The first is “Warrior Arts of the Philippines” by Reynaldo Galang. One can find this book on Amazon. This particular book has a great overview of 6 Filipino Martial Arts: (1)…
10 Years in Modern Arnis
In February, I passed the 10th anniversary of my involvement in Modern Arnis. I started with Dan McConnell of the Hilliard Martial Arts Center in Columbus, Ohio. While there, I trained with Matt Burnett, Roger Predieri, Katy Ray, and Amy Snow. It was a good…
The First Modern Arnis Class In Oshawa
The first Modern Arnis class in Oshawa, Ontario, was held on Wednesday, February 20, 2008, at the Legends Community Centre. It was held just eight months after I moved here, and lots of prep work went into it. I aimed to get 2 to 5…
Book Review: “The Straight Lead”
Recently, I read “The Straight Lead” by author Teri Tom. Hands down, this is one of the best martial arts books I have ever read. Teri Tom comes from a JKD background. In this book, she describes the history, science, and mechanics of Bruce Lee’s…
Modern Arnis-What it is and it isn’t
First and foremost, Grandmaster Remy A. Presas designed Modern Arnis as a self-defence system. While Modern Arnis and many Filipino Martial Arts (referred to as FMAs) have origins in bladed weapons usage, Professor Presas preferred not to teach the bladed aspect of the art. Over…
