entrevista a Hearring (ingles)

Negreira: Then why do you decide for kenpo?
Hearring: kenpo pretty much at that time was back at the early 60´s, or mid 60´s, in the United States, it was a time were people was fighting and using martial arts, like kids in high school, everybody knew it, and I wanted a good, practical style, that I can utilize very quickly for my own protection, initially was for my own protection, seen Mr. Parker teaching soldiers, it was obvious that it was a good style, and a good practical style people can learn.

Negreira: What did your training consist on?
Hearring: Training in kenpo I think still consisting today. We do a lot of techniques, martial arts exercise to strength the muscles, kenpo techniques; kenpo is a very technical style, we have a lot of techniques for anygiving situations. And we also have forms, traditional forms for kenpo. Also at that time the Chinese character of kenpo was more, Mr. Parker really push that, we kind of looking back to our Chinese roots, we still did tiger crane, we did bunshikun, book set, we did some of the old Chinese weapons sets. But probably a year after at my initial training Mr. Parker deleted most of the traditional Chinese and then we just stayed with the traditional kenpo forms one to eight and the techniques white to black.

Negreira: What was Ed Parker like?
Hearring: Ed Parker had always been a dynamic personality, he was one of those rare persons, unique and you can felt his spirit before he had said anything to you. Was like when you say a person walks into a room you don't see him but you can feel his presence in the room. He was a tough teacher, he pushed you to perform 150% not a 100% wasn't wood enough, you had to do a 150%. And I think through at all of that what I realize now, not only was he teaching me to be a good martial artist, he was developing a love to the martial arts, what that means. So I think thirty plus years later now I still love martial arts, if I didn't have a school I would be in my back yard or in a park or some other space practicing martial arts. Because became part of me because of Ed Parker training. He was concern about my well while I was a kid; he kept me out of trouble. He was concern about my noliege of not only kenpo, but also all martial arts. He introduce me to the Chinese community, the other styles of Chinese martial arts, to the Koreans arts, to the Japanese arts, the Okinawa's arts. He was just, if you were involved with Ed Parker you will gonna be involved with all faces of martial arts not only kenpo. He was a good man.

Negreira: What kind of teacher he was?
Hearring: He was a very tough teacher. I think, I talked my old school brothers and if there is one thing I remember was Ed Parker working out for hours upon hours like traditional ancient martial artists. And he ensisted you to work out for hours and hours and hours. And I think if there is a big secret to being successful at martial arts is that you have to develop a love of the discipline and the time required becoming a martial artist. It's not a sport that you can be good in six-month or a year or two years, it takes many, many years. And in that time frame, that ancient concept of time to develop a love to art or you aren't going to be successful.

Negreira: You studied all the martial arts, right? Why did you do that?
Hearring: I've studied northern silam, northern shaolin, I also did yang style tai chi. I think my interest in Chinese martial arts, again belongs yo Ed Parker by his initial training. I was being able to see some of the Chinese martial arts he practiced. So we always pride, we always had an interest. So when I had a chance after getting my black belt, I went into Chinese community with people I´d met. And picked up tiger crane that was one of our old sets we stop teaching, bunshikun and from there my Chinese instructor was northern silam, northern shaolin stylist and I asked him would he teach me the rest of the northern shaolin system what he agree. I picked up the classical weapons, not all of them but about eighteen of them. And again what I realize is that in martial arts the training is very hard and I think that's what I enjoy about it.

Negreira: What is the secret of the beginning of the good martial artist?
Hearring: Work, work and more work. You don't have to have natural talents. I heard teachers all the time saying that they look for student's whit natural talents and I'm sure that are students that are naturally good. But what makes the difference is the interest maybe they have more interest than others students do are. I think any person can be good, can be great in martial arts, but you have to be willing to devote the time. What I mean is a simply life lesson, if you want to be good in anything you got to put the time in and the effort. If you do that you gonna be good in martial arts.

Negreira: Tell if I'm wrong. You are master in wu shu north shaolin and you are first degree black belt in American kenpo. If you have seventeen years in kung fu and thirty in American kenpo, why only first degree when you are the master of the master Frank Trejo, he is eight degree.
Hearring: When I received my black belt back in the 69´s or 70´s to become a black belt you had to learn the hole kenpo system, the degrees were pretty much honorary. Since that time we tryed to keep up the system over the degrees. But I´d worked so hard to get to get my black belt that once there I just never had any need to go through the degrees. I knew the whole system I still know the whole system, I just never had any need to challenge or become a higher range than first degree. My love is on the art, my hope is that people would be able to look past my first degree black belt and say well he has thirty studied years maybe he knows something about kenpo that would be the reason for coming in the try to work out with me or to work out with me. Again I think if you do martial arts for any link of time when someone is really qualify what gonna realize is the social aspect of the art. Is working out together when you develop a link with most of the people that you work out with. And if I look back in my owns times sitting down tired and exhausted after works, laughing and going on the work we'd just done. Actually the degrees have never meant anything to me but working out does mean a lot to me.

Negreira: OK. Do you want to give any special message?
Hearring: It's always a pleasure to me to meet kenpo brothers, sisters, and cousins. I hope this interview will bring us all closer and let you know that would be art kenpo schools here in Pasadena, sure you know there are. But if you ever are here in the States please make our school your home. And if ever done in Argentine or Chile you'd definitely be looking for our kenpo school there, become visit and socialize and exercise with our kenpo family in South America.

Interview to: Mr Steve Hearring.