Heronnewbie
3 posts

Posted:
Hey I'm new to this whole site. I am a great staff enthusiast (I use a heavy wooden bo staff 6') and currently go to a taekwondo school that allows its members to specialize in weapons. Obviously my focus has been the bo staff. I have learned a form or two in my school and I was trying to find out if there were some good basic moves i could throw into my freestyle forms to bring them to life. If possible I'd like suggestions for moves that are not only attractive but also in some way useful. I currently am able to do most basic spins, the above the head to behind the back spin, palm spin, got a quick figure 8, I am familiar with all of the 9 strikes (hi mid low each side and then up, down, stab.) I have come up with a few random moves on my own such as one in which i tilt my head and swing the bo where my head would usually be for a head strike, and also vaults that connect with kicks. I can do cartwheels and rolls into pickups and throws without a problem. Although i'm sure ive left some moves out, if anyone has some moves they could suggest to add to my repetoire it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot and I look foward to participating in this site. I currently have a bit over 6 months of regular staff training.

ravemannewbie
3 posts

Posted:
hey i am also a tkd practitioner who is specializing in the staff. wsup... cool to see another guy like me on the first day. neway a coo move is to throw the staff under your arm so it ends up in the back and then flip it over your shoulder to smack the guy in the face. also for some cool staff moves look at any wushu practitioner using the monkey pole. you will get some great ideas from there.

Dragon7GOLD Member
addict
625 posts
Location: Aotearoa (NZ), New Zealand


Posted:
Awsome! People that actually HOLD the staff. Sry if you dont get it, but most people here pratice "contact" more than traditional strikes.

I have Bo. My Sensi taught me some Bo and Jo, not alot but i had other training aswell smile I love strikes and stabs.

I have some underground video clips if you wanna see them PM me your msn. Hope we can trade blows wink ubblol biggrin

Klaymen180 posts
Location: Melbourne, Vic.


Posted:
unfair, I did taekwondo for like 4 or 5 years and we never used a bo frown, or any other weapons.

nearly_all_goneSILVER Member
Pooh-Bah
1,626 posts
Location: Southampton, United Kingdom


Posted:
A little OT, but...

Can anyone point me towards an online guide for moves with the Bo staff? I've always wondered what sort of things you can get up to with it, and since buying my staff I'm in a fairly good position to practise a kata or two...?

What a wonderful miracle if only we could look through each other's eyes for an instant.
Thoreau


strugzBRONZE Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,964 posts
Location: Southampton - Possibly..., United Kingdom


Posted:
Written by: Dr4g0n7


Awsome! People that actually HOLD the staff.




ubblol

"...We don't stop playing because we get old, we get old because we stop playing......."


ravemannewbie
3 posts

Posted:
for nearly_all_gone go to this link. https://www.turtlepress.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=287


there is a video you can buy that will show you all the basic strikes combinations and stuff for the staff. it also teaches blocking trapping and katas at the end.
EDITED_BY: raveman (1115671953)

nearly_all_goneSILVER Member
Pooh-Bah
1,626 posts
Location: Southampton, United Kingdom


Posted:
Thanks a lot Raveman! biggrin

What a wonderful miracle if only we could look through each other's eyes for an instant.
Thoreau


SickpuPpyNinja Rockstar!
1,100 posts
Location: Denver, Co. U.S.A.


Posted:
I've never studied TKW, I have studied many chinese and japanese martial arts over the years. Staff has always been one of my favortie weapons.

The problem I encounterd when I first got into the fire staff/poi deal many years ago was that everything I had learned in martial arts was very practical, but I litterally had to un-train myself from focusing on strikes and force *and most especailly defense*, and focus more on flow. One of the curses of martial arts is that invariably the complicated things tend to look easy, and the easy things tend to look complicated.

What I ended up doing was I pictured myself surrounded by about 16 opponents in a circle around me (sort of just as focal points) that I could attack at my leisure with whatever movement fit the flow.

But really, as far as translating technique and form applies; really all of it is applicable. A lot of the finer application needs to be grossly exaggerated, and it helps to flow through the strikes and and forget about keeping good guard up. As an example, turn what would normally be a "helicopter" style strike to the head into a body spin and palm throw combination, rather than stopping the staff in a good guard position after the strike(which when performing looks choppy, and un-eloquent). It's all about flow.

Really, I suppose this whole game be it staff, poi, diablo, or whatever comes down to personal preferance and expression. But for performace staff you can chuck martial application out the window, and use the handling techniques.

It's really amazing what you can do if you pay attention to how the staff wraps and where it goes in general when you screw up.

Hope it helps.

Jesus helps me trick people.


Bender_the_OffenderGOLD Member
still can't believe it's not butter
6,978 posts
Location: Melbourne, Australia


Posted:
a martial arts emphasis can add a lot of strikes and stops in what is typically a circular, flowing movement in f'wirling.

It is up to each individual performer to decide if they are to perform a flowing martial arts routine or a f'wirling routine with a martial arts flavour.

personally, i find mertial arts flavoured twirling is best done with a pretend target, another prop, another performer - else it looks like a Japanese kata or a chinese pattern/form.

as always, the martial arts path leads to more acrobatic twirling - i find flips and jumps much more satisfying than striking, but the ultimate decision must be a personal one: yours.

(ps great post sickpuppy!)

Laugh Often, Smile Much, Post lolcats Always


SickpuPpyNinja Rockstar!
1,100 posts
Location: Denver, Co. U.S.A.


Posted:
Thanks Bender.

Jesus helps me trick people.


StoneGOLD Member
Stream Entrant
2,829 posts
Location: Melbourne, Australia


Posted:
cheers guys, SickpuPpy and bender, nice links b/t acro and martial arts. For sure, I think learning martial arts can help improve style. I’m not big on lesson, so I tend to look for cheap glossy martial arts books or videos on clearance. It worked for the b-boys and gals wink Picked a good book on kicks recently. Thought it might help when I get around to pirouettes smile

Circular flowing movement rule, but I’m not sure if I’d be classing clubswinging and staff as a martial arts. But they seem inexplitiably linked somerhow, as I’ve found lots on clubs and other interesting stuff at martial arts sites. For instance, any comments on this quarter staff article.

eek

If we as members of the human race practice meditation, we can transcend our fear, despair, and forgetfulness. Meditation is not an escape. It is the courage to look at reality with mindfulness and concentration. Thich Nhat Hanh


SickpuPpyNinja Rockstar!
1,100 posts
Location: Denver, Co. U.S.A.


Posted:
I've actually found that one of the greatest blessings and bastions of new staff moves is low budget kung fu movies. This also has come in very handy for my play with chain whip and rope dart as well.

The weapons choreography they tend to pack into the low budget kung fu movies is usually super flashy, and largely easily adaptable to fire performance. This is particularly true of the movies where they demonstrate grappling and less combative defensive staff techniques. If you can find and pick apart some of the close quarters techniques it can open up a whole new world of staff for you (also a lot of close quarters staff technique are very good starting points for contact staff).

Jesus helps me trick people.


Ariadmember
66 posts

Posted:
cool hi!

I'm tricking with the bo staff for a year now, the best way i found to learn stuff is to watch videos of people tricking with it for tens of times, and then to practice what you see on your own, after that brake what you know and make new tricks from it.

I am a member of an Israely XMA team - Team Naien.
Here is a sampler of us, im the guy with the bo and the poi.

ftp://tricks:tricks@67.18.198.27/Team%20Naien/Team%20Naien%20spring%20sampler%202005.mpg

And here is a guy from another team, Team Ryouko, they are in Toronto

ftp://tricks:tricks@67.18.198.27/ChanBoSampler1.mpg

mo-sephenthusiast
523 posts
Location: Edinburgh, UK


Posted:
Written by: Stone

For instance, any comments on this quarter staff article.

eek




Written by: the article


Junior boys might with advantage use the 6-ft. Quarter-staff, instead of engaging in fights every morning, and knocking one another’s faces out of shape, to settle their "private quarrels". Quarter-staff is very "manly," and some very "hard knocks" are received on both sides, and it has, moreover, this advantage over Fighting, all marks are out of sight.





ubblol ubblol ubblol

Glad I wasn't at his school. To stop kids fighting they're going to make them pummel each other with sticks. Fantastic! Still, so long as there's no visible damage, it's all ok... ubblol

monkeys ate my brain


quietanalytic
503 posts
Location: bristol


Posted:
https://www.uncg.edu/student.groups/fencing/AmericanFencing/articles/43_4_22.html

I used to do single-stick. Plenty of muppets at my school assumed that all you had to do was to swing it hard. It did reduce the number of fights that I got into.

ture na sig


BekarPLATINUM Member
Best fire theatre of BY, PL and UA in 2007, Bychyna competition
54 posts
Location: Minsk, Belarus


Posted:
Hi, All!!!

I'm training with taekwondo bo for 13 years (by myself ooooops i have no Sensi... It hard to find such a men in Post-USSR Belarus...)

I use a lot of movements from Taekwondo in my fire-work...
But in my techniqe i stand strong like a tree...
What do U think, is it good, is it beautiful to move all the body, to play on the body during the Staff manipulating?

Thanx a Lot,
Faithfully Yours,
Bekar.

Best Regards, Aliaksej <span style="font-weight: bold">"Bekar"</span> Burnosenka,<br />Fire and Medieval Theatre <span style="font-weight: bold"> "DiGrease's Buffoon Theatre"</span> <br /> <br />e-mail: bekar@tut.by<br />phone: +375 29 5076263<br />Minsk, Belarus


SickpuPpyNinja Rockstar!
1,100 posts
Location: Denver, Co. U.S.A.


Posted:
Written by: Bekar




I use a lot of movements from Taekwondo in my fire-work...
But in my techniqe i stand strong like a tree...
What do U think, is it good, is it beautiful to move all the body, to play on the body during the Staff manipulating?






It really depends on your personal taste.
I tend to be really bad about staying still sometimes, but generally I tend think that making more dramatic body movements improves the look of the performance, or at least makes it look more impressive even if you are doing the exact same moves.

Jesus helps me trick people.


BekarPLATINUM Member
Best fire theatre of BY, PL and UA in 2007, Bychyna competition
54 posts
Location: Minsk, Belarus


Posted:
Thanks!!!

Best Regards, Aliaksej <span style="font-weight: bold">"Bekar"</span> Burnosenka,<br />Fire and Medieval Theatre <span style="font-weight: bold"> "DiGrease's Buffoon Theatre"</span> <br /> <br />e-mail: bekar@tut.by<br />phone: +375 29 5076263<br />Minsk, Belarus


jonathanenthusiast
210 posts
Location: new zealand


Posted:
i reckon the best thing a martial art will do for you in terms of swinging fire toys is that it teaches you how to move your feet..... i mean the flow you get is considerably more when you know where to put your feet for the next thing you want to do. not that some moves dont look flash if your standing there doing them.



at the risk of opening up an old debate *nudges bender gently*



what do you guys think? is it useful to compare stationary moves with moves in which your shifting your feet?

are they really the same thing? (i dont know)

with the focus so much more on fun with twirling should we be maybe be looking to some of the ethnic dancing (Indian, pacific Islands ect) for inspiration.



i agree with sickpuppy in that there has to be a lot of learning that needs to be undone to transfer from fighting to twirling. yet we all seem to agree that it can help.



it would be cool to see a whole lot of us doing the same stylised routine like you see in those kung-fu movies. why dont you all come on down to New Zealand?
EDITED_BY: jonathan (1117751666)

SickpuPpyNinja Rockstar!
1,100 posts
Location: Denver, Co. U.S.A.


Posted:
Well, in fairness, martial arts does a lot more than teach you to move your feet when it comes to fire toys. It builds fantastic skills for handling whatever you're spinning. You really couldn't ask for a better foundation to build from.

And I don't think it's the *learning* that has to be undone, it's *habit*.

Jesus helps me trick people.



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