Blackbel 2013

SPECIAL 2013 HALL OF FAME ISSUE
LESS
THAN
LETHAL
What You Need to

Know About the
Expandable Baton
BILL
WALLACE
ASYMMETRIC
WARFARE
HOW MODERN ARMY COMBATIVES

CAN MAKE YOU A STRONGER FIGHTER
blackbeltmag.com
DEC 13/JAN 14
Display until 1/28/14
Matt
Larsen
Undefeated
in the Ring,
Unmatched in
the Industry
YOUR
GUIDE TO
SURVIVING
A MASS
ATTACK
contents
12.2013 / 1.2014
COVER STORY
34 FIGHTING STRATEGIES
FROM MACP
Designed for the Modern
Army Combatives
Program, these strategies,
techniques and training
methods work for civilians,
too. Theyre brought to you
by Matt Larsen, the martial
artist who made MACP.
FEATURES
42 EXPANDABLE BATON
Veteran martial artist Jim

Arvanitis explains why this
often-overlooked impact
weapon should be your goto tool for most real-world
conicts.
50 WORLDS GREATEST KICKER

FOR 50 YEARS!
In the conclusion of this story about

Bill Superfoot Wallace, the most liked
person in the martial arts reveals more
about the events that took him to the top.
56 NINJA II: SHADOW OF A TEAR
Scott Adkins and Kane Kosugi team up

with director Isaac Florentine for nonstop,
old-school, martial arts action. The sequel
is scheduled for a December release.
For many martial artists, an encounter

with multiple opponents can mean low
odds of success. Jeet kune do stylist
Matthew J. Numrich wrote this article to
maximize your chances of getting out
alive!
64 BLACK BELT HALL OF FAME 2013
Meet the men and women who have

been inducted into the martial arts worlds
oldest hall of fame.
DISCLAIMER: BLACK BELT COMMUNICATIONS, an Active Interest Media Publication, as publisher, does not endorse and makes no representation, warranty or guarantee concerning the safety or effectiveness of either the
products and services advertised in this magazine or the martial arts or other techniques discussed or illustrated in this magazine. The publisher expressly disclaims any and all liability relating to the manufacture, sale or use of
such products and services and the application of the techniques discussed or illustrated in this magazine. The purchase or use of some of the products, services or techniques advertised or discussed in this magazine may be
illegal in some areas of the United States or other countries. Therefore, you should check federal, state, and local laws prior to your purchase or use of these products, services or techniques. The publisher makes no representation or warranty concerning the legality of the purchase or use of these products, services and techniques in the United States or elsewhere. Because of the nature of some of the products, services and techniques advertised or
discussed in this magazine, you should consult a physician before using these products or services or applying these techniques.
Photo by Peter Lueders Cover Photo by Robert Reiff
60 MASS ATTACK SURVIVAL GUIDE
an extraordinary life. an epic conclusion.
played...
Magnetically
with authenticity and respect
- Variety
NOV. 12
B L U - R AY D V D D I G I TA L
BLACK BELT - dECEmBEr 2013/jAnuAry 2014 - VOLumE 52 - numBEr 1
departments
18 vErsUs
28 Far East
20 FiGhtbook
30 WaY oF thE Warrior
22 Mil-sPEc
32 Fit to FiGht
24 dEstiNatioNs
72 bEttEr bUsiNEss
Weve all heard about the ranges of

combat: kicking, punching, trapping and
grappling. This Black Belt columnist thinks
he has a better way to classify techniques.
On September 8, 2013, the martial
arts world lost aikido master and lawenforcement training specialist Robert
K. Koga. This is a tribute to his life in the
martial arts.
If your self-defense training doesnt

prepare you to persevere after suffering
an injury in a ght, you need to read what
Kelly McCann has to say.
8 Editors NotE
10 Mailbox
12 tiMEs
69 EssENtial GEar
76 black bElt PaGEs
82 FroM thE archivEs
In Return to Shaolin, Part 1, roving

reporter Antonio Graceffo heads back to
the hallowed Chinese temple to become a
full-time student of the art of san da.
26 karatE WaY
Dave Lowry examines the supernatural

origination myths of the Japanese
martial arts and hypothesizes about why
theyre conspicuously absent from most
Okinawan styles.
When our East Coast correspondent

interviewed pekiti tirsias Leo T. Gaje Jr.,
Gaje insisted the story be titled The Man
Who Never Was. Find out why.
Its easy, some might even say expected,
for new students to assimilate into the
martial arts community. Keith Vargo
examines the notion, as well as an art in
which thats not the norm.
A martial arts M.D. describes the most
common ways your wrists can get hurt in
the dojo and tells you why you might want
to take pains to protect them.
These questions from an experienced
instructor will make all school owners
scrutinize their businesses to see if
theyre signing up as many new students
as they could be.
74 coMPaNY sPotliGht
Martial artists loved the rst two Ip Man

movies. If youre one of them, get ready
for the release of the next installment
Ip Man: The Final Fight.
VOL. 52 NO. 1. BLACK BELT (ISSN 0277-3066) is published bimonthly by Cruz Bay Publishing, Inc., an Active Interest Media company. Advertising and editorial ofces at 24900 Anza Drive, Unit E, Santa
Clarita, California 91355. The known ofce of publication is 475 Sansome St., Suite 850, San Francisco, CA 94111. Periodicals postage paid at San Francisco, CA and at additional mailing ofces. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Black Belt, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Palm Coast Data, P.O. Box 421113, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235. Customer service: (800)
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Media Publication. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is strictly prohibited.
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LEGENDS LOST
Robert W. Young
Executive Editor
EFIPANIO THEODORE TED TABURA

On August 12, 2013, renowned lima
lama master and weapons expert Ted
Tabura left us at age 72. The Black Belt
Hall of Famer suffered a stroke earlier
this year and was undergoing therapy to
regain strength and rebuild motor skills.
Unfortunately, kidney failure, diverticulitis
and other complications sidelined his
recovery.
Teds body was just too weak to pull
him through, his wife Lois Tabura said.
He fought a valiant ght, but he became
too tired to ght anymore. With family
and friends at his side, his face calm
and peaceful, he passed away. We will
surely miss him, but seeing him trying to
eat, move and even breathe was hard.
Having accepted Christ, Ted is in a good
placeprobably doing martial arts with
Ed [Parker] and Tino [Tuiolosega].
Tabura began his martial arts career in
boxing. He fought in two Golden Gloves
championships while attending school in
Hawaii. His interest sparked, he received
weapons training from his grandfather
and his uncle, as well as empty-hand
tutelage from Ralph Delacasada, Gordon
BLACK BELT I DECEMBER 2013/JANUARY 2014
Doversola, John Louis and Tuiolosega.

Much later in life, Tabura created his
own system, which he called Taburastyle karate-do.
My system is nothing special, just
a little bit of this and a little bit of that,
like mulligan stewthe hobo style, the
always-humble master said. Mentors
are important to me. They are our
capunas, the wise people whom you
go to for advice. They are the light that
helps lead you to safety. Thats how
I feel about the styles. Im not taking
any credit for developing my style.
After many years, it was just there.
All the credit goes to my teachers and
mentors.
Although Tabura blended
contemporary aspects with classical art
forms, he never abandoned bushido.
You should never dump the martial
from the art, hed tell students.
Decorum played a central role in his
life, too. Everything we do begins and
ends with respect and formalities, he
said. If you get on an ego trip with
your pride all out of whack, you will
be too messed up in your head to
handle the unexpected. You lose the
connection to the universe and reality.
Then all you know is Murphys law,
where everything goes wrong. So be
humble. Win or lose, always shake
the hands of your fellow competitors
and judges. Show that you are of good
character.
Tabura certainly showed that he
was of good character. He served his
country as a member of the U.S. Army.
Together with Lois, his wife of 49 years,
he raised a daughter, DeeDee, and two
sons, Barron and Casey. He wasnt
hesitant about working part-time jobs
to supplement the income he earned in
the aerospace industry if thats what it
took to provide for his family. In his free
time, he taught karate and organized
tournaments that launched the careers
of many martial artists.
Whether or not he knew it while he
was alive, Ted Tabura was a capuna,
and well miss him.
Floyd Burk
VOLUME 52, NO. 1
DEC 13/JAN 14
GROUP PUBLISHER Cheryl Angelheart

EXECUTIVE EDITOR Robert W. Young
GROUP CREATIVE DIRECTOR Alexander Norouzi
GROUP ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Donna Diamond
DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL MEDIA Raymond Horwitz
SPECIAL PROJECTS ART DIRECTOR John Bodine
SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR Vicki Baker
WEB EDITOR Jon Sattler
SENIOR COPY EDITOR Jeannine Santiago
A/R MANAGER Alice Negrete
RESEARCH DIRECTOR Kristy Kaus
ADVERTISING ACCT MGR Laura (Flores) Thorne
PRODUCTION MANAGER Patrick Sternkopf
ASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR Dana Collins
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
Floyd Burk, Jason Brick, Mark Cheng, Antonio

Graceffo, Mark Hatmaker, Mark Jacobs, Dasha
Libin Anderson, Dave Lowry, Kelly McCann,
Keith Vargo, Dr. Robert Wang
CONTRIBUTORS
Jim Arvanitis, J.T. Bingham, Matt Larsen, David J.

Moore, Kelly Muir, Matthew J. Numrich, J. Torres
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Photo by Rick Hustead
ne of the few negatives associated with working at Black Belt is the all-toofrequent need to inform readers that another martial arts icon has passed
away. During the production of this issue, two such men were lost: Robert
Koga and Ted Tabura. A tribute to Koga appears in this issues FightBook
column. Because of space limitations, Ive placed our tribute to Tabura here.
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
email: training@RussianMartialArt.com
www.RussianMartialArt.com
In this regard, the martial arts community

owes a debt of gratitude to Jim Kelly.
Scott Bolan - via the Internet
And a Recollection From a Student
Thank you for the cover and article on Jim
Kelly. I was a student of his Los Angeles
dojo from 1974 to 1976. I am 48 years old
and still practice some of the moves and
exercises today. It was an honor to learn
karate from one of the greats in the sport.
Sensei Kelly seldom taught class because
of his schedule, but when he did, it was
always special. Learning from him was
priceless.
Korey Henderson - via the Internet
Lots of Love for Jim Kelly

Thanks for the excellent article on Jim Kelly
in the October/November 2013 issue. Winning championships and tournaments is
quite an accomplishment, but also achieving success in the movie industry during an
era of enormous racial bias is an incredible
achievement and testimony to his strength
of spirit.
There are countless martial artists with
great physical skill, but rare are those who
also possess charisma and a personal
style that inspires others to get into martial
arts when they otherwise would not have
myself included.
Getting the Scoop on Superfoot

I was skimming through the October/November 2013 issue of Black Belt when I
came across the Bill Wallace article written
by Floyd Burk. I was able to attend a training seminar with Wallace a few years ago
but still did not have much insight into his
background, such as why he started martial arts, how he injured his leg and what
made him the champion he became. Now I
do. The article was superbly written.
Kylie Lowe - via the Internet
Christian Martial ArtsNo Conict There
Im glad that someone wrote a letter (August/September 2013 issue) stating that
Christians can do martial arts. I am a Christian and practice kenpo and mixed martial
arts. There are many Christians in our style,
and we practice our faith, also. If everyone
read the New Testament, they would see

that Jesus once told his disciples before
sending them into the world to go and buy
two swords. The point is, Jesus would never want us to let our families be hurt.
Charles Schmid - Easthampton, MA
Mold the Lesson to the Student
I found Dave Lowrys insight on teaching
self-defense to older students (August/
September 2013) spot on, but he didnt
go far enough. Ive been teaching in the
university classroom for 23 years, and one
of the lessons Ive discovered is that my
students learn best when I design my curriculum around their interests and needs,
not mine as the instructor.
When I created the semester-long selfdefense curriculum that I will be implementing at Florida State University, I focused on the real threats my students face
based on actual campus crime reports. My
students likely wont face trained attackers, and those taking the course will probably be female college students who arent
athletes, dont work out regularly and cant
spend hours every day in the dojo.
The techniques we teach are grounded
in tried-and-true martial arts skills but simplied to maximize effectiveness with a
heavy dose of free response to train the
brain. The skills we teach dont require nesse or ne mastery. They do, however,
emphasize threat discernment, gross body
movement, consistent execution and mental resilience.
Sam Staley - Tallahassee, FL
TIMES
Photos by Robert Reiff
MARTIAL ARTS NEWS YOU CAN USE. READ IT - KNOW IT - LIVE IT
12
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
One
On One
BUILD A
KILLER KICK
What:
What:
Reverse Lunge
Wide Walking Lunge
WHY: This exercise engages the

gluteus maximus and hamstrings.
These two muscle groups are crucial
to generating the power that makes
the heel kick so devastating.
HOW: Start with your feet slightly
closer than shoulder-width apart. With
a barbell on your upper back or dumbbells in your hands, step straight back
with one foot. Depending on the length
of your legs, your foot should move
backward two to three feet. As you do,
drop the knee of your rear legyou
can touch it lightly on the oor or stop
an inch above it. At this point, both
legs should be bent at roughly 90 degrees. After you reach the bottom of
the movement, drive the heel of your
front foot into the oor and pull yourself upright with that same leg. Repeat
with the opposite leg.
If you want to emphasize muscular
conditioning as opposed to cardiovascular endurance, repeat with the
same leg rather than switching to the
opposite leg. Finish the set, then move
to the other leg.
PRO NOTE: Dont let your knee hit
the ground hard. That will take the
stress off the musculature youre trying
to develop. Even worse, it can damage your patella.
HOW MANY: 5 sets of 8-15 reps per
leg. Perform once or twice a week.
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
WHY: The heel kick involves a

large amount of adduction (your leg
moves toward the centerline of your
body) and abduction (your leg moves
away from the centerline). It follows
that you need to work the muscles
responsible for those movements to
enhance your ability to do the kick.
Yes, there are specic machines
and exercises that develop those
muscles, but martial artists will nd
it more benecial to perform a functional strength-training movement like
the wide walking lunge. It will work
through the abduction and adduction
while hitting the gluteus maximus and
hamstrings.
HOW: Start with your feet shoulder-width apart and a barbell on your
upper back or dumbbells in your
hands. Step approximately one foot
forward and one to two feet to the
side. As you do so, keep your feet
facing forward. Your front foot should
stay at on the oor, but lift the heel
of your rear foot so that knee can
drop. This is the bottom of the lunge.
The next step entails pushing off your
rear foot and pulling forward with
your front leg to lift your body back
into a standing position. Your feet
should be shoulder-width apart. Repeat on the opposite side.
HOW MANY: 5 sets of 8-15 reps
per leg. Perform once or twice a
week.
If youre hunting for a

knockout, you certainly
can do it with your hands.
For many martial artists,
however, its easier to
generate the necessary
power with a kick. In large
part, thats because of the
massive musculature that
moves the lower limbs, as
well as the length of the
leversyour legsthat
are used to strike.
One leg technique that
has incredible KO potential is the heel kick, aka
the reverse roundhouse
kick. Few techniques possess as much raw thumping power, not to mention
the ability to accurately
deliver that power to a
vulnerable target. Adding
to its effectiveness is the
small surface area of the
heel. As soon as it makes
contact with its targetfor
example, an attackers
templethe altercation
is over.
Ian Lauer, CSCS, ianlauer.com
DECEMBER 2013/JANUARY 2014 I BLACK BELT
13
Mike Stone (left)

and Gary Lee
Preserving History
After a decade and a half of work,

the ofcial grand opening and ribboncutting ceremony for the Museum of
Sport Karate took place on October 3-5,
2013, in Pasadena, Texas. It was held
in conjunction with the Living Legend
Celebrity Roast and the Texas Martial Arts
Hall of Fame ceremony.
The museums founder is Gary Lee,
a lifelong martial artist whos competed
in sport karate for four decades. Ive
been dreaming of this for so long, and 14
years ago, I began putting my idea into
action, Lee said. After much planning
and preparation, the Sport Karate Museum
opened its doors on Christmas day in 2012.
I was lled with so much emotion. At the
ofcial grand opening [in October], sportkarate icon Mike Stone came to do the
ribbon-cutting honorsalong with dozens of
the biggest names in [the martial arts].
A primary mission of the museum will
be to record the history of sport karate
and recognize individual achievement and
the contributions of martial artists who
helped create and perpetuate the sport in
America. Lee has divided the history into
four generations. The rst generation is
from 1946 to 1959. It represents karates
early years, when it struggled for a
foothold on American soil. The second
generation is from 1960 to 1979, the
period Lee calls sport karates heyday.
The third generation is from 1980 to 1999.
The fourth generation is still being lived
and will be covered in the museum when
the time is right, Lee said.
To document the evolution of sport
14
black belt I DeceMbeR 2013/JaNUaRY 2014
karate, Lee assembled a team of

knowledgeable martial artists, which he
calls the Museum of Sport Karate history
generals. They laid the groundwork by
helping create an accurate account of
sport karates rise. The group, which
Lee affectionately calls the Ten Animals,
consists of Mike Stone, Al Weiss,
Peter Urban, Sid Campbell, Mako, Ken
Knudson, Allen Steen, Jim Harrison,
Johnny Kuhl and Michael DePasquale Jr.
These men, some of whom have since
passed away, were tasked with setting the
record straight. Lee has deputized more
than 150 additional history generals to
help him continue his fact-nding quest.
The museum, situated on the rst two
oors of a building with 10,000 square feet
of usable space, has been transformed
into a mega martial arts facility. The
rst oor houses the main ofce, a
2,000-square-foot dojo and the Uniform
Room, which is lled with autographed gi
that were worn by Jeff Smith, Joe Lewis,
Roy Kurban, Jerry Piddington, James
Toney, Gene LeBell and other luminaries.
The lower level also includes 10 rooms
that have been earmarked for the display
of future memorabilia.
The second oor consists of the sportkarate rooms. Our museum spans the
eras of sport-karate development, from
1946 when Robert Trias opened the rst
sport-karate studio in Arizona, all the
way through 1999, Lee said. We cover
karate, kung fu, judo and taekwondo
competitors. There are ve categories of
history and memorabilia: the House of
China, the House of Japan, the House

of Okinawa, the House of Korea and the
House of America.
Then there are other roomsthe
Weapons Room, the Black Dragon
Fighting Society Room, the Texas Martial
Arts Hall of Fame Room, the Mako Room,
the Sid Campbell Room and the Black Belt
Magazine Room with issues from 1966 to
2013. Finally, we have the theater, where
folks can sit down and watch videos of
their favorite sport-karate hero in action.
Memorabilia and souvenirs can be
found throughout the edice, and each
one has a fascinating tale or anecdote
associated with it. Examples include a
Hattori Hanzo sword and a bullet red
by Chuck Norris during the lming of a
Walker, Texas Ranger episode.
Lees business plan includes a mobile
unit that hell haul to trade shows,
schools, colleges and special events.
Of course, his expansion plans are
contingent on fundingwhich is where
martial artists like you come in. How can
you support the museum? You can visit
the facility. Better yet, you can bring your
friends and familyor your entire student
body, if youre an instructor. The museum
is located at 3222 Burke Road, Pasadena,
Texas 77504. The phone number is (713)
483-0476.
You also can make a donation. Checks
should be mailed to Museum of Sport
Karate, c/o Gary Lee, 13403 Nantucket
Drive, Sugarland, Texas 77478.
The website is sportkaratemuseum.org.
Floyd Burk
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Photo by Andrew Gates, Portraitefx of the Gulf Coast LLC
MuseuM of sport Karate opens in texas
warriormeditation.com
Competition Op
ARNOLD
SPORTS
FESTIVAL
TO INCLUDE
MARTIAL ARTS
New Fight Gear
HAYABUSA INTRODUCES
THE MIRAI SERIES
Hayabusa, maker of ne ght gear and garments, has released a new product line
called Mirai. The Mirai Series stemmed from our ongoing determination to improve
performance equipment and shape the industry as a whole, says Justin Haberman,
Hayabusas marketing manager.
Our mission was to provide support superior to laces with the ease of hook-andloop systems. Boa Technology provided all the benets we were expecting, plus
more. With a simple turn of the knob, the Mirai Series delivers a level of comfort, t
and performance you need to experience and believe. HayabusaFight.com
The Arnold Sports Festival will

celebrate its 26th anniversary
when it takes place in Columbus,
Ohio, on February 27-March 2,
2014. More than 175,000 sports
and tness fans are expected
to attendin addition to 18,000
athletes.
The event, which is coproduced by Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jim Lorimer, has
taken place since 1989. In its
early years, it was a bodybuilding
competition, but it now spans 50
sports, including amateur boxing,
archery, fencing, grappling/jiujitsu, judo and taekwondo. It will
also host a Martial Arts Festival
and an Amateur MMA Festival.
arnoldsportsfestival.com
NEWS BITES
Active Interest Media, Black Belts parent company, recently acquired MuscleMag International and
Oxygen magazines. Both publications will relocate to
the Black Belt ofces in Valencia, California.
In Tennessee, a fencing instructor intervened when
he saw two men pepper-spray two people before robbing them. Grabbing his epee, the martial artist chased
them off, and they were later apprehended by police.
On September 7, 2013, former Black Belt contributing editor Jim Wagner was lauded by the Martial Arts
History Museum in Burbank, California. He received
the Honors Award for excellence in the martial arts.
martialartsmuseum.com
Black Belts YouTube channel now boasts more
than 13,200 subscribers and has served up more
than 4.5 million videos. youtube.com/blackbeltllc
On the Facebook front (facebook.com/
BlackBeltMagazine), the magazines like tally has
exceeded 53,000. On Twitter (twitter.com/Black_Belt_
Mag), the total number of followers has topped 7,000.
On October 11, 2013, karate pioneer Mike Stone
dropped by the Black Belt ofces for an interview. He
ew to Southern California after visiting the Museum
of Sport Karate, which Gary Lee recently opened in
Pasadena, Texas.
Diana Lee Inosanto and her husband Ron Balicki
taught kali stick ghting to Aaron Eckhart for his
starring role in the lm I, Frankenstein. The movie is
16
scheduled to hit theaters in January.

On September 28, 2013, Bill Superfoot Wallace was honored by Independent Karate Schools of
America with a lifetime achievement award in recognition of 50 years of continuous study, practice and
teaching of the martial arts. Wallace was the featured
instructor at the annual IKSA National Training
Seminar. iksa.com
In early October, Black Belt Web trafc hit a new
high. Visits to the page that hosts the article How Kyokushin Karate Master Kenji Yamaki Endured the 100Man Kumite experienced the spike after a Cracked.
com story about martial arts myths linked to it.
The latest effort to legalize mixed-martial arts
competition in New York failed.
The editors of Black Belt Books have completed
work on two projects. One is titled Modern Army
Combatives: Battle-Proven Techniques and Training Methods by Matt Larsen. Its available for preorder at store.blackbeltmag.com.
The other is titled The Complete Ninja Collection
by Stephen K. Hayes. Its an updated compilation of
the Black Belt Hall of Famers six best-selling books.
It, too, can be pre-ordered at the Black Belt Store.
On September 25, 2013, The Diplomat reported that
the Democratic Republic of East Timor banned the
practice of pencak silat because it was being used by
criminals.
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
Tactics vs. Strategies

Unarmed combat, whether sport or street oriented, is often broken into categories to make it easier to discuss particular aspects of the ght. Usually,
these are called ranges of combat with an outside-to-inside scheme that
seems arbitrarilyand mistakenlybased on an outside-in military model. The
military model may include long-range artillery on the outside and wind up
with infantry on the inside. The unarmed model seems to progress along the
same lines, with kicking on the outside and grappling on the inside.
find the range model lacking because it encourages you to see the
fight in terms of distance equating
with tool choice. Example: Im
in kicking range, so theres no need to
worry about this or that. Big mistake.
Or Were grappling now, so this is off
the table. Another big mistake.
Anyone whos played the game long
enough or even paid attention as an
observer knows that range models simply dont apply in MMA or any blended
fight game. Even worse, they can actually hinder your performance.
Admittedly, I may be splitting hairs
here, but theres no getting around
the fact that range is a designator of
distance, and if what were describing
doesnt refer to specific ranges, why use
such a designation?
Ive settled on the word element
to describe the individual aspects of a
fight. I chose it with purpose because
elements are single disparate entities
and, more important, elements can be
combined with other elements to create new substances.
18
by Mark Hatmaker
I consider boxing a separate element

and the clinch a separate element, but
as we all know, boxing can be brought
to the clinch and the clinch can be
brought to boxing. When we do such
combining, we have a new animal that
can be dealt with for what it isas opposed to trying to figure out what distance we crossed to move from boxing
range to clinch range.
Now that Ive introduced a different
way of thinking, lets move on to what
I see as the six elements of unarmed
combat.
Boxing: Ive placed throwing the
hands at the top of the list for two reasons. One, its intuitive. People with
zero combat training will attempt to hit
one another with their hands. Its far
easier to take an ingrained inclination
and coach it to science than it is to start
a counterintuitive skill from scratch.
Two, its useful. Whether youre on
your feet or on the ground, the stats
show that punching wins more fights
than any other tool by a wide margin.
Boxing-Plus: This element is your
boxing game plus knees, elbows, kicks,

head butts and whatever other body
parts you deem worthy of throwing.
Rather than make this a separate element such as kicking, I named it to
convey the primacy of boxing even
when you add other striking tools. Example: Note how skilled kickboxers
will set up their kicks with their hands.
shooting: This is composed of takedowns without the benefit of the clinch.
Its usually but not always limited to
techniques aimed at the lower body.
the Clinch: This is a true pre-blended
element because the clinch can be the
focus of some fight-stopping strikes and
because it can be used to set up another
class of takedowns (usually upper-body
dependent). Despite this, it must be
thought of as an individual element because its unlike any otherits not pure
striking and its not pure takedown.
Mat Work/Wrestling: This element is
separate from submissions even though
submissions that are dovetailed into the
wrestling drills can be a huge part of it.
Often, the ground game is seen in terms
of the rousing submissions that can be
reaped, but this is an element that must
be practiced to foster fluid and aggressive
controlling and second-nature defensive
flow. Making the sub more important
than wrestling is akin to teaching a fighter to throw punches without discussing
footwork, slipping, bobbing and weaving.
submissions: Its exactly what it
saysa way for the fighter to submit
his opponent via a lock or choke.
Its easy to eye each element as completely separateand they can be drilled
in a manner that allows us to focus on
weak areas. But weve got to be careful
not to keep the elements separated for
too long or well fall prey to the same
problem as the ranges. We dont want to
become fighters who shift gears between
elements as in Im boxing now Im
clinching now Im on the mat.
Rather, what we should strive for is
seeing that the fight is composed of
these elements but knowing theyre
most valuable when we combine them.
Recall that hydrogen and oxygen are vital building blocks of the universe, but
its not in their separate forms that these
chemical elements are most beneficial.
Its only when two parts hydrogen and
one part oxygen are combined will they
keep us from dying of thirst.
blackbeltMaG.cOM
www.TurtlePress.com
The Passing of Robert K. Koga

On September 8, 2013, the martial arts world suered the loss of aikido master and law-enforcement training specialist Robert
K. Koga. He was 83. The cause of his death was mesothelioma.
by Mark Jacobs
A
20
He later served in the Korean War,

where he was wounded. After he finished his enlistment, he settled in California and joined the Los Angeles Police Department.
Koga quickly determined that the
hand-to-hand training he and his fellow LAPD officers received was lacking.
That prompted him to begin crafting a
combatives system that would borrow
from the many martial arts hed studied,
including judo, jujitsu and jodo. However, the style that would play the most
important role in his reformulation of
LAPD defensive tactics was aikido.

Koga learned the strategies and
techniques of Morihei Ueshibas art
from first-generation student Koichi
Tohei. Demonstrating the utmost respect for tradition, Koga asked permission before altering his masters moves,
and Tohei gave it. Koga then combined
modified aikido with his other arts to
create the Koga System, and it was wellreceived at the academy.
An equally significant contribution
to police defensive tactics revolved
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Photo by Sara Fogan
Japanese-american, Koga
began his martial arts practice under difficult circumstances during World War II.
He was only 12 when he was placed in
a Japanese internment camp in Utah.
Run-ins with ruffians convinced the
boy that hed better learn self-defense,
so he took up judo. After the war, he
continued his judo studies and added
wrestling to his repertoire. In 1949 he
joined the U.S. Air Force and, while was
stationed in Japan, seized the opportunity to further polish his grappling.
I used one of Bobs tricks to twist the

suspects ongers and lift him up on his
toes until he was in pain and yelling for the
other gang members to keep back.
around perseverance. After reviewing use-of-force reports involving officers who were severely injured or
killed, Koga concluded that there were
specific points in violent confrontations at which the officers simply gave
upoften when their own weapons
were taken away and about to be used
against them. In response, he devised
his trademark No give up! motto. He
taught cadets that even when they cannot mount an offense, as long as they
keep those three words in mind, theyll
have a much greater chance of retaining their gunsand their livesin a
confrontation.
In 1979 Koga retired from LAPD to
concentrate on his work at the Koga Institute, the nonprofit entity he created to
train law-enforcement, corrections and
private security personnel. He became
a sought-after instructor for police officers across the United States, as well as
in Canada, Mexico and other nations.
To facilitate the spread of his message
and methods, he wrote four books on
the martial arts and starred in a Black
Belt-produced DVD series titled Practical Aiki-Do.
Mitch Grobeson, an LAPD veteran,
began training with Koga in 1985 and
eventually became an instructor in the
Koga System. Grobeson says the techniques and tactics he learned saved
his life several times. On one occasion,
he chased a gang member into a building that, unbeknownst to him, was
the gangs headquarters. Surrounded
by more than a dozen gangbangers,
Grobeson immediately headed toward
the suspect, whom he secured with an
arm lock and wrist lock.

I remembered his advice and used
the suspect as a shield, then put my
back to a wall, Grobeson said. I used
one of Bobs tricks to twist the suspects
fingers and lift him up on his toes until
he was in pain and yelling for the other
gang members to keep back.
Bobs death was a great loss to law
enforcement and the martial arts community. I dont know of any person
whos been so selfless and dedicated
to making sure those who protect and
serve are themselves protected and
served. Bob Koga made sure we all
made it home every night.
For more information about the Koga

System, visit kogainstitute.com.
Its Only a Flesh Wound
by Kelly McCann
wo small words that say so much will answer those questions best: If
only. If only we never got hit hard, never got staggered, never had to take
a knee. Obviously, we all want to train to succeed, but wed be silly not to
consider failure and develop skills for what were going to do in the event
we zig when we shouldve zagged.
In combat sportsboxing, MMA and muay Thaia byproduct of hard training is
the development of your chin. Hard sparring teaches you how to roll with a punch
and adjust your range to mitigate strikes, and it helps you identify where the holes
are in your defense. Unfortunately, the same cant be said about practice sessions in
which sparring stops when blood is drawn and complete finishes arent encouraged.
So how are you supposed to react when your bell is rung? What does it feel like?
What will it do to your ability to fight? Until it happens to you, you cant really learn
how to deal with it. Continuous aggressive pressure teaches you that a good defense isnt complete unless you can make your attacker step back. If all youre do22
ing is covering up to protect yourself

or worse, turning your backIve got
some really bad news for you.
Your training should include
simple combinations that you grind
into your motor memory. When you
catch a good shot, its apparent to whoever threw it. If hes aggressive enough
to be fighting with you in the first place,
hes likely smart enough to know when
and how to close the deal. You want to
ruin his intention.
Glove up with a training partner and
have him fire off a few shots. Block and
defend, but immediately fire backnot
exactly blindly but certainly directly.
Make him feel at risk. Do this over and
over until your shots are literally following his retracting hands back to him.
Once youve got the hang of it, add
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Photo by Peter Lueders
One thing people routinely fail to incorporate into their training is what to
do when theyre hurt. Its probably because were all invincible and immortal,
right? I mean, were doing the hurting, not the other way around arent we?
If youre serious about self-defense, you have to

subject yourself to increasingly harder training in
which theres an element of real riskcontrolled
and safe, of course, but risk nonetheless.
this: Immediately sit down, step out to
the side and punch again from a new
angle. Drill this simple response until
you can get it done consistently and
reliablyeven if youre a little rocked.
Defend, hit back, change levels, be
somewhere new, hit back again.
If you get hit square and youre suddenly tasting blood in the back of your
throat, dont freak out. You can certainly spit it out, but dont hang your
mouth open to gasp for air. Just breathe
through and around your teeth. Keep
biting downyou dont want to sustain
another hit with your mouth open. Dont
blow your nose, either; just let it drip.
PerhaPs the hardest thing about all
this for most people is fighting through
pain and adversity, knowing that youre
perientially, not theoretically.

Youve undoubtedly seen it during
combat-sports events. Tim Bradley vs.
Ruslan Provodnikov comes to mind
Bradleys determination and instincts to
survive were so strong he weathered a
terrible beating and still managed to step
off a powerful and aggressive Provodnikov. Developing that in yourself doesnt
come easily or cheaply; it takes committed training with the potential for injury.
If youre serious about self-defense,
you have to subject yourself to increasingly harder training in which theres an
element of real riskcontrolled and safe,
of course, but risk nonetheless. Theres
no substitute for inuring yourself to the
presence of risk and learning to deal with
the possible consequences, especially
when youve sustained some damage.
hurt and not 100 percent. Take heart!

Many boxing coaches have told their pupils, The most dangerous fighter can be
the one youve hurt. Theres a reason for
that admonishment. When you suddenly
understand the gravity of the situation,
you can leverage the adrenaline dump
to your advantageif you have the skills
and the training.
When you train, make every effort not
to just participate but to dominate the
range inside which youre both at risk.
Remember that in order to hit, youve
got to be within range to be hit. Being
able to take a heavy shot while staying focused is essential to dominating
that space. The only way to learn how
to do that is to experience it. You have
to learn that a heavy-handed hit alone
doesnt mean you cant still prevail ex-
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Return to Shaolin, Part 1
On the 10th anniversary of my rst sojourn to Shaolin, I returned to the temple thats often claimed to be the birthplace
of kung fu. My mission was to study san da. True to form, the trainers immediately immersed me in the required lessons.
I wound up doing six hours of martial arts, two hours of conversational Chinese, and an hour and a half of written Chineseall on my rst day.
by Antonio Graceo
24
discover something mystical about the

martial artsbut I left disappointed.
This time, I went to Shaolin, expecting
the worst. To my surprise, it ended up
being one of the best training experiences Ive had in Asia.
Full disclosure: When people say
they study at Shaolin, they dont actually live in the temple. Some 65 martial
arts schools exist outside the compound, and a handful of others are on
Shaolin property, but no matter which
one you choose, you wont be living in
the temple proper.
In 2003 things were different. When
I arrived, I spent my first few nights
in the temple. After that, I moved to a
house a few hundred yards from the
gate and walked to the monastery for
my daily training session. That para-
digm ended in 2010 when UNESCO

declared Shaolin a world heritage site.
Now, most of the martial arts schools
are several miles away. Tagou, the largest and oldest facility, as well as the
government-run Wushu Academy, remain in their original locations, which
now puts them on the expanded temple
grounds.
on this trip to shaolin, I was surprised to find that the Disney-inspired
Shaolin Village had been erected nearby; it reminded me of Kung Fu Panda.
The village hosts several schools for
foreign students.
Another difference between my first
and second Shaolin experiences involved money. Back in 2003, I paid $200
a month for training, food and lodging.
This time, I paid $1,000 a month. The
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Photo Courtesy of Antonio Graceffo
y trainers kept me occupied until 8:40 p.m., by

which time I felt exhausted. I hit the sack, knowing
I had to rise at 5:45 the next morning
to do it all again. Making matters worse,
this time the regimen would have to
be endured without help from my old
friends meat, Coke and Mountain Dew.
On my first trip to the temple, I
vowed to stay for a year, but after several monthsduring which I was beset
by illness, worn down by unsanitary
conditions and concerned by the SARS
epidemicI departed. Since then, the
temple has stood strong in the back
of my mind. I convinced myself that if
I returned, Id thrive as a student because Im older, calmer and better at
Chinese. My first visit brought high expectationson some level, Id hoped to
Some 65 martial arts schools exist outside

the compound, and a handful of others are
on Shaolin property, but no matter which
one you choose, you wont be living in the
temple proper.
price jump brought an upgrade in accommodations: In 2003 I shared a
building with 60 people. It boasted four
bedrooms but lacked indoor toilets. In
2013 the ratio was down to 30 people
per building (three to a room), with
two bathrooms and indoor showers
and toilets.
I quickly discovered that overall hygiene also had received a boostnot
quite to Western standards, but it was
surgically clean by Shaolin standards.
Why was I paying so much attention to
cleanliness? The first time around, I got
sick once a week from contaminated
food. This time, I didnt get a stomach
bug for the first month.
The small school in which I

planned to live and train this time was
unique in that Chinese and foreign students practiced together. Most facilities choose to cater to one group or the
other, or they serve both but train them
in wushu separately. San da seemed to
provide a reason for unification. Even
in big schools like Tagou, foreigners
enrolled in the san da program train
alongside Chinese students.
When I arrived, I found only three other foreigners and 12 Chinese students
living in the house. Hugo, a student of
New York-based Shi Yan Ming, said, I
like this place a lot because we get to live
with the Chinese kids and learn about
their lives.
I quickly concluded that at least in

our house, the Chinese students were
a lot of fun. They constantly clowned
around with us and were eager to provide glimpses into the Chinese lifestyle.
One sifu said to me: I dont know why
foreigners would come to China and
then train with other foreigners. They
could do that in their own country. Obviously, he believed in letting us mingle
with locals. Its a good thing I did, too,
because there was about to be a whole
lot of mingling.
About the Author:
Antonio Graceffo is a freelance writer
based in Asia. To order Warrior Odyssey,
the book he wrote about his travels, visit
blackbeltmag.com.
early 1960s. And the goddess is, judging

from her depiction on isshin-ryu patches,
obviously more influenced by Western
folktales than by the original Okinawan
bunaigami, or sister goddess.
Goblins and Mystic Visions
The ocial title of several Japanese koryu (ancient martial arts) includes the
phrase tenshinsho-den or something similar. Translated as divinely inspired basic teachings, it refers to the origination myth of an art. Most koryu purport to
have stemmed from supernatural events.
by Dave Lowry
a tengu that, according to some legends,

taught the famous 10th-century warrior Minamoto Yoshitsune the secrets of
swordsmanship that are today contained
in the principles of the kurama ryu.
It Isnt unusual for a revelation to

follow strenuous physical effort from
the founder of an art. In the 16th century,
Muso Gonnosuke, an expert with the
long staff, was defeated but not injured in
a famous duel with Miyamoto Musashi.
He retreated to a mountaintop cave and
trained until he was exhausted. He was
eventually visited by a deity who instructed him to reduce the length of the
staffwhich resulted in the creation of
the jo. This is the origination story of the
tenshinsho-den shinto muso ryu of jojutsu.
Tengu, the mountain-dwelling goblins
of Japan, are also supposed to have contributed to the origins of some ryu. It was
Its InterestIng that while supernatural events mark the creation of most
Japanese classical martial arts, theyre
almost absent in Okinawan karate systems. This seems particularly odd when
you consider that Okinawan culture is
deeply, profoundly mystical. Okinawan
religion is full of elaborate, secretive
rituals and folklore. It would seem natural that the karate of that island nation
would reflect some of this.
There are some exceptions to this curious absence in a few karate systems. The
kojo ryua small, traditional Okinawan
karate stylehas a dozen postures incorporated into its kata that represent
the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac. The
symbol of the isshin ryu features a mermaid-like goddessthe inspiration for
the systems founder, Tatsuo Shimabuku,
when she appeared in a vision to him.
But this myth dates back only to the
ometimes these stories are odd.

The katori shinto ryu, one of Japans oldest martial traditions,
traces its origins back to a founder who, in the early 15th century, saw a
horse being washed with water from a
well at a Shinto shrine. The animal suddenly died. According to the ryus lore, its
death gave the founder arcane insights
into the power of the shrine that came to
form the ryus principles.
26
One reasOn fOr the lack of supernatural myths in Okinawan karate might be
these arts didnt really develop into any
coherent, distinguishable form until relatively recent times. Just like a divine or
mystic origination myth associated with,
say, hamburgers would seem weird, Okinawan karate may be so relatively modern that such tales never arose.
Another possibility might be that the
Okinawans view these arts within their
culture differently than do the Japanese.
Karate was a means of protection, a form
of physical education, a method for proving oneself in matches against other villages; rarely was it a matter of life and
death. Losing a karate bout might mean
sustaining an injury. Losing a battlefield
contest meant dying. The stakes were
much higher for the Japanese warrior.
Perhaps thats why the powerful, supernatural myths were necessary to give
him more belief, more confidence. The
Okinawan karateka, by comparison,
didnt need such a structure in his belief
system.
My own suspicionit is only thatis
that no goblins or deities played a role
in the creation of Okinawan karate systems because the Okinawans already
had in place an object of veneration and
respect. It was China.
Okinawans were visiting China by
the 15th century. Trade was thriving between the tiny island kingdom and the
mainland. China profoundly influenced
Okinawan culture. For the Okinawans,
the knowledge and culture of China
must have been awesome. Chinese combat arts, which played an extensive role
in the refinement of Okinawan karate,
would have seemed very impressive; its
masters would have been venerated.
Those Okinawans who made the voyage to China would have been something
like todays astronauts, rare individuals
who have been to fantastically far-off
places and seen and learned wondrous
things. The Okinawans did not need supernatural tales to give their arts credibility or a sense of the special. For them,
the Chinese from whom they learned
would have been as extraordinary an
origination story as they wanted or
needed.
blackbeltMaG.cOM
The Man Who Never Was
I want you to call this story The Man Who Never Was, Leo Gaje said to me. Because he was holding a razor-sharp, 10inch ghting knife in his hand, I readily agreed, hence the cryptic nature of this months title.
or a long time, Ive been hearing

tales of Leo T. Gaje Jr., the grandmaster of the pekiti tirsia system of kaliperhaps the most
controversial figure in the Filipino martial arts. Over the years, Id had the opportunity to discuss the man with half a
dozen of his senior students and an equal
number of colleagues and acquaintances,
but until recently, Id never met him. So
when my friend Ahkmed Boouraca invited me to a Gaje seminar he was hosting
in New York, I thought I might finally get
a better understanding of him.
Trying To undersTand Gaje is

reminiscent of the Japanese story
Rashomon, wherein every character
recounts the events from a different
viewpoint, with no one agreeing on the
facts. Opinions vary wildly, with some
loving Gaje and some loathing him. The
one thing almost everyone agrees on is
his incredible martial arts skill.
Boouraca calls Gaje the truth and
said he owes everything he has to the
man. But another longtime student of
Gaje once described him as pure evil.
28
When I finally met him, he seemed

more a genial, grandfatherly figure,
puttering around in a baseball cap and
a baggy I Love Texas sweatshirt, than
the personification of darkness. Then
he took the floor to teach the pekiti
tirsia style he learned from his grandfather Conrado Tortal. Gaje began a
simple knife-fighting technique, then
suddenly dropped to his knees and proclaimed, Now we prayfor his death!
Possessing phenomenal grace and
agility for a man in his 70s, Gaje swept
his foe to the ground and mounted
him before dragging his training knife
across his neck in a casual throatcutting motion. Then he smacked him
across the face, jabbed the tip of the
dull knife into his carotid, jammed his
other hand under the fellows nose to
shove his head back and once more cut
his throat before summarizing: Enjoy
itdrink his blood! At that point, he
made a sucking noise.
Welcome to the world of Leo Gaje.
Born in negros occidenTal in the
Philippines, Gaje began training in the
martial arts at age 6. His grandfather

drilled him in nothing but footwork
for three years before moving on to
the striking aspects of the system and
schooling him in the use of knives,
sticks and various other weapons. The
boy also learned the empty-hand tactics that make up the pekiti tirsia curriculum. But like everything surrounding Gaje, the nature and origins of
many of these techniques are mysterious. Some have claimed Gaje borrowed
moves from other styles and incorporated them into pekiti tirsia, while others have stated hes continually modified his teachings over the years. Gaje
insisted theres no truth to any of this.
Everything I teach is the traditional
art that I learned, he said. Why would
I change anything when it was all there
already? Its just that people have only
seen parts of the system, so when they
see something new, they think Ive
made changes. But these things have
always been there.
Whatever hes teaching, Gajes methods seem to work. His students read
like a whos who of Filipino martial
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Photos Courtesy of Mark Jacobs
by Mark Jacobs
He still carries three knives at all times, but he has

a logical reason for it: I carry two for me and one
for my opponent. That way, if I give him one and kill
him, the police cant say I killed an unarmed man.
arts luminaries, including world arnis champion Tom Bisio, Dog Brothers
co-founder Eric Knaus, sayoc kali head
Chris Sayoc and pekiti tirsia expert William McGrath. Beginning his teaching
career in New York with Boouraca and
these others back in the early 1970s,
Gaje skillfully built a style thats now
practiced around the globe.
Renowned foR his expertise with
edged weapons, Gaje is a sought-after instructor with military and lawenforcement organizations and has
served as a close-quarters combat instructor for the Philippine marines.
But always there were rumors of his
dark side. One hears bizarre stories
such as how, when he first moved to
New York, he used to ride the subways
late at night with money hanging out

of his pockets, looking half asleep in
hopes that someone would attempt to
mug him so he could practice his martial arts. Surely this cant be true.
Oh yes, thats true, he said. I wanted
to see if my techniques worked. Whats
the point in practicing this stuff for all
those years if you never get to use it?
Bisio once told me about the time he
got on a subway train with Gaje while
Gaje was carrying three knives, a sword
concealed inside a cane and a ball bearing embedded in the palm of his glove.
Exaggeration?
I remember that, Gaje said. I always want to be prepared for what
comes up.
He still carries three knives at all
times, but he has a logical reason for it:
I carry two for me and one for my opponent. That way, if I give him one and
kill him, the police cant say I killed an
unarmed man.
Gaje offered many of these comments
with a gallows humor that made me
think he was joking perhaps.
You have to have fun and enjoy what
youre doing, he said. You cant be so
serious all the time, especially when
youre doing martial arts and teaching
people kill, kill, kill!
So was he joking or was he serious? Is
he a martial arts messiah or the devil in
disguise? Gaje, characteristically, prefers to remain mysterious.
People online have called me a madman, he said. Im not a madmanbut
I am crazy. Im misunderstood. But to
be misunderstood is to be great.
cess. They think the instructor gives them techniques and

they simply do what he says. The reality is that learning is
always an active process. Its something that the student
does and that the instructor guides. Without that individual
struggle to really understand an art and do it well, theres
no real learning, just rote memorization.
Spiritual development is just as much of an active process
as learning the skills of fighting is. Enlightenment, or some
lesser insight, might come to a few martial artists suddenly,
but its rarely without effort. Usually, the real gurus and
mystics of the arts spend years in contemplation and study
before their flash of awareness.
Maintaining the Self in a

Community of Martial Artists
These days, we take for granted that each of us belongs
to many overlapping communities. All the kids, parents
and sta members at my sons elementary school see
themselves as part of a school community. The foreign
residents here in Tokyo talk about being part of the expatriate community. And, of course, everyone reading Black
Belt is part of the martial arts community.
by Keith Vargo
hat often gets lost in all this talk of community

is how much of an individual endeavor martial
arts training is.
In everything from learning a form to fighting in the cage to finding spiritual insights, community is
about support. Usually, its about giving us context and guidance. But no matter what a martial arts community does for
people, it can only take them so far. The martial arts always
end in individual achievement.
The mosT obvious example comes from the fight sports.
You could be a pro MMA guy with a team of coaches, nutritionists and conditioning specialists all focused on you. You
could be one member of a big judo team that spars constantly
and does old-school conditioning work together. It doesnt
matter. Your martial arts community can only help you get
ready to fight; its the fighter who wins or loses the match.
The same goes for the seemingly simple act of learning an
art. Some mistakenly believe that learning is a passive pro-
30
my favoriTe example of this is kyudo. Its one of the few

arts that are competitive and spiritual. And like all arts, you
have to figure things out for yourself, even when you have
help from an instructor.
The competitive side of kyudo is probably the purest example of individual achievement in the martial arts. You and
you alone hit or miss the target. Theres no opponent who
can make you look good or bad. You cant blame faulty equipment if you fail to hit the target because youre as much responsible for your own equipment as you are for making the
shot. As kyudo master Hideharu Onuma said, the bow doesnt
lie. When you shoot, it shows who you really are.
The spiritual side of kyudo emerges naturally from practice. Theres a desire to hit the target that can get in the way
of actually hitting it, a desire that must be overcome for the
shooting to become effortless. Theres the sense of time and
distance being illusionswhen master archers feel that
the arrow already exists in the target. All these things come
only through long, concentrated effort.
Then theres the simple act of learning kyudo. The forms
are short and the movements few, but learning to do them
right requires constant self-examination and effort. A novice can be taught and guided, but only he can learn to feel
the right position of his body and when to let the arrow fly.
Only an active student can gain the kind of intuitive feel for
correct shooting that Japanese archery is famed for.
Of course, community is as important in kyudo as in any
martial art. It takes a lot to organize competitions and run
a kyudojo. But even with all the carefully coordinated effort
during practice and all the care needed to maintain an archery range, theres still nothing more individual than hitting that target yourself.
The besT Thing about having a sense of community is
your identity expands. Your connection with the people
gives a larger sense of self, something bigger and more
meaningful than just your own talents. But thats also its
greatest danger. Its easy to get lost in your community, to
identify too closely with it, to let actual martial arts achievement fade and allow your personality to become diffuse.
You just become part of the group instead of yourself. And
the antidote is always the same: to find yourself through
some kind of martial arts achievement. That is what defines
our community and ourselves.
About the Author:
Keith Vargos book Philosophy of Fighting: Morals and Motivations
of the Modern Warrior is available on paper and as an e-book at
blackbeltmag.com.
blackbeltMaG.cOM
the distal radius. And, of course, kids can sustain a

complete fracture just like adults.
For a mature martial artist, a wrist fracture is either displaced or undisplaced, and it involves the
distal radius and/or the ulna. Displaced means
theres been a shift in position between the two
broken parts. Undisplaced means there has been
no movement or shift.
An undisplaced fracture is treated nonoperatively. The wrist is immobilized with a secure
splint or a cast. The injury generally takes four to
six weeks to heal.
When the wrist fracture is displaced, it usually warrants a reduction to properly align the
bone(s). Getting the wrist into adequate alignment is important because if it heals in a crooked
position, it will pose problems in the future.
Those problems may include pain, stiffness and
decreased grip strength.
Wrists at Risk
In the dojo, the most common cause of broken wrists is a fall in
which the martial artist attempts to lessen the impact by extending an arm to make rst contact with the oor. A less-common
cause is a direct blow that hits the wrist. When you consider how
important the wrist is in the delivery of poweras well as in locking, grabbing and escaping from grabsit pays to know the physiological limits of the joint. And for those times when the worst-case
scenario happens, its benecial to know what to expect when a
wrist is broken.
by Robert Wang, M.D.
irst, the anatomy. The wrist joint is designed to allow many

degrees of movement: flexion, extension, radial and ulnar deviation, and supination (turning the palm up) and pronation
(turning the palm down). The distal radius and ulna form the
wrist bone and connect to the hand (carpal) bones through ligaments.
The distal radius and ulna are also connected to each other by ligaments.
When we talk about wrist fractures, were referring to a break in the
distal radius and/or ulna at the level of the metaphysis, which is the
flared region of a bone. In children, an injury to the wrist bone can consist of damage to the growth plate because theyre not skeletally mature
yet. Children also can suffer an incomplete fracture, wherein only one
side of the bone is broken. Yet another common injury in young martial
artists is a buckle fracture, which follows a compressive load through
32
When you sustain a wrist injury, the medical

assessment will involve X-rays. If a reduction is
required for a displaced fracture, another X-ray
will be obtained after the reduction to judge the
quality of the procedure. If the alignment is acceptable, the injury may be treated in a cast and
closely monitored. If, at the next follow-up appointment, the wrist bones have shifted again
despite being in a cast, surgery will be needed.
For unstable wrist fracturesthose whose
alignment cannot be maintained in a castsurgery will probably be recommended. The decision to undergo surgery should take into account
factors such as the patients age, activity level
and overall health.
The postoperative course also should be individualized. If the bone quality is good and the
fixation is strong, early range-of-motion therapy
can be initiated. If the bone is soft and the fixation questionable, therapy may be started later
to minimize the risk of further fracture displacement.
it takes effort to undergo the therapy needed to recover from a wrist fracture. Even when
that happens, the joint can feel stiff and it can
take months to regain motion, strength and baseline functionality. If the fracture is severe and/or
the treatment is not optimal, theres a possibility you wont regain all the motion, strength and
functionality you had. Thats why its imperative
that you seek medical attention anytime you suffer a wrist injury that might involve a fracture.
About the Author:
Robert Wang, M.D., is a Fellow of the Royal College of
Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Hes an orthopedic
surgeon specializing in sports medicine.
blackbeltMaG.cOM
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fighting
strAtegies
froM MACP
DesigneD for
the MoDern
ArMy CoMbAtives
ProgrAM,they
Work for
CiviliAn MArtiAl
Artists, too!
by Matt Larsen
Photos by Peter Lueders
1.
In 2002, then-U.S. Army Ranger

Matt Larsen was tasked with rewriting the U.S. Army Field Manual
for Combatives. In mid-2013, he
inished work on a more comprehensive book titled Modern Army
Combatives: Battle-Proven Techniques and Training Methods. The
following is an excerpt that will
help civilian martial artists who
want to become more well-rounded
and instructors who want to craft
a curriculum that eficiently guides
students to that goal.
Editor
36
2.
hen the war in Afghanistan

began in 2001, our ideas
about what hand-to-hand
ights would look like were
well-developed. We had, however, a fairly simplistic view of the way ights on
the battleield start and the tactical role
for combatives. We thought the primary
role of combatives would be when a soldiers weapon failed to function.
In our defense, the prevailing wisdom
was that combatives wouldnt really be
necessary because of irepower and
superior tactics. In the initial phase of
the war in Iraq in 2003, when the Army
was barreling across the country, attacking and clearing towns and buildings as necessary, our preconceived
notions worked out well. The steps our
troops used were as follows:
1 Close the distance: Controlling a
stand-up ight means controlling the
range between the ighters. Untrained
ighters are primarily dangerous at longer ranges where they can bring weapons to bear more easily. The goal is to
avoid that range. The most dangerous
thing even a superior striker can do is
to spend time in the range within which
the enemy has the highest probability

of victory.
2 Gain dominant position: Before
any killing or disabling technique can
be applied, the soldier must gain and
maintain dominant body position. It
also allows a soldier to control an enemy more effectively, making it more
dificult for him to deploy a weapon of
opportunity.
3 Finish the ight: When dominant
body position has been achieved, the
ighter tries to inish his opponent
secure in the knowledge that if an attempt fails, as long as he maintains
dominance, he may simply try again.
If, on the other hand, a inishing technique is attempted from other than a
dominant position and it fails, it could
mean defeat.
NEW REALITY
Soon after the war entered its second

phase, soldiers were no longer simply
attacking and clearing buildings. The
most likely scenario for combatives
now involved the need to physically
dominate a resisting person who may
or may not be an enemy. In other words,
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
3.
4.
LINES OF DEFENSE: Matt Larsen (left) demonstrates the post (1), the frame on the
same side (2), the frame across (3) and the hook with head control (4). The farther
away the opponent is, the better able you are to control the position, Larsen says, but
no matter where you nd yourself, you must be able to stop your opponents advance.
soldiers had to remain in control of the

situation, use restraint in the amount
of force they employ, and be ready to
turn it up to overwhelming force instantly if there is even the smallest sign
of the resistance turning aggressive or
a weapon being deployed. Given these
realities, we slowly began to arrive at a
new, more sophisticated strategy.
It is a principle of infantry doctrine
that a unit should make contact with
the enemy with the smallest possible
element. This gives the larger unit the
most freedom to maneuver. When contact is made, the leader has three basic
tactical options based on the mission
and the situation: He can attack straight
into the enemy, he can set up a base of
ire and attempt an envelopment, or he
can break contact.
In the same way, it was determined
that soldiers need to gain control of an
enemy at the farthest possible range. If
that is verbally from across a room, it is
much better than becoming physically
engaged. At some point, however, soldiers often must lay hands on people.
At this time, the same principlegaining control at the farthest range posBLACKBELTMAG.COM
sibleapplies. In addition to having

the most tactical options if passive resistance escalates, this helps keep the
enemy from grasping a soldiers gear.
DEFENSIVE LINES
Control achieved at arms length gives

three lines of defense if the enemy does
attack. From farthest (and most desirable) to closest, they are the following:
Post, as the name implies, is essentially a stiff-arm, like in football. A
soldier can use it when advancing, basically to stiff-arm someone to get past
him without becoming too engaged, or
when grabbing someone to move him.
Frame is using an elbow to keep
someone off. It can be done with the
hand on either side of the opponents
headon the same side as in the muay
Thai clinch or across, which has advantages when trying to get past someone.
Hook with head control is either
an underhook or overhook, exactly like
in wrestling. The soldier uses his head
to provide control and as a block to
keep control of the range.
Once the enemy has been stopped,
the soldier has three tactical options:
Regain projectile-weapons range.

This is the primary option because it allows the most lexibility for the soldier.
It cannot always be usedfor example,
if the mission is to capture someone
who is trying to lee. Therefore, soldiers
must train for other options.
Transition to a secondary weapon. Often when a soldier is engaged, he
will not be able to bring a long gun to
bear, especially if the enemy is attempting to gain control of it. Once he has
momentarily achieved a controlling position, he has the option to use a secondary weapon. It is usually a pistol or knife
but also can include weapons of opportunity, such as a brick or a ballpoint pen.
Achieve the clinch. Acquiring a
secondary weapon cannot always be
done safely. If, for instance, a soldier is
unable to gain control of the opponent,
drawing a pistol or knife could have the
effect of giving it away to the enemy.
Also, if the enemy begins to bring a secondary weapon into the ight, the best
option might be to close the distance
and gain control of it.
These three lines of defense and
three tactical options apply even if takDECEMBER 2013/JANUARY 2014 I BLACK BELT
37
1.
2.
en to the groundas long as the enemy

has not established a dominant position. They give a soldier a framework
and the ability to handle a wide array
of situations. Of course, they are also
built on solid grappling ability. The better and more practiced a soldiers grappling skills are, the more likely it is that
he will be able to dictate at what range
the ight takes place.
FIGHTER DEVELOPMENT:
GROUND GRAPPLING
A soldier can make the quickest substantial gains in the area of ground
grappling. The only ighter who can afford to be aggressive in an altercation
is the one who is skilled at the closest
ranges. Just like a tall boxer must be
careful to stay away from his opponent
in order to use the advantage of his
38
superior range and the shorter ighter

longs to get up close to nullify that advantage, the inferior grappler must
take pains to avoid becoming decisively
engaged lest he be beaten where he is
weakest. Therefore, becoming a superior ground grappler is the foundation
of training to be a competent ighter.
The irst techniques of ground grappling serve to impart the concept of the
hierarchy of position from Brazilian jiujitsu and the movement patterns that will
make someone an effective grappler. Additionally, each technique is representative of a class of techniques. Those fundamental techniques include a method to:
escape the mount by rolling on top
pass the closed guard to side control
gain the mount from side control
gain the rear mount from the mount
escape the rear mount
escape the mount and place the opponent in the closed guard
sweep the opponent from within
the guard to mount him
choke from the mount
choke from the rear mount
choke from the guard
arm break from the mount
arm break from the guard
The escapes and sweeps that are
taught come from opportunities set
up by the chokes and arm breaks. The
techniques exploit openings that would
be common when ighting an untrained
ighter so students are not simply learning to ight each other. An example of this
is teaching how to attack someone who
presents straight arms while attempting
to push an opponent off the mount.
Notice that the basics do not include
how to defend against chokes or joint atBLACKBELTMAG.COM
3.
4.
LINES OF DEFENSE ON THE GROUND: Unable or unwilling to use his weapon,

Matt Larsen (bottom) demonstrates how the post works during grappling. He stiffarms the assailants face (1) and lifts his torso so he can support his weight on his
elbow (2). Sitting upright, Larsen extends his arm (3) and uses it to regain his feet
(4)all while keeping his left arm straight and his hand on the mans face.
tacks other than ways to use the attacks

as an opening to improve on a position.
It is a common mistake to teach an attack
and the defense to the attack in the same
or proximal sessions. The result would be
meeting every attempt at an attack with a
defense. Of course, the attack will not be
well-developed, so even a poor defense
will stand a good chance of working. If
the attack seldom works, students will be
discouraged from attempting it. Therefore, the attack will never become welldeveloped nor will the defense because
it will have to be used only against poor
attacks. It is much better to teach only attacks at the beginning. Instructors should
wait until the students have a well-developed attack and everyone thinks the
technique is almost unbeatable before
teaching the defense.
When a ighter has become proicient
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
in the basics and can use them during

ground sparring, new moves from each
of the basic classes of techniques can
be taught and they will it naturally into
the ighters repertoire. Additionally,
new classes of techniquesfor example, passing the half guardcan be introduced easily and the ighters can use
them effectively almost immediately.
As ighters progress, the new techniques can open up new methods of
sparring. For example, after teaching how to defend against punches
from the guard, ighters can spar with
strikes. This same method works with
higher-end techniques and training
methods such as the introduction of
grappling over weapons.
Training also should include reminders
that there are no rules on the battleield.
It is easy to forget, when sparring with
friends, that in a ight, the enemy will put

his thumb in an adversarys eye or bite
his nose off if given the opportunity.
CLINCH FIGHTING
Although ground grappling is most important because it allows a ighter to

be aggressive, clinch ighting is where
a ighter can decide whether he wants
to go to the ground. This is the range
where a ighter gains the ability to use
more than just the most basic tactics.
Clinch ighting is taught by doing drills
and then expanding on them. We begin
with basic pummeling like in wrestling.
This builds the habit of ighting for underhooks and is a key to takedown setups and defense. That is essential given
the aggressive nature of combatives during close-quarters battle in which very
39
Self-Defense Instructor of the Year

During an abnormally lengthy voting
period, your peers proclaimed their
support for Matt Larsens induction
into the Black Belt Hall of Fame. After
reading this article and contemplating
the depth of knowledge he possesses,
along with all the effort hes put into
helping U.S. military men and women
prevail in violent encounters, Im sure
youll agree with their choice.
For those few who may be wondering why a martial arts magazine is
lavishing so much attention on a man
whose primary claim to fame involves
wearing a soldiers uniform instead of
a gi, consider this: To get to where he
is today, Larsen trained extensively
in karate, kali, bujinkan ninpo, judo,
Japanese jujitsu, Brazilian jiu-jitsu,
wrestling, boxing, muay Thai and
sambo. Even more impressive is that
he didnt study all those systems and
keep the knowledge to himself. He
devoted nearly two decades of his life
to spreading the wealth, rst to the
military and now to the public.
Black Belt is proud to name Matt
Larsen its 2013 Self-Defense Instructor of the Year.
Robert W. Young
little time is spent outside clinch range.

The next drill involves neck wrestling
or swimming for neck control like in
muay Thai. After the fundamental movement of swimming one hand under to
gain inside position and proper posture
have been learned, techniques can be
added for each of the ways combatants
may make this dificult for soldiers. New
positions of control can be introduced,
and knee strikes and knee defense can be
added. Finally, takedowns are included.
After the fundamental clinch-ighting
drills have been learned, they should be
practiced against a padded wall. Most of
the clinch ighting and takedowns done
on the battleield involve pushing someone, or being pushed, against a wall.
STRIKING SKILLS
Because every untrained ighter knows

how to throw some sort of blow, a soldier
40
1.
2.
must have skill to be effective. This takes
time and practice. Techniques are taught
and movement patterns built over the
course of two or three months. Sparring
is slowly introduced, beginning with jab
sparring and body sparring before progressing to full sparring, to avoid making the student punch shy. Sparring can
be introduced earlier in the case of very
self-motivated students, but effectiveness
in actual ighting, because of the more
complicated nature of timing and range
control, simply takes time.
A proven approach involves irst
teaching a few basic punching combinations and having students memorize
them instead of trying to teach the details of correct technique. This can be
done with or without training aids such
as boxing gloves and mitts, although
they make it easier to hit hard. In each
session, the leader or coach can make
small corrections in the soldiers tech-
nique, introducing footwork, defense,

etc., and after a little time, if this becomes routine, there will be a perceptible growth in technique.
Sparring should be introduced slowly, not only for safety but also because
it will better ensure everyones growth.
It is very easy for a motivated coach
who loves to spar because he is good
at itto forget that in every sparring
session, someone is getting the worst
of it. In a gym where the objective is to
train champions, this may be OK, but
in a unit, it is the skill level of the average member that matters. Care must
be taken to ensure that everyone has a
good experience. Jab sparring should
be taught irst; for quite some time
thereafter, the training sessions should
concentrate on defending against the
jab. This guarantees that few people
take any serious blows for their irst
few sparring sessions, allowing them
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
3.
4.
GRAPPLING OVER WEAPONS: One of the techniques soldiers learn to stop an
enemy whos trying to take their secondary weapon in a grappling encounter revolves
around the reverse bent armbar, aka the kimura. While Matt Larsen (bottom) has his
opponent in the closed guard, the man reaches for Larsens knife (1). After he traps
the opponents arm with his right hand, Larsen key-locks it (2) and lies back to execute
the lock (3). Once Larsen has control, he can deploy his weapon (4).
time to get used to the give-and-take.

When the irst ive punch combos
have been learned, defenses are added
in a way that makes ighters react naturally to an enemy attack and instills
counterattacking as a relex. Soon, kicks
are integrated, then takedowns, as well
as the defenses for bothalways in
ways that can happen in a ight.
FULL SPARRING
Full sparring combines all other methods of sparring. Although it is one of the
main categories of live training, it is less
useful than other forms because the
more skillful or physically gifted ighter
only trains in his best position.
Jab sparring is used as an introduction to sparring with strikes and
remains important as a means of developing a good jab and the ability to
defend against it.
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
Body boxing is usually reserved

for beginners and allows only body
punches. It permits new ighters to become comfortable with sparring before
punches to the head are allowed. Body
boxing also forces ighters to become
accustomed to exchanging blows at
close range. Allowing punches to the
head too early can cause some ighters
to become punch shy, which hinders
their development.
Boxing is sparring in which only
punches to the head and torso are allowed. It is the foundation of strikingskills development and should not be
neglected.
Kickboxing is sparring in which
punches and kicks are allowed. Kicks
should not be limited to the upper body.
Kickboxing with takedowns can be
done with boxing gloves, headgear and no
uniform top, or with no gloves and a uniform top (being gloveless makes grasping
a shirt possible). In the latter, open-hand

strikes to the head and closed-ist strikes
to the body are allowed.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
This article outlines only part of the

Modern Army Combatives Program
that I helped create. Obviously, MACP
has other essential components, including knife use and defense, irearms
use and defense, and training methodsas well as rules and regulations
for a form of competition that is designed to foster ighting skill instead of
sporting skill. Those topics and more
are covered in my book.
To order Modern Army Combatives by

Matt Larsen, visit store.blackbeltmag.com.
41
blE baton
W h y I t S h o u l d B e y o u r G o - t o I m pac t
Weapon for moSt real-World conflIctS
B y J I m a rva n I t I S
photoS By thomaS SanderS
cenario: A thug with a knife accosts

you and starts making unacceptable demands.
You know you have two choices: Comply and hope
he doesnt carve you up anyway after getting what
he wants, or make a stand in order to survive.
Reality check: If the circumstances force you
to fight back, theres a good chance your classical weapons training wont be particularly relevant because he wont be armed with a katana,
nunchaku or tonfa. Far more common in modern
society are knives, guns and assorted bludgeons.
Resolution: Youll be better prepared to deal
with a 21st-century threat if you have a dedicated
weapon, one you carry specifically for personal
protection. Examples include a knife, a firearm
and a canister of pepper spray. Having access to
such a self-defense tool will give you much better
odds, especially against a blade.
Solution: One of the most effectivealthough,
for some reason, frequently overlookedequalizers is the expandable baton. Also called a collapsible baton, its an impact weapon that measures about 7 inches when closed. When extended, however, it reaches out from 16 inches to 26
inchesall with a flick of the wrist.
An expandable baton consists of two or three
concentric shafts inside an outer shaft that
serves as the grip. When you extend the baton,
the inner shafts slide out and lock in place, effectively doubling or tripling the weapons reach
and positioning the solid tip of the innermost
shaft for maximum striking effectiveness. Especially against a short-range weapon like a knife,
the extra reach of the baton can be a lifesaver.
One strike to an attackers weapon arm often will
be enough to stop him cold. If need be, though,
you can re-chamber the lightweight weapon and
hit him againand again.
1.
MaNUal Of aRMs
Opening and Closing: To open an expandable baton, use a downward flick of your wrist. The movement must be executed with force; otherwise, it
wont lock in position and could collapse when
it makes contact. Most batons use a friction lock,
which means that once opened, theyll remain open
until you tap the tip on a hard surface to close it.
Reaction Time and Distance: Because its an
impact weapon, the baton requires time to gain the
momentum it needs to inflict damage. That means
you must maintain some distance between the
weapons starting position and its target. Ideally,
you should remain a half step outside the range at
which you can touch your opponent or his weapon.
44
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Photo Courtesy of Paladin Press
First, Learn the Law
Expandable batons are used by law-enforcement ofcers

around the United States. Civilians, however, should not
interpret that as tacit permission to carry one.
Laws vary from state to state. California, Connecticut and
Michigan have banned the expandable baton. Missouri,
Texas, Massachusetts and Florida allow them as long
as theyre not concealed and you have a permit to carry.
Otherwise, its a class A misdemeanor. New Hampshire has
no laws against carrying a concealed baton.
If you live in an area where the expandable baton is
classied as a dangerous weapon and you cannot obtain a
permit, consider alternatives that employ similar mechanics
such as a kubotan or a heavy-duty ashlight.
2.
Jim Arvanitis evades a knife

attack while moving to the outside
of the weapon arm (1), then delivers
a horizontal baton strike to the neck
from a position of relative safety (2).
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
45
This spacing not only will enable you to step forward and strike effectively but also will afford you
the reaction time you need to move back and execute a defense with your baton if he attacks.
The most efficient combat distance is one that
enables you to stay outside his striking range yet
still permits you to reach him with your baton. If
you target his weapon, hand or armwhichever
is closest to youyoull be more successful than if
you aim for his body or head.
Footwork and Positioning: Motion is essential
when using an expandable baton. In lieu of linear
movements, step to the outsidealso known as
the dead sideof your attacker with diagonal
footwork. That wont significantly change the gap
between you, but it will give you a little more reaction time and a better angle of attack on the hand
holding the weapon. Even better, youll be inside
his preferred striking distance while hes right
where you want him.
The same applies when you move backward. If
your opponent charges at you, retreat diagonally,
divert his strike if necessary and land a blow as he
passes. Again, move and hit to the outside of his
weapon hand if possible. That will make it more
difficult for him to strike back and, if he does, simplify what you need to do to defend yourself.
Gripping and Striking: Wrap your thumb
around the handle; dont merely rest it alongside
the axis of the handle. Your grip should be secure
but not tight because speed requires a degree of
relaxation, especially in your wrist, elbow and
shoulder.
Baton strikes are like ordinary stick strikes. Most
use a whipping action and are delivered either horizontally or diagonally downward. These tend to be
the most destructive techniques, and its easier to
transition from one to the next because youre moving with the momentum of the weapon, thus maintaining its energy as you redirect it.
Other baton strikes include the jab and thrust.
The jab snaps forward in a straight line and impacts the target, then retracts to its original positionlike a boxers jab. This is a fast, accurate
attack for confined spaces. The thrust is similar
to an uppercut punch rather than a straight blow.
It can be used effectively at relatively close range
and, when aimed at a sensitive target like the solar plexus, can definitely hurt. Be aware, however,
that the baton is collapsible and a powerful thrust
can cause it to close. Even if that does happen,
46
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Pre-Conict Considerations
If you nd yourself facing a knife and escape is not an

option, your continued existence likely will depend on your
ability to disable your assailant. That causes many martial
artists to adopt a strategy that entails being proactive and
attacking the attacker.
Such an approach is not without pitfalls, however. If you
strike rst with an expandable baton, you could be seen
as the aggressor in the eyes of the law. Of course, youll
need to apply a degree of force thats consistent with the
situation. If youre going to carry a batonor any weapon,
for that matteryou must have the judgment to use it only
to the degree thats necessary to stop an attack.
Depending on the nature of the initial

attack, the defender can counter with a
baton strike to the knife (opposite page) or
the knife hand (above).
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
47
theres a good chance itll stop the attacker long enough for
you to reopen it.
Targeting: A major advantage of an impact weapon like
the baton is that you can strike at an assailants weapon
to stop him from attacking. A solid blow to the hand can
cause him to drop it, although this isnt something you
should depend on in a fight.
In addition to the hand, the best targets on an attackers
body are the inner and outer wrist, elbow, knee, ribs and
collarbone. A baton strike to muscle tissue will cause pain
and possibly cramping, but it wont be as debilitating as a
blow to a bony area. Note that debilitating is very different
from killing. A strike to the knee often will end an encounter without causing a potentially lethal injury. However, a
blow to the head, neck or spine is considered deadly force.
Blocking: In addition to using strikes to intercept a blow,
you also can use a baton to block or parry. To block, simply move the weapon between yourself and the incoming
attack. Your entire body pushes into the block. Keep the
baton close to you; dont extend your arm(s) to meet the
attack. Use your free hand to support your baton hand and
stabilize the block. Make sure you have good skeletal alignment so the force of impact travels from the baton straight
down your forearm and into your body.
A block requires very little energy to divert a blow. However, because its a purely defensive maneuver, it wont do
anything to disrupt a barrage of attacks. Also, it requires
more effort to flow from a block to a strike than it does to
flow between strikes. Consequently, blocking isnt the best
way to deal with an attack, but there are times when its
your only option.
The jab is a quick strike that has

the expandable baton mimic
the trajectory of a jab punch
straight out and straight back.
tRaiNiNG tiMe
Developing proficiency with the baton requires drills that isolate various weapon attacks and counters against them. Once
these basic skills are mastered, engaging in armed free sparring is the next step. If youre practicing baton-vs.-knife scenarios, be sure to use a training blade thats made of plastic
or blunted aluminum, as well as a rubber baton.
In the beginning, safety equipment should be worn, including headgear, padded gloves and leg guards. That will
enable you to practice with contact while minimizing the
risk of injury. For maximum versatility, train outdoors as
well as indoors, on pavement as well as on grassin any
environment where an encounter could occur.
No matter how thorough your training, remember that
there are no guarantees with any weapon or technique.
The baton is just one option for real-world conflict resolution. Because its compact, easily concealed and capable
of delivering debilitating strikes from a relatively safe distance, its better than most. However, its not foolproof.
The best way to make it as close to foolproof as possible, of
course, is with training.
About the author: Black Belt Hall of Famer Jim Arvanitis appeared on his first Black Belt cover in 1973 and has been
a fixture in the martial arts media ever since. Hes written
several books, including The First Mixed Martial Art: Pankration From Myths to Modern Times (blackbeltmag.com).
He teaches empty-hand and weapons skillsincluding baton tacticsto civilians, as well as military and law-enforcement personnel.
48
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Remember Your Other Weapons

Just because you have an expandable
baton in your lead hand doesnt mean its
your only hope in an altercation. You also
have your rear hand, which should be kept
safely out of range and ready to strike or
trap if the opportunity presents itself. Also,
remember that you have two legs. Dont
become so xated on the baton that you
forget to kick.
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
49
Worlds Greatest
KicKer for
YEARS!
Bill Wallace
reflects on
His storied career
in tHe Martial arts
conclUsion
By floyd BUrK
In late 1973, Bill Wallace was invited to Indianapolis to

open a karate school, and he accepted. then in May 1974,
Joe lewis called to tell him they were picking people for
a full-contact karate team and Wallace was chosen as the
middleweight. I didnt want to do it, Wallace says. I
liked the point ghting with the control and everything,
but full contact sounded different. I never wanted to
hurt anybody, never wanted to prove that I could beat
anybody up. to me, competition was just a game. I touch
you rst, I win. You touch me rst, you win.
lewis wouldnt take no for an answer, however, and
Wallace nally gave in.
Black Belt Photos
The very next day, my father set

me up to go to Frankfurt, Indiana, to
interview for a school-teaching job,
Wallace says. I went there and they
said they wanted me to be the metalshop teacher. They told me that if I
stayed there until the wrestling coach
retired, I could take his place and be the
head wrestling coach and earn another
600 bucks a year. My dad told me, I
really want you to take the job. All the
way home, I was thinking, I really dont
want to be a schoolteacher.
The next day, after Wallace had
arrived at his dojo, the phone rang. It
was Red West, Elvis Presleys chief of
security. West said, Elvis wants to talk
to you.
He said, Im going to open a karate
school here in Memphis, and I want you
to run it for me, Wallace recalls. He
said, Ill pay you $1,000 a month, move
you down here, pay all your expenses
and buy you a car.
I said, Hmm, and [Elvis] said, OK,
how about $1,000 a month after taxes?
It was a real dilemma. It would probably mean the derailment of my schoolteaching career, which would certainly
disappoint my dad, who always wanted
me to follow in his footsteps. I was
thinking, I cant make everybody happy.
Its kind of hard to say no to Elvis. Finally, I said, OK, Mr. Presley, Ill do it.
He said, Great, Ill see you soon.
Wallace moved his family back to
Memphis and in May 1974 set up a karate school. Later in May, our American full-contact karate team went over
to Europe to fight in the European
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
Championships, Wallace says. I won

my match, Joe won his match, and Jeff
Smith and Howard Jackson both won
their matches. We were undefeated.
Into Full ContaCt
In September 1974 Wallace officially

switched from point fighting to professional kickboxing. We started doing
kickboxing, what was called full-contact
karate, he says. I won my inaugural
full-contact match. In 1975 I defended
the title at the Battle of Atlanta in front
of 10,000 people, the biggest crowd ever
at such an event. In 1976 I defended my
title five times, and in 1977 I defended
my title another five times.
In 1977 he was inducted into the
Black Belt Hall of Famefor the second
time. That year wasnt all good, however; it also brought the loss of his friend
Elvis, who died in August.
Wallaces next title defense took
place in Monaco. In 1978 I defended
my title in Monte Carlo in front of
Princess Grace and Prince Rainier III,
knocking out the European champion
in the fourth round with a side kick,
he recalls. Then I had dinner with
the prince and princess and also met
their kids, Prince Albert II and Princess Stephanie. Monte Carlo was great.
While I had a lot of matches, I always
stayed in shape. One of my secrets was I
didnt drink, smoke or party, which was
the downfall for many other fighters.
They always had to get back in shape to
fight. I just stayed that way.
Later in 1978, Wallace was honored
as Black Belts Man of the Year. Two key
53
Bill Wallaces
Life Lessons
Learn to give and take. If its all

give, youll have lots of friends but
you wont have any money to live on,
Wallace says. If its all take, youll
have lots of money but no friends to
share it with. You must do both.
Respect others and be condent.
You can learn respect, but its difcult
to teach it, he says. The key is [letting] people observe it in you by showing respect to them. Teaching respect
is done by example.
Like respect, condence is something
you can learn, but its not easy to
teach. Condence comes from effort.
If you show effort in what you do, people will see that it works, put effort into
their endeavors and learn condence
[at the same time].
Learn to play the game. Get along
with people, Wallace advises. Getting along with people is the primary
reason for my longevity. If you dont
like what I do, well, Im sorry. Ill be the
rst to apologize. Ill do it even if Im
right. If it makes you feel good, then it
makes me feel good.
54
reasons for his winning ways were he

didnt change his fighting positioning
and he didnt try to put extra power into
his techniques. Back then, most people
were changing their karate stances to
front-facing boxing-style stances, he
says. This made it really difficult for
them to throw any of their kicks. This
worked to my advantage as I could do
all my kicks because I just stayed sideways to protect my knee.
My disadvantage was I didnt have
any hand techniques with any popjust
the backfist. Thats why I learned how
to do the jab and the left hook. The jab
helped keep people away, and I could
pound with the hook if someone got
inside. I also learned to do an uppercut,
which I used [in the] clinch. I kept practicing the side, the round and the hook
kicksthose never changed at all.
Wallace claims one of his main strategies was to execute his moves naturally.
I never tried to throw them hardI
just threw them, he says. The damage I did to people, the knockouts and
whatnot, came from people walking
into my techniques. My opponents did
it to themselves. They helped me knock
them out. Early on, I won with kicks.
Later, as I developed some hand and
kicking combinations, I began landing
some punches, which contributed to
me winning my fights.
Hello, Hollywood!
Also in 1978, Chuck Norris asked Wallace to appear in A Force of One. Wallace
flew to Los Angeles, where he stayed
from October 1978 to January 1979. I
had fun doing that movie and working
with Chuck, Wallace says. I learned a
whole lot during the process, but I never truly enjoyed doing it.
After a few more movies, I found
that I didnt like it at all. You spend all
those months working on something
that people watch in an hour and a half.
While the money is terrific, theres a lot
of wasted time [spent] doing not much
of anything. Its fun at timeswhen its
your turn to do somethingbut when
youre not the star, you just sit around
most of the time. Boring as heck. For
a guy like me, it was like being back in
King Salmon, Alaska, but without the
judo guy to play judo with.
After shooting A Force of One, Wallace
returned home and went a year without defending his title. He did, however,
participate in a couple of exhibition
matches. In early 1980, I fought two
more nontitle fights, he says. Then

on June 15, 1980, I had my retirement
fight, which I won.
That was it: I retired undefeated with
23 straight victories. I did continue to
fight exhibitionsIve fought dozens of
them. I fought Joe Lewis, I even fought
Marvin Hagler. Ironically, after I retired,
I fought more exhibition matches than
I ever fought title fights. Seems like everybody wanted to go to an exhibition
and see a guy kicking.
life After retirement
In the early 1980s, Wallace worked on

some big-budget movies with John Belushi (Neighbors and Continental Divide)
and did the Blues Brothers Tour with
Belushi and Dan Aykroyd. He appeared
in some low-budget movies, as well. In
1984 Wallace landed a role in The Protector, which starred Jackie Chan.
Afterward, Wallace focused his free
time on doing seminars around the United States and Europe. Hed occasionally
bag a job doing stunt work or fight choreography. His Los Angeles home base
served him well because he was close
to the airport, the movie studios and the
media. His column in Black Belt was a
staple of the magazine for years.
In 1999 Wallace relocated to Florida.
One of the reasons: The locale promised to provide him with plenty of
opportunities to pursue his favorite
hobby: golf. Two years later, he signed a
deal to represent Century Martial Arts.
To keep his name alive, Wallace agreed
to Joe Jennings request for him to be
in a series of training tapes by Panther
Productions. They sold well and guaranteed Wallace years of royalty checks.
He went on to star in several videos for
Century and write four books.
For the past 25 years, Wallace has
taught at Karate College, the training
camp fellow Black Belt Hall of Famer
Jerry Beasley holds annually in Radford, Virginia. For the past 15 years,
Wallace has fine-tuned the Superfoot
System and nurtured the instructors
whove joined his organization. He continues to travel the world, doing what
he loves most, which is teaching the
martial arts.
About the author: Floyd Burk is a San
Diego-based 10th-degree black belt with
more than 40 years of experience in the
arts. To contact him, visit the Independent Karate Schools of America website
at iksa.com.
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Superfoot
Exclusive!
Did you and your father ever reconcile

after you decided to make the martial
arts your career?
Bill Wallace: It took a long time, but yes.
Since day one, my father would always
say, When are you going to quit doing
that stupid crap and get a real good job?
The night I won the world championship, I
called my father to tell him. The next day,
my mother called: You should hear your
father now! Hes telling everyone, My son
is the world champion. The stuff about
getting a jobit stopped that night.
What are the primary reasons you were
so good at full contact?
Wallace: Fitness and a good trainer. Being a wrestler, a judo player and a black
belt in karate[with] my degrees in physical educationI knew a whole lot more
about conditioning than most people. I
knew how to stay in shape. Also, I didnt
smoke or drink or eat a bunch of crap.
Most important, I had a really good
trainera boxing trainer from Memphis
who believed in me, trusted me and didnt
try to change my stances and many of the
things that made me successful. He just
added a few things to my repertoire. A lot
of other guys were pretty stubbornthey
trained themselvesbut I learned my
lesson about pain and injury, and I didnt
want to get hit. So I found someone to
help me keep from getting hit too much.
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
How were you able to jump into the

movie business without schooling or
experience?
Wallace: I learned so much working with
Chuck [Norris]. I didnt know anything about
movies back then, but Id watch him every
day. Even when I didnt have to be there, I
was there watching and learning. I watched
the director do scene after scene, take after
take. I watched the stunt choreographer and
stuntmen do what they do. I saw Chuck and
everyone else add their artistic touches to
their work. I also learned that youve got to
play the game in that business. Its a process. Things move slowly.
Why have you been so successful on
the seminar circuit?
Wallace: Anyone who wants to do seminars
has to nd a niche and provide something
people want. Luckily for me, I was very
good at exibility, kicking and all the related
conditioning. I could explain and demonstrate exactly why you do what you do. The
problem for most people is they dont have
a specialty that someone at the host school
cant do just as good as them. Whos going
to pay you $1,000 to come and teach when
they can do what you can do?
Some well-known ghters cant do seminars because while they can win, they cant
explain why or how to do it. These same
people are the ones who, once they start
losing, cant come back by guring out how
to win again. Heres one of my secrets: I
learn from my seminar students. Ever since
I started doing seminars, Ive used them
as my own laboratory. I always throw techniques and ask people to block or evade. If
someone blocks one of my kicks, Im glad to

have something to work on. Thats how Ive
kept upor kept ahead, even.
Theres a lot of bickering in the martial
arts. How have you stayed out of it and
maintained so many friendships over
the years?
Wallace: Everybody has their own way of
doing something. Theres no wrong way,
but theres also no perfectly right way.
People argue all the time about whos
right and whos wrong. I say, play the
game and get along with people. My job is
to give ideas. Your job, as a student, is to
take those ideas, play with them, change
them and go make them work for you.
How have you remained so in demand
even after retiring?
Wallace: First of all, I really love what I
do. Ive always made a point of getting
to know people and trying to remember
who they are. I also take my job seriously.
When I teach, say at the Martial Arts
SuperShow or some other event where I
have a couple of seminars to do, I focus
on teaching the class during class time.
Only before or afterward will I stop to sign
autographs or take pictures. If you pay me
for a day, you get me for a dayIll stay
there all day long. After all these years,
Im still pretty well-known, but I might not
be well-known three years from now if
I blow off everybody at these [events]. I
enjoy talking to people or doing whatever
needs to be done. Ill demonstrate, speak,
judge ghts, do whatever. I might even
learn something. Its what I love to do.
55
Photo Courtesy of Isaac Florentine/Ninja II
Ninja II:
Shadow of
a Tear
Scott Adkins, Isaac
Florentine and Kane
Kosugi Team Up for
Nonstop, Old-School,
Martial Arts Action!
by DaviD J. Moore
or a variety of reasons, the

film industry no longer churns
out martial arts superstars
like Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris,
Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van
Damme. However, the moviemakers
who cater to the direct-to-video market
continue to produce quality motion pictures that feature real-life martial artists. Perhaps the most notable success
story is Scott Adkins, star of Undisputed
II: Last Man Standing (2006), Undisputed III: Redemption (2010), Ninja (2009)
and Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning
(2012).
December 31, 2013, will mark the
return of Adkins with the release of
Ninja II: Shadow of a Tear. In it, the Brit
reprises his role as Casey, a man whos
forced to don a ninja uniform to exact
revenge on men who would do evil.
The Millennium Entertainment film
reunites Adkins with his longtime collaborator, director Isaac Florentine, for
the seventh time.
On the set in Bangkok, it quickly became apparent that even though Ninja
II is a sequel, it will feature a unique
tone and texture. This ones a bit more
down and dirty, Adkins said while tak-
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
ing a breather between fights. The

other one was a bit more clean and
pristine. This one is in Thailand, partly
in Burma. Its grittier. The martial arts
will be much flashier than what we did
on the first Ninjano CGI, no silly bat
wings, no silly ninja cult.
Different Direction
The sequel finds Casey on the trail
of thugs who murdered his beloved
Namiko. Adkins said he was grateful
for the chance to give his character the
edge it lacked in Ninja: I was a bit disappointed with the first oneat least,
with my performance. My character
was kind of bland. He was a bit of a wet
blanket. That was the character in the
script. I tried to perform the character
as it was on the page, and so when we
watched it back, there wasnt much of
an edge.
With this one, weve taken him to a
darker place. Everything he holds dear
is taken from him, and when you think
of good ninja movies, you think of the
revenge storyline. Were definitely going down that track. Hes grown more
into himself. Hes a bit wiser, hes a
bit cooler. Hes full of anger and ven-
geance.
Helping Adkins and Florentine
achieve a fresh take on the action and
fight choreography was Tim Man.
Trained in judo, jujitsu, taekwondo, viet
vo dao, boxing and wushu, hes worked
on several Thai martial arts productions, including Ong Bak 2 (2008) and
Kill em All (2012). In Ninja II, Man was
tasked with not only creating all the
fights but also overseeing the stunts
and playing a villain.
Working with Tim and his team is
a joy, Florentine said. They are innovative, creative and responsible, and
the most amazing thing is how organized they are. When they came, they
sketched the action and showed me
what they could do, and I knew I could
sleep really well.
Japanese flavor
To engineer those dynamic fights for
Ninja II, Man drew from his martial arts
background. Its basically a Japanese
style but more realistic and more brutal
in the way that Isaacs Undisputed movies were, Man said. I had a discussion
with Isaac, and he told me he wanted
the fights to feel like his Undisputed
57
Injured In ActIon
During a ferocious ght on the set of

Ninja II: Shadow of a Tear, Scott Adkins endured more than his share of
pain, but for the real-life martial artist,
that comes with the territory.
When you make as many action
lms as I do, [youre] probably going
to get hurt, he said. If its a normal
drama, you go home and work on
your lines for the next day, then you
come in and work. But when youre
smashing yourself on concrete or
throwing spinning kicks while trying
to raise the bar and do things that
havent been seen, youre sacricing
your body for what you do. Im happy
to do that, but its not easy.
movies and The Raid. When I showed

him the first previews, he went, Nah
it needs to be more Japanese! Once
I understood what he wanted, it was
pretty easy to find the style he was
looking for.
Man meshed well with Florentine on
the set. I think hes amazing, Man said.
Most of the directors Ive seen, [when
they] direct a fight sceneIm talking
about the Western directorsthey basically cover the action. But Isaac is actually directing the action. Hes telling
58
us where the camera is going to come

and how were going to move. Its not
often that you see this.
Producer Frank DeMartini is certain
audiences will be thrilled by what Man
has crafted with his choreography: I
think theyre going to get a good ride
because these fights will be very gritty and stylistic in a way that hasnt been
seen a lot in the martial arts world. For
example, at this point, there is only one
wire stunt in the movie. Everything else
is being done liveits being done for
Star Power
In addition to Adkins, Ninja II stars
Kane Kosugi. The son of famed Japanese martial artist Sho Kosugi (Enter
the Ninja, Revenge of the Ninja, 9 Deaths
of the Ninja), Kane Kosugi grew up costarring in films with his father but became a bona fide martial arts star in Japan.
After I went to Japan and worked for
20 years, ninjas started coming back
with Ninja Assassin (2009) and Isaac
and Scotts Ninja, Kosugi said. I always
wanted to do a ninja movie as an adult
because the first movies I did as a kid
were about ninjas. Its cool to come back
with it.
In Ninja II, Kosugi plays Nakabara,
Caseys martial arts senior. Im kind of
his friend and his mentor, and Ive helped
him through his tough time, he said.
Nakabara has many faces. Hes really
deep. Hes been in the martial arts since
hes been alive, and hes a master. Hes a
good guy on the outside, but deep down,
hes got a lot of layers. Hes interesting.
Florentine, whos wanted to work with
the younger Kosugi for a decade, beamed
as he spoke about him: I knew 100 percent that he would deliver. Hes a rare
combination of someone who has feet on
two continents. Hes American, but hes
lived in Japan for so many years that he
can be Japanese. He can play the Japanese character, but he doesnt have the
baggage of struggling with an accent. He
can up the action, too.
Adkins said hes thrilled to star along-
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Photos Courtesy of Isaac Florentine/Ninja II
real in the vein of a 1970s or 1980s action movie. Hopefully, we can elevate
beyond the first one so that we can
make a third one shortly thereafter.
side Kosugi. I watched Black Eagle a lot

when I was a kid during my Van Damme
fascination, and of course Im a big fan
of his dad Sho, Adkins said. Hes really
got that form, that samurai look about
him, which I struggle at. Im more of a
kickboxerthats my bread and butterso I have to adjust to the Japanese
ninja style. Hes definitely got that.
Beauty of ComBat
Cinematographer Ross Clarkson has
filmed seven of Florentines movies
and worked with some of the greatest
martial arts stars, including Michael Jai
White, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph
Lundgren and, of course, Scott Adkins.
Hes got a huge potential, Clarkson
said about Adkins. He just needs the
right vehicle to blast off.
To ensure that Ninja II is that vehicle,
Clarkson stayed in the middle of the
action day in and day out. Youve got
these guys jumping all over the place
doing really cool stuff, and [you] try to
keep the camera on them while theyre
doing all this, he said. From a cameraoperating point of view, its quite a challenge because theyre quick.
Florentine is confident viewers will
be able to see everything on camera
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
and martial arts fans will be satisfied

by the fights. There will be some nice,
coherent action in this filmaction
that you can see, he said. We emphasize the beauty and the dynamic of the
fighting but not the violence of it. I like
the action to always be clean and coherent because I like to see technique.
Coming from martial arts, I like to see
the beauty of it.
Kosugi appreciated Florentines attention to detail on the set. Isaac is a
martial arts encyclopedia, he said. He
knows what looks good. I havent had
too many opportunities to work with
someone like that.
Hard Core
Ninja II promises to be a throwback to
the days of innocent action, a term
derived from the era when audiences
werent inundated with the mindnumbing special effects and quick-cut
edits that tend to obscure the martial
arts. It aims to please the hardest of the
hard-core fans, as well as recruit new
followers.
The world has seen lots of stuff now,
Kosugi said. They know whats fake
and whats not. They know whats wire
and whats real. Theyve seen so many
action movies that its hard to surprise

them. You dont want to go to the movies and see something youve already
seen. You want to see something that
touches you and surprises you, something that makes you forget your worrieslike with The Expendables. After
all the high-tech computerized stuff, its
nice to go back and see the real thing
again.
Adkins summed up the situation surrounding his latest project: There is a
good time and place for a ninja movie,
[but] youve got to do a ninja movie the
right way. A modern-day ninja movie
is always going to be slightly cheesy.
Its going to be a bit tongue-in-cheek.
I think thats why Im not running
around in the daylight in the ninja suit
for most of the movie. We save the ninja
suit for when its dark and when he
needs to slay people silently.
Theres more to this film than just
the ninja stuff. Youre going to get brilliant fights, and youre going to get the
best people in the business doing what
they love to do.
About the Author:
David J. Moore is a freelance writer. He
traveled to Bangkok for this report.
59
Mass
Attack
Survival
Guide
Maximize Your Chances

of Getting Out Alive!
by Matthew J. NuMrich
Photos by Melissa Miles
60
blackbeltMaG.cOM
When facing multiple attackers,

your most important mission is
to acquire a weapon. It can be
any object that allows you to
strike, cut, blind or otherwise
incapacitate the assailants.
In certain situations, the mere
acquisition of a weapon will
stop the ght, the author says.
f theres one thing that jeet kune

do teaches us, its to train for
every conceivable self-defense
scenario. To that end, we practitioners of Bruce Lees system love to
examine other martial arts and training methods to see if they have ways of
handling situations we havent considered. Every time I do that, Im amazed
at the frequency with which I see people preparing for street defense using
concepts that make success in a mass
attack extremely unlikely.
The main two problems Ive witnessed are as follows: First, many martial artists simply dont train for a mass
attack. They lack knowledge of how
street fights unfold and, therefore, tend
to believe that all real-life altercations
are one-on-one. Consequently, their
training revolves around match fights.
And you cant blame them. For the
past 20 years, that mentality has been
reinforced by the mixed martial arts.
Yes, MMA competition has provided
and continues to provide valuable lessons about fighting, but it also makes
martial artists forget that a self-defense
situation is likely to involve two or
more attackers who are bent on their
victims destruction.
Second, those practitioners who do
prepare for a mass attack often use
strategies that appear to be based on
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
the fights featured in Billy Jack (for

older practitioners) or The Matrix (for
younger ones). In other words, they
switch back and forth between the opponents, and whichever bad guys arent
fighting seem to be frozen in time. Its
risky to assume youll be able to do that
in a fight because one of the universal
characteristics of a mass attack is constant movement. No one just stands in
line, waiting to receive a beating.
The sad truth is, attacks in which two
or three people jump one person are the
norm on the street because its a strategy of cowards. With that in mind, all
martial artists should examine their selfdefense training to see if it addresses
this reality. The good news is, there is a
game plan that can augment your ability,
no matter your art or training regimen.
GAME PLAN
The defensive strategy for dealing with
a mass attack that will give you the
greatest chance of surviving is composed of three steps. Some might argue
that all you need is one step or action,
whatever that might be, but Ive found
that these three will enable you to deal
with any complications that crop up.
Step No. 1: Acquire an equalizer. By
definition, an equalizer is anything you
can pick up and use against your opponentswhether its something you
throw, something you strike with or

something you cut with. This is the single most important action you can take
in a mass attack.
Examples of equalizers include a tire
iron you grab from your trunk, a fistful
of gravel you snatch from the ground
and throw, and a lawn chair you collapse and wield as a weaponanything
that will make the assailants think
twice about continuing. Best-case scenario: Your act of arming yourself will
halt their assault altogether. Of course,
it also could cause them to find weaponswhich is why you must use your
equalizer immediately after you find it.
Step No. 2: Zone around the aggressors. This is also known as stacking. It
entails maneuvering so one of them is
between you and the other(s). This is especially important if youre unable to find
an equalizer. In such a situation, zoning
can give you an opportunity, albeit a short
one, to focus on just one person. Barrage
him with quick and brutal strikes.
If making sure you can focus on just
one attacker is good, it follows that getting stuck in the middle of two or more
attackers is bad. Avoid it at all costs. Despite what you see in movies, you cant
maintain awareness of multiple attackers on opposite sides of your body, and
that means its only a matter of time
before one of them connects.
61
A key component of fending off a mass

attack is zoning, the author says. It entails
maneuvering so one assailant is between
you and the other assailant(s),
Step No. 3: Keep moving. Use continuous footwork to maintain that oneon-one stack, to move in to strike and
to retreat so you can focus on another
threat. While doing that, remember
that the second person (and the third)
wont wait his turn. Make it harder for
him to get to you by staying mobile.
Keeping your strikes direct and to the
point will minimize the time youre
devoting to a single person. Among
the best offensive options are elbow
strikes, jabs and head butts.
Mass-attack Q&a
Experienced martial artists know that
self-defense scenarios have many variableswhich is why I get so many
questions when I teach defense against
a mass attack. Heres the FAQ:
Question No. 1: Should I attack first
or wait for the bad guys to come to me?
After you pick up an equalizer and/or
start your zoning, strike. Its as simple
as that. Waiting for two or more opponents to close the gap will only put you
in a worse position.
Question No. 2: Whom do I zone
around first? The bigger guy? The
smaller guy? The loudmouth?
None of the above. You should zone
around the closer attacker first. Its
easier, and it helps you move through
your game plan more quickly. And its
62
If you nd yourself in the middle of a mass attack

and youre with a loved one, you should position
yourself between that person and the threat,
Matthew J. Numrich says. Then youll need to move
him or her as you maneuver away from danger.
much better than chasing your opponent of choice.

Question No. 3: What happens if I
have a third party with mesuch as a
child?
Thats a tough question. Get in front
of that person and move him or her
with you as you zone. Of course, thats
easy to say but not so easy to do.
Question No. 4: What happens if my
opponents drive me into a corner?
Go after the closest attacker, clinch
with him and attempt to spin until
youre on the outside and hes in the
corner. Your goal is to get out of that position as soon as possibleeven before
you worry about taking the first assailant out of commission.
Question No. 5: What if one or both
attackers have a weapon and I cant get
to one?
This question needs an entire article
to answer. The short version of the solution is to zone around the person who
has a weapon, addressing the highest
priority first. If one attacker has a knife
and the other a stick, zone around the
knife guy first.
My rationale for thisand its backed
up by hours and hours of training with
noncompliant partnersis that I never
want to lose sight of the person with
the more dangerous weapon.
Question No. 6: What happens if
there are three or more attackers?

The good news is that you use the
same game plan, which makes it easy
to train and easy to remember. The bad
news is that going from two attackers
to three or more exponentially increases the threat level.
cONclUsiON
Many martial artists get turned off to
mass-attack training because they participate in drills that fail to build their
confidence. Consequently, they often
lose their motivation to keep it up. Dont
let that happen to you. Its easy to practice what youre good at and to stay away
from what youre not good at, but that
wont improve your self-defense ability.
The key to improvement is to persevere. Practice the fundamentals. Leave
out the wild-and-crazy variables until
you have the basics down pat.
Theres no doubt that the most intelligent way to deal with a mass attack is
to run away. However, you dont always
have that luxury. If you chose to ignore
multiple-assailant scenarios in training,
youre not doing yourself any favors.
About the Author:
A senior full instructor in jeet kune do and the
Filipino martial arts, Matthew J. Numrich is the
founder of Elite Defense Systems. For more
information, visit FearlessStreetFighter.com.
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Weapons Instructor of the Year
Michael D. Echanis
by GreG Walker
he legacy of Michael D. Echanis has been well-documented in Black Beltas recently as the August/September
2013 issue. Nevertheless, some of the facts bear repeating here.
Echanis served in Vietnam as a member of C Company, 75th Ranger
Infantry, and was awarded the Purple Heart, Vietnamese Cross of
Gallantry and Bronze Star for Valor. After suffering a severe wound,
he drew from his cultural heritage as a Basque and his fighting spirit
as a martial artist to engineer a remarkable physical, mental and
emotional recovery despite being rated 100-percent disabled by the
Veterans Administration.
Echanis was the first modern martial artist to introduce the training methods and techniques of the ancient Japanese and Korean
schools of shadow warfare to the U.S. militaryspecifically, the
Army Special Forces and Rangers, the Navy SEALs and the Marine
Corps Force Reconnaissance.
When it came to providing the military with programs that coupled combatives with discipline, Echanis set the bar highand it
has yet to be moved any higher. As charged by the John F. Kennedy
Special Warfare Center and School, Echanis successfully organized
demonstrations of physical and mental prowess designed to show
that his methods for developing the modern American warrior were
working. Much of what he promulgated was based on hwa rang do,
in which he earned a black belt under Joo Bang Lee.
Echanis was a pioneer in the military/paramilitary martial arts,
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Michael D. Echanis Photo Courtesy of Greg Walker
Hall Of Fame
Ronda Rousey Photo by Peter Lueders
and amazingly he achieved that status

while recovering from his battlefield
injuries. His physical limitations never
held him backwitness the feats of
strength and endurance he demonstrated in the pages of Black Belt, all of
which required a hardened body, mind
and spirit. That was just one of the
reasons the Special Warfare community named Echanis the foremost authority and wave of the future where
advanced hand-to-hand training and
conditioning were concerned.
Although Echanis left this planet prematurely, martial artists are fortunate
to have access to his fighting concepts
and techniques. He was the first modern martial artist/military instructor
to write and see published a series of
books describing his philosophies and
training methods. First published by
Black Belt Books in 1977 as the Special
Forces/RangerUDT/SEAL Hand-toHand Combat/Special Weapons/Special
Tactics Series, the texts are still in print,
albeit under a new name: The Complete
Michael D. Echanis Collection.
Perhaps the most important part of
what Echanis practiced, wrote about and
taught involved weapons. His training
encompassed the short stick, the long
stick, and various flexible and edged
weapons. In addition, he was a student
of the crossbow and the gun. The reason
he focused on fighting implements was
the same in the 1970s as it is today:
Weapons make the mission of those who
protect our nation and our way of life
infinitely more likely to succeed.
It was in part because of his familiarity with all types of weapons that Echanis became the only nonactive-duty
Special Warfare warrior to be allowed
to join classified missions. One of these
was a 1977 counter-guerrilla operation in Puerto Rico, where he joined a
company of the 5th Special Forces Group
to provide assistance to the Puerto Rico
National Guard during a period when
terrorists were seeking to destabilize
the country. He was included because of
his acumen with weapons and his combat experience, as well as the esteem
the Special Forces had for him.
Because of his achievements and accomplishments as a warrior, teacher,
martial artist and defender of our nation,
and because of his courage and sacrifice and his everlasting contribution to
the martial arts, Black Belt has named
Michael D. Echanis its 2013 Weapons
Instructor of the Year.
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
MMA Fighter of the Year
Ronda Rousey
by RobeRt W. young
s I prepare to praise the accomplishments of our 2013 MMA

Fighter of the Year, its worth stopping along the way to examine
the selection process. First, the magazine announces the start of
the voting, during which readers and visitors to our social media
sites weigh in on their favorites for each category. As you may have guessed,
Ronda Rouseys name popped up often this year. In fact, it appeared more
often than all the other nominees for this category combined.
The next step has the Black Belt staff evaluating the top choices to
determine if they deserve to be in the running. In most cases, they need
to have accomplished great things in their lifetimes or to have somehow
altered the martial arts paradigm during the past year. In Rouseys case,
both conditions were met.
She was a judo star long before she leveled up to MMA. She won bronze at
the 2008 Olympics, as well as championship titles before and after. And she
bolstered her resume in the past year by doing something no one else has
managed: She built herself into such a star that the UFC had no choice but
to allow womenand herentry into its ranks. Bet you never thought of
Ronda Rousey as a crusader for equal rights!
Shes done far more than that to keep the martial arts in the public eye.
Check out recent issues of magazines devoted to sports or womens fitness,
and youll find shes graced a bunch of covers. Tune in to The Ultimate
Fighter on Fox Sports 1, and youll see her serving as coach. Switch channels
to any of the MMA talk shows on cable, and youre likely to see her in action
or being interviewed. Buy a ticket to The Expendables 3 when it opens in
August 2014, and youll witness her debut on the silver screen.
Rousey has become the face of mixed martial arts, having eclipsed the men
in many respects, and shes certainly the face of womens fight sports. In
fact, shes so popular that we broke our own unwritten rule: These days, we
seldom induct a martial artist into the Black Belt Hall of Fame twice, and we
almost never do it three times. But Ronda Rousey is an exception to many
rules. Shes also Black Belts 2008 Judoka of the Year, 2012 MMA Fighter of
the Year and, as of now, our 2013 MMA Fighter of the Year.
65
Kung Fu Artist of the Year
aymond Horwitz, Black

Belts director of digital
media, wasnt the only
staffer to notice it,
but he was the first to put it into
words: When Wang Bo walked
into the office and started talking, you could feel a sense of calm
emanating from him.
He made that observation the
minute Wang Bo and his students
left the building after their photo
shoot. It wasnt something I was
thinking about when I invited the
martial artist to the shoot, which
yielded a two-parter that was
published in the September and
October 2012 issues, but I had
to admit that I sensed it, too. It
didnt come as much of a surprise,
though, what with Wang Bo
having been educated at Shaolin
Temple.
A rare breed, the fighting monks
of Shaolin are renowned for the
way they meld consummate
combat skill with the inner
peace that comes from living a
life of Zen. Wang Bo embodies
both qualities in a way thats
apparent to anyone. Watch him
kick, punch, movejust watch
him stretch, for that matter!
and youll immediately think of
all the buzzwords we associate
with martial arts mastery: power,
66
by RobeRt W. young
precision, relaxation,
balance, explosiveness and
so on. Hear him speak, and
youll feel like youre Kwai
Chang Caine listening to
Master Po.
Like anyone whos
reached a high level in
a martial art that prizes
more than just the physical
act of fighting, Wang Bo
is a complex combination
of the tangible and the
intangible. As I mentioned,
his kung fu is impeccable,
and his ability to convey
the skills he acquired at
Shaolin is superb. But when
he does so, its clear that
he is at heart a pacifist
and a person who deeply
appreciates the health and
spiritual benefits his art
offers the worldwhich
is why hes doing his best
to spread it to the world,
starting with his Southern
California Shaolin training
center.
In short, Wang Bo is the
kind of instructor we need
more of in the martial arts
community. For all these
reasons, Black Belt has
named him its 2013 Kung
Fu Artist of the Year.
Wang Bo Photo by Robert Reiff
Wang Bo
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Woman of the Year
Diana Lee Inosanto

Instructor of the Year
Vladimir Vasiliev
by RobeRt W. young
Diana Lee Inosanto Photo Courtesy of Diana Lee Inosanto Vladimir Vasiliev Photo by Robert Reiff
f youre a regular reader of Black Belt, you know

all about Vladimir Vasiliev. He appeared on the
cover of the August/September 2013 issue, and
he was featured in numerous articles in the
years prior to that. In case youre new to the magazine,
heres the short version of his life story.
Vasiliev hails from Russia. A veteran of the Russian
special forces, he studied systema under Mikhail Ryabko and became his top student. In 1993 Vasiliev decided to leave his country and settle in Canada, which
is where he founded the first foreign school for what
he calls Russian martial art systema. From his base of
operations in Toronto, Vasiliev started propagating the
art he loves.
Perhaps the most fascinating aspect about Vasiliev,
one that I immediately noticed while interviewing him
for his recent cover story, is that hes about far more
than self-defense efficacy. Hes about using the arts
to promote health, to help people relax and to offer
a path to a more fulfilling life. He sees the big picture
and acts accordinglyand thats refreshing these days.
His organizations website sums up the philosophy
of the man and the martial art: The synergy of three
components creates a true warrior [with] combat skill,
strong spirit and a healthy body.
The systema he teaches is profound and unique, as
much a map of the human condition as a martial art,
Martin Wheeler, a Los Angeles-based instructor under
Vasiliev, said when I asked him about the Russian expat.
[His] skill is off the charts, but the most impressive thing
about him is that hes still learning, still improving and
still growing. Hes humble, sincere and filled with a genuine desire to share his amazing art as if it were a gift.
The staff of the magazine and a large percentage of
Black Belt readers concur. Vladimir Vasiliev has been
named our 2013 Instructor of the Year.
BLACKBELTMAG.COM
by J.t. bingham
ts got to be tough to carve out a place for yourself in the

martial arts community when Dan Inosanto is your father
and Bruce Lee is your godfather. But those who know Diana Lee Inosanto will tell you she isnt one to let anything
hold her back. She long ago decided to live her own life outside
the confines of the world inhabited by her famous father and her
Uncle Bruce. The only reason were talking about her now in
Black Belt is she never let her path through life take her far from
her roots as a martial artist.
What Inosanto did do is parlay her warrior upbringing into a
career that encompassed stunt worka natural extension for
someone whose physique has been honed by jeet kune do. She
branched out into acting, fight choreography and, more recently,
training celebrities for motion pictures. If youve seen Milla
Jovovich in the Resident Evil movies, youve seen the martial arts
handiwork of Inosanto and her husband Ron Balicki.
Inosanto really shines when she wears more than one hat.
Case in point: For 2008s The Sensei, she served as director,
producer and actor. That enabled her to tackle some tough
topics, including bullying, hate crimes and AIDS in the dojo.
Since that critically acclaimed film, shes continued to take on
projects that have her accurately and realistically portraying
the martial arts on the silver screenmost recently, by working
with her husband again to teach kali stick fighting to actor Aaron
Eckhart for his role in I, Frankenstein.
I was always taught that jeet kune do is about self-discovery,
self-expression and freedom[that] it was about learning how
to adapt, how to explore, how to keep an open mind, Inosanto
once said.
Self-expression is exactly what defines her, whether shes
doing glamorous things like choreographing film fights or notso-glamorous things like writing an article for BlackBeltMag.
com about the unsung hero of Tao of Jeet Kune Do: Gilbert
Johnson, the man who brought order to Bruce Lees notes prior
to the books publication and later died from AIDS, which he
contracted during a blood transfusion.
Diana Lee Inosanto continues to devote her time and energy
to influencing and educating the world on the subject of the
martial arts and how they mesh with modern society, and for
that shes Black Belts 2013 Woman of the Year.
67
Learn the
Secrets of
Hand-to-Hand
Combat
From the author of the Armys eld manual on
hand-to-hand combat!
Matt Larsen, with more than 30 years of experience as
an operator and teacher, has brought together military/
combat-based strategies for mastering close-quarters
ght situations in Modern Army Combatives: BattleProven Techniques and Training Methods. Based on
lessons gleaned from battleelds and several martial
arts, and packed with photos, Modern Army Combatives teaches the critical skills of hand-to-hand combat.
The reality-based strategies and techniques in this

book teach:
Critical skills for hand-to-hand combat
The mastery of close-quarters combat and weapon
defense
Battleeld lessons, as told by soldiers in the eld,
applicable to both combat and martial arts training
Larsen started training in the martial arts as a young
Marine infantryman and later joined the Army. Holding
black belts in several martial arts, Larsen eventually
trained the 75th Ranger Regiment in combatives, as
well as close-quarters battle and marksmanship. His
eld manual on hand-to-hand combat led to a training
program for the entire Army. Larsens methods have
revolutionized combatives training and the culture of
the U.S. military. Modern Army Combatives is a musthave for students of self-defense and martial artists
everywhere.
Code: 526 . Pages: 184 . Retail: $18.95

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To order, call toll-free: (800) 581-5222 or visit blackbeltmag.com/army
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Kendo
Subtitled A Comprehensive Guide to Japanese Swordsmanship,
this book comes from Geoff Salmon, a seventh-degree black belt
in the All Japan Kendo Federation. Its chock-full of sketches and
illustrationsbut not photosthat convey the movements and
actions the author describes. Among the topics he covers are
uniforms, gear, footwork, training and techniques. 192 pages,
$16.95
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shadow-Jitsu
What do you get when you mix the exercises that are used to prep practitioners of jiu-jitsu, kickboxing, boxing and wrestling? A workout thats been
dubbed Shadow-Jitsu. Its the brainchild of ex-MMA ghter Joey Alvarado,
who claims that the intense program depicted in Volume 1: Bodyweight
Training will get you into ghting shape fast.
$30, sale price: $19.99

shadow-Jitsu.com
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69
nicolaeS Petter Bio

If the title of this book didnt capture your attention, perhaps
the subtitle will: Wrestler & Wine Merchant, Worlds First SelfDefence Author. Written by Jerome Blanes with a foreword by
Bas Rutten, it tells you everything you need to know about one
of the earliest Western martial arts booksit was published
in 1674 in the Netherlands. Researchers and history buffs will
appreciate this 635-pager.
$36
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Shaolin long FiSt Kung Fu

In Advanced Sequences, Part 2, Nicholas C. Yang, son of Black
Belt Hall of Famer Yang Jwing-Ming, teaches a pair of traditional
sequences (si lu cha quan and si lu ben za) from the Chinese art. It
includes footage of the senior Yang, who speaks about the history
of the sequences. 490 minutes,
$59.95
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Street Smart Samurai

In The Cane Edition, Black Belt Hall of Famers Mark Shuey
Sr. and Dana Abbott tap into the self-defense potential of
the cane using techniques designed for the Japanese sword.
2-DVD set, $39.95, Sale Price: $27.95
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Fight to Win
Martin J. Dougherty presents 20 simple techniques that win any
ght using words and color photos. An instructor with two decades
of experience, he covers the stand-up techniques, takedowns and
grappling moves that work best in a ght. 189 pages,
$16.95
tuttlePuBliShing.com
70
blackbeltMaG.cOM
coMbaT KNife ThrowiNg

Ralph Thorn has collected his best blade lessons for this DVD.
His focus isnt on carnival acts that result in popped balloons; its
on throwing methods that can save your life in dangerous situations. Slow-motion video ensures you see all the ne points of
the art. 100 minutes,
$29.95
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The NiNja MiNd

The subtitle of this new book, Harnessing the Mental Strength
and Physical Abilities of the Ninjutsu Masters, lets you know
what Kevin Keitoshi Casey set out to do when he wrote it. The
author focuses on less-obvious facets of the art such as physical
strength, mental strength, spirit strength and negative emotions.
The foreword was written by Stephen K. Hayes. 159 pages
$14.95
TuTTlepublishiNg.coM
better business
Dojo Nightmares
by Kelly Muir
hen I crave a few hours of

escape from my own reality, I watch Kitchen Nightmares. I cant recall why
that show first caught my attention, but
once I saw an episode, I was compelled
to watch them all. If you arent familiar
with the concept, let me give you some
background. A renowned chef named
Gordon Ramsay travels the country to
help restaurants that are on the edge
of failure. The owners of the establishments have requested his help because
of his track record, and theyre often
exuberant when theyre chosen. Once
he shows up and begins the revival process, however, they tend to become resentful and angry.
Why? Because he tells it like it is. Even
though these businesses are about to
collapsesome are hundreds of thousands of dollars in debtthe owners
resist changing any of the things that
have landed them in trouble.
72
Example: Ramsay frequently suggests a menu overhaul to revive the

enthusiasm of customers. Even though
customers may not enjoy some of the
current dishes, owners are often reluctant to comply. Some reference the old
menu items as tradition, a family recipe or simply a dish thats been offered
for years. Ramsay doesnt care. His response is the same: If it isnt working,
change it. Forget the emotional attachments and the tradition.
That solution, along with other recurring comments such as update the dcor, simplify the menu, change the staff
and clean the place thoroughly, have
prompted me to look at my martial
arts center and ask myself some basic
questions. Here are a few Ive recently
considered:
IS THE DOJO CLEAN? Although most
martial arts schools dont have disgusting and potentially unhealthy condi-
tions, were all guilty of the occasional

cleaning faux pas. Are the mats sanitized regularly? Are there cobwebs in
the corners? Its easy to neglect the
little things when youre focused on
teaching.
Is the environment welcoming?
Ramsay often observes that restaurant owners dont do enough to make
passers-by even notice the building, let
alone walk inside. It could be because
the signage is lacking, the exterior of
the building is run down or the lawn
needs mowing. As he likes to remind
people, excellence begins outside. This
is one I need to focus on.
Is the curriculum relevant? Restaurant owners need to be concerned with
ensuring their menu is current and relevant, and dojo owners need to think
the same way about their curriculum.
In essence, its our menu. When was the
last time you took a hard look at what
youre teaching? Are you keeping up to
date on teaching methods and martial
arts trends? How many journals and
magazines do you subscribe to?
Is your staff composed of the right
people? To answer this question, list
each area of responsibility in your
school, then make another list of the
skills required for the positions. Now
evaluate the people doing those jobs.
Do they have the necessary skills? Are
you providing proper training? Are
you paying them? Forget the days of
volunteer teachers and unpaid frontoffice workers. If people work for you,
get them trained, informed about your
expectations and paid for services rendered.
FINALLY, AND THIS IS THE BIG ONE,
are you willing to hear feedback? Many
of the restaurateurs who appear on
Kitchen Nightmares become defensive
when Ramsay provides constructive
criticism. All business owners, however, should seek to improve their services, and that requires being open to
observations from outsiders.
If we want our industry and our businesses to continue evolving, we must
constantly review our operations, listen to feedback from customers and
take action when necessary. As Kitchen
Nightmares reminds us, its the business owner with an open mind whos
most likely to succeed in this everchanging marketplace.
blackbeltMaG.cOM
Company Spotlight
hether they know it or

not, martial arts film
aficionados owe a debt
of gratitude to Well Go
USA Entertainment. What am I talking
about? Well Go is the distributor for a
plethora of Chinese martial arts films,
including Ip Man (2008), Ip Man 2:
Legend of the Grandmaster (2010) and
Ip Man: The Final Fight (2013). Think
what you want about the efficacy of
wing chun kung fu; the first two movies have been almost universally lauded
within the action-film world. Black Belt
Hall of Famer Donnie Yen brought a stoic intensity to the life story of the wing
chun founder, and his real-life martial
arts skill set made the on-screen battles
even more convincing.
The reason Im writing about Well Go
here is the company is ramping up for
the November 12, 2013, DVD/Blu-ray
release of Final Fight, which played in
theaters in September. It boasts a new
star named Anthony Wong. Wong is a
bit older than Yen, but thats rather appropriate, seeing how the Ip in Final
74
Fight is more mature than he was in the

first two movies.
Anthony Wong truly drives the film
as an elderly martial arts grandmaster who, despite adapting to the time,
sticks to his philosophy of his passion
of martial arts, said Albert Valentin of
KungFuCinema.com. Definitely a must
see.
Deborah Young of The Hollywood Reporter also gave Final Fight, which is
rated PG-13 for its martial arts action, a
thumbs-up: [It] nostalgically taps into
Hong Kong cinema of yesteryear, while
still delivering considerable excitement
in the fight scenes.
In addition to its honorable-martialartists-vs.-the-Hong-Kong-triads storyline, the third entry in the series addresses Ips later years in the British
colony. After the death of his wife, the
master courts a young singerand upsets his closest students. Ip also seeks
to improve his relationship with his
son and weighs in on the success of his
most famous follower, Bruce Lee.
Final Fight is directed by Herman Yau,
by J. Torres
who helmed 2010s The Legend Is Born:

Ip Man (a different series of films). In
addition to Wong in the title role, Final
Fight stars Eric Tsang, Jordan Chan, Gillian Chung, Marvel Chow, Anita Yuen,
Xiong Xin-xin and Wong Cho-lam.
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REVISITED AND EXPANDED

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MORE THAN 30 YEARS!
U.S. Postal Service

Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation
TAO JEET KUNE DO
(Required by 39 U.S.C. 3685)
OF
1. Title of publication: Black Belt

2. Publication number: 0277-3066
NEW EXPANDED EDITION
BRUCE LEE
3. Date of filing: September 12, 2013

4. Frequency of issue: Bimonthly
ORDER YOURS
TODAY!
5. Number of issues published annually: 6

6. Annual subscription price: $28.00
7. Location of known office of publication: Black Belt
Communications Inc., 475 Sansome St., Ste. 850, San
Francisco, CA 94111
8. Location of headquarters or general business offices at
publishers: 24900 Anza Dr., Unit E, Valencia, CA 91355
9. Names and complete address of publisher, editor and
managing editor
Publisher: Cheryl Angelheart, 24900 Anza Dr., Unit E,
Valencia, CA 91355
Editor: Robert W. Young, 24900 Anza Dr., Unit E,
Valencia, CA 91355
BLACK BELT
ThE FirsT 100 issuEs
Covers and highlights 1961-1972
BRUCE LEES MOST

INFLUENTIAL BOOK!
Explore the philosophy behind Bruce
Lees martial art with digitally enhanced
illustrations by Bruce Lee, never-beforeseen Chinese translations, and editorial
commentaries by many of Bruce Lees
closest friends and colleagues, including:
Chris Kent
Jerry Poteet
Diana Lee Inosanto
Tim Tackett
Richard Bustillo
Yori Nakamura
Thirty-seven years after its initial
publication, Tao of Jeet Kune Do continues
to provide the rare opportunity to learn
directly from Bruce Leeone of the most
celebrated and inspirational gures in
martial arts history.
Jeet Kune Do is the enlightenment.

It is a way of life, a movement toward
willpower and control.
Bruce Lee
Pages: 248 Code: 524 Retail: $26.95
ISBN: 978-0-89750-202-3
To order, call toll-free: (800) 581-5222
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Black Belt: The First 100

Issues (Covers and Highlights
1961-1972) celebrates
the genesis of one of the
longest-running and most
inuential sports magazines
ever in a large-format,
softcover, color coffee-table
book. As a commemorative
compilation of Black Belt
magazines industry-dening material, it features the
cover art and content highlights of the rst 100 issues.
Cover photographs and illustrations include such martial
arts luminaries as Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Mas Oyama,
Joe Lewis, Gene LeBell as well as celebrity practitioners
like Sean Connery and Toshiro Mifune. 208 pgs.
(ISBN-13: 978-0-89750-173-6)
Book Code 499Retail $9.99
To order, call (800) 581-5222 or

visit www.blackbeltmag.com/shop
CHINESE
GUNG FU
The Philosophical Art of Self-Defense
(Revised and Updated)
by Bruce Lee
Black Belt Books new
edition of Chinese Gung
Fu: The Philosophical Art of
Self-Defense gives martial
arts enthusiasts and collectors
exactly what they want: more
Bruce Lee. In addition to the
masters insightful explanations
on gung fu, this sleek book
features digitally enhanced
photography, previously unpublished pictures with Lees
original handwritten notes, a brand-new front and back
cover, and introductions by widow Linda Lee Cadwell
and daughter Shannon Lee. Fully illustrated. 112 pgs.
(ISBN-13: 978-0-89750-112-5)
Book Code 451Retail $12.95
To order, call (800) 581-5222 or visit

blackbeltmag.com/shop
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October/November 2013
15. Extent and nature of circulation:
Average No. of copies
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during preceding
12 months
A. Total No. of copies printed
No. of copies
of single issue
published nearest
to filing date.
43,307
45,795
21,299
21,452
B. Paid circulation
1. Mail subscription
3. Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors

and counter sales
5,325
5,219
C. Total paid circulation
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D. Free distribution by mail, carrier or other means,

samples, complimentary and other free copies
3. Other classes mailed through
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221
4. Free distribution outside

the mail
608
E. Total free distribution
829
1,526
27,453
28,197
G. Copies not distributed
15,854
17,598
H. Total
43,307
F. Total distribution
I. Percent paid and/or requested 96.98%
1,305
45,795
94.59%
17. I certify that the statements made by me above are correct

and complete.
Circulation Director: Jenny Desjean
Date: September 12, 2013
For completion by publishers mailing at the regular rates (Section
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in pertinent part: No person who would have been entitled
to mail matter under former section 4359 of this title shall
mail such matter at the rates provided under this subsection
unless he files annually with the Postal Service a written
request for permission to mail matter at such rates. In accordance with the provisions of this statute, I hereby request
permission to mail the publication named in item 1 at the
phased postage rates presently authorized by 39 U.S.C.
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Jenny Desjean
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WINNING
ON
THE
GROUND
TRAINING AND TECHNIQUES FOR JUDO AND MMA FIGHTERS
The New Book by Dr. AnnMaria De Mars and James Pedro Sr.
Featuring Ronda Rousey and Kayla Harrison

In WINNING ON THE GROUND: Training and Techniques for Judo and MMA Fighters, Dr. AnnMaria De Mars,
1984 world judo champion, and James Pedro Sr., coach of international judo medalists, present a variety
of techniques developed over the years. Their coaching has helped such winners in the worlds of judo and
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highest levels of competition. Winning on the Ground demonstrates that you can overcome your opponent,
even from a position that may seem hopeless. The key is in training for various scenarios.
Winning on the Ground includes the following:

six secrets to better mat work
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coaching tips from the authors
a dozen quick ways to gain an
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how to do the perfect armbar
and half nelson
smarter training: drills for connecting
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Code: 527
Pages: 200
Retail: $18.95
ISBN: 978-0-89750-205-4
To order, call toll-free: (800) 581-5222 or visit blackbeltmag.com/winning
From
the
rchives
Vol. 15, No. 3, $1
The 159th issue of Black Belt

was dated March 1977. It was
84 pages long and featured
silhouettes of two unidentified
martial artists on the cover.
Serendipity strikes again: Jim Arvanitis, the

martial artist who wrote this issues story about the
expandable baton, is featured in Massad F. Ayoobs
Jim Arvanitis and the Five Phases of Mu Tau.
Tadashi Nakamura withdraws from Mas Oyamas
International Kyokushinkai organization. His new
group will be called Seido Karate.
Why was Zen so important to the samurai? Zen is
a system which teaches [one] not to look backward
once the course is decided upon, says Dr. George
Parulski, author of A Path to Oriental Wisdom.
Hayward Nishioka notes that American judoka are
being held back by their propensity to focus on the
stand-up aspects of the grappling art: Very few of
our competitors take advantage of the benefits that
may be had in mat work. The emphasis in U.S. judo
has lopsidedly been in favor of tachi waza (standing
techniques or throws).
Shoshin Nagamine, an authority in matsubayashi
shorin-ryu karate, embarks on a good-will tour of the
United States.
The discipline of coordinating body and mind
that is the truth of the martial arts. So says Howard
Lee, choy li fut instructor.
The World Taekwondo Federation in Seoul, South
Korea, starts its own magazine. Its titled, naturally
enough, World Taekwondo.
82
Black Belt reports on the Aspen Academy of Martial

Arts, the renowned facility in Colorado founded by
tai chi chuan master Marshall Hoo.
Heard of zurkhaneh? Apparently, it means house
of strength. The term is used to refer to a school of
Persian martial arts. A Black Belt writer provides all
the details.
Taekwondo pioneer Jhoon Rhee creates the World
Black Belt League.
You can buy a katana sword with a hilt of antique
silver metal in fine relief for $111.95. The blade is
reportedly tempered steel.
Black Belt profiles the Simba Dojang, reputedly
the winningest martial arts school in Washington,
D.C. Founded by Phil Cunningham and Furman
Marshall, it teaches taekwondo. Our students are
very poor, Cunningham says. They dont usually
have tournament fees, so we pool our funds and then
decide who will represent us.
A reader from San Francisco takes Black Belt to
task because of what he perceives as overly violent
cover images. To illustrate his point, he mentions the
October 1976 issue of World Karate, which he says
depicts a grisly murder scene on its cover. Were
not sure of the connection there, but OK.
(Note: Back issues are not for sale. To purchase a hard copy of the
cover of this issue or any other, visit facebook.com/BlackBeltMagazine
and click Cover Reprints at the top of the page.)
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