Well....hello!

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Hi there! I might be moving to Phoenix Arizona shortly and was looking into Mengs Martial Arts of Arizona. Just thought I would say hello. I really don't know much of anything about Wing Chun Kung Fu but I am very interested in a few things. Anyone in the class, I'm curious if the classes are thought with real world situations in mind...as far as the defense goes that is. I'll be in Phoenix probably in a couple months and I plan on stopping by but I just thought I would go ahead ask and say hello.

Thanks.

[Marty-Mar]

bsc14,

Let me start by saying hello and welcome aboard , I look forward to meeting you when you come to see the kwoon. Any question that have will not go unanswered by my Sifu Richard Loewenhagen. All aspects of training can be used in todays world of combat as I have found out first hand in my line of work. The first time was just amazing to me, how everything just fell into place against some one with no knowledge of Kung Fu. So once again welcome aboard and I hope you have a pleasant stay in Arizona.

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Originally posted by Marty-Mar
bsc14,

Let me start by saying hello and welcome aboard , I look forward to meeting you when you come to see the kwoon. Any question that have will not go unanswered by my Sifu Richard Loewenhagen. All aspects of training can be used in todays world of combat as I have found out first hand in my line of work. The first time was just amazing to me, how everything just fell into place against some one with no knowledge of Kung Fu. So once again welcome aboard and I hope you have a pleasant stay in Arizona.

Thanks for the reply Marty-Mar.

If you don't mind answering, how would you describe Sifu Richard Loewenhagen...teaching, personality, etc.? Don't mean to put you on the spot, I'm just curious. Also I didn't see anything on the site about the cost to train there. Would you mind giving me some info. on that?

Something else kinda off topic. Do you like Phoenix, Arizona? I was just there about 2 weeks ago and it's a little warm there but compared to Houston (that's where I am now) it was really nice. I would rather have 105 in Phoenix than 85 here with 100% humidity. Anyway, thanks again for the reply!

[JK Walz]

Originally posted by BSC14
Thanks for the reply Marty-Mar.

If you don't mind answering, how would you describe Sifu Richard Loewenhagen...teaching, personality, etc.? Don't mean to put you on the spot, I'm just curious. Also I didn't see anything on the site about the cost to train there. Would you mind giving me some info. on that?

I'll say something here. Sifu Loewenhagen is extremely dedicated to what he does. I think you would be challenged to find anyone who is as scientific in his dissection and analysis of kung fu as Sifu.

As far as his personality is concerned that is a very subjective concern and I think it would be unfair for anyone to comment. I would suggest that you give him a call. He will spend an hour or more on the phone with you answering your questions about the school and the HFY. You can form your own opinion about him from that. I will say this though- you can't run a successful school if people don't like you or believe in what you teach!

He will also let you know what the tuition is when you call.

JK

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Originally posted by JK Walz
I'll say something here. Sifu Loewenhagen is extremely dedicated to what he does. I think you would be challenged to find anyone who is as scientific in his dissection and analysis of kung fu as Sifu.

As far as his personality is concerned that is a very subjective concern and I think it would be unfair for anyone to comment. I would suggest that you give him a call. He will spend an hour or more on the phone with you answering your questions about the school and the HFY. You can form your own opinion about him from that. I will say this though- you can't run a successful school if people don't like you or believe in what you teach!

He will also let you know what the tuition is when you call.

JK

When I was asking about his personality I should have been more specific with my question. I don't really mean "Is he a nice guy with a good attitude?". What I was really trying to get is an idea of was how he teaches his class. More curious if he is the kind of teacher that is more strict and serious during class or playful. Does he emphasize discipline and things like. That's really more of what I was wanting to know. I really left my question way open on that one....sorry about that.

[Marty-Mar]

Hi bsc14

If you read his bio(which you can find on mengsofaz.com) you will find that Sifu is a retired Lt. Colonel in the Air Force. It seems fitting that he should find HFY Wing Chun which was created by chinese Generals and Monks for battle. He still keeps with the military style of teaching but still finds the time to make it fun in class and that helps imho when it comes to learning. As my brother JK said earlier if you need any further knowledge on him feel free to call him and he will not shy to answering any question that you have. Houston huh? I lived in beaumont and crosby for a short time and let me tell you It was the humidity that drove me away and I have not had a day of regret since ;) . I hope I have helped some of what you wanted to know.

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Originally posted by Marty-Mar
Hi bsc14

If you read his bio(which you can find on mengsofaz.com) you will find that Sifu is a retired Lt. Colonel in the Air Force. It seems fitting that he should find HFY Wing Chun which was created by chinese Generals and Monks for battle. He still keeps with the military style of teaching but still finds the time to make it fun in class and that helps imho when it comes to learning. As my brother JK said earlier if you need any further knowledge on him feel free to call him and he will not shy to answering any question that you have. Houston huh? I lived in beaumont and crosby for a short time and let me tell you It was the humidity that drove me away and I have not had a day of regret since ;) . I hope I have helped some of what you wanted to know.

Let me give you guys a understanding of why I'm asking so many questions because you probably think I'm crazy. When I was 11 years old I trained in Judo at the Huston Budokan. At 27 years old I went back and trained in Karate and Jujitsu. The instructor's name is Darrell Craig (Houston Budokan). He nothing short of amazing and extremely dedicated. I knew I was getting quality training but I ended up moving a little to far away (for work) to continue training there. A couple years later I started looking in my new area and found something interesting called Kuk Sool Won (Korean Art). Started and got to brown belt within a year and a half or so. Anyway, I'm not gonna go into any real detail but lets just say I was unhappy with my training and left the school. Now I'm moving and would like to find something I really enjoy but I don't want to waist time with a school or art I'll end up being disappointed in. Now I'm not bashing Kuk Sool I just don't feel it's for me. So I started looking at the martial arts schools in Phoenix . That's why I'm here. From what I have been reading I can see the Kung Fu politics and history is as messed up as the Koran martial arts....or that's what I'm reading anyway. I really don't understand all this lineage business.

Anyway, my point is that if I have learned one thing, it's that no matter what you chose to study it's the quality of the teacher and the training that makes it or breaks it (other than your hard work and dedication of course). So no matter what I chose the one most important thing to me is finding a quality teacher. It's easy to find a martial arts school but it's not so easy to find a good teacher which is why I wanted opinions from people who have trained with him. So thanks for the replies it really is appreciated.

Yeah Houston is just about as humid as it gets. It's flat out miserable here in the summer. In the sun or shade makes not difference you're going to sweat like never before. I just love when you get dressed up for dinner and walk out your front door and by the time you get to your car you're drenched with sweat. It's just lovely here. That was one thing I really loved about Arizona, even though it was hot it was much more pleasurable than Houston. On top of that it's been raining for 6 days straight. I'm not kidding either....my back yard looks like a post card of South Africa or something. Also the traffic didn't seem to be nearly as bad as Houston's. Some days it takes me over a hour and a half to get home from work. The bad part is that on the weekend, when there isn't construction going on, I can get home in about 30 minutes. It's just crazy. Ok enough complaining about Houston and again thanks a lot guys for the replies.

[Marty-Mar]

To make things short,

We could talk until we were blue in the face of how wonderful our Sifu is and how great the school is. But, in the long run you may not see that and that is what really matters what you see and feel. The only true way to know is to now venture out and talk to him yourself and find the answers that you are looking for. If you feel it is not for you he will tell you and try and help you find what you may be looking for. He is not out for the quick buck to take the money for someone who will not be happy. So hope to see you soon.

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Originally posted by Marty-Mar
To make things short,

We could talk until we were blue in the face of how wonderful our Sifu is and how great the school is. But, in the long run you may not see that and that is what really matters what you see and feel. The only true way to know is to now venture out and talk to him yourself and find the answers that you are looking for. If you feel it is not for you he will tell you and try and help you find what you may be looking for. He is not out for the quick buck to take the money for someone who will not be happy. So hope to see you soon.

Thanks a lot for the replies guys. I'll be stopping by next time I'm in town. Thanks again.

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Sorry but I have another question. Do you guys spar much in class? I don't mean to be a pain but I was just curious. :)