I have studied with Sifu Tony Chuy for over 15 years and am an assistant instructor at the school. Having said this, I can tell you that you have a misconception about the school. I don’t fault you for it because there have been others before you who also did not understand Sifu Chuy’s teaching method. So, once again, I will try to explain it to you. You can also try searching for previous posts on this subject as it has been brought up in this forum before.
First of all, the classes you saw would have been beginner to basic level classes. It is rare that we allow visitors during our intermediate and advanced level classes. That is simply because the information taught during those classes are not things we want to share with the general public. Students must establish a certain level of trust with Sifu Chuy before he will teach certain fighting applications to that student. There is a responsibility on the part of the Sifu to not only teach the student correctly, but also to teach the correct student. If Sifu does not trust your character, he will not pass on techniques to you that you may use for the wrong reasons. So similarly, we will not allow visitors off the street to watch as we practice some of the more advanced applications.
Does this make it a secret? That depends on how you want to look at it. But every style, school, and teacher will have secrets of some form or another. Traditionally, every style was kept a secret, be it within a temple, a mountain, a village, or even a family. It is a Western idea that all knowledge should be accessible to everyone. This is a traditional Chinese Martial Arts school and quite frankly, not everything is free for the asking the first day you sign up. Ask Mr. Albright for the names of the last 12 forms of his lineage. He will not tell you because it is a secret of his lineage and reserved for only their lineage holder. Does that make those forms no good? I don’t think so. Not all information is so easily shared to the public. As for Mr. Albright, as Mantis7 points out, he represents a different lineage of Northern Praying Mantis and quite different from ours but that’s it. It’s just different. Again, like Mantis7 says, that debate is old and senseless.
So since visitors are not allowed to watch the more advanced classes, how do you know whether or not we spar? I’ll let you in on a secret. We do. I have done it. Many times in fact. With many of my classmates. Were there any outsiders to see it? No. Does that mean it did not happen? I saw the bruises and bloody noses that seemed pretty real to me. Does that mean then that the sparring was bad? That we are ashamed of our fighting skills and refuse to allow people to watch as we just slap and spit at each other? Just because you have not seen it does not mean it does not happen. Perhaps there are other reasons why we choose not to let guests watch those classes. We are not at school to put on a show for our guests and certainly do not expose everything we do to the public for your viewing pleasure.
It is quite possible that you spoke to an intermediate level student at the school who had not begun his sparring training at the school. We do not take sparring lightly. It does not happen soon after the student joins the school. The Northern Praying Mantis System is a sophisticated and complex fighting system that is very demanding of the student who wishes to learn it correctly. Forms are taught to teach proper technique. The postures, the movements, all the details of each technique need to be understood and practiced over and over again. If the student cannot perform the movement by himself, what chance will he have to use it in actual combat? Once the movements are learnt, students start practicing 2-man drills to practice the application of the techniques with a live person. This is a very crucial step that cannot be overlooked because it is during this practice that the student must master the details of each application. If the student cannot correctly apply a technique on a willing partner,what chance will he have to use it in actual combat? Besides the 2-man drills, there are also 2-man forms that take the drills another step further. The 2-man forms teach the student how the different techniques can flow from one to another, how to setup an opponent for a trap, how to link one series of techniques with another one. So the2-man drills and 2-man forms help condition the student for fighting. Sparring comes after this and it is now, after the student has spent years applying the techniques with a partner, that the student learns how to use them in a less controlled setting. During sparring practice, we learn to deal with the adrenaline, how to recognize opportunities for attack, how to minimize openings, and how to setup the opponent for traps.
Most students need to spend about two years in Basic leveljust learning how to move like a praying mantis stylist. The footwork, the power generation, all the different hand techniques and kicks, for most students this will all be brand new. After about two years, students move on to intermediate level where the 2-man drills and application exercises gets more intense. Much more time isfocused on the applications of the techniques and it isnt until the student has spent some time practicing the applications that he will be allowed to begin sparring. It is very easy for a school to have the students spar. Give them some pads, throw them into a ring together, blow the whistle and watch them trade blows. But how many of them can effectively fight with praying mantis techniques in 6 months? 1 year? 2years? We do not believe it is possible. There is too much foundation and overhead that must be taught and trained before the student will be able to effectively and consistently fight using praying mantis techniques and strategies.
There are definitely some schools that teach sparring right away. In my experience, most of them look more like stylized kickboxing. If you want to fight in tournaments, fight to win trophies, kickboxing is good. But we are not a trophy school. We do not engage in fighting for awards, medals, or just for the sake of fighting. If you are looking to collect medals, there are other schools more suited for ring-type fighting.
Our school may not be what you are looking for. That is fine, it is not for everyone. If you feel the schools philosophy and/or curriculum does not meet your needs than you should try some other schools.
YM
