The Martial Arts Coach

Flexible Weapons Seminar June 2010

Roland Beauregard — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 12:55:37 +0000

Another great training seminar with Coach Freedman. The people that attended were excited to learn these very simple and effective flexible weapon techniques. Who thought that you could be so dangerous with just a length of rope, a belt or even a piece of cloth. Coach Freedman guided the class through several drills and then had everybody team up and practice the defenses he taught. Everybody was impressed how easy these were to perform. Pencak Silat Master Ismail Sujadi was on hand to show us some Indonesian flexible weapon techniques. I would not want to mess with him if he had a rope in his hands (or feet). Check out the video and stay tuned for information on Coach Freedman’s up coming Joint Stopper Seminar on July 25, 2010.

Flexible Weapons Training for June

Roland Beauregard — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 13:16:06 +0000

Coach Freedman is a big proponent for the use of flexible weapons. One of the reasons is that these type of weapons are readily available and for the most part legal. Your belt , a piece of rope, your jacket, these are all examples of flexible items that you can use to defend yourself. Come join Coach Freedman on Sunday June 27 as he leads a workshop on flexible weapons.

Take a look at this article “Whips, Chains and Scarves, your Flexible Friends”. This is the type of information that Coach Freedman will be handing out at the seminar.

Date: June 27th
Day: Sunday
Time: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Location: Weare NH
Contact: Peter Freedman at (603)529-3564
or – peter_freedman@comcast.net
Cost: $35.00
Bring a friend..

Knife Making Shop

Roland Beauregard — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 14:51:36 +0000

Coach Freedman has been putting a great effort in getting his knife shop up and running. He hopes to be making training weapons for many different martial arts including Jujutsu, Arnis and Silat. His training weapons will be made out of wood and industrial grade hard plastic. Once his forge is ready he will also be producing superior metal blades. Take a look at his latest efforts.

[View with PicLens]

Why I Train for Knife Self Defense

Roland Beauregard — Wed, 26 May 2010 23:27:20 +0000

A recent incident in Manchester NH involved a man who started a fight in a bar. The fight moved outside and the man who started the fight pulled a knife. In the ensuing fight he not only stabbed the other guy but his friend and managed to cut off his own finger. You can read it in the Manchester Union Leader here.

Now there is a certain black humor in this incompetent idiot cutting off his own finger, but in another way it is vary scary – knowing that there are these types of idiots out there. I would not like to meet him and I would not want to be like him. Reading this story reminded me why I train for edged weapon self defense. I want to train so that if I run in to this guy, I can get away safely. If I have to use a knife, I will not cut off my own fingers. Before I came to Coach Freedman’s school I knew just enough about knife fighting to get my self in trouble. All those techniques that I learned in Karate and Aikido might have worked if the attacker came at me with an overhead strike or with a straight in stab. One class with Coach Freedman convinced me that I was sadly lacking in knife defense skills. Any one of his students could have sliced and diced me with little effort. After years of training I at least feel that I have a chance.

I love Coach Freedman’s saying that “ There are two types of people that are dangerous with a knife. Those that are trained and those that are not.” That is something I always keep in mind and that is what keeps me training.

Serious Training with Guro Spencer Gee

Roland Beauregard — Sun, 23 May 2010 17:14:22 +0000

Once again Master/Guro Spencer Gee was up at the new Hampshire Dojo to share with us his insight on Arnis stick and knife fighting techniques. The amount of knowledge that he gives out is incredible. Anyone that wishes to advance their knowledge of these arts will be challenged by his teaching. Everyone that attended was grateful for the opportunity to meet and train with this master.

Guro Gee put us through quite the regimen of training. When asked for a warm up routine, he had us all grab tires and proceeded to put us through a workout that included lifting, jumping over and rolling on the tires. After that he commenced to slowly lead us through a progression of stick drills that went from the simple to the sophisticated. After the break he handed out the training knives and again showed us how much more there was to learn about knife fighting and defense.

Check out the video from the Friday night jujutsu class to get a sample of what we went through for the seminar. We will post some videos from the Saturday class soon.

Keep posted to this blog and we will let you know when he will be coming again.

baston drills and pangamut basics

Roland Beauregard — Wed, 19 May 2010 15:24:17 +0000

Watch Coach Freedman and Sensei Birmingham doing basic two man stick drills and some pangamut and gunting empty hand basics. The video starts out with a long pan of pictures of Guro Grande George Brewster Coach Freedman’s beloved Arnis teacher. this man was a great influence on Coach Freedman and many other Arnis masters. Mr.. Brewster, as he was fondly called, died in 2006. You can read his obituary in the Filipino Martial Arts Digest here.

Coach Freedman gives some good tips on putting your opponent into an arm lock. This also goes along with his previous video on slipping a punch.

Master Spencer Gee May Seminar

Roland Beauregard — Sun, 16 May 2010 13:14:51 +0000

Master Guro Spencer Gee will be at Coach Freedman’s school on Saturday May 22nd to teach sword and knife drills for Arnis and Kali.

If you are the average person who has a fear of the growing crime level and want to learn how to defend your self from edge weapons, this workshop is for you. Master Guro Spencer Gee is an amazing instructor. This will be
his third time here in a year. We plan on bringing him out on a regular bases. So you can keep your knowledge flowing that he will be sharing in this amazing workshop on edge weapons. Learn first how to use an edge weapon and then explore all the different easy methods of defeating them. Very practical workshop.

If you are in the military or Law Enforcement you really cant miss this workshop. It could change the way you look at defeating edge weapon suspects or enemy combatants. This workshop will be a life saver.

Date: Saturday May 22, 2010
Location: Weare NH Ketsugo Bujutsu Kai
Cost: $35.00
Time: 12:00PM to 4:00PM
Contact: Peter Freedman (603) 529-3564

Call for directions..
For those who have previously attended Master Gee’s seminars, this will add to what you already know. Master Guro Spencer Gee is my friend and has much experience in Filipino Arts that I can learn more from. So if I can learn from him imagine what you will learn.

People who are instructors with your own schools please contact me here through this email peter_freedman@comcast.net Hope to see you all here…
We should have training blades for sale here. Made by me.. Peter Freedman Sensei Guro/ Please write to let me know which kind of training blade you would like.

Sensei Nevaras: Why I train

Roland Beauregard — Wed, 12 May 2010 22:15:17 +0000

Each individual has a reason for martial arts training. Some want to get in shape and like the discipline and structure of coming to a formalized class. Others seek to gain approval from peers and need the reinforcement of obtaining rank or colored belts. I myself have dedicated my life to exercise and conditioning, so when I look for a place to train, I have no interest in paying to perform calisthenics or add some cardio conditioning. I do that on my own. Personally I have a peeve when I go to a class and spend any amount of time performing jumping jacks, sit ups or stretching. For many reasons those exercises are actually not beneficial to conditioning and can be counter productive, but that’s another story.

Too many people get caught up in the so called hype of Martial Arts; belts, uniforms etc. What I want when I train or when I teach: is to prepare to protect myself and my family from those who wish to do harm. It can take a lifetime to build skills and coordination. I find it wasteful and offensive to spend hours performing rituals and physical condition in a class. In my class I will never stoop to that level. I will never waste a moment in a School that professes the superficial aspects of mainstay martial art schools to be important. To them I say, BALONEY! I stretch, do pylometrics and lift weights everyday and have made that a part of my life for almost 30 years. A martial Arts class to me should be dedicated to learning drills to develop timing, distancing, and sensitivity to attacks. Everything we learn should be quick, easy and able to apply immediately. The class should teach how to use your body to deal with angles of attacks from armed and unarmed attackers. Let’s leave the dancing to the dance schools.

I don’t care about a uniform. I could care less about a belt color. I prefer the old way of Koryu Bujutsu- when they prepared for war., not for sport, not for the ring, not for a trophy. If I practice what resembles a form or kata, then it came from me. Every morning I pick a bunch of techniques or movements that I understand, chain them together and practice them over and over again until it becomes part of my subconscious. This way everything I do has meaning and intent.

In Japanese martial arts "budō", literally means "martial way". "Bujutsu", which has no perfect translation, means something like science, art, or craft of war, and "bugei", literally meaning "martial art." The term "budō" is a modern one, and is normally intended to indicate the practice of martial arts as a way of life, and encompassing physical, spiritual, and moral dimensions with a focus of self-improvement, fulfillment, or personal growth. The terms bujutsu and bugei have more discrete definitions, at least historically speaking. Bujutsu refers specifically to the practical application of martial tactics and techniques in actual combat. Bugei refers to the adaptation or refinement of those tactics and techniques to facilitate systematic instruction and dissemination within a formal learning environment. In my mind bujutsu is my intent when I practice.

Practical application is my only care and/or concern. In the old school mentality the primary purpose of a martial art was for use in war. If anyone does not understand why I would only care to practice that way, you need only watch the six o’clock news. Kids shoot each other now at schools; people get shot by random machine gun fire at the local mall. Someone just got shot while pumping gas in broad daylight. You could be anywhere and the level of society has sunk so low that it’s not safe to walk the streets anymore. All the paddy-cake kicks, deep hose stances, all the jumping jacks and black belts won’t help you when you got a knife thrusting at you. Therefore I don’t care about a belt. The Dan system of ranking was created in a time of peace anyway. It deludes many people into thinking they have become a warrior. The Black belt was not a tradition passed down by the soldier; it was developed by the lowest class of people in Society. The Warrior had no need for that. The Samurai spit on the peasant. It has simply become a way to commercialize and feed a weak superficial society. I can recall how recently, I heard from one of my teachers how he had lost a good number of students because the parents told him that,” he was not giving out belts quickly enough”. To hear that sickens and disgusts me beyond words. People are more concerned with show than what really matters. Stories like that offend me and have resulted in the loss of the Martial Aspects of Training. "Modern" martial arts, whose primary focus is generally upon the self-improvement (mental, physical, or spiritual) of the individual practitioner, with varying degrees of emphasis on the practical application of the martial art for either sport or self defense purposes. It is sad when a few schools still try to teach something effective and worthwhile but the general public still can’t see the truth. Even when learning methods of crippling and killing an attacker you begin to understand how fragile life is, how careful you must be, how easily your life could be wiped out in any given moment.

Train to save your life, the rest will fall into place. The pop culture will always rule and they always love trash.

Sensei Joe Nevaras is a long time resident in South Eastern Mass., Currently teaches Ketsugo Jujutsu and Brewster Arnis in Brockton. Shodan in Ketsugo Jujutsu, Dimaslang, Brewster Arnis, studied Gu Lao Wing Chun for 10 years under Sifu Jarome Majeed and Sifu Matta Madjan along with Hung Gar and Pukulan Tjimande Silat. Black Belts in Tae Kwon Do, Shotokan Karate, American Kenpo and Aikido. also hold ranks in Togakure Ninpo, Diauto Ryu Aikijujutsu and Kenjutsu. Has trained in Judo,Muy Thai and Western Boxing and continues to train in Cabales Serrada Escrima.
Always open to training with other schools to enhance training. He was also one of the SEA DMH instructors for 5 years in the methods of Non-violent and de-escalation strategies for working with violent psychiatric patients for the Commonwealth of Massachusettes where he continues to be employed as a Mental Health Case Coordinator. BA Human Services Concordia College, Certified Personal Trainer.

Slipping a Punch

Peter Freedman — Sun, 09 May 2010 13:30:58 +0000

Coach Freedman shows two methods of slipping a punch and doing a quick take down. These are tricky techniques and take some courage to execute. Watch the video and practice the techniques. As Coach
Freedman says, learn how to protect your beautiful handsome face.

baston drills and pangamut basics

A Man of Many Hats

Roland Beauregard — Wed, 05 May 2010 16:20:37 +0000

We all know that Coach Freedman wears many hats. He is a father, teacher, musician, knife maker, leather crafter and many more. He is the master of several martial arts, Jujutsu and Arnis being his main arts. This video will demonstrate how many hats he wears. Watch as he observes Sensei Birmingham teaching flow drills during the Jujutsu class. How many hats does he wear?