Archived News Items
2010 Derek Awarded Duan Wei - New Brown Sashes - Black Sash Success - Summer Course 10 - John Russell 10 - Gradings
2009 Master Yau 09 - Chen Training Course - John Russell Course and Xmas Demo
2008 John Russell Course - Master Yau 08 - Summer Training Course 08 - John Russell Course
2007 BVMA In The Press - Club Grading - Charity Runner - Jason Crabtree Training Course
2006 Master Yau 06 - Grading 2006 - Summer Training Course 06 - Club Demo - The Rumble - End Of Year Grading
2005 Best Of The Best 2005 - Master Yau Course 05 - Morag Quirk Training Course - Site Name Change - China Trip - Club Demo - Summer Training Course 05
2004 Summer Training Course 2004
Following gradings held at the Master Yau course in Wexford at the end of March, Derek last Thursday presented sashes to all of those who passed their gradings. Its been a pretty momentus start to the year with the clubs celebrating their 8th birthday and having two new black sashes brings the total number in the clubs now to 7 - 2 x First Degree, 3 x Second Degree, 1 x Third Degree and 1 x Fourth Degree. Given it takes at least 6 years of continual training to gain a black sash this is a very high number and testament to the level of instruction in our clubs and to the dedication of everyone involved, so well done everyone.
Our new 1st Degree Black sashes (Catriona and Frank) have been training almost since the start of the club and underwent a physically and mentally gruelling grading, conducted entirely in Chinese under the crtical gaze of Master Yau. The grading takes about an hour and Master Yau can ask the participants anything from the syallbus. Ian, John and Stephen received their 2nd Degree Black Sash and Niall received his 3rd Degree Black Sash. Special mention goes to Catriona who is the first female to grade to Black Sash level in Ireland for over 30 years.
Its been a hectic end to 2010 with Derek holding gradings in all of the clubs over the last few weeks. The standard, as usual, was very high amongst both the adults and especially the kids who graded in front of their parents and all of the hard work put in over the year has really paid off and was evident at each of the grading so well done to all.
Special mention goes to Laura Wallce who passed her Brown sash grading, held recently in Wexford. The grading, conducted in chinese, was taken by head of Lau Gar Ireland and Guardian of Lau Gar, Bobby O'Neill and Laura did extremely well. Laura is only 14 and has been training in the Navan club almost since it opened, starting off with the juniors class before moving up to the senior class about two years ago. Well done Laura!
John Russell training course - 16th/17th October 2010
Another cracking weekend of training with John Russell, but dont take my word for it, see below for a review of the weekend from one of the Drogheda club members, who following a death threat, shall remain nameless.
John Russell, Guardian of Lau Gar and 7th Degree Black Sash, came to Ireland this weekend to give a two day training session, hosted by Boyne Valley Martial Arts. We had a great turnout from all clubs and the venue this time was the Drogheda club at the community hall in Ballsgrove. The course was attended by 25+ members from all of the BVMA clubs, and a few of our UCD cousins with a very broad range of grades present, from non-graded students right up to 3rd degree black sash.
On Saturday the session began with a gentle warm up of squats and stretches. As always, the weekend had a particular theme, and for this weekend we were focusing on the Nineteen Key Words of Lau Gar. These were broken down over the course of the weekend by John, and some of the concepts we learned were shaking, steal, leak, springing, stamping, dragging. While working with partners we got to explore the practical applications of these techniques, each taking turns as the attacker/defender. John gave great guidance and took time with all of us to help us work on our techniques individually.
Sunday’s class began with the same theme of squats and stretches, and after a recap of what we had learned already we moved on to further explore the system. We learned today how to use chopping, slicing, spitting, piercing techniques amongst many, and how to apply these short range movements in practical applications. Things got rather lively when we were all required to practice our newly learned techniques, in particular ‘huen’ which means circle or encircle, to defend ourselves, which resulted in most of us getting ‘dumped’ on the floor at some point. There was a tremendous amount of information to be gleaned from this weekend, and thankfully we were given handouts to take away which will help with our learning.
As always Johns class was extremely enjoyable and hopefully everyone found something to take away on the day.
Thanks to ,ahem, Anon, for the review!
Another summer course and yet again some members of the various BVMA clubs made the trip to the UK. This year the old hands were Derek, Niall, Catriona, Simon, Andy, Darren, Martin and in the tradition of always having a summer course novice with us, Warrick made his first summer course trip. The course this year was held in the Welsh Riviera town of Llandudno, North Wales. It's 5 years since the course was last held here and those of us who attended back than had grins/grimaces as we knew what the early morning runs held...The Great Orme...more on that later.
First things first...huge thanks from all of us to Simon and Warrick who were our own personal chauffeurs for the week often leaving themselves long walks from the parking spots to our accommodation and never complaining...much ;). Seriously though, a heartfelt thanks from us all to you both boys.
Our early morning rendezvous at Dublin port for the quick ferry ride to Wales was good practice for the week that was to come as each morning required us to meet at 7am for a quick run up and around the aforementioned Great Orme. Sifu once again excelled in his choice of accomodation as it was right beside where most of the early morning runs started, meaning we weren't already knackered by the time the run started, well played that man. Fortunately the first mornings run started from the car park at the top but as the week progressed the runs grew progressively more difficult as you had to run up the Orme first before you could run around it and trust me...it's ridiculously steep! However, there was also the option of Tai Chi or a good bracing walk which by the end of the week most of us were partaking in. Don't for a second think were taking it easy, on the last day we walked 8Km along the cliffs with some steep inclines in under an hour.
Following breakfast back at the B&B, training each day took place from 10am - 2pm and consisted of a gentle warm up, some stance training, syllabus work, kicking techniques, walking techniques, a yoga based cool down routine, shaolin stamping and meditation. There was as usual a theme to the week and this year it was a new set based on the movements of the 5 Animals namely - Leopard (Pau), Tiger (Fu), Snake (Se), Dragon (Lung) and Crane (Hok). At the end of the week the team had to demonstrate the entire set with each portion linked into the next and just to make things awkward, in a different order to the one we learned it! So, cue a long Friday afternoon after training in which we drilled the set, then drilled it again and then for good measure we drilled it again. However the hard work definitely paid off and it was clear to see the effort that we had put in when we did the demo on the Saturday, so well done all. On the last day we all recieved our certs and Warrick having completed a tough week of training was upgraded from Orange to Green sash and received his cert from Master Yau.
The mid-week BBQ was organised this year by the Welsh crew and they provided a super feed in a great location so well done and thanks!!
The week was over all too quick but the good news is that the course is in Llandudno again next year, its a great weeks training, you'll meet some old friends from the BKFA and make some new ones so start saving folks.
Paul Receives his Black Sash and Grading Certificate
Paul Granger received his certificate and Black Sash from Derek tonight. Its been a long wait for Paul who started training back in 1987 in the UK where he reached brown sash. Paul has been training for a little under two years with BVMA and despite a very long commute he has put in a huge effort to train before finally grading for his 1st Degree Black Sash back in March of this year. Well done Paul!!
Huge congrats go to Frank and Catriona from the Navan club who recently underwent a gruelling session in Wexford while grading for their Brown Sash. Both of the guys have put in a huge amount of hard work over the last few months and it was evident in the standard that they produced on the day.
Derek awarded a 5th Duan Wei by the Chinese Wushu Association
Sifu Dawson was recently awarded a 5th duan Wei at a grading held by the The Chinese Wushu Association, held in Dublin. Until very recently, no grading system existed but now there is a central grading system in China, called Duan Wei. The Duan Wei is similar system to our own Black Sash system, the highest grade being 9th Duan Wei.
Duan Wei 1 to 3 are lower range grading and normally awarded to dedicated students (usually those holding Black Sash and above in Lau Gar)
Duan Wei 4 to 6 are the intermediate range grading and normally awarded to those of high levels; - skilled Martial Artists who have been instructors or professionals for years.
Duan Wei 7 to 9 is the advanced range grading and normally awarded to those people who are experts in the Martial Arts field with high respect, well known reputations and have contributed greatly to the development of Chinese Martial Arts.
Some of the tasks of the Chinese Wushu Association which manages the sport of Wushu (martial arts) on a national scale in China are:
* to inherit, study and develop the legacy of Chinese martial arts
* to select elite athletes and evaluate coaches and judges
* to organize martial arts competition on a national scale
The connection between the BKFA/Lau Gar Ireland and the Chinese Wushu Association will help to establish Lau Gar on an International scale, particularly as Master Yau himself now sits on the grading examination panel (no pressure there then!!). There were a number of other Lau Gar Ireland members who took the examination and all passed their Duan Wei so congrats to all.
John Russell Course & Christmas Demo 2009
Guardian of Lau Gar, 7th Degree Black Sash John Russell visited our clubs recently and gave a 3 hour lesson on Chi Sau or pushing/sticking hands. The course was very well attended with students from all clubs present and all grades were represented. As always Johns class was extremely enjoyable and hopefully everyone found something to take away on the day.
To celebrate the end of another years hard training Derek and some of the senior students gave a small demonstration at the final kids class in Navan on Thursday 17th December. There were sets, self defence applications, weapons sets (sword and staff), wood breaking, the chin na form from the 2007 Llandudno summer course, a sparring demo from some of the kids, the dual man form from this years summer course and even some shaolin stamping to boot! Derek also gave some awesome demonstrations of chi kung and ging. Finally, all of the kids and adults who graded in the last few weeks were presented with their sashes and certs. Well done everyone, as commented on by John, your hard work is paying off and hopefully the clubs will continue to go from strength to strength in 2010. Enjoy the short break because we'll be back training hard again very soon!
Chen Training Course - June 2009
Derek recently hosted a training course led by Master Liming Yue in the Chen 12 Step Form. The training was spread over two days and was thouroughly enjoyed by all who attended. Master Liming was impressed by the level of Kung Fu demonstarted by the club members and this allowed him to accelerate the learning to a little bit more of an advanced level. Hopefully Master Liming will be returning to Ireland again soon and I'm sure those in attendance will be training with him again.
Master Yau Course 2009 - Black Sash grading successes
When Derek first opened the Navan club he stated that it should take 6 years to attain a black sash grade. Exactly 6 years and 1 week later, 3 of the original students Ian Lafford, John Hughes and Stephen McDowell stood in front of Master Yau to grade for 1st Degree Black Sash. The guys have trained at least twice a week for the last 6 years, often training 3 times a week and have worked extremely hard which was evident over the course of the hour or so that the grading took place. The grading is carried out in Chinese and Master Yau can ask for any technique from the syllabus, in any order. It is a physically and mentally draining test and the guys did amzingly well. Niall Whyte also graded sucessfully for his 2nd Degree Black Sash. We'd all like to Derek for his guidance over the last few years in preparing us for these gradings.
Training began on Saturday with a brief warm up consisting of the Shanghai 8 Brocades before Master Yau took us through some of the techniques used in the "5 Animals" of Lau Gar, namely Snake, Crane, Dragon, Leopard and Tiger. As well as the techniques themselves Master Yau really impressed on the need to incorporate the spirit of these animals into the movements as without thought and meaning, there are exactly just that...movements.
Having trained some of these techniques Master Yau then led us in some Jarm Jong before hosting a brief Q&A session.
Following training on Saturday there was a Chinese meal in Wexford town.
Sundays training took a similar vein from Saturday continuing with the 5 animals techniques and finishing up a Tai Chi sequence and once again a Q&A session
John Russell Course - November 2008
John Russell, Guardian of Lau Gar (and the systems only 7th Degree Black sash to boot!), paid his second visit of 2008 to the BVMA clubs. John has an extremely busy schedule of teaching in the UK so it was a real coup to get him here twice in one year. The course was well attended by members of all clubs and all grades and we also had a few of our Wexford and UCD cousins in attendance.
The weekend started off on Friday night up at the hall in Kilskyre with an intensive syllabus session with a number of the senior students. John spent a couple of hours going through all of the sets up to and including Black Sash with a fine toothcomb and was a class that was really enjoyed by all.
Saturday started off with a gentle warm up followed by several stance training routines to get the blood flowing. Following on from there we went into some ging training routines and then came part 1 of the weekends learning theme, the Chin Na routine. Some of us had learned this Llandudno a few years back but John added a new twist by incorporating some of the key movements (8 powers) from this years summer course into the routine. A short break followed by some syllabus work came next and we ended the day with some floor stretching and finished off with some Jam Jong.
Sunday followed in much the same vein as Saturday with warm, stance routines and some ging training and we then finished off the rest of the Chin Na set. John then took us through some routines which built up into part of the "Buddha Palm" set which worked both mind and body. once again John took some time to go through some syllabus with all present before finishing the day with some standing meditation (Jam Jong).
"Get the boat..Pat Rafter" - you'd need to have been there
After a hiatus in 2007 the annual "Pindar Pilgrimage" was undertaken by another 7 hardy souls from the various BVMA clubs. Once again the location for the summer course was the Yorkshire seaside resort and Lau Gars summer mecca, Scarborough. Having learned our lesson from previous years, our digs location was conveniently situated mid way beytween the two main starting points of the morning runs...clever eh??
Fortunately, there was no run on the Sunday morning so we had the luxury (?) of a lie in as training didn't start until 10am. Once the formailities of registration were completed we were straight into the main business of the week, training, under the watchful eyes of Master Yau, John Russell, Morag Quirk and a host of other Guardians. As usual, and as was about to be discovered by the newcomers, we were about to spend the next week being pushed both physically and mentally.
Heres a quick breakdown of how our days went.
Hour 1 - taken up with a gentle warm up including body swinging, Bac Ging Kung (8 brocade exercises) and stance training. This part of the course was lead by John and Morag.
Hour 2 - comprised of the weeks "special learning element" - the "8 treasures". This section was lead by John. I won't go into the details here as it is quite a cerebral thing, but I'm sure everyone who completed the week has a much better understanding of their Kung Fu. There was also a knife defence element during this hour.
Hour 3 - syllabus. Each grading group was split up and spent time working on their syllabus, either with another instructor, on their own or with Master Yau
Hour 4 - kicking techniques, stance training, dynamic stretching and meditation. The final hour was taken up with us warming up again kicking techniques (under Guardian Andy Nations guidance), more stance work (with Guardian Keith Thomas), dynamic Stretching (lead by Morag Quirk) and finally Jam Jong (lead by John/Morag)
Oh yeah....also in Hour 4, I forgot Shaolin Stamping, we started at 30 on day 1 and finished the end of the week on 100...tiring but also exhilarating, by the final day you'd happily do another 100....well, maybe 50...or 20 at least!!! And in case you think meditation sounds easy...try standing STOCK STILL for 15/20 minutes, its a lot more physically and mentally demanding than you may think.
Coupled with all of the above we also had the early morning runs, starting on the Monday with a leisurely 3 mile trot but by the Friday this had extended to approximately 7 miles!!
The final days training was a little more relaxed but we had been asked to come up with a few self defence moves over the course of the week and demonstrate these. Not only that, but John had also asked us to identify some of the principles we had learned from the special theme section of this years course...not as easy as it seems but John and Master Yau seemed pleased with the efforts we came up with and the explanations we provided, at least we drew a few oohs and ahhs from the crowd anyway!
It wasn't all work work work (for some at least!). The traditional Wednesday bbq at the Arosa caravan park in nearby Seamer was pending and this year "Team Boyne Valley" (with the able and very kind assistance of Sifu Stuart Agars) were nominated (should read ambushed!) to run the show. Undaunted we launched into our challenge with gusto and by 5pm on Wednesday we were well into the task with Niall on the grill, Mary running the vegetarian grill, Derek and Stu in the kitchen, Catriona running front of house and the two Stephens acting as KP's!
It was kinda difficult to tell but everyone looked well fed and happy and I managed not to poison anyone despite a shaky start with the sausages and happily the hairs on my arms have grown back although it was touch and go there for a while! A tip for next years bbq team.....get full arm length oven gloves, you'll thank me for this!
There was also a social gathering on the friday evening and once again "Team Boyne Valley" were tasked with organising this. By happy coincidence this gathering was held in our "local"..funny that. It was a good chance to mix with the guys and gals from training and compare war wounds and training stories and we regaled each other with these stories well into the night.
By the time the week had ended we were already planning for next years visit and as any of this years newbies will tell you it's a trip well worth making, irrespective of your grade. Roll on Scarborough 2009!!
Another year and another 15+ students from the various BVMA clubs made the quick trip to Wexford to train with Master Yau at his annual training course in Ireland. As stated before it is a rare opportunity to train with Master Yau and it is one that is certainly appreciated.
Saturdays training consisted of the 8 Brocades led by Sifu Pete Hornby followed by some basic kicks and stance routines from Master Yau. The main body of the day was spent practicing conditioning techniques which left even some of the more experienced attendees feeling a little tender afterwards, but this was soon quelled following our group dinner in a local chinese restaraunt.
Sundays training mirrored that of saturdays but the main thrust of the day was spent learning some sticking hands and pushing hands techniques before finishing with some Jarm Jong meditation.
As usual Master Yau readily answered any and all questions thrown at him and we're already looking forward to his visit next year.
On the weekend of 1st/2nd March as part of its 5th Anniversary celebrations Boyne Valley Martial Arts hosted a course delivered by John Russell, Guardian of Lau Gar and the only 7th degree Black Sash. Students from all of the BVMA clubs including some juniors were in attendance and all grade levels from White sash through to Black took part in the training.
John is no stranger to many of the club members who have travelled to the annual summer training course in the UK and so the weekends training was eagerly anticipated when John announced that the format would be that of a “mini summer course”….those of us that had been there before had a small grin on our faces…at least we knew what was coming!!!
Both days started off with a brief warm up, squats followed by the “Eight Brocade” sequence and then we were down to business. John then took the group through a stance training routine which tested the legs and then followed this up with some “ging” training.
As with the summer course there was a special learning element to the weekend and we were very fortunate to have John teach us the Dual Man Form (Quan Zhuang Dui Chai). This form is a series of about 30 movements practiced with a partner in which both sides act as aggressor/defender through out the set.
Both days then finished off with some floor work including escapes from locks and chokes and some kicking combinations. Mini summer course or not, more than a few of us had that old dull ache of in our leg muscles by the end of the weekend…probably a timely reminder that this years summer training is fast approaching.
John then took some time on the Sunday to do some extra training with the black sash students instructing them on the weapons forms for their next gradings.
On the closing day John, on behalf of the students, very kindly presented Derek with a small plaque commemorating the 5th birthday of the clubs.
Wexford Lau Gar recently hosted a course delivered by Guardian of Lau Gar Jason Crabtree. Jason is a regular visitor to Ireland and his classes are always extremely enjoyable. Derek and students from the Navan club, Niall Whyte and Frank Burton, attended the days training and Frank has once again pen to paper to describe the day!
Following a leisurely cruise down to Wexford early Sunday morning, and a brief scenic tour of this old garrison town prior to establishing exactly where the training hall was exactly, we began a very enjoyable 4hrs of training with Jason Crabtree Guardian of Lau Gar.
The session commenced with a short and relaxed warm up, followed by two hours of stick training encompassing:
- various attacks and blocks,
- blocking and locking your attacker,
- unarmed defence against your attacker.
This was most enjoyable and served to build on the sets that Derek has taught us at the monthly Sunday session. After a brief water stop we then progressed into some sticking hands exercises, leading of course into locking your partner. From a personal point of view – and a wonderful example of not being able to see the wood from the trees, Jason’s explanation of some of the simple moves and techniques tying back into kay bon sau fa and jorn sau really struck a cord and the importance of not just knowing these sets for grading purposes but being able to understand and feel their flow in daily Kung fu hit home like a ging loaded punch!
At this point in the session it was time now for some Chi Gung and for Jason to spend some time focusing on the senior students. I sat this one out and was very content to sit back and watch as Derek and Niall went through the Two Man Stick set from the 3 rd Sash syllabus.
All in all it was a very enjoyable and valuable experience – one I would certainly recommend to others when Jason is next in the country.
Frank Burton, our intrepid roving reporter from the Navan club, recently competed in a charity 10Km run. Apart from finishing the race in a highly commendable 58 minutes Frank also raised in excess of €1000 for charity. Well done mate!
Congrats to all who successfully graded at the recent sunday session in Dunshaughlin. All clubs were represented with new sashes from White through to Green being graded for. As usual the standard was execellent but remember, after recieving your sash the work only gets harder so keep at it!
Thanks to some sterling work by our roving reporter Frank, Boyne Valley Martial Arts clubs were recently featured in the Meath Chronicle. For those of you who havent seen the article (SHAME!!!!!!) you can find a copy of it here. This sort of advertisement of our clubs and our art is vital if we are to keep growing so if you know of anybody who works in TV our press who can raise our profile then bring your presence to bear on them!
Competition season starts soon and theres plenty of sparring being done at all of the Boyne Valley Martial Arts clubs so remember to bring your sparring gear with you to every session. If you need it, equipment is available from Derek, usually of higher quality and cheaper than what you'd pay for the same in the shops.
Dont forget....NO GUMSHIELD.....NO SPARRING
Also, Stephen McDowell from the Navan club was recently featured in a trade magazine and gave an interview in which he clearly attributes his current success and happiness in life to his training. Read the article here. You'll need Adobe Reader to view the document, available as a free download from www.adobe.com
Well done to all the members who passed their gradings recently. As usual the standard was extremely high which is testament to the amount of work put in by everyone. Special mention goes to Ian, John and Stephen from the Navan club who passed their gradings for purple sash. The grading for purple sash is the first taken by Bobby O'Neill, head of Lau Gar Ireland and a Guardian of Lau Gar Kung Fu. It is an intimidating test of the skills and knowledge the guys have learned in the years they've been with the club so well done to the lads.
Boyne Valley Martial Arts members took part in the annual Rumble in Leixlip this past Sunday. Despite the fact that it was the first fight for all but one of the crew everyone acquited themselves very well, especially as the standard at this competition was extremely high, several medals were brought home so well done all! Frank, our roving club reporter has once again kindly put pen to paper.
Sunday last saw an entire team from BoyneValleyMartialArts enter their first ever tournament – and come away with a fistful of Medals. Our entry team consisted of Katie “No Fear” McGinley, Christopher “No Remorse” Dempsey, Frank “No Food?” Burton, Darren “No Bother Bosco” Masters and Dermot “Bring’em Back Alive” O’ Buachaille. All with the exception of “Bring’em Back Alive” (BBA) fought in the Points rounds whilst BBA went into the Continuous category.
Katie fought two tough fights and demonstrated that her kick certainly has potential, winning her 3rd Place in her category.
Next up was Christopher, who decisively stopped his opponent in his first ever fight, before being narrowly defeated in his second.
Frank lost his competition debut in the quarter finals – according to “No Food”, “all was going really well apart from this guy in the ring who kept kicking me before I punched him …..”!
No such worries for Darren. Having disposed of his quarter final opponent with one punch and a nasty fall, he went on win a much deserved 3rd Place.
Finally, and the precursor to the Rumble ….. “Bring’em Back Alive” fought some tough and gruelling bouts to come away with 2nd Place in his category. “Light Contact” is a term loosely used when referring to BBA’s fights and they were not for the faint hearted.
So, well done to all – it was an enjoyable learning experience and hopefully will sharpen your skills for future tournaments.
From the fighter’s corner – we would like to thank those from the club who turned up to voice their much appreciated support, – also a thanks to Niall and Derek for giving up their Sunday and free time.
As for the Rumble …… The event certainly lived up to its name……especially if you sat near our 84KG + entrants at 4:30pm, no-one within a 5 meter radius holding with a Mars Bar, Sandwich or packet of crisps was safe! There was more belly rumbling than at this year’s National Belly Dancing convention!!
Ratoath Club Demonstration 9th September
in glorious September sunshine members from all of the Boyne Valley Martial Arts clubs gave a superb demonstration of Lau Gar Kung Fu to celebrate the official opening of Ratoath community.
Our demo was much anticipated throughout the day and this was proved by the large crowd that was present despite a very long delay in getting started. Students from all of the clubs gave a display of some simple self defence moves, various hand and kick blocks and sets from the Lau Gar syllabus, an improvised weapons sequence, the Chin Na sequence from last years summer course and some wood breaking. There were plenty of "ooohs" and "aaahs" during the demonstration so hopefully we'll have done enough to try and encourage a few people to take up our art.
Derek was extremely pleased with how things went and by the effort put in by everyone so well done all and keep up the hard work at training.
Summer Training 2006 - Scarborough, England
11 people, 7 days of training, between 4 and 7 mile runs every day, training 4 hours a day in a sauna (not really but it was close!!!), 150 "Shaolin Stamps", 25 minutes of Jarm Jong........sound like fun??
Actually it was, and on top of that we learned stuff too!!! A great review of the week has been written by Frank, one of the attendees from Navan Lau Gar Kung Fu club.
Scarborough – for 51 weeks of the year a placid beach resort full of arcades, casinos and the traditional chipper where mushy peas come with everything including your cup of tea. However one week in every year sees this tourist town turn into a Lau Gar Mecca and the stench of toil and sweat hang in the air like to enormous squawking seagulls.
Our journey commenced over breakfast in the departures lounge in Dublin airport on Friday 21st July as the four veterans of the summer courses (Derek, Niall, Andy & Mark) recalled stories from previous trips and ensured the newbies (Frank, John, Tony, Dermot, Martin, Darren & Mary) woke up to the harsh reality of what was in-store once training started. The only saving grace at that point was that training was not due to commence until Sunday and we had all of Friday and Saturday to enjoy!!
After we landed at Leeds Bradford airport we made our way to Harrogate (our home for the evening). Once we settled into our B&B we received a tour of the town from our guide sifu Dawson before we had a bite to eat and a beverage or two. Later that evening we had a Chinese banquet and generally relaxed in our own way.
Saturday morning brought a hearty breakfast and a 2 hour train journey to Scarborough. We were staying at the (Name) hotel, strategically located a 2 minute stroll from the morning run starting point. Saturday mainly consisted of a stroll around the town as the dread of what tomorrow was to bring bore heavy on the mind.
Sunday – no run …….. yippee! Instead we make our way to the Pindar Leisure Centre for training. And then it happened – the pattern of events that brought groans and aches for the next few days and would bring many of us past of our pre-existing limits – the Pindar Surprise!!
Training started at 10am with Morag. After an initial 5min “joint loosening” up we went into a 20min “warm up – and it got warm – very warm, believe you me! We stretched, went into a “long armed” plank, press-ups, one armed plank, downward dog – and all in a graceful manner, controlling our breathing and taking fully enjoyment from the experience. If that was not enough Johnny “Again” Russell had not even taken the floor yet.
He introduced himself through 10min of intensive stance training (hoi bo, ma bo, woo-dip-ma, kung bo, puk bo, gum goi dok lok, and back to hoi bo), which was followed by 1 hour of his Tai Chi/Lau Gar routine plus a Silk Reeling exercise and Yin Yang Boxing. As the week went on the Tai Chi/Lau Gar routine developed into quite an attractive piece and is roughly a third of a set currently being composed by JR.
At last ……. a water break. This oasis in a dessert of pain passed too quickly and we were broken into our syllabus groups for 1 hour. This was a great experience in itself – being taught by different sifu, with each of them bringing to the table a new twist or insight into what we were learning. It also took us out of the hall and into the fresh air – where any bit of a breeze was welcomed!
However, whilst Scarborough may be a holiday resort – we were not on holidays! All too soon we were back in the hall under the watchful eye of Andrew (Name) as he began 1 hour of kicking combinations and walking techniques. It writes and reads a lot easier than it was ……. The kicking combinations built up into 9 kicks that stretched not only the legs but and the pushed our concentration to the limits – the walking techniques really teased our focus, co-ordination, flexibility and our knees!
Once again a water break before we hit the home straight comprising of Shaolin Stamping (starting with 30 day 1 and ending on 120 by day 7), followed by a 15min “cool down” stretching session with Morag. Strangely this session was quite similar to the earlier “warm up” session and was approached in the same manner – graceful movement, controlled breathing and I believe I even heard, if not uttered, one or two controlled expletives during this session!
We finished off each day with the Jam Jong, which is a series of 6 meditative positions. Each position is held for a period of time before moving into the next one. Anyone familiar with the “Bear Hugging the Tree” stance will know that this is one of the six meditative positions. On the Sunday we held each position for 1 minute – thus the entire exercise lasted 6 minutes. By the following Saturday each position was held for 6 minutes! This was an enjoyable exercise whereby you really get to feel the flow of your “Ging” aswel as the burn on your shoulders!
So, our Pindar Surprise doesn’t sound too bad really – does it…? However, whilst we didn’t run on the Sunday – we ran every other day.
Monday morning at 7am saw us head off on a 3.5 mile run from our starting point (2min from our hotel) around the cost – up “heartbreak ridge”, exercise in the car park for 20 min, and then back along the roads to the seafront.
Tuesday then came with a wicked twist! The startling line had moved…….from our 2 min vantage point to the car park on top of “heartbreak ridge” 30 min walk away. This now meant we were leaving the hotel at 6:20 for a 30min walk , followed by an hour run up “Oliver’s Mount” and then a 30 min walk/crawl (depending on the day) back to the hotel – before breakfast and the day’s training!!
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday followed the same sequence - by which stage the runs had peaked at 7 miles for most ordinary mortals, but not for Andy who decided that he had “got into a grove” and decided to run circa 12 miles on the Friday morning and if not for the excellent tracking of Dermot “Bring’em Back Alive” O’Buachalla we could have still being waiting at the finish line for Andy and worrying about how little time we now had for breakfast!
Saturday’s training was a little more relaxed and we were given demonstrations on the Staff, Southern Sword and Rope Dart, before we ourselves demonstrated the Tai Chi/Lau Gar routine we had learnt from Johnny “Again” Russell.
5 of our group were upgraded following their successful completion of the course (Tony, Frank, Martin, Darren, & Dermot) and we all received certificates having got to the finish line in one piece.
Just in case you get the wrong impression, It wasn’t compete torture on the summer course. It was tough and it was a challenge – but we also have a few light moments once our bodies allowed us after training. On the Wednesday evening we enjoyed a barbeque with all participants on the course and on the Friday evening we had a wonderful night at the 30th Summer Course Anniversary dinner – where we witnessed a Lion dance with a difference!!
Roll on Scarborough 2007 and the 35th Anniversary of the BKFA!!
Congratulations to everybody who graded last weekend. It was by far the largest group to grade so far in the history of the club with gradings being undertaken from White all the way through to Yellow sash. The standard was very high and Derek was especially pleased by this and he has praised everybody on their efforts over the last few months.
Master Yau Weekend Training Course - March 25/26th 2006
Once again the Master Yau training weekend in Wexford proved to big a big success. There was a large turn out for both days training especially from the Navan and Dunshaughlin clubs so thank you all!! Training on both days included breathing techniques, meditation, the "Shanghai" form of the "Eight Brocade" exercise and a Chin Na sequence similar to that taught on last years summer course.
Summer Training 2005 - Llandudno, Wales
Several members of the Navan club recently travelled to the annual Summer Training camp held this year in Llandudno, Wales. Apart from master classes in their relevant syllabus work we also learned a Chin Na form and some new stance training routines which I have no doubt Derek will be inflicting...er...I mean training us in very soon. John "ruthless" Russell certainly lived up to his moniker from last year with his choice of routes for the early morning runs this year. The first hill on the Monday morning was met with shouts of "he's not going to make us run up that...is he???". In fact he did....twice....almost every day!! The final day involved a revision of all we'd learned that week and demonstration from all of the courses which have run throughout the year and included a lion dance, fan and sword set and Derek demonstrated the Southern Fist form he learned in China. Good fun was had by all and if we take up the offers we've had to go and train with other clubs we'll be travelling for the next 6 months!!
Students from the Navan club recently gave a demonstration hosted by the Boyne View Residents Association. Despite temperatures that were approaching 30 degrees all performed very well especially the kids so well done to all.
China and Master Yau training course photos
Derek and Lau Gar Ireland Head Instructor Bobby O'Neil recently travelled along with several Guardians and other members of the BKFA to Foshan in Southern China on a training trip organised by Master Yau. The group trained in the temple of the legendary martial artist Wong Fei Hung (you may not recognise his name but if you are familiar with any of the early Hong kong martial arts films, many of these films are based on his exploits). The guys trained hard for almost six hours everyday and by the end of the week had learned the competition form of "The Southern Fist" (a Hung Gar form) as well as a weapons form using the Double Hook Swords. The guys then had to demonstrate what they had learned during a spectacular closing ceremony in the temple at the end of the week. While in China the party were treated almost like rock stars as westerners are still rarely seen in this part of China and even appeared in local newspapers and television news.
Weekend Training Seminar with Sifu Morag Quirk 25th/26th June
Navan Lau Gar Kung Fu Club is honoured to host a weekend training seminar with guest intructor Sifu Morag Quirk. Sifu Quirk is a Guardian of Lau Gar and a regular instructor on the annual summer training course in the UK so this will be a opportunity for students that is not to be missed.
Training will take place on Saturday 25th June and Sunday 26th June from 10am to 1pm each day and is open to all Lau Gar students. Cost for the course is €20 for one day of training and €30 for both days.
Master Yau weekend training seminar 30/04/05 and 01/05/05
Master Yau will be returning to host a weekend training course in Ireland. This is a unique opportunity to train with a true legend of Martial Arts. The course is being held in Wexford on Sat 30th Apr and Sun 1st May (4 hours seminar both days) and is open to students of all grades (including ungraded!). A local excursion is planned for each day following training (optional) and as this is a bank holiday weekend there will be a party for all participants and friends on Sunday night as well as getting together for a Chinese meal on Saturday.
"Best of the Best tournament" 29/01/05
Students from Navan competed in the tournament over the weekend and performed well in all categories. Ian placed third in his section and Fergal reached the quarter finals of his section. The standard at the event was very high so well done to both of the guys.
Summer Training Course - Scarborough 2004
Several members of Navan Lau Gar Kung Fu and Kickboxing club recently attended the annual summer training which was held in Scarborough. Following a week of extremely hard training some of the members were also upgraded to Green Sash.
22nd February 2003, Jason Crabtree Course
Students from the Navan club attended the recent course hosted by Lau Gar Irelands Head Instructor Mr. Bobby O'Neill (4th degree Blacksash), in his Wexford gym. Guest instructor for the day was Sifu Jason Crabtree, 5th Degree Blacksash and Guardian of Lau Gar. Jason is a regular visitor to Ireland and his courses are always a highlight of our training calendar.
Some of the topics covered during the day were two man fighting drills, stick fighting, sticking hands, self defence and chi kung (roughly translated as "energy training")
