SIFU MATT JOHNSON SEMINAR SET FOR FEB. 20th!!!

Alright Rio Grande Valley, here we go again!! The Ving Tsun Gung Fu Institute is happy to welcome back Sifu Matt Johnson for his third trip to the Rio Grande Valley in the last year!!! Our last seminar was attended by over 15 participants who came from Brownsville to Laredo and even an attendee from Ft. Hood!! Participant skills level ranged from never done Wing Chun to Wooden Dummy level and everyone walked away with knowledge of good Wing Chun and how to apply the concepts contained in the Siu Lim Tao form and Chi Sao.

This next seminar will actually be a double header. The first session will take 2 hours to go over Siu Lim Tao and its concepts. Basic applications will be covered as well for beginners but this will also serve as a review session for students who attended the last seminar and for those who have been advancing in Siu Lim Tao since. For students who have recently signed up it will serve as a good overview of Siu Lim Tao and what concepts to expect and what you can start training and preparing for. Chi Sau will also be covered in this session.

The next session will be over Chum Kiu, the second form in Wing Chun.  Since the last seminar Sifu Tim Santos and Sifu Moses Flores have had students working hard and have advanced into Chum Kiu.  This session will be a broad overview of the concepts in the whole Chum Kiu form as well as covering correct positions and angles. Chum Kiu is usually the most detailed form and covers the most concepts in Wing Chun but it is here that you begin to learn the most about fighting especially the concept of “Yiu  Ma” or “hips-waist stance” and how to generate power from it for different purposes. Chi Sau will also be covered in this session.

If you are considering attending only one, I would personally encourage you to attend both sessions and here is why. One, there are no secrets in Wing Chun and so we do not want to restrict the growth of the learner. There are some who believe that certain levels in wing chun exclude others but I do not believe that to be the case since all the other forms are really just expansions of what where we all start at, which is Siu Lim Tao.  There is no hidden knowledge or secrets to keep. In fact, we want people to “get it” so that this training can actually be useful in real self defense situations and not have to wait till your at a certain level to be able to handle certain situations on the street! If youre a Chum Kiu students, reviewing the foundation never hurts and if you are a Siu Lim Tao student, looking ahead is never wrong as it will help to keep in check the path you are on to make sure you are heading in the right direction in your current progress and not getting the wrong ideas. Plus it is a great way to advance in knowledge and skill. Remember, you get out of your training what you put into it both mentally and physically.

Alright so ready for the cool part?? The Siu Lim Tao session will only cost $40 and the Chum Kiu session will be $50 which is only $90 for BOTH sessions and over 4 hours of training (maybe even 5!)!!! You can’t beat that for the quality of knowledge and instruction that you are going to get!

The seminar will be on Saturday February 20, 2010 at Pump Gym located at 5305 N. 23rd McAllen, TX 78504. Registration will be from 11:30-11:55 a.m. and the seminar will start promptly at 12pm. Registration fees can be paid early to secure space as some VTGFI students have already done or on the day of the seminar with check or cash.

ALL MARTIAL ART STYLES AND WING CHUN FAMILIES ARE WELCOMED! VTGFI believes in Wing Chun family as we have maintained relationships with many Wing Chun practitioners throughout the U.S and the world even. As long as you are willing to learn we are willing to teach!  Whether you are looking for a new perspective in the Wing Chun you are currently practicing or want to see Ip Ching’s Wing Chun as passed through Sifu Matt Johnson you are welcome to come!!

For more information or registration you may contact Sifu Moses Flores at 956-207-1811 or email at RGVWingChun@yahoo.com or Sifu Tim Santos at 956-371-7797 or WingChunWarrior@yahoo.com .

Bring your notepads and pen or pencil! We’re looking forward to seeing you there and helping you get the most out of Ip Ching Wing Chun in the Rio Grande Valley!!!

All the best,

Sifu Moses Flores

Sifu Matt doing Chi Sau with SiGung Ip Ching

Here is some video footage of Sifu Matt Johnson doing Chi Sau with his sifu Ip Ching. Enjoy!!! Click here

Matt Johnson Ving Tsun Association

As I mentioned in a previous post 2010 would be the beginning of new things and I’m pleased to announce the official launch of the Matt Johnson Ving Tsun Association!!!

So first things first: what the Matt Johnson Ving Tsun Association (MJVTA) is not. First, we are not claiming to be “successors” or “masters” or some other superficial titles that people sometimes bow down to. Sifu Matt Johnson is a student of Ip Ching from Hong Kong and he loves Wing Chun,in particular Ip Ching’s Wing Chun. The MJVTA does not claim to be the “leading authority” in Wing Chun as others have done and still do. Wing Chun is a lifetime journey, not something you do in a set time. In short, we are not the be all and end all for Wing Chun, nor for Ip Ching’s Wing Chun. Sifu Matt has other Kung Fu brothers who also teach and we recognize that we are just one family amongst others throughout the U.S. and the world.

So what is the MJVTA? The Matt Johnson Ving Tsun Association is simply a group of people who love Wing Chun under one who also loves Wing Chun and desires to see the teachings of his Sifu, Grandmaster Ip Ching, continue to grow and spread from generation to generation. Sifu Matt has been able to teach several students from the West Coast to the East Coast and felt the need to be more unified and this is the result. Sifu Matt’s desire is to help people experience Wing Chun as Grandmaster Ip Ching learned from his Father, Great Grandmaster Ip Man, and to also see his own understanding of Wing Chun’s principles that he learned and has continued to learn about. Here is a short video intro to Sifu Matt

What this means for us in the Rio Grande Valley is that we are going to be officially recognized as part of Ip Ching’s Kung Fu family and can proudly belong to an association that promotes high standards of Wing Chun. You can expect – as has always been delivered – quality instruction through Sifus Tim Santos and Moses Flores. We can expect seminars with Sifu Matt Johnson(coming this FEBRUARY!!!). We can expect road trips to meet other Kung Fu family members. There will be plenty of other benefits to come in the future as membership information develops. Needless to say, it is official!!

For those of you looking to learn Wing Chun we can help you learn a quality self defense system that can be used for street situations and beyond to save your life or the life of your loved ones. You have a chance to learn this system that is unique to the Valley as we are the ONLY Ip Ching Wing Chun lineage in Texas and even in this region of the United STates!  Wing Chun Kung Fu is what we advertise and thats all you get!!! Nothing else.

For those of you with other martial art experience looking to add a close-quarter combat system, we can get you started! Both Sifu Tim Santos and myself have experience in various other martial systems and have chosen and stuck with Wing Chun for almost 8 years because of the area of training we want to address: self defense and combat vs. sport application (tournament or ring fighting). 

If you already have previous Wing Chun experience and are not satisfied with where you are at or just want a different perspective on Wing Chun feel free to inquire with us. You can also get in contact with Sifu Matt directly through his website www.mjvingtsun.org or get in contact with Sifu Tim Santos or Sifu Moses Flores through phone or email.

We have been fortunate to have people train from Brownsville all the way to Laredo and all areas in between the Rio Grande Valley. Remember classes are available for as low as $65 a month through Sifu Moses Flores and that is through 2 locations including Pump Gym in McAllen!!

Hope everyone has a great new year and trains hard to make your wing chun good!!!

Regards,

Sifu Moses Flores

rgvwingchun@yahoo.com

2009 year in Review and things to come in 2010

Greetings everyone,

I would like to thank those of you who have kept up with this blog and much of what is going on with Wing Chun in the Rio Grande Valley.  I can honestly say that I believe we are the only legitimate source for Ip Ching Ving Tsun in the Rio Grande Valley despite the claims of others in the area. I say this because we have a Sifu who is directly and currently studying with Ip Ching. We are also staying true to the Chinese grading system in not requiring belts and such. I personally feel when its time to move into the next area of training you are simply ready and it shows in your own performance….no “test” will bring that out or deny you either. Progression in Wing Chun is natural. When my students get all that they can get from the initial energies of Siu Lim Tao, its no questions asked, time to get to Chum Kiu!!  I can say that we are in line with what is taught by Ip Ching as our Sifu, Matt Johnson, makes trips to Hong Kong as often as he can to ensure the quality of his own Wing Chun and and that of his students everywhere.  So I’m gonna stand behind that declaration and say that we are Ip Ching Ving Tsun in the Rio Grande Valley.

This year Sifu Tim Santos and I were really blessed to meet Sifu Matt Johnson.  We were able to bring Sifu Matt Johnson down in March of 2009 and we train an extensive 8 hours with him and decided that we wanted to be his students. What impressed me the most was that he wanted us to articulate why. I can appreciate that as I have leaned toward a screening process of those who wish to learn the art that I have to offer. Sifu Matt is looking for serious students because this is a serious art in what it is capable of. Also, nobody wants to waste anybodies time so he screened us as well. Needless to say, he was pleased with our responses and we were accepted as students and part of his Wing Chun family. With that in mind I would like to announce the formation of MATT JOHNSON VING TSUN ASSOCIATION!!!

The Matt Johnson Ving Tsun Association is Sifu Matt’s personal association to promote and teach Ip Ching Ving Tsun. It is not a claim to “senor representative” or “sole representative” of Ip Ching…Ip Ching clearly states in his own website that he represents his own Wing Chun. NOBODY else represents Ip Ching! So lets get it straight that we are not claiming to be a “leading authority”. We are all just people who love and use Ip Ching’s Wing Chun method along with other of Ip Ching’s students and grandstudents. Sifu Matt is willing to share his knowledge with any who are willing to learn about Ip Ching’s Kung Fu. Whether you’ve been in Wing Chun from another lineage or don’t know Wing Chun at all, we are willing to share with you!!! Look for more to come from this in 2010

Let see what else….oh yes!! We were able to spread to Laredo, TX! We were able to meet a contact in Laredo who wanted to learn Wing Chun along with his own students. Myself and Tim Santos were able to take the Ving Tsun Gung Fu Institute to Laredo twice and they came over once to train with Sifu Matt in his second trip here in August as well at our second VTGFI Seminar which covered Siu Lim Tao and Chi Sau. Be on the look out for more VTGFI Seminars. So far this year we have planned to bring Sifu Matt down for private training in mid February (after Valentine’s!!) to give our students a chance to do private training with their Sigung and give us a chance to go over some things, ask our question and get lots of chi sau in!!! So instead of a seminar, we decided on being able to get more personal time rather than going over general things that we surely cover with everyone in their own respective levels.

ALSO…still to be announced, but Sifu Chris Damiano (my Si Pak) and Sifu Matt are planning training camps! Hopefully that comes to fruition and it will be a road trip for VTGFI Students!! Hopefully the VTGFI will also be able to make a trip to Chicago to visit Sifu Matt’s Ving Tsun Self Defense Academy as well as meet our other Kung Fu brothers and sisters there too!

Personally, I would like to say that I have grown in my own Wing Chun. Been working like crazy on all my forms, especially the Mook Yan Jong this year. I’ve seen improvement on my Chi Sau working on the “Loi lau, hoi sung, lat sau jek cheung” principle being sure to make my movements from the original position. I’ve been able to really grow as a teacher this year as well taking on a range of all kinds of students from those who have fight experience and showing them the simplicity, directness and efficiency of Wing Chun to those who have not and opening their world to Self Defense theories. I have also been able to grown theoretically adding much knowledge about violence, the chaoticness (new word!) of a fight situation. I’ve been able to attend some Brazilian Jiu Jitsu seminars with Rodrigo and Royce Gracie as well to compliment my overall understanding of fighting especially when on the ground. I would like to thank Mike Tinajero of the McAllen Brazillian Jiu Jitsu Academy for being a good friend and open to Wing Chun. Here’s a video of some training.

And one other and final thing, probably the best for last, was being able to really connect with other Wing Chun family around the world. It has been great to meet other Wing Chun practitioners, primarily through Facebook but I have been able to chat with plenty of them!! I would like thank Paul Smith of Combat Arts of Scotland especially for being the crazy and hilarious guy that he is!!! Can’t wait to meet him as he might be coming to States!!!! Been able to meet many of my Kung Fu cousins, students of Sifu Chris Damiano of Centerline Martial Arts in Florida. Also got to reach out to some Sifu’s I knew back in the day and some other friends.

All in all, 2009 was a good year for Wing Chun and I expect 2010 will be better as we all grow in this art. Much respect to SiGung Ip Ching and I hope to be able to travel in 2010 to Hong Kong to meet him and train with him!!! That would certainly be nice!!!

Until the next time, keep training cause thats all that we are doing!!! 

God bless,

Sifu Moses Flores

rgvwingchun@yahoo.com