Afternoon... Does anybody have any thoughts or experience on "Silat Harimau"?? I'll be living in the centre of Manchester soon and I'm very keen to start learning Silat, I've found (online) a place in North Yorkshire that teaches "Silat Harimau". Consequently I've done a bit of research into it and it seems that it has a lot of low/ground based moves.. Initially that put me off a little, but after thinking about it, my own background is in Muay Thai (certainly not an expert in it, but have a few years experience and some time living-in in Thailand doing the 6 hours a day thing) so my "ground-game" is very weak, got a little bit of ground experience in some of the H2H military stuff that I learnt when I was in, but that was obviously not a focus.. So on reflection it looks like Harimau might be a good idea.. (I also want something that I can dedicate some long-term time to, as a bit of a stress-reliever and escape from work) unless its pretty much "all" about low and ground moves, with no kicks, punches, throws at all.... That's the sort of info I cant actually find, so can anybody on here give me any more detail?? Firstly on what Harimau is actually like to study, and secondly if there are any other flavours of Silat available around?? Any thoughts? JB
Harimau is primarily a Sumatran system based on the tiger. It is low to the ground and quite vicious. If you're talking about the group I'm thinking of then they're solid and you should go check them out. There is punching and kicking and takedowns.
Very helpful thank you, from what I can gather there are 2 groups in North Yorkshire, but it appears they are run by the same people.. I must admit that from what I've seen purely from internet research, there is something about it that appeals... I'll take a drive up there as soon as I'm settled after the move to Manchester and have a look, obviously I'll give the guys a call first though!! Thanks again JB
If the school is affiliated with Pendekar Richard Debordes, I would most definitely join in.. I know he has a guru (teacher) named Scott McQuaid somewhere in the UK, but the location escapes me now.. Google Richard Debordes and you will find his websites..
Good timing, I was just watching some video's on youtube with Richard Debordes in... Off the top of my head I think the does have some connection with him. I'm actually liking Silat Harimau the more I see of it, and seeing as I'm struggling to find the type of Escrima that I want to learn anywhere within reach, I can see me concentrating on Silat for the foreseeable future.
If you google the name rapid arnis and Pat Omalley.. He is a friend of mine over a few years and is one of the main guys in the UK as far as Eskrima.. He also has contacts with the BCKEA which is the governing FMA association in the Uk.. Contact him and he should be able to help you out.
Thanks for this, but looking at the location of the Silat school (and the fact that I realy want to dedicate some proper time to that) I think I'm going to be better off looking for Escrima up in the same sort of area, North Yorkshire-ish.. Seeing as I'm hopefully going to be travelling up there a few nights a week anyway for Silat. I'm going to contact the Silat place today..)
Hi JB I am a student at the Yorkshire silat academy under Guru Paul Deans and Gurus Mark Bloomfield and Mark Young. I would highly recommend coming along to view a class so that you can get a feel for the art. We are a friendly and welcoming group and the training environment is very hard work but extremely rewarding. If you have not done so already give the academy a call. Maybe see you on the mats? JH
Hi Thanks for that, I've not actually called them yet as I was just in the process of moving house for work to Manchester, however I've since found out that I may have to relocate to North Yorkshire instead!!! Which obviously would suit me better. As soon as I'm sure about where I'm going to be, I'll get in touch and arrange a visit. Out of all the different styles I've looked at recently, the Harimau style of Silat is definitely the one I'm most interested in.
hey all, i was wondering if the harimau in tapak suci was related in any way to the harimau style of silat. are they the same or are theremany harimau's? thanks, waleed
You'd be very lucky to be able to train with the North Yorkshire tribe. As for tapak suci, no idea, but there are several silat systems in the Malay world (including Indonesia) that are called 'harimau.'
I have trained at the yorkshire silat academy and they are a great bunch of people. They are an affiliate of richard De bordes and the silat system is lumpat harimau or leaping tiger. It mixes ground work with high and jumping attacks so not all ground work. Lots of fun. Hope you manage to get sorted
Which Silat Harimau? If they can trace back to AM Hanafi (like DeBorces) or Datuk Edwel Rajo Gampo Alam or Edward Lebe, then, it will be a solid credential.
