Sunday 05 September

Who Can Do Kung-Fu?

Who Can Do Kung-Fu? Anyone! Kung-Fu students come in all shapes and sizes. Our only restriction is that you must be at least five years old or older. Kung-Fu is fun for kids! Kung-Fu does not require brute strength. In fact, women and children ...

Several Styles to Learn

Several Styles to Learn You can learn what style or styles that best intrigues you. We teach Emperors Longfist, Sil-lum Kung Fu, Sasamba Kali Arnis. We have great instructors and they are good at what they do. They teach from kids to adults. Soft to hard, you decide, we will teac...

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Blue Ridge Kung Fu Arnis Academy Located in the mountains of North Carolina, this academy has produced several quality instructors and students. We take pride in ourselves because of this fact, and our success is because of our students. Come v...

Welcome

Welcome to Blue Ridge Kung Fu Arnis Academy Headquarters We are the international headquarters of the International Kung Fu Arnis Association and the headquarters of all Kung Fu Arnis Academys under Grandmaster Rick Ward. The academy is located in the western mountain...

Tuhon Rick Ward

Grandmaster Rick Ward Grandmaster Rick Ward began martial arts training in 1979 at the age of 19 to rehabilitate his health after a long illness. When his health began to improve, his dedication and love for martial arts grew. He knew at this time he wanted to be a teacher and help other people ...

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What is Sil-Lum Kung-Fu?

Sil-Lum (or Shaolin) Kung-Fu originated in Shao-Lin Temples hundreds of years ago. Although the exact origins are difficult to trace, the birth of Sil-Lum is usually accredited to the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma who introduced the 18 Lohan movements to Shao-Lin monks as a form of exercise. The Lohan eventually gave rise to the five basic animal styles that Kung-Fu is famous for: Crane, Leopard, Tiger, Snake, and Dragon.

Practitioners of any of these styles mimic the movements and assume the fighting spirit of the animal. For example, the Tiger teaches clawing techniques and courage. Additional styles such as Praying Mantis and Monkey were subsequently developed.

Kung-Fu was originally taught only to Shao-Lin monks who could not leave the temple until they passed a life or death test. Graduates were well known for their fighting prowess. The modern Kung-Fu student is no longer put to such extremes, but nonetheless has inherited a powerful fighting art laced with a philosophy emphasizing peace and respect for life.

Sil-Lum (Shaolin) Kung-Fu

An Art That Has all the Animals In Use.

We teach Sil-Lum (Shaolin) Kung-fu. This art form includes joint locks, kicks, punches, throws, sweeps, take downs and also the use of traditional Chinese weapons. Basic weapon instruction includes staff, Escrima sticks, short bo, knife, Nunchaku, sword, spear and walking cane. In the tradition of martial arts training of old, we are selective when it comes to our students. New students must be of good character and have a sincere desire to learn.

For the beginner, there are basic control moves designed to defend one against certain grabs, holds, and threatening maneuvers. In addition, the student is taught basic kicks, how to do them properly and effectively, as well as how to punch and block an attacker. The intermediate student learns the more complicated techniques, which include many knife attack defenses, weapons training, sweeps, takedowns, and light sparring, which trains the student to use the techniques learned in a fighting situation.

For the long-term student the striving for perfection of form continues. The dedicated will acquire confidence, self-discipline, and build strength of body and character. Also taught is Tai Chi Chuan (The Grand Ultimate), the exercise of choice for a billion people daily. It teaches hand-eye coordination, balance, and relaxation while training effective self-defense movement. This is ideal for maintaining one's health and training one's body to be calm yet responsive. We currently have taught students ranging from 3 1/2 to 75 years old. Kung-fu has much to offer everyone due to the adaptive nature of the art.

Like the martial arts schools of ancient china, we have a family based school. We teach separate children and adult classes but teaching the values of family and community is important to us. As a special incentive, children must maintain above average grades in order to stay in our classes. If their grades fall below acceptable levels, we require immediate action.