You guys inspired me! So we broke out the poles today during our workout. My group trains at a local park during the summer when the weather allows, and in my basement in the winter. So I hadn't picked up the pole in close to 6 months. Thankfully it all came back pretty quickly! We have been working on Escrima/Kali lately, so naturally we pole to Escrima sticks. The pole is a formidable weapon when used properly! And, unfortunately, when I say "properly" I mean NOT like most Wing Chun guys do it!
I pointed out earlier that the large heavy pole is only for training. The "fighting" pole is lighter and only 7 feet long. The danger point for the pole fighter is when the opponent gets past the tip of the pole. As long as the pole fighter can maintain centerline and keep the tip of the pole between himself and his opponent, he is golden! With a 7 foot pole, an opponent standing opposite typically cannot reach your front arm/hand with a stick, sword, etc. When the pole is any shorter, the opponent can more easily reach those targets! The key for the pole fighter is to have fast and agile footwork. If the opponent tries to knock the pole out of the way and charge in, the pole fighter has to be able to quickly move back and at an angle and recover centerline so the the tip of his pole stays between him and the opponent. So with a pole that is longer than 7 feet and fairly heavy, it is harder for the pole fighter to use fast footwork and adjustments of the angle to recover his position and keep his opponent away. A big heavy pole is much easier for the opponent to get past the tip.
Just check out that classic video of Tang Yik doing the pole form. Look at how fast and agile his footwork is. In comparison, most Ip Man pole methods have very little footwork. They have stances that are very deep to help condition the legs, and the pole is large and heavy to help condition the arms. This is simply Wing Chun specific weight training, not really a viable fighting method. If you are going to actually fight with a pole, you must have a variety of fast and mobile footwork, and be able to turn and use multiple angles. This is why Tang Yik was known as the "King of the Pole."
We played with this today. I'm pretty fast with the sticks. But even using double sticks, if I tried to knock the pole off line and charge in, my partner simply quickly moved back at an angle and recovered the line making it very difficult for me to ever get close enough to strike him.
Sifu Tang told me he was often annoyed with the Wing Chun guys when they showed the weapons. They almost always demonstrated the Bart Jam Dao against the pole, and almost always show the Bart Jam Dao winning! It just isn't that easy if the guy is actually using the pole properly!
