Belt requirements in Kajukenbo

[novice]

hello,

i have a short question: i am new to kajukenbo and in this short time already heard of about three different types of belt requirements.

can anyone tell me if these requirements vary from school to school or if there are some general ones? if so, is there a detailled list?

thank you very much!

[Rob Poelking]

Hello Novice,

Kajukenbo is not at all like some other schools you may or may not have encountered. Many of the more commercial schools like Tracy's or any Tae Kwon Do schools have a standardized curriculum for every one to follow.

Kajukenbo is an evolving art. As such, the requirements of one school may differ slightly from that of another. To complicate matters, usually a child curriculum will be broken into smaller segments for kids whereas the adult curriculum is a little more aggressive.

All that having been said, I have posted the student manual from our school. It is based on the original method (or Kenpo Method) of Kajukenbo. In it you will find a belt requirements check off list. It is the bare minimum or core curriculum if you will. You can find it at http://www.ohiokajukenbo.com/pages/studenthelp.html.

[Mitch Powell]

Novice,
Kajukenbo has become so diverse over the past decade that one must now think of Kajukenbo as you would the word karate.

If you were to say, "What do you need to know for a certain belt in karate?" The response would be, what style? Shorin Ryu, Shotokan, Wado Ryu, Goju Ryu, etc.

Because of our diversity, when you ask, "What do you need to know for a certain belt in Kajukenbo?" The response will also be, what style? Original/Emperado Method, Ch'uan Fa, Tum Pai, Won Hop Kuen Do.

Not to confuse you, but within those styles will be variations based upon the teacher's knowledge, ability, interests, etc.

My teachers always had a set standard for each belt advancement. I follow that concept as well. I always liked knowing what I had to learn for each belt. Here is an example of the standard I use for advancement to black belt in the Original Method:
Palama Sets 1-14
Grab 1-15
Punch 1-21a
Knife 1-15
Club 1-13
2 man attack 1-8
3 man attack 1-3
Alphabet Techniques A-D

Respectfully,
Sigung Mitch Powell

[napashifu]

Hi.
I train in the original method under Sifu Dan Tyrrell   , who received his black belt from professor Alan Reyes. And here is what I needed to know for black.

Apprehensive tech. 1-20.(#1-15 were created by Master Aleju Reyes in the 1960's and are kinder/gentler versions of grab arts 1-15, ie they have no lethal/vital point/ groin strikes :'. 16-20 were added on by Sifu Dan Tyrrell)
grab arts 1-15.
advanced counters 1-21a.
knife tech. 1-15.
club tech 1-13.
2man 1-8.
3man1-6.
alphabet a-c.
pinan 1-14.

I also had to turn in notebook with all of this written down about a month before I tested, Sifu Dan went through it, corrected any mistakes gave it back to me and had me rewrite it and give him and Sigung Pat each a copy.
aloha.

[Mitch Powell]

Mike,
I know your teacher is also very good at gung fu and the internal arts. Does he add that to your hard-line Kajukenbo training and if so at what point?

Sigung Mitch Powell

[napashifu]

 
Sigung Powell.
There are seperate classes for the tai chi etc,that are taught by both Sifu Dan and Sigung Pat. The kajukenbo students are encouraged to take these classes if they can, but it is not required. I started tai chi when I was purple belt, then stopped for awhile, then started again when I was a brown/blk belt, and have been doing that and learning some chinese soft style forms that Sigung Pat also teaches in her class. The tai chi really helped with my balance and also learning how to relax.
aloha