Special Forces Detachment

In the Republic of Korea, Special Warfare Command gymnasium, twenty Korean Special Forces soldiers stood around on Monday morning as the clock edged closer to 9:00 AM. Each had filled out a questionnaire I had presented to them on arrival, and a quick perusal of the papers led me to discover that all held a black belt in Taekwondo, and several among them held belts in Kung-fu, Judo, and Karate as well. As members of Special Forces, they had also received considerable training in the Korean military combatant techniques known as "Tuk Kong Mu Sul." The twenty soldiers gathered at the Special Warfare Command in Seoul had traveled from the seven special forces brigades and one anti-terrorist battalion distributed throughout the country. Judging from their qualifications, their respective commanders had sent soldiers with backgrounds in martial arts broad enough to allow them to absorb new techniques, and incorporate them into the unit’s martial arts training upon their return from Seoul. They were joking around in front of the gym when a jeep pulled up and out jumped Master Ricketts, Dodong V. Sta. Iglesia, and Kevin Underwood, the 1^st Special Forces Group Director of Martial Arts Training. A second jeep appeared, carrying guys from the U.S. Special Forces Detachment-Korea, ready to train! As we carried our arsenal of rattan sticks, knives, bolos, and sparring gear into the gym, the looks of curiosity and anticipation on the faces of the Korean troops were matched in intensity only by the thick, humid air of the July morning.

The chain of events leading to Master Ricketts and Dodong coming to Korea began in November 2000, when Special Forces Detachment-Korea (SFDK) agreed to send Kevin Underwood and me to Manila to train under Master Ricketts and Master Tony Diego. The week in Manila was one of the most memorable of my life. In case there is anybody who still doesn’t know – Master Topher and Master Diego love to train. I will never forget the great training experience, and the hospitality and friendship extended to us by the Master Ricketts and his family, and by the Bakbakan fraternity.

In April SFDK sent me to Washington State to train again under Master Topher. He and Dodong had traveled there to teach seminars and train U.S. Special Operations units on the east and west coasts. They were at the time staying at Kevin Underwood’s house. Kevin had returned to Fort Lewis to become the 1^st Special Forces Group Director of Martial Arts Training. When I arrived at Kevin’s house, I was pleasantly surprised to meet Master Rey Galang, who had recently arrived from New Jersey. I also met Ed Lawson, who had come in from Fort Bragg, North Carolina. It was a great week of training and sparring. I learned a great many techniques, particularly concerning Sinawali, under Master Galang. Master Topher, as usual, needed virtually no sleep at all and we trained ‘round the clock in addition to the daily seminars that he and Master Rey were teaching. Since Master Topher, Dodong, and I had come from Asia, our mental clocks were on "Asian time," and we trained quite late. I will always remember those 3 AM sparring sessions with Dodong, Kevin, and Ed in Kevin’s garage. When I returned to Korea I had no problem selling a Kali Illustrisimo seminar to the boss, and the dates were set for July 23-27, 2001.

After Master Topher arrived at the gym I introduced him and Dodong to the assembled participants, and then Master Topher took the floor. He spent the morning introducing footwork and basic strike techniques, and after lunch we continued our education with more advanced movement techniques and strike combinations. Throughout the training Dodong was constantly moving among the students, correcting and teaching. The students seemed a little uncomfortable at first, but after a short while they began to grasp the fundamentals, and the training took off from there.

On Tuesday, Brad Timmins, a member of the Sydney Bakbakan chapter currently teaching English in Kunsan, Korea, showed up to train. Another friend and FMA enthusiast, David Burnham, also arrived at the gym to participate in the training. Armed Forces Network Korea sent a news crew out to cover the seminar on Tuesday morning as well. They moved around the students, shooting video of Master Topher teaching basic knife-fighting techniques. Master Topher and Dodong later added some extra spice to the news footage by doing rapid flow drills with knives and bolos, then threw in some sinawali drills as well. Then Master Topher had Kevin and me quickly suit up and do some stick sparring for the camera. During lunch they did an on-camera interview with Master Topher and me, and when I saw the news segment the following week I must say that it came out pretty well. On Tuesday afternoon Dodong put everyone through the paces with instruction on boxing hand and footwork, and we ended the day with some stick sparring. Some of the Korean soldiers were mildly apprehensive about stick sparring, having never done it before. However, once a few tried it they lost their apprehension and they all went at it with maximum enthusiasm, albeit a little short on technique. Master Ricketts ran everyone through the basic concepts again, especially footwork, and then collectively techniques began to improve considerably.

The regimen continued Wednesday and Thursday with more stick, knife, and boxing drills. Master Topher covered several knife strikes and disarm techniques. Many of the Korean students were furiously scribbling notes and drawing diagrams constantly during the training, in order to remember the techniques, take them back to their parent unit, and teach them to their fellow soldiers in the future. Wednesday afternoon was devoted to Dodong’s boxing instruction, and Master Topher presided over some fun knife sparring as Dodong and the rest of our crew sparred with the Korean soldiers the last hour and a half of the afternoon training. On Thursday morning Master Topher introduced sinawali to the group, followed by more boxing training with Dodong in the afternoon. Finally we finished the afternoon with some great bouts of hand sparring with the sticks. Kevin and I started the session, then Dodong sparred with several students in a row. It was a lot of fun to watch Dodong spar with the first timers. Kevin and I remembered all too well the clobbering he dished out to us both when we were in Manila the previous year. 1^st Special Forces Group sent Kevin to Korea to inspect the SFDK martial arts program, as well as participate in the seminar. He was invaluable not only as someone helping the students along during the seminar, but also administratively as we strove to ensure transportation and meal requirements were made during the week.

On Friday Master Topher reviewed everything we had covered during the week, and we finished the seminar with an hour of knife sparring. At the end of the day we presented Master Topher and Dodong with plaques of appreciation from the Republic of Korea, Special Warfare Command, and the United States Special Forces Detachment-Korea. All of the Korean Special Forces soldiers voiced their thanks to have had the opportunity to learn from a true FMA master. In the days since many have come to me for suggestions on how to introduce and incorporate Kali Illustrisimo into their unit martial arts training program. The seminar has also launched three enthusiastic SFDK (including the boss) soldiers into the realm of FMA. We currently train three days a week at the detachment, and we love to spar!