# Who are the top JKD instructors in the world ?



## suicide

dan is one i know %-}


----------



## jks9199

Who do you think they are?  And why?

(and... just for fun, you know that there are a ton of smilies and emoticons available, not just the pirate, right?  Some of them might even be appropriate to your question...)


----------



## Tames D

Jerry Poteet  %-}


----------



## suicide

yeah i know %-}


----------



## arnuld

I think Tommy Carruthers is one of the best JKD artists (don't know about his teaching approach).


----------



## MarkBarlow

What about Lamar Davis?  While we've never trained together, I've known him for a lot of years.  I know he has sought out a lot of the original students and devotes a great deal of time and energy to JKD.


----------



## JohnMarkPainter

I Just returned from a 3 Day seminar with Lamar Davis.
He is an excellent teacher with an easily followed teaching structure and an extremely well researched curriculum.

If you are looking for 'original' Jun Fan JKD you wouldn't be sorry
(leave your Kali sticks and Sarong at home!!!)
I happen to like that too...

jmp


----------



## K831

I think those involved in the Wednesday Night group have got it together.

http://www.jkdwednite.com/

That Jeremy Lynch can really move, in my opinion. A testament to his teachers.


----------



## JKD143

Dan I. has always impressed me. I have worked out with some of Jerry's guys and a few of them moved pretty well. I certainly agree on the Wed. night group.


----------



## xoek

does anyone know if burton richardson is a good instructor? he runs jkd unlimited in hawaii.


----------



## Tensei85

xoek said:


> does anyone know if burton richardson is a good instructor? he runs jkd unlimited in hawaii.



Personally never met him, however through the vine I've heard good things about him nothing bad so far...

I would say check it out.


----------



## robertlk808

Burton also has some great clips on youtube which could give you a good feeling on his style of instruction. I have interacted with him via email and trained \ sparred with a student or two of his. Good people, humble, well trained and diverse.  Ive always got the feeling that he was very genuine.

Aloha,
Robert


----------



## Smoke

Although I've never trained with him, I also think Burton Richardson is a great JKD instructor.  As I'm sure all of you know, he's of the Inosanto lineage, if that means anything.  

But if you're going to include him, you should also consider Matt Thornton as well.  Richardson I believe, had a huge influence on Thornton.  When I think of JKD instructors, I simply think in terms of JKD and not separate them by politics.  Thus I think you have some great people on both sides of the argument.  I still don't know why a man cannot have one foot on one side and one on the other.  Is there some "magic boundary"?

Also I think there are a lot of great JKD instructors around the globe who just aren't as famous as the men mentioned here.


----------



## sgtmac_46

JKD143 said:


> Dan I. has always impressed me. I have worked out with some of Jerry's guys and a few of them moved pretty well. I certainly agree on the Wed. night group.



I got a chance to attend a Dan Inosanto seminar this last weekend in St. Louis.   The breadth of his knowledge of martial arts in general truly impressed me.  The man is a genius.  I also loved his philosophy on training, and how after training with him, he encourages his students to seek out other instructors in other disciplines to add to their art.


----------



## meltdown51

I have attended seminars of Lamar Davis, Tim Tackett, Dan Inosanto, Joe Lewis, Burton Richardson, Larry Hartsell. They were all excellent and each has there own take on JKD. I suggest you train with anyone who has information.

Joe Melton


----------



## ap Oweyn

I'm surprised nobody has said Ted Wong yet.  I'm not an original JKD guy myself (and I'm not really a JKD guy at all these days).  But he's supposed to be really excellent.

I came to JKD through the Filipino martial arts, so I'm much more partial to the Inosanto lineage.  (I associate much more closely with FMA than JKD these days.)  So my own teacher (Guro Pat Finley) was from that lineage.


Stuart


----------



## Smoke

I think there are a lot of really good younger instructors/coaches out there that aren't famous like their older JKD brethren.  Some of these guys I would put at the top of the list in terms of the skills they produce in relatively short times in their students.  IMO, that is what we should really be looking at with regard to an instructor; can he help you develop fighting skill relatively quickly.

Otherwise, this list just becomes one of, who are the most "famous", or the most popular JKD instructors in the world.

In that sense, I have heard really good things about guys like Shaun Rudie and Rob Hunter.  I know there are a herd of younger guys out there now that probably offer excellent instruction.  

Has anyone done any google searches to see if there are any newer instructors/schools within your particular regions?  Who are those guys if you do happen to fine them?  It might be interesting to see some of their names?


----------



## ap Oweyn

Smoke said:


> I think there are a lot of really good younger instructors/coaches out there that aren't famous like their older JKD brethren. Some of these guys I would put at the top of the list in terms of the skills they produce in relatively short times in their students. IMO, that is what we should really be looking at with regard to an instructor; can he help you develop fighting skill relatively quickly.
> 
> Otherwise, this list just becomes one of, who are the most "famous", or the most popular JKD instructors in the world.
> 
> In that sense, I have heard really good things about guys like Shaun Rudie and Rob Hunter. I know there are a herd of younger guys out there now that probably offer excellent instruction.
> 
> Has anyone done any google searches to see if there are any newer instructors/schools within your particular regions? Who are those guys if you do happen to fine them? It might be interesting to see some of their names?


 
DC Metro area has quite a few.  Off the top of my head, there's Pat Finley, Steve Braun, Mike Krivka, Pat Tray, and Scott Anderson.  I know there's quite a few more, but can't pull their names out of my brain at the moment.


----------



## MrJKD

I would put Chris Kent at near the top of that list, as he has a wealth of knowledge on JKD, having trained under Dan since 1973 & then braching off to start his own School, & also having access to the Bruces Library.


In addition I would also add my own Sifu Dave Carnell in England, he has spent time with Chris Kent, Ted Wong, Cass Madga & Tim Tacket & also the late Larry Hartsell, as well as spending in time in the states talking to the likes of Dan Lee, Taky Kimura & Bob Bremmer.

Their are a few clips on you tube of my Sifu


----------



## Domino

MrJKD said:


> I would put Chris Kent at near the top of that list, as he has a wealth of knowledge on JKD, having trained under Dan since 1973 & then braching off to start his own School, & also having access to the Bruces Library.
> 
> In addition I would also add my own Sifu Dave Carnell in England, he has spent time with Chris Kent, Ted Wong, Cass Madga & Tim Tacket & also the late Larry Hartsell, as well as spending in time in the states talking to the likes of Dan Lee, Taky Kimura & Bob Bremmer.
> 
> Their are a few clips on you tube of my Sifu



Beat me to it Mr 
Sifu Dave Carnell and Cass Magda, also a friend trains with Sifu Roni Crooks.


----------



## Smoke

ap Oweyn said:


> DC Metro area has quite a few.  Off the top of my head, there's Pat Finley, Steve Braun, Mike Krivka, Pat Tray, and Scott Anderson.  I know there's quite a few more, but can't pull their names out of my brain at the moment.




I've heard of Pat Tray.  Also, Frank Cucci used to be in the Virgina Beach area.  

Also along the East Coast, in North Carolina, are several. Juan Perez, Rob Hunter, John Kogas and Scott Shields.  I'm sure there are others.


----------



## rooke

I'm studying with the guy, so I'd have to throw his name up:
Steve Grody

He studied under Dan Inosanto for 13 years. He studied under Edgar Sulite privately for 7.

His trapping, empty hand skills, blade tactics, and stick methods are absolutely top notch.  I knew about the first two (trapping and empty hand) due to the videos he's previously put out. I was absolutely blown away by his knife tactics and stick methods. Grade A stuff all the way.

Rooke


----------



## Smoke

Yeah, I've heard of Grody's name for a while.  You're fortunate to be studying with him. 

Seems like we have quite a few good instructors and younger guys coming up all the time.  Many of these guys not only know the technical curriculum well, but can also fight.  I dare say this wasn't always the case!  These are good days to be training.

For some reason, these last couple of posts have provided insight into possible forum topics....we shall see.


----------



## joeygil

I always thought of Steve Grody as a Kali guy, but I guess that because I have his "Empty Hands of Kali" tape.

Interestingly, he use to also teach Lindy Hop (I saw him down at The Derby in the heydays of the 90s Swing revival).

Something on Burton Richardson, at least as far as a few years back, he really had a emphasis on Silat, with a lot of Silat in his JKD interpretation.  Great stuff, but some "purists" / OJKD folks may object.


So I suppose the list can be broken down to OJKD and JKDC instructors.


I'll add one to the OJKD set - Sifu Yori Nakamura teaches the basic and intermediate "Jun Fan" classes at the Inosanto Academy.  He's great with the technical stuff - very specific and exact on the mechanics.


----------



## JKD143

I know Jeremy Lynch and the Wed. night group were mentioned already, but I came across this old video of Jeremy and Louis Berard back in 1998.

Though you guys would enjoy, if you haven't seen it already.


----------



## rooke

joeygil said:


> I always thought of Steve Grody as a Kali guy, but I guess that because I have his "Empty Hands of Kali" tape.


His style has evolved quite a bit since that series. I already considered the stuff I saw on his tapes to be top-notch stuff. I'm even more blown-away now.



joeygil said:


> Interestingly, he use to also teach Lindy Hop (I saw him down at The Derby in the heydays of the 90s Swing revival).


He's a multi-talented guy. Also an author on the LA Graffiti scene.



joeygil said:


> Something on Burton Richardson, at least as far as a few years back, he really had a emphasis on Silat, with a lot of Silat in his JKD interpretation.  Great stuff, but some "purists" / OJKD folks may object.


---
I do not presume to speak for Burt. However from what I've read, it appears he pulled away from Silat when he began training with Matt Thornton and focused on MMA as his JKD expression. Recently he's released "Battlefield Kali" and is soon releasing a "Street Silat", but he kinda turned away from Silat (it seemed to me) for awhile, as he felt it wasn't composed of "high percentage" techniques in an adrenal dump situation...but that is just MY interpretation based on what I read.

Rooke


----------



## joeygil

Heh, looks like I need to keep up on the scuttlebutt.


----------



## steve7968

Smoke said:


> I've heard of Pat Tray.  Also, Frank Cucci used to be in the Virgina Beach area.
> 
> Also along the East Coast, in North Carolina, are several. Juan Perez, Rob Hunter, John Kogas and Scott Shields.  I'm sure there are others.



i train under sifu scott shields (who trained under sifu inosanto)


----------



## Smoke

steve7968 said:


> i train under sifu scott shields (who trained under sifu inosanto)




You're in good hands.


----------



## steve7968

Smoke said:


> You're in good hands.



sure am.:ultracool


----------



## BLACK LION

Tim Tackett and his "garage"... Paul Vunyak...  etc...


----------



## unladylikedefnse

Paul Vunak


----------



## simplicity

All of BLS...


----------



## Lee Mainprize

Bob Breen & Rick Young from what I have seen.

Paulsen & Matt Thornton.

Seen some terrible footage of some original JKD guys won't mention names...but really bad.

But like anything there is good and bad...trained with Andy Norman for quite a few years KFM who's a JKD man.


----------



## jiujitsumonkey

Any veritable JKD guys in NY?


----------



## Benevolentbob

Has anyone heard of Damon Evans? Not sure of the lineage. I've been looking for a good place to train for a while now (there aren't many promising options where I live) and I plan on going to this place to try it out, but it would be nice to get some experienced input.

Here is the school's website: http://www.jkdsciences.com/
They also have a youtube channel here: http://www.youtube.com/user/jeetkunedosciences


----------



## Semper Fi

jiujitsumonkey said:


> Any veritable JKD guys in NY?



http://www.jkdmartialarts.com/

Richard Torres is in Fishkill, NY.  He trained under the late Ted Wong.


----------



## CrushingFist

jiujitsumonkey said:


> Any veritable JKD guys in NY?





Semper Fi said:


> http://www.jkdmartialarts.com/
> 
> Richard Torres is in Fishkill, NY.  He trained under the late Ted Wong.



How about NYC ?


----------



## Indie12

First generation students, hands down!!!


----------



## Thunder Foot

Tommy Carruthers and his unique "no nonsense" approach. The guy is unbelievably great.  Closest  person to Bruce's  method and abilities.


----------



## Mr Mojo Lane

Besides the obvious, Inosanto and Bustillo, I would go with Burton Richardson.  The guy is a BJJ BB, Dog Brother and certified under Illustrisimo.  I had a chance to take a couple of free classes under the guy in Hawaii and they were great.  I chose to study at HMC, however, because of my schedule.


----------



## angelariz

iv learned a bit from Kevin Seaman, Francis Fong, Keith Allan, Tim Tackett, Jim McCann.
All of them have great skill and all have lineage back to Guro Inosanto as well.


----------



## StormShadow

Jerry Poteet (RIP)


----------



## shihansmurf

Bill Shaw.

He calls it Han Foo Wa but it is certainly his development of JKD.


Mark


----------



## simplicity

I've been told by many of Bruce Lee's students, that I have a great group of martial artist and that something good is going here... :uhyeah:


----------



## Don Daly

Professor Gary Dill teaches the authentic Oakland JKD and also does seminars if you are interested.  He is more interested in preserving the original roots of Bruce Lee's JKD for those who are interested.  His system is called Self-Defense Systems Jeet Kune Do and he is the head of the Jeet Kune Do Association.
If you live in Denver, Sifu Paul Hart (4th degree under Gary Dill) has also had training under Bill Shaw (Steve Golden line) and other original JKD students.


----------



## CK1980

Guru Dan Inosanto would have to be one of the greatest JKD teachers still living...  Remember, he was a close friend to the late Bruce Lee and spent years learning from him...  He was also one of the first students Bruce Lee personally gave a black belt to.


----------



## simplicity

CK1980 said:


> Guru Dan Inosanto would have to be one of the greatest JKD teachers still living...  Remember, he was a close friend to the late Bruce Lee and spent years learning from him...  He was also one of the first students Bruce Lee personally gave a black belt to.



Sorry, but Bruce Lee never gave a Black Belt to anyone... Also, Bruce Lee never gave a certificate to anyone that said: Instructor on it...


----------



## TFP

Guro Scott Brennan out in Washington State.


----------



## FizzyCal

simplicity said:


> Sorry, but Bruce Lee never gave a Black Belt to anyone... Also, Bruce Lee never gave a certificate to anyone that said: Instructor on it...



Bruce Lee DID give certificate of "Rank" however. But I don't understand the snide attitude because you could have easily clarified that.

Guro Inosanto happened to be one of the few Pal Bearers of Bruce Lee at his funeral. Don't know about anyone of the rest of you on here, but that says a ton, in my book, as to who Dan Inosanto really was to Bruce Lee, and who was REALLY  close enough to Bruce to know what his ideas really were for JKD.

Not saying that Guro Dan is THE one, and he never would either,  but I believe  credit is due to him for his role, early on, in JKDs development and research with Bruce Lee.


----------



## simplicity

> But I don't understand the snide attitude because you could have easily clarified that.



FizzyCal, I clearly was clarifying facts... Nowhere did I say anything about anyone of BLS including the much respected by me Guru Dan Inosanto... Matter of fact, I in the book called "Descendents of The Dragon - The Second generation of Jee Kune Do and Beyond" by Paul Bax (JKD Historian).. I was asked, *Paul Bax:* Dan Inosanto has been ridiculed over the years for his somewhat abstract way to teach Jeet Kune Do. Your thoughts? *John McNabney:* Well I respect Dan Inosanto, he was there and I was not! I've trained with him; he is a very nice person. I think people have hattred and jealousy in their hearts. one of the very important principles in Jeet Kune Do searching for the root to your own ignorance and opening up your mind to what is. well, I guess you get what I'm saying here. If I don't care for someone's way of doing things, do I have to tell them? Do I have to say you're wrong and I'm right? What purpose does that achieve?.... So to clarify in that debate between school of thought are very, very old news to me.. Having train in both, I myself don't perscribe to neither... I'm just a Jeet Kune Do man, plain & simple trying to get better...  Maybe just maybe it is your snide attitude of what I said that needs to reflect into a mirror... Anyway, good luck to your training and future in martial arts... God Bless, man.... JM


----------

