Pictures for 1978

Grand Master Chow doing Flying spinning reverse crescent kick in first picture, in second he stands in snake posture.

Grand Master Chow in his new club, his first club he finally found after a long wait. But the wait was well worth it. It was cheap rent, and had all the room to do our weapons, and put all of the equipment, it was an excellent place with four large rooms, one very large for a large group class.

Sifu Fiedler was working in a Hung Kuen School for the past three years, eight hours a day. And if anyone was ready to be second in command at the new school it was Sifu Fiedler. He was also as excited as GM Chow, he was finally able to leave that school he hated so much. GM Chow told Sifu Fiedler he could not leave the Hung Kuen School until GM Chow had his own school where Sifu Fiedler could teach. The reason for this is GM Chow believed if Sifu Fiedler could train anywhere and get paid for it eight hours a day, it could only help his foundation. Plus another reason was to have experience sparring, which the Hung Kuen School did violently. No rules, no gear, no groin protector, it was completely wild. In fact Sifu Fiedler had almost every bone in his body broken in the first year.

The second year there were a few more breaks, and a ruptured spleen. The reason for this is Sifu Fiedler was a marked man at the Hung Kuen School, no one liked him because he was training under GM Chow. Because the technique worked so well against most, the majority were jealous. Because Sifu Fiedler did not have experience at this level in his training, he could not beat people who had ten to twenty years under their belts, when Sifu Fiedler only had a yr. The strangest thing happened however, after the second year, Sifu Fiedler could defeat even the highest level Hung Kuen people, and all with GM Chows technique. There were two or three people from the Hung Kuen school who were instructors that learned from Sifu Fiedler while no one was looking. Each did not know the other one was training with Sifu Fiedler to learn GM Chow's technique. Even though they were learning GM Chows technique. Sifu Fiedler made sure they started out with exactly the same technique as what he was taught. Best parts of Choy Lay Fut, Northern Long fist, Wing Chun, Tam Tiu, and more, the thing is, each one of these systems has proved itself in battle in the past. And each one has what is known as unique type of technique, not the same as most hard style martial sports, they all start with inside block high block low block, not so with the styles above, the have blocks that sound like inner key block, outer key block, inner crescent blocks. If you are thinking that this is the same as, Temple Blocks, Three section blocks, or Three star blocking, which is all from different styles but the same technique. This is not like that at all, they all have different names for their basic blocks, and the blocks are completely different from the others. As I was saying with most Hung Kuen styles, there are many, or with what is known as the Combat Karate, or the Sport Karate, they all start the same, with the three basic blocks, kicks, and punching techniques. They only change at around green belt, or black belt, depending on whether the style or system is a sport, or combat art.

Getting back to GM Chow, once he seen how many black belts and higher came to train with him, he decided not to take basic students, and train only higher black belts. Sifu Fiedler was the one who taught all of the classes. He was some times with a lower degree black belt, teaching him GM Chow's technique, each student no matter the rank, was blown away by GM Chows martial arts, even  the basic stuff was more advanced then most clubs advanced techniques. Some came from Tibetan White Crane, or Lions Roar, they came from a Wing Chun club, a Hung Gar club, a White Crane Club, called Bok Hok Pai. People came from all over and what was so wonderful was they were all very good at the martial arts. Some were instructors for their teachers at the school they came from. All promised the same, if they stayed with their teacher, and trained hard, soon as he was ready the teacher would finally teach him or her the secret techniques. And just like everyone else, they find out that there is no secret techniques, he had nothing left to teach ten years back when he told his students he would teach them those secret techniques. They waited, and waited, and waited, and after ten years, which I believe is enough patience. So that is when they find out they have been lied to all that time, just so you could not go out and learn from true masters in martial art.

    They all wanted the same thing before coming to GM Chow, what they could not get from their own Masters, high level technique, and a Martial arts teacher who could turn anyone into a good martial artist. He had this way to take anyone, but he taught them all differently.

 If they could only come a few times a week, they would learn only the techniques that fit their own body. If they came every single night for years, they would start to learn every single method to help teach everyone. You see a real Kung Fu master does not teach everyone the same, because everyone is not the same. Think about it? And when you think about it, a tall person is going to have to learn how to punch differently then someone short. Some one that is fat, or heavy, is going to learn completely differently then a bone man, or skinny person. Someone who had lots of protection from excess body fat, can take punches in the stomach without blocking, they have to learn the technique first, but again a skinny person would not be able to take it the same. A skinny person has to learn how to move, and move fast, never to take a punch and always making sure to move like a snake. And then we have muscle men, you would think that they would be so strong that nothing could hurt them. But think about it, what would hurt them the most. Yes that is right, attacking their muscles. The bicep is one of the best muscles to hit, another good one is the chest muscles up high, and another good spot is the thigh, the calf muscle. 

Trying hard to allow you to understand this because that is another thing that makes a true Chinese Master. Many people want to know what is the difference between a commercial Kung Fu school, or a true traditional Ancient Chinese Martial arts school, the difference is like night and day. Where Sifu Fiedler worked at the Hung Kuen School, everyone was taught the same, they did not even know that there was any other way. They were taught that Chi Kung was a sword form, and many many other embarrassing things. And the person that was to be Sifu Fiedler's Head Master at the Hung Kuen School did not even know as much about Kung Fu as Sifu Fiedler did training with GM Chow for two years. You see this so called Head master of the school had trained with his teacher for twenty years, and still did not know what true Kung Fu was. He did not teach Sifu Fiedler one lesson while Sifu Fiedler worked at the Hung Kuen School. The only person that taught Sifu Fiedler at the Hung Kuen School was the Head Masters Teacher. He came once a week to teach Sifu Fiedler, and this went on for a year until Sifu Fiedler gave his resignation and started to teach at GM Chows school. 

Some instructors stayed with their masters for a very long time, with promises of staying a little longer and you will learn the secret techniques they would tell their students. All the while there is no advanced techniques, some of the old masters were a Charlatans. This is something that could happen very easily back in the 70s and 80s, now a day people are becoming much more educated because of the internet. And because of the knowledge that people are seeing from places such as in National Geographic specials on the martial arts, or other programs showing Martial arts from all over the world. But for us it is China, when seeing programs on TV about China, it is always a treat. Back in the 60s, and 70s, the type of Chinese that we would mostly see in Canada or USA, were Chinese from Hong Kong, or from areas in China that were close to Hong Kong. They spoke Cantonese, and they were all from the South of China. South China has martial arts that are so different from the North of China. The martial arts from the North of China only started to come out after China started to open her doors a little. As China keeps on modernizing, I am sure we will see even more Styles and Systems that were hidden all this time. The people from the North Speak Manderine, and they are taller people, the martial arts that stand out in North China are Northern Long fist, Tam Tiu, Northern Eagle and Mantis, Tai Chi Chuan, Ba Gwa Chuan, Hsing i Quan, or Ying Yee, or Ying Yi, the last three all the same, but with different spelling.

Grand Master Chow

Grand Master Chow training in his first club in Edmonton, it took them four years to get this club.

Sifu Fiedler doing basic Tam Tiu

When still working at the Hung Kuen school eight hours a day, going in at two in the afternoon and finishing working at ten at night. Sifu Fiedler would get home and have to do another hour of training with GM Chow, something that Sifu Fiedler loved so much, his lessons were magical with Grand Master Chow, and that is exactly how Sifu Fiedler taught until he retired.

Sifu Fiedler and Gm Chow were inseparable, it was years and years of training together, sparring together, and teaching in different high schools and other gyms that would hire, just GM Chow would go if I was still working at the Hung Kuen School.

GM Chow working his forms

Tony Paterson and Sifu Fiedler, in one of the private lesson basements we had in Edmonton

Sifu Fiedler and GM Chow working on Three section blocks to help develop the arms for blocking. In center Gm Chow training his side kick. On the far right, we have GM Chow training his Iron Palm techniques, right after putting on the Dit Dat Jow.

Sifu Fiedler and GM Chow

Sifu Fiedler and GM Chow training for Vegas, they were asked by invitation to go down to Vegas to give a demonstration.

Sifu Fiedler and GM Chow

More to come soon

Sifu Dee

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