So what makes all those folks on the east coast that descended from Sonny Gascon any different. We don't accept them because they haven't produced a world champ like Chuck Liddell? Help me out with that one.
Sonny Gascon broke away from Kajukenbo and created his own system "Karazenpo Goshin Jutsu".
His student, George Pesare, took what he learned from Gascon in 3 months of training, combined it with some judo and tae kwon do training and started his own kenpo system.
His student, Nick Cerio, combined what Pesare taught him with some training from Bill Chun, William Chow, and Ed Parker, and created "Nick Cerio's Kenpo".
His student, Fred Villari, took what he learned from Cerio, combined it with some mysterious training under unnamed Chinese masters, and created "Shaolin Kempo".
In the Shaolin Kempo schools of Villari and some of his spawn, it's not uncommon to have 12 year old black belt instructors. You can sign up for the "Black Belt College" and get your black belt in 12-18 months. Most of the course is sales training, with a little physical training mixed in.
But if you really don't want to spend money on gas and have to attend classes, you can get Villari's home video training course. That way you can practice in the comfort of your living room in front of your T.V. No hard workouts, no sparring, no injuries, unless you trip over the coffee table.
And you get to video test every 6 weeks. Of course they do recommend that once you get your brown belt, you wait 90 days before doing your video black belt test.
The cirriculum itself has no resemblance to any of the Kajukenbo methods I've ever seen. Their 5 Pinans are the Okinawan Pinans that Nick Cerio adopted from a Mas Oyama book. Their other katas were either created by George Pesare, Nick Cerio, or Fred Villari. Their "Kempo's" and "Combo's" are also their own creations. Their training philosophies of little to no contact sparring, easy workouts so students don't quit, and quick and easy testing dosen't resemble any Kajukenbo schools I've ever encountered.
I know this a very old topic but because I'm an infrequesnt visitor and I just saw it.
For whatever reason Mr. Bishop and Weston feel the need to routinely disrespect East Coast Kenpo with lies and half truths.
They always state their version of facts disregarding other peoples version of the truth, the problem with that is that neither Mr. Bishop or Weston were ever around to observe anything firsthand but only report what they were supposedly told second hand then swear its all true instead of talking to the people who were there.
Mr. Bishop routinely criticizes GM Pesare stating he only had 3 months of training and then got a BB in Tae Kwon Do, one time calling Mr. Pesare's system Tae Kwon Kempo or something of the sort.
The facts are that Pesare trained with Gascon and according to Gascon, who was there, Pesare became a black belt. The facts are that yes Mr. Pesare is a Tae Kwon Do BB but he is also a BB in Aikido, Escrima and Judo. All training he received after his Karazenpo training.
Mr. Cerio trained with Pesare, Chun, Chow and Parker receiving BB rankings from all of them not including Cerio's training in judo, jujitsu and kung fu.
Mr. Bishop routinely states that Cerio only trained for a matter of weeks yet Chow awarded Cerio his Shodan and years later a fifth degree in Chinese Kenpo. Again Cerio and Chow where there.
Chow even stated in his interview in Blackbelt magazine that Cerio was his student but in past postings Mr. Bishop and others have discounted Chow's own words as being false?
Maybe the matter should be taken up not with the people who recieved the Black Belt rankings like Pesare and Cerio but the people who awarded them ? Mr. Cerio was awarded Yudansha status by probably four of the five or six biggest names in Kenpo, all Grandmasters in their own right but that apparently isn't good enough for some, so be it.
Mr. Cerio's Pinions are adapted from Kyokushin Kai which were originally adapted from Okinawan karate and various variations are seen in most karate styles.
Cerio and Pesare didn't "make up" Katas 1-5. Katas 1-4 were created by Mr. Gascon and Mr. Godin, #5 and above were created by Mr. Pesare. Why not ask Mr. Gascon or Mr. Pesare they are both alive and they were actually there to witness what happened.
Mr. Bishop's staement that East Coast Kenpoist don't train hard or value contact is simply his opinion. Have you or Mr. Weston traveled or trained on the East Coast ? Ever fought anyone from the Pesare, Cerio or Villari lineage ? I'm sure the answer is no.
You make your statements based on opinions not first ahnd knowledge.
You have no idea what the training was or is like because you have never been personally involved, you take rumors, myths and your own uneducated opinions and state them as facts! If your problem is with the West Coast version under Mattera then you should take it up with them.
I find it interesting the constant need for "some" from Kajukenbo to disparage the East Coast Kenpo people when the opposite is true out here. We acknowldge Kajukenbo as a street wise, effective tough martial art and their students as same.
There appears to be a need to slam the East Coast as not worthy of a Kajukenbo lineage which is interesting because to my knowledge there are no Gascon-Pesare etc, schools that claim to be Kajukenbo instead they are Karazenpo, or SKK or whatever Kenpo variation their name may imply.
The East Coast Kenpo is a combined art using karate, kung fu, jujitsu and others similiar to the Kajukenbo concept but no one here is claiming to be Kajukenbo only that our styles descended from Kajukenbo via Mr. Gascon who is or was a Kajukenbo instructor, thats all.
So Mr. Bishop and Weston are right the East Coast versions are not Kajukenbo but no one out here ever said they were.
We are whatever we are and according to some Mr. Pesare after only 3 months of training and Mr. Cerio with a mere 2 weeks were able to create a Martial Art and pass it on to others who have become accomplished fighters in and out of the ring, pretty good for a few months of instruction.
If those are the facts so be it but some people should stop spreading there own version of the truth and accept reality.
The reality is you are Kajukenbo, we are not and have never claimed to be.
