Drills / Chi Sau / Techniques
By Sifu Danilo Hajdukovic (Australia)When two people perform (interactive) Wing Chun drills / Chi Sau, they often fall into a pattern of trying to upstage each other to gain a perceived upper hand. If they continuously engage themselves as realistically as possible without thought, control or structure, they may find themselves hitting a skills plateau very early on in their Wing Chun training.
At the other end of the scale, when 2 person Drills / Chi Sau are conducted with complacency, the student is lulled into a false state of security by thinking they are improving. This type of training will turn into mechanical hand exercises that serve little purpose with regards to “real” fighting skills. Students must strive to find a common balance and “feel” what is happening first, then change their structure to counter the opponent's oncoming force to both neutralise and simultaneously attack within a controlled environment.
This part of the training can only be performed correctly and progressively with someone who has the same positive training ethic. After long hours of correct practice, the student’s Wing Chun takes on a more refined / mature form.
NOTE:
Practical Wing Chun is not about merely collecting techniques that gather dust on the shelf that you cannot call upon when needed.
Your techniques should be trained to the point of becoming (thought free) motor skills that come to life in an instant based on what your situation affords.
No one person has the “complete” Wing Chun answer for every hostile scenario.
Wing Chun is constantly evolving, what works and fits the principles is ‘added’ what doesn’t work or doesn’t fit the principles is ‘modified’ or ‘removed’ from the system.