A BIT OF HISTORY TO BECOME A PRACTITIONER

A BIT OF HISTORY TO BECOME A PRACTITIONER . by Thomas Pinheiro. I want to pass on some of what I experienced on Wing Chun in Brazil because for me it was like solving a puzzle , assembling from the day I started training even spend years of training , after meeting several people involved , training or just a personal contact. Recount as a memory , I do not really sticking to the names for the sake of my intention is to tell what I experienced and try not to harm others, but I think everyone knows what he is teaching , if he is honest or not , and despite profiteers are out there and the hills , each has the free choice to seek a master , his teacher , and every teacher is not accepting someone to teach him . I started my first contact with the wing chun through training in 1982 , more precisely at the beginning of July , more influenced by my brother who also wanted to train wing chun . That year I ended up going to train in a gym of a Brazilian who was located in Vila Clementino where I stayed for a year and a half , practicing until the call level chum kiu . Had sought this academy because it is the only place in São Paulo at the time to mention the wing chun style to the public . But very suspicious , yet I was watching kung fu training at another gym , which was located on the street of Consolation , but it was very strange what they were talking about learning wing chun , said that to learn wing chun would be required initially to train various other styles of kung fu and then get to a certain level of training wing chun , but neither spoke what was the content, all very mysterious . However , a former teacher and friend of the academy in Vila Clementino told me of a friend who was training Wing Chun with a Chinese master named Thomas Lo . I got in touch , but I had the news that such a teacher did not teach anymore. Time passed , then a certificate of recalling my first teacher in the village of wing chun Clementino , who was exposed next to a letter from Linda Lee on the wall of the receiving facility , and mentioned the name of a Chinese called Chinese master and . . In search of having lessons wing chun my brother and I were searching for this master E. , Who taught in a building in the neighborhood of Liberty functioned as a cultural center Chinese. Attended class and just what turns plus movements other style of kung fu was very little wing chun , a practice dan chi sau without much commitment. Personally he showed us the other person , his brother who taught kung fu in Santo Amaro . We were in 1984 , end of the year ; find then with such a teacher stated , after much talk he was interested in giving lessons wing chun for my brother and me. We started to train with him at his academy in Santo Amaro , every Saturday after the gym closed his normal workouts another style kung fu . The teacher told us she was in Brazil since 1979 , had trained a bit in the gym master Yip Man but it would have had more time training with private lessons with the late Master Sang Koo . Only this time we trained for three people , and the third person came from Rio de Janeiro only once a month. We trained for six months , which at that time learned to form chum kiu , chi sau, some applications and andadas of wing chun . We arrived to train even in a small shed in the backyard of my family . We set up a small gym with a punching bag wall mook jong and workout area outdoors. In 1985 my brother would travel to exchange English and wing chun training in Arizona . After six months later , returned U.S. . Our master wing chun began wanting to train more with him . Appeared two more people to train also a carioca and other Japanese who at that time was teaching jeet kune do ( do not ask me how , because I do not know how someone who has never had class with Bruce Lee or any student of Bruce Lee could give lessons in Jeet Kune Do in Brazil since 1982 ) . In 1986 I stopped training with the Chinese master , due to train with my brother who had learned much more in six months out with Master Fong . Then we set up a group to workout at home , were four in all. One of the students of the Chinese master and who was the Rio de Janeiro just looking directly in to train , and came sporadically from Rio de Janeiro . The Japanese also sought at that time , remember that home out request to have class wing chun with my brother , but was not accepted . Also in the second half of 1986 continued training with the two group , one named Luis Emilio and others . My brother returned to settle in the U.S. in 1987 , and every six months he returned to Brazil and every time I practiced I could and tried saving techniques . From December to late January on a visit , I stayed one month training at the academy of Master Fong in the U.S. who was the master of my brother . Upon returning from this trip , which was decisive for me, since motivated me to want to develop further . With the small group home I trained four times a week with workouts three and a half hours . As I lived next to Faria Lima Avenue and found the teacher I sought in 1984 , Thomas Lo , was giving lessons at a gym two blocks from home . I went one night to introduce myself and meet you . After I chat and be somewhat abused, Master Lo asked me to demonstrate how siu lim tau , to punch , practice a little Dan chi sau and then did seung chi sau with attacks with his senior student , who was present that occasion . I realized that Master Lo was different but if I had to take classes , be with their instructors as Master Lo and supervised lessons more restricted only to his two older students . At that time I was looking for classes with long workouts and wanted to direct learning with it . Since 1988 I changed my workout space to the street Maria Carolina , still in the gardens , remaining until 1995 . The aforementioned Japanese in 1988 presented himself as a master of Wing Chun , validated by my old Chinese master of Wing Chun . A curious postscript in history , when I met Master Lo , he had told me that a Japanese (same ) it had sought in 1985 to learn wing chun and that in turn would release a book of Wing Chun Master Lo , Lo master but also not accepted . Between the years 1991-1993 increased my training load of Wing Chun with my brother and a teacher Academy Master Fong ( student considered number 2 ) because both were residing in Brazil . I came to learn the full contents of the Master Fong , including weapons . What happened in terms of Wing Chun in Brazil at that time , teachers were affiliating themselves through seminars to other Wing Chun masters abroad. My old Chinese master also been training with another teacher at the beginning of 1990 in the USA . The Japanese also change this family of wing chun to another . By early 1994 by disagreements , I would no longer be training with my brother . In 1995 with my new space located in pine , rediscovered with Master Lo , inviting him to establish an office of teaching acupuncture and tai chi chuan in my gym , which eventually happened in January 1996 . In 1996 with Master Lo applying acupuncture and teaching tai chi chuan and chi kun in my gym in Pinheiros , I soon talk about wing chun . Getting new ideas about techniques and trying them out , I concluded to start my training with Master Lo . Official disciple only in early 1997 , personally trained and heavily , spending up to 6 hours of daily training . At this time of training, many people showed up at the gym , from abroad ( Europeans, Chinese or Brazilians even some school of wing chun different practitioners including teachers said very doubtful (actually charlatans on duty, individual Decorating way videos , tells marvelous tales of training with students of Yip Man , that can not be revealed in public , they use the media to try to give credibility to mingle religious training , wing chun invent lines that do not exist or has some historical support training and so on ... ) . When training with master Lo , I gained as a great training partner Francis Dias, a former student of the seventies master Lo , besides training partner ( for ten years ) and who also helped me very , teaching and passing their experiences . When the beginning of this report I spoke to know about Wing Chun in Brazil was to assemble a puzzle , the pieces came to be fit after starting training with Master Lo . Coming to Brazil in 1970 , Master Lo to be in São Paulo in 1974 Augusta walking down the street accompanied by a friend , master of Shaolin kung fu encountered a health kung fu , curious , came to know . The master of the academy , a Brazilian , who taught a style or master Lo or your friend know . The Brazilian master interested to see the two eastern asked to demonstrate something and discover they were expecialistas in their respective styles of kung fu , asked for a teaching wing chun and shaolin . Master Lo was not interested in teaching and his friend just teach a basic form and some movements shaolin . Another Chinese ( the aforementioned Master E. ) who was a friend of Master Lo just asking to learn the ways of the wing chun ( siu lim tao, chum kiu and bue gee ) , decorated forms in three months and passed them to master such Brazilian , interestingly , this later became the master of the said academy in the 80s in the village Clementino . So I was able to elucidate and understand the puzzle of wing chun emerging in Brazil . From everything I've been through so far , is that despite always being done and still can progress , I know that everything I went through , was training right or wrong , can through hard training and commitment , mature and be aware of the knowledge of wing chun kung fu . Having to live with a great teacher for me is proud , be able to access and learn a culture of so many years , overcoming barriers and being able to tell you a story that I lived and in fact , still alive, stronger than when I started 1982.