In February 2012 PTK SF/Oakland’s Larry Brown organized a seminar with Guro Dino Martinez of PTK Florida.
Last year Dino went in depth into the abecedario system as well as some advanced footwork methods.
This year Dino went into the method of Pekiti-Pekiti (’very’ close range - trapping/clinch range) as well as a meaty section on basic footwork, striking and blending the two. The material was presented so there was something for students of all levels.
The footwork section dealt mainly with broken footwork - the seemingly innocuous ‘boring’ movement we practice at the beginning of class.. because our teacher tells us to.. Turns out broken footwork is the most important footwork as it is the most fundamental footwork. Before you can step and move you have to be able to lift your leg and switch from right to left with perfect balance and fluidity. You have to be able to switch from a right to left lead (broken ‘double’) and lift your leg and set it back down (broken ’single’) perfectly before you can hope to have balance covering large distances. If you don’t have balance you won’t have timing or power.

This broken footwork coordination is fundamental to striking as well. Specifically generating power on a vertical axis. Being on balance and being able to sink or raise your body weight slightly to put your weight into a strike is a big part of hitting with power. The genius and wealth of knowledge in PTK is the unique footwork system which is designed specifically for blade fighting.
The footwork much like everything in PTK system is a ’system’. Wikipedia says a system is a “whole compounded of several parts or members, system”, literary “composition”. The parts are the basic rudiments - forward triangle, take off, ranging, etc.. each of which has a very specific purpose. Combined and executed together you have ‘footwork’ - the ability to move around. The ability to put yourself where you want to be and your opponent doesn’t want you to be. Using angular footwork you learn to execute attacks within various aspects of distance and timing.

To learn footwork or anything else we break it down into pieces and master them one by one. Dino helped us understand some of the more advanced and as well as enriching our understand of the basic footwork. The advanced, by the way, are just the basics done better and in combination. The advanced is the basic. If you want to advance - master the basics.
The thing that fascinates me about PTK footwork, beyond the ability to quarter people who don’t have this footwork at will, is the deceptiveness. Take the take off for example - you can use it to gain distance quickly and hit - on a basic level. On a more advanced level you can set up your opponent by faking one direction, drawing his reaction then going the other way. When dealing with more advanced guys who know how to fight you have to utilize tactics like this.
Footwork by itself is just the foundation. Next the student learns footwork coordinated with striking mechanics. Dino covered the most fundamental and important movements in the system - broken footwork with angles #1 and #2. It’s deceptively simple, but a key movement to master. Actually its the first movement you should master and one you would be well served to hone to perfection. If you can’t do a #1 or #2 with broken footwork how will you do it with other footwork? How will you be able to move and strike? This is the base from which to expand on.

The stick control we practiced using the partner’s arm develops control necessary later for more advanced training methods. If you don’t have to you won’t be able to mine the system later for it’s real dynamic knowledge. You can’t tech spar if you can’t control your stick. You have to be able to go almost full speed and stop an inch from your partner’s head. In the old days - in Grand Tuhon’s day they didn’t have sparring equipment, gloves, masks, etc.. They didn’t use rattan. They used Bahi. For this who don’t know Bahi is an extremely heavy dense hardwood - almost like iron. Grand Tuhon and his Grandfather Conrado Tortal trained full speed and power with Bahi, often in the dark. One mistake and you were missing an eyeball. Like Grand Tuhon says ‘a mistake is a blunder’. The mentality was - it’s not a blade - how could it hurt you? It puts a perspective on things.. the very serious issue of weapon control.
The same broken footwork and fluid diagonals drill emphasizes the 90 degree principle. The 90 degree principle is an essential protective component of a slash or strike. Among other things it yields optimal cover in counter offense while keeping the point always in play ready for close range. The 90 degree principle is one component of proper stick mechanics.
Dino also got conceptual on us by expanding ‘multiple attacks 1-6′ into a conceptual framework. It can be looked at as a classification or taxonomy of striking methods. Three of the attacks cross centerline, and three do not..etc, etc.. As part of the abecedario method you have a origination of all the striking methods in PTK.
Multiple Attacks 1-6
1. Jab
2. Takedown
3. Slash and thrust
4. Overhead jab
5. Uppercut
6. Close spacing
The Pekiti-Pekiti portion was probably a little too comprehensive for the newer people but was great to see a survey a lot of the fundamental elements in that method. Pekiti-Pekiti is like a whole art in itself. There is richness to it that make ‘hubud’ not even a cliff’s notes of what’s all there in PTK. In PTK it is all blade oriented and tactical verses just being a conceptual ‘energy drill’. Take one simple example: the trap. If you do a wing chun pak sao like trap verses a knife you will have no protection or control of the blade. The pak sao might keep him from punching you for s second but it won’t keep him from extending his arm toward your abdomen or leg (femoral artery) in a back hand fashion and cutting or worse stabbing you. The proper way is to apply the trap palm up controlling the elbow where you can keep him from extending his arm into your body. From the palm up trap position you can transition into an arm bar, elbow smash or out balance him and run. Wing Chun is empty hand trapping and works great for that application. PTK trapping is designed around specifically trapping a hand with a blade in it. Don’t confuse the two. You don’t want to take an empty hand art tactic to a knife fight.
Sometimes mixing arts can be dangerous especially if you only have a partial understanding of the art. There are lots of other examples of this - the knife jab, etc.. which I’ll cover talk about another time. Seemingly innocuous details are there for very specific reasons.

The lessons I always enjoy the most lately involve how/why the Doce Methodos are arranged as they are. It’s not always obvious at first. There are a lot of things in this art that are like a puzzle you have to put together to get full understanding. There is a lot of genius in there - it takes time to comprehend it all. Dino explained how often times one method prepares you for the next. They are arranged in a very specific sequence.

As Dino explained - to understand and learn this system you have to have several elements. One is the methods themselves. The 12 methods that make up the fundamentals of the system from a contact to contact stand point. You might not think you do but you will be missing something if you don’t. You also need the proper mindset. See Grand Tuhon for the best examples of this… he will toughen you up mentally and develop a warrior’s mindset, if there is one in there. He will also smarten you up, if you pay attention. The next thing you need is the training method. How do you train this stuff? In very specific detail laid out ways, piece by piece, broken down then re-integrated until you can do it all in a dynamic combative context.
The ‘thought provoking process’ as Grand Tuhon calls it, will allow smart people the ability to problem solve and explore using the elements of the system to find out how and where they all fit together. You will discover things on your own once you have the proper training method and technology.
Dino made it a point to demo on several different guys giving people the opportunity to ‘feel’ the technique. This is a very important aspect of training. You have to feel it to understand it. In long to close range you need to feel the timing and distance pressure and it really close range you have to feel by contact.
All in all everyone had a great time and learned a lot. Thanks again to Larry for arranging this right before heading off to the Philippines for an intense 9 day training camp with Tuhon Tim.
Mike, PTK-SF