I’ve recently started self teaching myself the Rope Dart weapon. I have a 10 year background in Kung Fu and do a lot of Stage Combat and always thought the weapon was awesome. So I ordered a rope dart from SakuraMartialArts and picked up the video and book from : http://www.kungfubrothers.com/ropedart.html
So far the guide from KungfuBrothers is awesome but soon I will be at the end and will have learned all it has to offer. I’m wondering if anyone else has studied or self taught rope dart and if they have any books, videos, dvds, or advice to share so I can further my knowledge of this beautiful but dangerous weapon.
Rope Dart
Donald Hyun Kiolbassa has won several national championships with his Rope Dart technique. He studied extensively in Asia, having trained at the famous Kookiwon, the World Tae Kwon Do Headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, as well as the Shijingshan School of Physical Education in Beijing, China. He was under the direct tutelage of such renowned masters as Kim Su Han, Tian Hai Hong, Hong-Chao Zhang, Daniel Pesina and Manuel Marquez. In 2006, Donald was among the very first Tiger Claw Elite Grand Champions.
And it hurts a lot when it hits you, you will get hit. Take some pipe insulator and put it around the dart and tape it with duct tape when you are learning this weapon.
I initially learned rope dart with a hard rubber ball my Sifu drilled out and strung the rope through. It had good weight but was still forgiving when I cracked myself.
Since I first started this topic i’ve been practicing with the Rope Dart every day. I’ve gone through three ropes and am ready to move on from the half pound dart to the full pound dart. I never padded it at all and always went full force. This isn’t to say I haven’t gotten horribly hurt by it. lol. Both of my shins have gotten smashed more times than I can remember, the top and back of my head have been clobbered several times and ive stabbed myself in the right shoulder and left thigh once. I rather enjoy the negative reinforcement. The more you get hurt, the less you are inclined to screw up in the same way again. Although I may just be a masochist
The Rope Dart has easily moved up to being my second favorite weapon behind the Dao. It can be artistic and beautiful or brutally deadly, and sometimes both!
The Kung Fu Brothers book and DVD helped a ton and the DVD by Donald Hyun Kiolbassa was pretty good.
I’d highly recommend this weapon to anyone looking to freshen up their kung fu or who would like to add a little flare to their stage demos. Its also a great starting point for those that want to use the Fire Meteor for Fire Spinning shows.
Just watch out that you don’t poke your own eyes out with it! XD
the best advice is that practice makes perfect… you can have 10,000 people advise(hahahheheho ha me moo) you on “how” to use the rope dart, but only your practice will grant you the justification of your prowess.
