I attended the Kent Institute of Martial Arts for about eighteen months (http://www.chriskentjkd.org/index1.html). At age 17, my Sifu Chris Kent became the youngest and final member admitted into Dan Inosanto’s fabled “Backyard JKD” group during Bruce Lee’s lifetime. Dan Inosanto was one of Bruce Lee’s original students and one of the first certified to teach Lee’s “Jeet Kune Do” (The Way of The Intercepting Fist). Unfortunately, Chris never got to meet Sijo Lee — Chris was to attend a party with Lee and finally meet his idol, but Lee died three days before the party on July 20, 1973.

Chris has many books and articles on Jeet Kune Do to his credit, and has appeared on numerous covers of martial arts magazines. He’s a founding member of the Jeet Kune Do Nucleus, and has been a consultant to numerous Hollywood productions. He’s also certified in the Philippino martial arts of Kali and Escrima (beating people with sticks and knives quickly and effectively.)

Chris is a very well-rounded and congenial person. He always has a smile on his face, and is a wonderful instructor (anyone who could teach this uncoordinated lummox to perform a spinning side kick without falling over must be good.) He grew up in England and still speaks with a British accent, mixed somewhat with the Southern California dialect he picked up in young adulthood (it’s weird to hear someone say, “that was spot on, dude!”)

My favorite thing about the school was Chris’s sense of balance; that martial arts is so little about “boot to the head” and much more about uplifting all areas of the human spirit. That’s what attracted me to Bruce Lee in the first place. When I heard Bruce Lee’s interview extolling the philosophical elements of martial arts (“be like water, my friend”), I knew it was for me. I knew I didn’t want to be in some “ass-kicking” dojo full of meatheads and macho men.

In eighteen months, I found the aerobic aspect of JKD were helping whittle down my waistline and the philosophical aspects bringing a calmness to my stressful life. The confidence of knowing that I could defend myself effectively is a nice addition – but I sincerely hope I never have to use anything I’ve learned.

We’ve been “stopped” (I prefer “paused”) for about two years now, unfortunately. There was an uncomfortable situation with one of his senior students who was having trouble getting along with me and my new wife, and rather than deal with the conflict, Iva and I left the school (we were pretty poor at the time, too, so there was financial incentive to leave.)

Since then we’ve moved to Portland and now I’m itching to get back into JKD. Once these feet heal, I’ll be looking for another school to join. (Part of what injured the feet in the first place was my devastating kicks. I was blessed with some incredibly strong legs – I can leg-press 800lbs and calf-press 400lbs – and a few of my badly-placed beginner’s kicks damaged the structure of my arches and instep.)

“Radical” Russ — returning to martial arts for aerobics and to the gym for weight training, continuing the journey toward my goal of weighing <200lbs, getting my cholesterol below the current 236, fitting into a size 34" pants, and being both shirtless and unashamed at the same time...