As per the last post 4 months ago, i haven't done much physical practice of GCS, but i have done a LOT of research, mainly dirk.

my Asian MA's are still taking much of my time as an opportunity to do more to enhance my progress has come along and i have taken it. I now see an opportunity to focus on my GCS in more depth as i plan to make it the focus of my study for my 2nd dan elective- we are required to write a curriculum. but that will still be at least 3 years away, so i better use this time to learn as much as i can.

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i think i may have miss represented my plans for my skill set in an earlier post. I became concerned with this while following events of an esteemed Gaelic martial artist and his concerns regarding his family style being cherry picked, changed and misused.
Reading these concerns made me reread my posts and i became worried that  what i had written came across as me wanting to do such things...which was not what was meant. I was trying to say that i wanted to get  instructor certified (so i could teach what i see as a family treasure and ultimately effective style), but having the skill in my skill set for my own self defence, certainly not to remould it for my own means, which it may have been misinterpreted as. My idea to learn that which was readily available (due to this other style not being), was merely a means of building up as many techniques, with no desire to amalgamate them. Some things can be put together as such, but i believe something that is already complete, and tried and tested must remain as such, untainted. I also believe though that in any given situation you will instinctively do what you know, so for your own defence, build up your skills...but the emphasis is on your own defence, not what you teach. I teach TKD and FMA because these are the things i know, and i know i will fall back on those skills in conflict; i also believe i will not in my head say, "this person is using that stick like a hanbo, so i will only use my hanbo skill, it is more likely i will use FMA stick skills as they are the ones i'm better practiced at now. The same goes with bata/shillelagh; i will initially use that which i'm most familiar with, just out of habit, until i can be taught a better way, then THAT will inevitably become the reflexive go to way.

on the upside, my closest friend has started TKD/FMA so i hope in the not too distant future we can start some broadsword, bata and traditional wrestling.

Doyle lockdown

last night on the FB RBUB group Glen Doyle let fly and expressed that he would not travel to train people or grade instructors any more, anyone wanting to train with him must now travel to Milton Canada.
He was clearly PO'd and is jack of those that take a bit of his knowledge and distort it for their own means. I don't know what has happened, but it is a big dissapointment that it has come to this. Not that i expected him to come to Australia for me, my dissapointment is also that he has got to a point where he feels this is what he must do. It must be a burden being the only person to carry on such a legacy.

maybe in a few years when my boys are old enough to train hard with him we could make our way over together and all learn directly from him..what an honour that would be! But until then, Canada is a long way, and a lot of dollars away!

haven't resumed broadsword yet, just so many things on and am training at TKD 7+ hours a week. i hope i don't get dropped from the list!

caught wrong footed!

have been laid up a bit with my back this last week no TKD and no broadsword. I did do some bokken at TKD which has the same cuts just in a different order. had my guards video assessed and was disappointed to be told and see that i was wrong footed! It felt weird while i was going through the exercises but for some reason i didn't notice. Did a little bit of Irish stick on Monday with my boys with the padded sticks i've made.