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Fighting Fit: Be like water

» Sifu Ralph Haenel talks Wing Tsun

Adam Tatelman
Staff Writer

he origins of Wing Tsun are

shrouded in myth. According

to legend, it was derived from
Fukien Kung Fu by a Buddhist
nun named Ng Mui following
the persecution of her southern

Shaolin sect by the Qing dynasty.

She named the style for Yim
Wing-chun after training Yim
to defend herself against the
advances of a local warlord.
Centuries on, the style has
been popularized by famous

figures such as Ip Man and Bruce :
Lee—and more locally one Ralph :
: individualistic or self-expressive
: was looked upon with suspicion
: by the East German STASI

: (secret police), Haenel ended

: up serving three years and six

: months for the inexcusable crime :
: of teaching people self-defence.
: He even survived an attempt on

Haenel, Sifu of Vancouver’s
Wing Tsun Kung Fu.

The story of Haenel’s
life sounds like the script for
Hollywood film written by
George Orwell and directed by
Chow Yun-Fat. Growing up in

: Se clbemer oat

1970s East Germany (before the
: fall of the Berlin Wall), Haenel
: studied several martial arts

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before becoming a Sifu (teacher) :
of Wing Tsun. Because anything

  

: his life after his release. He fled
: East Germany and became a

: travelling instructor, gathering

: knowledge from bouncers and

: soldiers, and teaching everyone

from Olympic athletes to senior
citizens. Years later, he settled in

Victoria Drive and 49th Avenue).
Supremely confident in his
approach, Haenel offers free

: lessons in perpetuity. Want to

: try before you buy? Still not

: sure after three free lessons? Go
: ahead and have another. He isa

man who enjoys teaching his art,

: and his concern with your money :
: is secondary at most. :
: Do not think that this means :
: the training is subpar. Ralph
: Haenel is a very enthusiastic
: one-on-one teacher, and the

class sizes are small enough

: for everyone’s questions to
* matter. As a teacher, he is very

Have an idea for a story? Let us know!
Contact: Brittney MacDonald, Life & Style Editor

Mlifeandstyle@theotherpress.ca

www.theotherpress.ca

: skilled at three things. First,
: step-by-step breakdown of :
: techniques. Second, accelerating :
: those techniques to speeds

: rivalling the Tazmanian devil

: ina whirlwind. Third, making
: an imposing opponent for you
Canada and founded Vancouver’s :
: Wing Tsun Kung Fu (located at

to test your evolving technique

: against. Haenel’s approach

: to self-defence is one that I

: think more schools should

: incorporate. He treats the

: concept as a total ideology,

: where common sense, social

: cues, and risk minimization to
: circumvent altercations are as
: much a part of the art as the

techniques themselves. In no

: other Dojo have I ever been

instructed on what to do in

> asituation where a horde of

: camera phones might make me
: look like the aggressor, even if I
: was attacked first.

Wing Tsun is an extremely

: close range, fast-paced style,

: focussing mostly on hand speed,
: low kicks, and evasion. There is

very little grappling—the point

: is to pummel the opponent into
: submission with the quickest

: flurry possible. Smaller people,
: either in height or body mass,

: may benefit from this training.

Practitioners might find the

: basics of Wing Tsun slow-going

: at first; the techniques are very

: simple, but learning to read one’s
: opponent through contact and
chaining these techniques into

: asmooth flow of simultaneous

: forward moving offence and

: defence requires serious long-

: term commitment. Wing Tsun is
: not as “quick and dirty” as other
: styles like Muay Thai or Krav

: Maga. However, if you stick with
: it, you'll find Haenel’s method is
: one of the best around.

: Interested? Get details at

: WingTsunKungFu.com

 

Stop HIV & hep C now

» New resources to help you and those you care about

Andrea Arscott
Senior Columnist

“ IV? Oh, I wouldn't have a
disease like that. What are
you crazy?”
“I don’t use drugs or
needles.”

“My partner and I are
practically married, so we don’t
bother using a condom every
time!”

According to the BC Centre
for Disease Control, “thousands
of people are diagnosed with a
sexually transmitted infection
(STI) every year in BC”’—in part
because of self-denial like this.

The lines above are perfect
examples of people who should
consider getting tested for HIV
and other STIs. All it takes is one
time without a condom or even
with a condom (because they
have been known to break or slip
off) to contract HIV or another
STI.

Don’t know how to get tested
for STIs, or what to do if you have
one? Pay attention and make
sure you know about these great
resources that put the “sex” in
S@XY.

To get tested for “all of the
above,” you have several options:
you can go to your doctor, a
public health unit, or a walk-in,

: STI, or youth clinic. Be aware that
: for women, a standard pap smear
: will not reveal if you are HIV

: positive. You have to request a

: blood test. If you’re under 21, the

: New Westminster Youth Clinic

: is right down the street from the

: New West campus at 38 Begbie

: Street and is open Tuesdays from
: 2:30 to 6 p.m. and Thursdays

: from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. The newly

: located HIM Health Centre

: for gay men is also open at the

: same address on Mondays and

: Wednesdays from 4 to 9:00 p.m.

: HIM wont discriminate though—
: if you feel this is the place for you,
: HIM likely won’t turn you away.

: your doctor will examine you and
: if you’re a woman, will doa pap
: smear to check for signs of other

There’s also a new resource

: that allows you to get tested

: without even seeing a doctor

: first. Go to GetCheckedOnline.
: com, print the requisition form,
: show up ata lab, and get tested!
: How easy is that? The downside
: of choosing this option is that

: you won't be tested for all the

: STIs, but you will be tested for

: the big five: HIV, hepatitis C,

: gonorrhoea, chlamydia, and

: syphilis. All of these tests are

: blood tests, Have no fear, it’s just
: a tiny prick!

When you get a physical,

: STIs, like genital warts or herpes.

: So, ideally you want to get both

: the blood test and exam done. If

: you don’t know what a speculum

: is by now, you have some catching
: up todo.

Read up on speculum tests

: at this invaluable and fairly new
: website: SmartSexResource.

: com. Learn about symptoms of
: STIs, different swab tests, and

: confidentiality. Through this

: site, you can also chat witha

: nurse online, find an STI clinic,
: ask questions, and discover

: what illnesses you can contract
: if you have condom-less sex.

: The learning opportunities are
; endless.

So, now that you've been

: tested, what do you do if you test
: positive for something? You get

: back online and go to InSpot.org.
: Here you can send an anonymous
: e-card to notify previous partners
: that they’ve been exposed to

: an STI and should get checked.

: This is an excellent service anda

: fabulous way of preventing the

: spread of infection.

It’s important to know your

: status, and to take responsibility
: for your health and the health

: of those you have been intimate

: with, Taking advantage of these

: new resources can help you, but

: it’s up to you to take the first step.

KEEP
CALM

AND

GET

TESTED

Image via eddystone.org.uk