Learn Jeet Kune Do as handed down to us by the original students of Bruce Lee. Now you have the opportunity to learn Bruce Lee's martial art as it was taught in his Los Angeles Chinatown school.
The Chinatown JKD curriculum at our school is centered around Bruce Lee's JKD structure (based on Wing Chun, Western Boxing and Western Fencing) as taught in the late 60s and early 70s, and perpetued by Sifu Tim Tackett, the man Sifu Dan Inosanto once called the most knowledgeable JKD man in the world; and the late Bob Bremer, known as the enforcer of Bruce Lee's Chinatown JKD school, in Redlands California.
We will teach you all the techniques, drills and strategies that you will need to develop a solid defensive and offensive skills along with the core competencies required for ranking in Chinatown JKD as set forth by the Chinatown JKD Association.
While the techniques can be modified for the ring, the focus of this curriculum is still on self-perservation.
The primary means of defense in Chinatown Jeet Kune Do is the "stop hit", which makes our JKD a "counter attacking" art. You intercept your opponents attack either before he attacks, during the execution of the attack, or during his recovery.
The focus of the training is based on the self-defense and the combative kickboxing aspects with a focus on the 3 ranges of combat (long range, medium range and close range) of Bruce Lee's art; while maintaining the freedom and continued growth in the martial arts as advocated by Sijo Lee.
This is not a Kickboxing or MMA class... if you're looking for that, you might want to look elsewhere.
What is a training session like?
A regular training session will typically include:
Warm Ups - simple joint mobility, strength and flexibility exercises not only to prevent injury but also to improve your overall athletic performance.
Basics - in Chinatown JKD we emphasize drilling of single techniques. Be prepared to spend a lot of time on footwork, punches and kicks.
Skill Development - this goes beyond the basics where we begin to introduce power training, sensitivity and energy drills. Much time is spent on the understanding of distance, timing and rhythm; as well as "primary" and "secondary" attacks as outlined in Bruce Lee's notes. In Chinatown JKD we do not spend as much time on Wing Chun drills but rather on other reactionary training drills and principles to be used in sparring.
Progressive Resistance Training - Every training session includes sparring games to ingrain and reinforce the techniques taught in prior classes, starting with simple isolation sparring drills. We are always careful not to let things get too intense and always strive to keep things playful and non-competitive.
Is this class for beginners?
Yes. However, it is recommended that you have some prior martial arts training. The Chinatown Jeet Kune Do lessons is currently only available through private lessons. Please contact us for more information.
Have more questions? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions Page.
"The purpose of the class is to preserve and promote Bruce Lee’s art of Jeet Kune Do, to help define and teach the core curriculum, not to confine us but to liberate us, and to discover our personal expression of Bruce’s art." ~ Sifu Tim Tackett
