Self Defense For the disabled
Hi my name is Wayne and I am a Black Belt in Defense-Ability Combat Hapkido and also I am disabled due to and auto accident in 1984.Spinal cord injury C6-7.I started training in Martial Arts in 1972 .After my accident I thought I would never be able to continue in the Martial Arts.There were not any Sensai's around my area who were willing to teach a person with a disability. I met Master Jurgen Schmidt founder of The International Disabled Self Defense Association (Defense-Ability).He taught me Defense-Ability and I found a martial art that could fill a very big void in our area.Thank you Master Schmidt!If you disabled and are looking for a martial art that you can be a part of to learn self defense please get in touch with myself or Master Schmidt.Remember: DISABLED NOT DEFENSELESS!
Me on the left ,Master Schmidt on the right.
Performing an arm lock.
Performing an arm bar.
Me and Master Schmidt in Ashville North Carolina.
Me my wife Betty and Master Schmidt in Ashville NC.
History of Hapkido:
"This history has been passed down from master to student in numerous dojangs (training halls) around the world for many years. To write the history in its entirety would be a book in itself. However, I would like to go back to the early 1900's in the land of the Morning Calm where a young boy had been orphaned at an early age. This boy would grow up to be an accomplished Master of the Martial Arts. His name was Choi, Yong Sul.
Choi, Yong Sul taught many students in his native land of Korea and shared his stories as most masters do with their students. Great Grandmaster Choi, Yong Sul told many of his students of his experiences growing up in Japan. Choi immigrated to Japan at a very young age after the death of his parents, it was then he would move in with a famous Japanese warrior by the name of Sogaku Takeda and remained as Takeda's surrogate son for the next thirty-three years learning the Martial Arts of the Takeda family.
In 1943, Takeda was dying and gave Choi his blessing instructing him to return home and share his Martial Arts knowledge with his people. Upon the death of Takeda, Choi returned to Korea and began spreading his Martial Arts across South Korea. It was a new martial art and people were reluctant to accept it; however, after it was proven effective in a couple of real situations, it was not long before many people wanted to study Great Grandmaster Choi's techniques.
From 1945 until about 1963, Choi's Martial Arts would be taught under many different banners, however, since 1963, the name hapkido has been used and when people think of hapkido the majority automatically think of Choi, Yong Sul as the founder whom without his techniques hapkido would probably resemble more of its kicking cousins like Tae Kwon Do, with the major emphasis being placed on the kicks and disregarding the arm bars, choke holds, throws, and pressure points which we in hapkido depend on for the majority of our techniques.
The lineage I teach to my students begins with Sogaku Takeda as the surrogate father and instructor of Great Grandmaster Choi, Yong Sul, father of hapkido; Grandmaster Choi, Han Young, student of Choi Yong Sul, President of the World Chun Ki Association, Master Rogers, Daniel, student of Grandmaster Choi, Han Young (founder of WUHA).
Hapkido evolved out of the combining of Choi's techniques which he studied for over thirty years to the art of Tae Kyon. Tae Kyon translates to smashing with the feet and is considered one of the oldest Korean Martial Arts and is gaining popularity once again in Korea today.
Due to the politics which have entered into our Martial Art, I have deliberately avoided the issue who actually named Choi's Martial Art Hapkido. Since the death of Great Grandmaster Choi in 1986, many claims have been made which no one but he could honestly answer. Therefore, I do not nor cannot discuss the name or the possibilities of how the name hapkido was finally settled on, those are parts of history which will remain void. "Patience is a virtue." So let us all have patience.
Philosophy of Hapkido
Literally translated, the word, hapkido means coordination, power and way.
Hap = is coordination (or Harmony).Ki = is (inner) power.
Do = is (the) way.
The student of hapkido must learn and practice and apply all three of the principles if he wishes to master hapkido.
Ki is the central and most important essence of power. When the mind, body, and spirit become one then Ki is gained.
As one begins to recognize his Ki, he will develop a union between the mind and body, at this point basic techniques will be taught and must coordinate power with the mind and body allowing his energy to flow freely.
Three basic skills are taught in hapkido. (Yu Won Wha)
Yu - Non-resistance. Meet force with minimum force. Do not clash with your opponent's power.Won - Circular motion countering, redirecting, and attacking.
Wha - Water principle. Obtain access within your opponent's defenses.
One thing which separates hapkido from its karate cousins is the concept of non-resistance. Take the method a hapkidoist uses to defend against a kick or punch, once the techniques have been executed, the hapkidoist would step side and circularly parry the punch or kick with a soft circular motion redirecting the opponent's power, the hapkidoist (then has) the opportunity to attack with a counter of his own to the opponent's exposed target areas.
Hapkidoists use circular, continuous, free flowing techniques to gain momentum allowing them to go from one technique to another without interruption. By redirecting the strikes of your opponent with circular parries and strikes, the momentum can be changed from one angle to another by merely altering the axis of the circle. This will allow you to move from one circular pattern to another. This concept is what makes hapkido, the way of coordinated power."
Combat hapkido: A martial art for the disabled and out-of-shape
Saturday, October 9, 1999
By ROBERT JOHNSON, The Wall Street Journal (Via AP)
TAMPA - When John Pellegrini enters the padded, mirrored training room at Hector Noyas's martial-arts school, the students who welcome him include a man in a wheelchair and another one tethered to an oxygen tank.
About 70 people - the biggest crowd Mr. Noyas has ever drawn to a single class - are here for Mr. Pellegrini's course in "combat hapkido." But the techniques he teaches could just as easily be called "fighting dirty."
In combat hapkido, all kicks are directed to the lower body - most below the belt. Mr. Pellegrini teaches how to twist joints until they lock up and break wrists, elbows and shoulders. He encourages eye-gouging and hair-pulling, always done with one hand while the other is used to inflict pain on or gain control of another part of an attacker's anatomy.
These techniques would shock many of the 2.5 million Americans already practicing traditional martial arts. Gone are the acrobatic jumping kicks and complicated, dancelike "forms" of better-known disciplines, including traditional hapkido, a graceful martial art originally practiced centuries ago by Korean royalty.
But combat hapkido is catching on around the world as a martial art that gives the weaker and creakier members of society a fighting chance. "The tae kwon do and karate that many American children are learning are beautiful," says Mr. Pellegrini, a balding and unmuscular 51-year-old. "Combat hapkido isn't beautiful, but neither is fighting off some thug on the street."
While interest in the better-known fighting styles appears to be stagnating, combat hapkido is drawing crowds of followers, particularly men and women over 40 who want self-defense techniques that are tough on adversaries but not on themselves.
Roughly 50,000 people from San Francisco to Finland have shelled out $60 to $80 for one-day seminars by Mr. Pellegrini since he started them in the early 1990s. Other instructors in his techniques charge $60 a month for twice-weekly classes. Mr. Pellegrini's International Combat Hapkido Federation has 5,000 dues-paying members, many of them instructors in other disciplines who are looking to expand class offerings. Pricey fitness centers are hiring combat hapkido instructors. To attract older members, Citrus Athletic Club, in downtown Orlando, recently hired Van Palmer, a former tae kwon do trainer, as a full-time combat hapkido teacher.
Barry Rodemaker, who introduced Mr. Pellegrini's course at his tae kwon do school in Erie, Pa., four years ago, says 16 percent of his overall student base is now in combat hapkido. He says the older combat hapkido students tend to stick with the classes longer than children in tae kwon do. The dropout rate for traditional martial-arts classes is about 50 percent, according to industry figures, and only one out of a thousand beginners achieves the prestigious black belt.
The buzz around combat hapkido annoys the martial-arts establishment. Some traditionalists contend that Mr. Pellegrini's Jupiter, Fla., federation overpromises. "Do you really think John Pellegrini can control a huge, screaming guy who's so crazy on angel dust or some other drug that it may take three or four police officers to handcuff him? I doubt it," says John Graden, president of the National Association of Professional Martial Artists, an 18,000-member group, based in Clearwater, Fla. "No martial art is a guarantee in some situations."
But John Corcoran, senior editor of Martial Arts Professional magazine, also in Clearwater, says the time for this kind of fighting has arrived. "Pellegrini fills a need," Mr. Corcoran says. "You should know how to fight dirty to survive street crime. What he teaches may be dirty, but it's also intelligent."
Mr. Pellegrini, a native of Florence, became interested in hand-to-hand fighting techniques during a 1960s stint in the Italian Army. In the 1980s, as a tae kwon do instructor, Mr. Pellegrini began devising combat hapkido. He sold his tae kwon do schools in 1992 to focus on promoting the technique. It borrows heavily from several traditional martial arts, but adds tactics for grappling on the ground. "That's where you may end up - rolling around by the curb - and you'd better have some skills if you hope to get up," he says.
Unlike other martial arts, Mr. Pellegrini's approach makes no pretense of being a sport. There are no tournaments or black belts. Breaking boards with kicks and hand strikes isn't required. Combat hapkido requires no long aerobic warm-up or weeks of conditioning. That appeals to out-of-shape baby boomers. Students practice several "escapes" from various holds in their very first class.
His suggested warm-up is about five minutes of mildly stretching the wrists and forearms. "What good is learning to kick to the attacker's head for a 50-year-old who needs 10 minutes of jumping jacks to be able to do it?" Mr. Pellegrini asks.
Mr. Pellegrini emphasizes so-called "scoop" kicks that reach behind the ankle or knee to buckle an adversary's leg. He encourages kicks to the opponent's foot, which he highly recommends stomping.
Young children, who dominate most martial-arts classes, are excluded because Mr. Pellegrini considers his self-defense techniques to be fit only for mature students. Indeed, some of Mr. Pellegrini's proteges, fearful of liability for injuries caused by others, won't teach the techniques to police officers, many of whom learn the more traditional form of hapkido.
Dan Godby, a retired Tampa truck driver who has lost 75 percent of his breathing capacity to a lung condition, keeps an oxygen tank at his side in class. "I never thought I could start martial arts at age 54, and being ill," he says. "But I can do this."
Jurgen Schmidt, a protege of Mr. Pellegrini's in Asheville, N.C., has been a paraplegic for several years due to a shooting accident. He has taught more than 300 wheelchair-bound students a series of fast-hand tactics, such as twisting the wrists, elbows or arm of an attacker.
Mr. Pellegrini admits his moves aren't as elegant as those of Bruce Lee, the late martial-arts film star. But he notes that Mr. Lee would be 59 years old today. "Instead of jumping and spinning all over the place, he might just stand there and do combat hapkido now."
WHAT MAKES HAPKIDO DIFFERENT?
HAPKIDO IS NOT A SPORT. There are no weight divisions, rules or tournaments. Hapkido is practiced purely as a means of self-defense. The limits which the rules of sport and a sportsmanlike frame of mind place on a person (or art) badly affects their ability to react realistically in true life situations. There is no such thing as "second place" in a life threatening situation, there are no referees and no second chances. Hapkido students are taught to avoid conflict but to react without hesitation in the event of a self-defense situation, and do what is necessary to protect themselves, no more, no less.
NO FORMS OR KATAS. Hapkido teaches its techniques directly and has never contained set forms or katas . Emphasis is placed on actual street applications rather than a series of forms that often contain unnecessary or impractical movements. Hapkido's goal is to develop a flexible mind and the ability to make quick and appropriate responses to hostile actions. Every attack is considered unique and the defender's actions are never predetermined.
AN EXTENSIVE SYLLABUS. Hapkido is a complete and comprehensive martial art style with numerous techniques for: kicks, strikes, joint locks, throws, take downs, control tactics, pressure point attacks, weapons, as well as ground fighting. Most martial arts today specialize in only one or two of these areas. Any practical system of self-defense must be comprehensive and unrestricted. The Hapkido system as codified by founder Yong Sool Choi and grand master Jae Han Ji contains 3,864 separate self-defense techniques founded on 270 basic moves. All types of techniques are taught to students at all levels of training. Hapkido's diversity eliminates the need to cross train in other styles to enhance self-defense skills.
MINIMAL RITUALS. Hapkido, as taught in our school avoids religious philosophy, mysticism, or empty ritual. Character development is left up to the individual. The sole emphasis is learning to protect oneself. Classes maintain a professional though informal atmosphere with emphasis on courtesy, cooperation, and mutual respect.
NEITHER HARD NOR SOFT. Hapkido is a continual process of adaptation to what the opponent is doing. Though neither a hard nor soft style, Hapkido contains elements of both. Many counters start off smooth and non-resistant but end with a vicious snap or kick against the opponent's momentum breaking the opponents arm. Conversely the attacker might be controlled by a relatively harmless lock or immobilization hold. In any event if a technique did not work the Hapkidoist would continue to follow the attackers intent, ready to respond in an unrestricted and non-predetermined manner.
WEAPONS TRAINING. Hapkido teaches weapons at a early level. Many martial arts will only teach weapons at black belt level if at all. In Hapkido a weapon is considered an extension of the hand and could be anything you find. A belt, a pencil, a newspaper, a staff, or a stick are all potentially lethal weapons. The motions of hands and the body are the same unarmed or with a weapon. This makes the weapon techniques easier to learn. Weapons taught include: short stick, baton, staff, cane, towel or rope, sword, knife, and at a higher level, double sticks, double sword, and Korean war fan.
A DIFFERENT WAY OF KICKING. The kicks of Hapkido are unique, and differ in principle from the kicks of other martial arts. Most styles snap the leg back after kicking. In Hapkido, people are taught that complete follow-through produces more force with kicks. Other martial arts often strike with the ball of the foot, but when called upon to defend themselves, people will most likely be wearing shoes. It is awkward to try to bend your toes back with shoes on, and use the ball of your foot. Hapkido kicks are designed to be used while wearing shoes. Most styles teach kicking from a particular stance. Hapkido does not have stances as such. You are trained to do any kick from any position to any direction at any time. The focus is on developing maximum power and speed without telegraphing intent.
PRESSURE POINT ATTACKS. All kicks and hand strikes in Hapkido are intended for specific pressure points or vital areas. There are 108 vital spots commonly used in Hapkido. The principles are similar to those of acupuncture and accupressure but differ in application and initiation. Pressure points are easy to locate, but making them work in a real situation is among the most advanced and difficult elements of the art. Students are taught to use pressure points to enhance techniques but not to rely on them.
GROUND FIGHTING. Statistics indicate that 85 % of fights end up on the ground. While it is preferable to remain standing, ground fighting is an important aspect of self defense. Although not taught in all Hapkido clubs, ground fighting is strongly emphasized in our school.
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