Mike Flanagan
1st dan Shindo Karate
1st dan Ao Denkou Jitsu
Name:
Mike Flanagan
Rank:
1st dan Shindo Karate, 1st dan Ao Denkou Jitsu
Style(s):
As above, plus Tai Chi, plus whatever else I've dabbled in.
How long have you been training in the Arts?
Difficult question to answer as I have had stops and starts in my training.
Started as a kid, then had a break whilst at university and for a few years
afterwards. Started training seriously when aged 29, so that adds up to
about 10 or 11 years altogether. Plus 3 years 'door work' in addition, ie.
I wasn't training in a martial art at the time.
Any advice for people starting up in the Arts?
Think long and hard about what you want to get out of it. Then select a
style/club that will actually facilitate that. For example, many people
seem to profess a desire to acquire some self-defence skills, but end up
practising a martial sport. To make matters worse, many teachers of martial
sports tell their students that their art will improve their self-defence
abilities (and the teachers usually believe it themselves). Frequently this
is not the case. On the other hand, some people come along to our dojo looking
for fitness training. I tell them to go to a gym or health club for that,
which will be far more efficient in that respect than our style of Karate.
Sport is sport. Art is art. Self-defence is self-defence. There is some
overlap between these, but they are not the same. So critically examine
what's out there before making your mind up.
Greatest personal achievement in the Arts to date?
Qualifications and accolades are not that important. What does matter more
to me, and has rather pleased me, is the respect and friendship of my peers
and teachers. On a personal level, I'm proud of the fact that diligent training
has helped me to overcome health issues that dogged me in my twenties. But
maybe the best achievement for me or anyone interested in self-defence is
simply to have survived so far - to have either successfully avoided violent
confrontation or at least to have come out of it relatively unscathed.
Reason for continuing to train?
1. To keep challenging myself.
2. Cos I love doing it.
3. Like any serious martial artist, its become a compulsive-obsessive disorder
and I could probably do with some psychiatric help
What else would you like to do and why?
In terms of martial arts? Simply to keep training, to get better at the
things that I already do, and to further refine the art that I do in order
to make it as functional and effective as possible. I'm also keen to impart
what I've learnt (both in and out of the dojo) to others, and so support
their growth as martial artists. Also to be able train well into old age
- a martial art should be an holistic activity that help to keep you robust
and in good health well into your dotage.
Is your style a complete style, and is so why?
No martial art or martial artist is complete. There's always more to learn.
However, some arts (including those I practice) have the 'potential' to
be complete, and indeed strive to be so, in the sense that they try to address
all of the issues that the practitioner has. Technically speaking, I'm only
interested in self-defence, and my art has an open-ended syllabus so at
least has the potential to fulfill all of my self-defence requirements.
But there simply isn't enough time to learn it all in one lifetime. So you
can contrast the practitioners of open-ended and open-systems that strive
for completeness, with closed-minded ones who do not wish to step beyond
the confines of their own syllabus.
Have you competed? If so, what?
A couple of times in my youth. One kata competition as a child, one kumite
competition when at university. But the more important competitions are:
1. the internal one struggle with yourself, and
2. surviving life without succumbing to violent crime.
These competitions are going on all the time.
Who do you most admire in the Arts and why?
I suppose first I have to mention those teachers that I specifically regard
as my Sensei - Roger Sheldon, Vince Morris and Rick Clark. But that's doing
a dis-service to the many other teachers and colleagues I've trained with,
who are too numerous to mention. Also there's those clever little Okinawans
whose efforts over the centures produced the kata that underpin all that
I do. Wider than that, I admire anyone who is prepared to train diligently,
think critically about the art they do and has an honest heart.
Do you think its appropriate for kyu grades to help teach?
I think it can be, yes. Teaching others helps to give you insights about
your art that you may not have had otherwise. This applies equally to kyu
students and senior dan grades. So teaching is a great learning tool. Having
been teaching for coming up to 2 years, I'm learning a lot. On the other
hand, I don't think its good that a kyu grade should have a regular teaching
commitment in a club (eg. helping the instructor with the kids classes),
if it impinges significantly on their own training time, ie. they're not
getting time to train themselves. This is not fair to the student. So an
appropriate balance should be found.
For more information:
http://kyusho-jitsu.freeservers.com/index.htm
http://www.ussu.net/shotokan/summ2.htm
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/mikeflanagan/shiatsu/
www.shinseido.org
Home ¦ Articles ¦ Calendar ¦ Forum ¦ Journal ¦ Chat ¦ Photos ¦ Clubs ¦ Arcade