Southern Mantis

My definition of impossible has been overrun by external events so often as to take away from me any certainty regarding what is possible and what is not. -Daniele Bolelli, On The Warrior’s Path


Today's Form Of the Day is Wood Monkey.

The last three day's worth of FoD: Chen jian form, Silken Needle, Box Form- I caught up on them last night.

My car has instituted its traditional annual June breakdown, and is back in the shop- thus no BJJ today or tomorrow. The school is closed Sunday and Monday. If I don't have the car back by Saturday, I won't be able to make Turtle Drum either. Additionally there will be no Kung Fu this Sunday (and possibly not the following Sunday either. In fact the entire month of August may be a run of Sunday kung fu cancellations). Not very happy to bracket my trip with a further enforced break, but it is what it is.

Last Sunday when I wasn't present, the others apparently had to run through all the forms they know- with DD and CM being presnt for the final part of class. I'm rather relieved to have missed that!

There actually *WAS* kung fu tonight, with CN teaching. After some hand strike drills and kick drills (he noted that my crescent kicks in particular are "maddening"), JoE and I got pulled out and sent away to work on "something else" while the others worked throws. I'm not sure why. Anyway, I asked JoE to go over the bit of the Southern Mantis long form with me.

First he wanted to work on a Southern Mantis sequence: Step left, step out and to the side with the right foot, parry/strike left fist as the right heel hits the ground, Mantis-claw grab and pull with that left hand as the right fist strikes, kick behind the knee for the takedown. If the takedown doesn't work- or the opponent's leg is positioned wrong for it to work well- bounce directly into a reap with the other foot. We played with several additional bonus add-on strikes to tack onto the end of the sequence.

Then the Southern Mantis long form. I had most of it right (and it's been a reeeeeeeeeally long time since we've gone over it). The opening, I need to be smaller and more subtle with the spreading arm motions. It steps into a cat but then ends in a short forward stance. The Mantis poke needs to be lower (throat target). The turning armbar is not quite the same as the classic Northern Mantis one- the arms sort of collapse and clamp closely as opposed to Mantis-hook-and-pull.

New stuff- after the double knife hand strikes, left hand chambers at waist and right hand moves to brow (palm out) in what JoE called "Drama" (LOL). Then back to waist level and out in a palm-heel strike (fingers to the right). Then step fwd left with left Mantis fist strike waist level (thumb up).

Hop slightly to left with left palm-strike outward at rt shoulder and rt palm-strike at groin (palm down). Rt knee is up.

Put rt foot down in a high lunge (left leg straight) as you backfist right at face level (this is the same backfist as earlier in the form). Left hand rechambers at waist.

Turn left into a cat, sinking weight onto the right foot. The backfisting right hand continues the swing down and then up in front with a straight pendulous arm.