This year we were at Ardingly College for our 2013 Weapons Training Camp. I had the opportunity to teach Kung Fu and Chinese Wrestling at Ardingly College last year and whilst I was there I noticed all the different groups who had hired this venue for their week long and weekend events. As it is [...]

I must admit I approached this Master Class with a certain amount of trepidation as I’m not known for my flexibility, and I’m sure I’m not the only one!  However this made it all the more important that I should attend. How better to improve than a couple of hours of expert tuition. You need [...]

Our February master class was an Introduction to Archery. We were joined by seasoned archers & several new students eager to learn a new skill. The new guys soon picked up the skills needed & were racking up some impressive scores. The Viking warriors we were firing at were much more exciting than the usual [...]

Chinese New Year Lion Dance season has closed and what a crazy two weeks it was! We had more performances and travelled further afield than ever before. There was just too much to include in any one article, but outstanding memories include the school where Shaf dropped the Lions mouth over the teachers head to [...]

I’m pleased to report that the Eastbourne club of White Crane Martial Arts has successfully done its’ first independent demo. We were invited to demonstrate at the Eastbourne campus of Sussex Downs College, as part of their Chinese New Year celebrations. We were in the middle of their food hall at lunchtime, so we had [...]

On Saturday I went to a Kung Fu master class on the Five Elements. Because the master class is two hours, you get to learn stuff you don’t normally learn in class. Our Chief Instructor Russell Suthern said the point of the five elements is to make connections between different Kung Fu moves. The five [...]

The five elements are an intrinsic part of Chinese philosophy, culture and the martial arts and they perform a very important part in the White Crane system.  This was why the very first Master-class of 2013 was a hugely popular event and was attended by a large number of students who came along to learn [...]

This year, the annual WCMA competition was held over at the Shoreham Centre – a venue with a large hall where members of the various White Crane clubs could get together and demonstrate what they had been practicing in order to win medals.  This year, it was arranged that there would be two arenas where [...]

On Saturday 10th November the WCMA Lion Dance Team went out to a community centre in Goring in order to perform a Lion Dance for the Indian community that was celebrating a very significant and important festival called Diwali.   Diwali is a five day celebration that occurs during October or November, depending on the [...]

For those of you who missed the recent board breaking master class, I have to say, you missed out on a really fun afternoon. Having done a board breaking master class in the past I was really keen to try it again to see if my techniques had improved and set myself some new exciting [...]

I had held my breath all week, wondering what the weather was going to do. On Saturday morning we were all smiles. The rain and wind had passed us by in the evening leaving wonderful sunshine and warm weather for the whole duration of our 2012 Kung Fu camp. We were able to take our [...]

The Worthing dragon boat race festival has run for the last two years to help raise money for the very hardworking charity, Wadars, and WCMA lion dance team were there again this year to support and entertain. Since 1969, Wadars, based in Worthing, has worked to rescue and rehabilitate wildlife and rescue and rehome domestic [...]

This years Tai Chi camp in Arundel was another fantastic one. We spent hours and hours just focusing on practicing the Suang Yang form, something that I am sure most of us rarely get a chance to do. By the end of Saturday I had practiced the full form 12 times, and by the end [...]

Recently WCMA performed a Lion Dance for the opening of Pearls, a new shop selling Bubble Tea, a healthy drink rich in antioxidants. Gardner St and Kensington Gardens are known for being very colourful and bohemian, so a Lion Dance fitted in perfectly! Fortunately the weather held again and the Lion looked beautiful as it [...]

Chinese Calligraphy or ‘Shufa’ (the way/law/of writing) is a highly revered form of both art and discipline originating in China, then slowly expanding throughout the Sinosphere to include Japanese, Vietnamese and Korean calligraphy. The oldest form of script would be Chuan Shu 1900BC during the Qin Dynasty, which was used mainly for ceremonial purposes. In [...]

Louisa Yuen has run the Oriental Arts shop in Brighton for as long as I can remember. Recently she has relocated her shop to Rock St in Kemp town and launched a new website to promote her business. To celebrate this auspicious occasion, White Crane Martial Arts were proud to perform a double Lion Dance [...]

Master Class Experience   Concerning White Crane Kung Fu: I am not as young as I used to be! I found this out by trying and struggling with some kung fu moves that were a breeze a few years back. I blame this on age, football and a desk job. I considered this a challenge; [...]

Those students who made the effort to come to the Easter Saturday Kung Fu class were lucky to receive a real treat! They were witness to the ceremonial breathing of life into the new Lion, and its first dance as we celebrated its birth into this world. I drummed. Talin did a great job with [...]

The first Master Class of the Year was the Staff, which proved to be both challenging and extremely enjoyable. The Staff forms part of the White Crane Syllabus. This weapon opens the door to other long weapons such as the Kwan Do, Spear, Trident, Monk Spade, Horse Cutting Knife, Halberd and of course the Metal [...]

On a very cold, grey Saturday morning we made our way to the White Crane Studio in Brighton for four hours training in Iron Shirt, Kung Fu, Chinese Weapons and Tai Chi. After four excellent sessions we went to Day’s restaurant to tuck into delicious Chinese food. We were all really looking forward to the [...]

The King of Chinese weapons.  There was a real sense of anticipation in the air at the hall of the Shoreham Centre as club members arrived with their tasselled spears ready for the Spear Master Class.  The class started with an introductory talk by Russell on the history of the Spear in China, going back [...]

Imagine if you will an old city of pinkish sandstone that is built up on a conical hill where the river snakes around and the narrow cobbled streets are packed with tavernas, cafes and shops.  Imagine intensely blue skies and the hot sun beating down. This was Toledo in Northern Spain where five of us: [...]

Japan Earthquake/Tsunami Appeal DayIn association with White Crane Martial Arts, The British Red Cross, Lime Food Design and St Pauls On Friday 27th May the White Crane Demo team gathered at St Pauls to decorate our beautiful centre in preparation for Saturday, the Japan Appeal Day. The task ahead was vast as we had to [...]

At last! The culmination of all my plans! I feel a bit like a mad scientist creating life, as I see a whole years work come to fruition! We have spent the last year practising target archery, clout archery, field archery, speed archery, we have practised sword cutting exercises, we have cut fruit, foam, straw [...]

Saturday 18th September marked a landmark in White Crane history. Shaf Amiraftabi is the first student in WCMA history to stay the course & learn all 20 patterns within the WCMA system. Her position as 2nd in command meant she did not have to grade, or at least, she could grade privately, away from prying [...]

When I started teaching sword cutting & archery I had a clearly defined master plan as to what I wanted to achieve & the exercises I wanted my students to be able to perform. To this end I have organised a series of sword & archery master classes, designed to move my students forward in [...]