Martial Arts at the Park: The 4/28 Recap

Martial arts is portable, and we train and condition in order to be able to respond well regardless of environment.  But there is a special power to practicing outside, with the dirt and grass right under our feet – maximum Chi, as they say.  Last week, Sifu Forrest Caudill, head instructor at Austin Impact Jeet Kune Do, invited Moy Sifu Vyvial to guest co-host at an ongoing and FREE monthly event where teachers, students, and the general public gather outside at Ramsey Park.  The intention was to offer a taste of the martial arts that both sifus specialize in, and the unique connection between JKD and Ving Tsun through our shared Uncle, Sifu Dan Inosanto (Moy Yang Yee) and the Bruce Lee legacy.  A great idea, and a blast for those who were able to show up.  

The exchange supported by this event was community education in full effect.  Also wonderful was the diversity of the crowd in ages, ethnicities, and body types.  Some Moy Yat young masters were continuing their class practices on the fringes of the grown ups, and among the adults were some that had shown up because they’d just seen a flyer, including one elder (a basketball association organizer and retiree).  Outside of the main participants, various park-goers could be seen curiously standing around and watching the martial arts action, not an everyday thing in the park… There were also spring breezes and happy dogs, always good.  And some power-heavy metal sounds wafting out of Sifu ipods and car stereos, along with the many voices of children at a playground under the giant oak tree.

To top it all off, the event closed in a picnic, with food generously provided by Sifu Caudill and whoever else wanted to pitch in.  

Due to the short notice around Moy Yat Academy, and our same day FB announcement, our Saturday class students hustled to get to the park, two miles away from the school, and many Moy Yat students didn’t even know the event was happening – so we wanted to be sure to post the recap for your benefit, because it was a lot of fun.

The morning began with Sifu Caudill introducing JKD with an obvious love for the form, distributing a ton of protective gear that he brought for people to use while practicing.  For VT students, it made us appreciate even more the simplicity and directness of our form, while being an exercise in adaptability.

Then Moy Sifu Vyvial was introduced to the crowd, and took us through the power points of VT self defense principles, calling upon Sihings Neil and Heath for demonstrations.  The audience responded with a whole new level of riveted attention at the simplicity of the centerline, and the visuals of effectiveness as Sihing Heath nobly received Moy Sifu’s punches and pushes.  The highlight of the VT segment was the triangle headgrip crumple, for which Sifu Moy Vyvial jumped Sihing Neil to demonstrate a quick takedown.  This was followed by 6 more examples as Moy Sifu Vyvial invited all the female students to practice on Sihing Neil, and they sure did!

As one of our Moy Yat students wrote in:  “This was fantastic!!!   People recognize Ving Tsun as the real thing when they see it!”