Promoted in Kempo

Shorin Ryu Karate patch
Shorin Ryu Karate patch
Shorin Ryu Karate patch

Shorin Ryu Karate patch

I was recently promoted to shodan (1st degree black belt) in Matsumura Shorin-Ryu Kempo, which is a style of karate that comes from Okinawa, Japan. This is old-school karate, the source of most modern karate. It’s a mixed style, with some hard and some soft elements. The bunkai, or fighting applications, remind me of Southeast Asian arts.

I’ve also recently taken up Jeet Kune Do, the system of fighting principles developed by Bruce Lee. Although Hapkido is my core art, and Silat is my second, I find that studying a diversity of styles helps me to see the universality of martial principles. Still, I stick to styles that are thematically or stylistically similar. I move in a certain k ind of way and I’m not interested in changing that, just improving it and adding tools to my arsenal.

I continue to teach two Hapkido & Silat classes per week in Fresno.

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