# JKD Ranking



## Mider1985

My question is to those who have trained under Dan Inosanto

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9RAon5VE1U&feature=related

Dan Inosanto starts talking about Rank at Minute 4:06

He makes you go 3 years to learn before you can become an Apprentice instructor, then another 5 to become Associate, then another 4 or five to become a Full instructor and then another 4 or five to become a senior instructor.

My question is like what do these rankings mean. My question is to those who have actually trained in the Inosanto Academy. If your an aprentice instructor is that like a black belt? If your a senior instructor is that like a grandmaster?

I know of a few full instructors like

the owner of ockickboxing.com
and
Ron Balicki
Mark Denny Of the Dog Brothers

And i know of VERY few Senior instructors
Rick Faye of Minnisota Kali Group 
and i think Yuri Nakamura


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## Mider1985

Isnt there anyone who trains at the inosanto academy?


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## Thunder Foot

They are just names... don't be caught up by them. If you know advanced techniques and you can do them well, the label of your "level" is only that; a label.


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## Yoshin9

Well for one, JKD does not have belts! So how else are you going to label stages in training? Also, the basics are within the 3 years and you learn Jun Fan before you learn JKD.

I train with a Apprentice Instructor who trains with an Associate Instructor who trains when he can with Dan Inosanto and his school.

So an apprentice is just that, a beginning instructor. An Associate Instructor is like a medium level instructor. A Full Instructor (of which Dan only has a few) is just that, a full instructor that is qualified to teach the whole system, but it doesn't make him the Grand Master, not even Dan would call himself a Grand Master.


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## JayStone

I don't think there's such thing as a Grandmaster in JKD, I dont think Bruce would've called himself a Grandmaster either. It's something that you never stop learning or perfecting, there's no plateau.


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## ArmorOfGod

JayStone said:


> I don't think there's such thing as a Grandmaster in JKD, I dont think Bruce would've called himself a Grandmaster either. It's something that you never stop learning or perfecting, there's no plateau.


 
No, but Bruce Lee did award rank with rank certificates, so you can't say he was above giving labels and titles.

AoG


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## eastnashvillemartialarts

The Certificates Bruce Lee gave out were based upon the amount of time they had been training.


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## thtackett

When Sifu Dan started giving out certificates he was using the university instructor model:
Apprentice
Assistant 
Associate
Full


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## James Kovacich

Thanx Tim.


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## Indie12

Too bad somebody removed the interview...

In the Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do "ranking" system, you have to have a mandatory 3 years training before 'possibly' being advanced.

Bruce Lee started using the rank method below:
Rank:
-1
Senior 1
Jr 1
-2
Jr 1
Senior

Dan Inosanto added and/or refined the bottom, and added additional time required for advancement.

Training for 3 years
Apprentice Instructor 4-5 Years      
Associate/Assistant Instructor 4-5 Years
Full Instructor 4-5  Years
Senior Full Instructor 4-5 Years

Total your looking at about 20+ years to reach Senior Full Instructor. Which is the way it outha be, in my opinion.


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## simplicity

Everyone that is a teacher believes in there process of knowledge and I'm cool with it... ;-)


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## James Kovacich

Look through the smoke and what do you see? Something to think about...


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## Indie12

simplicity said:


> Everyone that is a teacher believes in there process of knowledge and I'm cool with it... ;-)


 
Unfortunately!


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## Thunder Foot

The rank systems mentioned remind me of a traditional ranking system for a non-traditional way of fighting. I can't understand it. And while I do understand the importance of a system awarding rank, there's alot of people who expend their efforts on trying to gain rank instead of the more important act of honing their raw skill. I'm one to think that such systems may provoke said behavioral patterns... but that's just my 1cent piece.


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## jchristoph1

In all the JKD stuff I've done with Martial Concepts, I never really cared too much about getting rank. I always told my instructor, "Just teach me how to fight." So far, it's been working as long as I keep training!

If I do ever decide to become an instructor for a school or gym, then I'd be more likely to start caring about certifications and stuff.


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## San Soo Sifu

> In April 1959, Lee's parents decided to send him to the United States to stay with his older sister, Agnes Lee (&#26446;&#31179;&#40179, who was already living with family friends in San Francisco.
> 
> At the age of 18, Lee returned to the United States with $100 in his pocket and the titles of 1957 High School Boxing Champion and 1958 Crown colony Cha Cha Champion of Hong Kong.[8] After living in San Francisco for several months, he moved to Seattle in 1959, to continue his high school education, where he also worked for Ruby Chow as a live-in waiter at her restaurant.
> 
> On 20 July 1973, ...(Bruce) Lee was dead by the time he reached the hospital.[106]
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Lee





			
				Indie12 said:
			
		

> Dan Inosanto added and/or refined the bottom, and added additional time required for advancement.
> 
> 
> Training for 3 years
> Apprentice Instructor 4-5 Years
> Associate/Assistant Instructor 4-5 Years
> Full Instructor 4-5 Years
> Senior Full Instructor 4-5 Years
> 
> Total you're looking at about 20+ years to reach Senior Full Instructor. Which is the way it out to be, in my opinion.



From the time Bruce Lee stepped off of the boat in San Francisco, California in April 1959, until his untimely, tragic death on July 20, 1973; is a total of 14 years.

So, to be fair (and I am being extremely generous in this) and say 14 years of TOTAL teaching time for Bruce Lee, here in the USA.

And, he was NOT actually teaching that entire time. I am sure if we started deducting time that he initially had NO (zero) students, the time in between moving from San Francisco, CA to --> Seattle, WA to --> Oakland, CA --> to Los Angeles, CA; the time he spent making the Green Hornet (1966-1967) as "Kato," as well as playing "Kato" in three crossover episodes of Batman, the time he spent making television guest appearances: Ironside (1967), Here Come the Brides (1969), Blondie (1969), and in 4 episodes of Longstreet (1971); & movie appearances (Marlowe); the time he spent choreographing fight scenes for "The Wrecking Crew" starring Dean Martin, Sharon Tate, and Chuck Norris (1969); and for the fight choreography for "A Walk in the Spring Rain" starring Ingrid Bergman, and Anthony Quinn (1970); the time he suffered a serious back injury while attempting a good-morning exercise and then he couldn't train (_ergo_ TEACH) for six months, the time he spent making movies in Hong Kong, etc., ...

...We would get a far smaller number of actual TEACHING years than the 14 years he spent from arriving in the USA, until his young (32 years old) death.

The entire Jeet Kune Do curriculum (as taught by the late Bruce Lee) takes far less than 14 years to learn; let alone 20 years.

However, this is just my well considered opinion. And, opinions are like @_- holes; everyone has one; and they usually stink!


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## Lee Mainprize

20 Years to be a senior instructor - about a 5th Dan then.


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