Page 37 - Martial Science August #22-2017

“It’s a survival art”...

“It only takes one

strike, one slash,

one thrust. You must

be offensive.”

Take an example. The first hit of the drill “When you’re attacked,” he says, “you have
known as “Heaven” or the “Upper Six” comes at angles of entry with which to respond. These
a diagonal, toward the head, the hands, body are vertical, horizontal or at 45 degrees. These
or legs. More specifically, to the temples, col- lines bisect or intersect. When my stick diffuses
larbone, elbows, wrists, kidneys, hips, knees your strike, this means that I grace your line of
or ankles. The potential for line bisections or attack, I follow it with mine and counter your
intersections comes in the form of deflections force so that I strike and your attack misses the
or diffusions, the latter using force and trajec- mark. The footwork is a cornerstone, based on
tory to advantage for counter-offense. This at- the triangle pattern, which we use to quarter
tack is very effective, because the mechanics the opponent and strike.”
are exactly the same throughout the series of
motions, the STAPP principles developed to It all comes back to offense. “It’s always my
mastery through repetition. turn,” says Tuhon Apolo. This doesn’t, he cau-
tions, mean you won’t get cut. It means you
These principles include mastery of angles of have a better chance of being the last person
attack, bisecting the line, leverage, and ful- standing.
crums. Physical science studies matter and its
motion through space and time, along with “It’s a survival art,” says Ladra. “It only takes
energy and force. With his academic back- one strike, one slash, one thrust. You must be
ground in engineering, Ladra likes to call him- offensive.”
self a combat engineer.

AUGUST/2017 37