THE SHOOTIST!

[fujicolt]

Just happened to turn the TV on and the Sunday afternoon Film today is John Wayne's last ever Film The SHOOTIST. Tis the tale of a Gunslinger's Last Days (he is riddled with incurable Cancer - very prophetic in John Wayne's case!!).

I just happened to turn it on for the scene where Wayne's character is giving a young boy a shooting lesson and some advice about when he (the Shootist) will step up and get into a fight. Wayne says the immortal lines:

'I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted and I won't be laid a hand on! - I don't do any of these things to other people and I expect the same from them!'

Not bad advice if you consider it carefully because it fundamentally states he will only fight in cases of Self Defence! One would of course have to consider each individual circumstances but IMHO fair advice.

Wayne then goes onto to give further advice regarding what is required when one does have to step up and get involved - He Says:

' One has to be willing! most men will hesitate before they will pull a trigger, they will blink an eye or take a breath before they commit - I won't!

from personal experience with a great deal of physical violence via my employment I can attest to the validity of this statement as I have seen similar many times.

If you are gonna GET DOWN AND DIRTY you MUST commit to it totally - no hesitation and totally 'in the Zone' until it is safe for one to relax again!

It is many years since I last saw this Movie and I distinctly remember discussing it with Steve Cattle when he was staying with me after a Course - we both agreed that Wayne's characters words held a great deal of echo into a Karateka's choices when faced with a potentially violent situation. We did both agree that we had both grown up on a diet of John Wayne movies and as corny as they can be we both liked them LOL!

AND THERE ENDETH THE SUNDAY SERMON

[Bob Davis]

Off the topic but just an aside because of the timing....

If you are gonna GET DOWN AND DIRTY you MUST commit to it totally - no hesitation and totally 'in the Zone' until it is safe for one to relax again!

I know we've worked on this Steve but I finally had it happen yesterday during training. Just a normal session going through kata (Taikyoku Shodan at the time) but I had that "zone" decend on me for the first time without having to conciously try and put myself there, an interesting experience. I'm getting there, slowley but surely.

[malk103]

John Wayne is a favourite of mine as I remember watching a lot of his films during my childhood, he had a certain set of morals and guidelines to live by and if wronged he would knock them flying.
He echoed the above statement from the Shootist in his early films like Hondo.

As for the zone - I think I have it or something close to it during Kata but it's difficult to try and teach to others.
I experienced a bit of Mushin on Thursday when defending against any of 3 attacks - I kept getting it wrong or hesitating - clearing the mind and just reacting started to work for me. It should do as that's the name of our club!

[tomobrien]

Well said 'Pilgrim'!

Thanks,
Tom

PS - Yeah I used to think I was John Wayne too

[th0mas]

I think the threat of real violence often can bring on the zone... or to be more accurate the percieved threat of real violence.

As an example...

The first time I experienced being in the "Zone" was my first fight in my first ever competition as a lowly 5th kyu.. I think because I genuinely believed I would get my head kicked in (to be fair to me it was the 80's and there was a much more robust interpretation of what control meant)

Anyway... the andrenaline dump got channelled into all the right places and it was as if it I was watching someone else fighting. My poor opponent didn't know what hit him (I believe it was kokomi, uraken, gyakasuki followed by tobi maegeri for ippon and end of fight .. )

For me and the rest of our squad the competition was not a sport more of a proving ground and we consequently took it much more seriously on the day. I honestly believe that this was becuase we did not train for competition( my instructors John Ponscillo and Evan Poetti never focussed on "point scoring or gameplay" probably as a result of Steve's simpathetic and gentle influence).

[malk103]

Mar 25, 2012 19:51:59 GMT tomobrien said:

Well said 'Pilgrim'!

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance......

[fujicolt]

Mar 25, 2012 15:33:12 GMT Bob Davis said:

Off the topic but just an aside because of the timing....

If you are gonna GET DOWN AND DIRTY you MUST commit to it totally - no hesitation and totally 'in the Zone' until it is safe for one to relax again!

I know we've worked on this Steve but I finally had it happen yesterday during training. Just a normal session going through kata (Taikyoku Shodan at the time) but I had that "zone" decend on me for the first time without having to conciously try and put myself there, an interesting experience. I'm getting there, slowley but surely.

Never expected anything less Bob - just remeber that ' andrenailin 'dump' that so decisively fell upon you during the 3 stages of mindset exercise we did at the course and the more you rehearse it the more it becomes under your control rather than being a reaction to external influences. One of the best fighters (and definitely one of the toughest) the UK ever produced: Billy Higgins summed it up perfectly when he said 'You have to rehearse it until itr is like switching a light bulb on and off! = you in control!

Oh and for those of you whom have not yet had the pleasure of training with either Bob or ThOmas - I can assure you that when these two gert lumps 'get in the zone' it's 'Buckle up or Bug out!'