MARTIALFORCE.COM

 

PRESENTS

 

AN INTERVIEW WITH

 

MASTER MARK KLINE

AUG / 2010

“Not every teacher can teach you everything.”

 

Interview by Eddie Morales

Martialforce.com

Online Magazine

 

My name is Eddie Morales and welcome to Martialforce.com Online Martial arts magazine. The person I am introducing for this interview is Master Mark Kline. Master Kline is a dedicated Martial artist that spends most of his time developing and refining the techniques of the art he practices. He has studied with notable instructors and enjoys passing on the knowledge he has gained throughout the years.  Master Kline has a thorough understanding of the biomechanical functions of many techniques coupled with an analytical view on there execution. He has studied and researched the inner workings of combat technique and can give a flawless demonstration of his findings. We here at Martialforce.com hope you enjoy this interview as we take a look at his art, life and future.

 

Martialforce.com: Where are you originally from?

MARK KLINE: Edison, NJ

 

Martialforce.com: What is your occupation?

MARK KLINE: Entrepreneur, Professional Martial Artist, Author of Books and DVDs, International Seminar Speaker.

 

Martialforce.com: When did you begin your Martial Arts training and with whom?

MARK KLINE: I started wrestling under Cliff Loysen when I was 12 and continued with that until my 1st year of college.  I then started training in Tang Soo Do with Juan del Castillo at Trenton State College, and Praying Mantis Kung Fu with Chick Mason in Morrisville, PA.

 

 

Martialforce.com: How has Martial Arts training helped you in your daily life?

MARK KLINE: Martial Arts training has helped me keep a focus on whatever task is at hand.

 

Martialforce.com: Who in your life influenced you the most regarding Martial Arts and or life in general?

MARK KLINE: Martial Arts – George Dillman, Wally Jay, Remy Presas.  Life – all of them including my football, baseball, and wrestling coaches.

 

 

Martialforce.com: Do you practice or believe in Kata (Pre arranged movements) and if so, why or why not?

MARK KLINE: YES.  Kata is the lifeblood of martial arts.  The secrets are embedded in them.  The only problem is that most people don’t know how to look at them to understand them…in my opinion…properly.  That should be a little controversial. don’t you think?  There are no blocks in kata.  Never was.  The movements were never intended to be looked upon like that.  The movements teach you how to attack the anatomical weak points of the body…according to Chinese medicine.

 

 

Martialforce.com: You mentioned secrets embedded in Kata and there are no blocks and never were. Is this a conclusion you came to from your personal research and training or do you believe this is the original design?

MARK KLINE: I believe this to be original design.  If you take a moment and look at Rising Block for a moment...you will see that the way most styles perform this movement with the underside of the wrist pointing up when finished.  People commit suicide on this part of the wrist…why on earth would you expose this to someone intent on hurting you?  I call this movement High Strike, because you are striking the jaw line (the angle of the arm matches the jaw line like 2 pieces of a puzzle meant to be together) with the thick muscular part of the arm and then rolling it in an upward manner into the neck. 

“Blocks are for kids to play with”, not for adults to defend themselves with.  What is translated, as “block” is not a block at all.  It generally means to receive…i.e. your opponent will receive a high rising strike from you.

On another note…historically things have been mistranslated throughout the ages.  For example…Moses did not part the Red Sea.  He parted…a body of water called Yam Suf, which translates as “Sea of Reeds” which is a different body of water (no longer there, but archaeologists know where it is, in a different place than the Red Sea, but don’t take my word for it…go ask a Rabbi who can read original texts, not those translated into other languages which is like playing the game of telephone….and you thought this was only going to be a martial arts interview.

 

 

Martialforce.com: Do you think that action martial arts movies help or hurt student interest and if yes or no, why?

MARK KLINE: It helps student interest for the most part.  When they watch a movie like the Karate Kid (old and new), it makes them want to learn the arts, at the same time, they think that they can do like Daniel and learn to be great in about 2 hours.

 

Martialforce.com: Do you believe that Martial Arts is good training for children and if so why or why not?

MARK KLINE: Yes!  When we are older…they will be in charge.  We need to give them a good foundation in order to run this country like it was intended to be run.

 

 

Martialforce.com: Do you believe its beneficial to study with different instructors or systems and if so, why?

MARK KLINE: That depends on the individual and the system.  Not every teacher can teach you everything.  You and I may teach the same thing, but the delivery may be different.  We can say the same thing, but the message may not get received the same way.

 

Martialforce.com: Do you study any form of weaponry?

MARK KLINE: Arnis / Escrima under the late Remy Presas.

 

Martialforce.com: Do you teach Arnis and Escrima as part of your curriculum and do you believe weapons training is a good supplemental training for students or a necessary addition?

MARK KLINE: Both.  Weapons teach you to use your hands better, and to use different tools of the body and mind, which are necessary to become proficient.

 

 

Martialforce.com: What are your thoughts on cross training in regards to running, weightlifting etc?

MARK KLINE: All are good forms of training for general fitness.  It all depends on what your goals are…IMO.  Cross training in anything whether it be martial arts, yoga, weight training…even horseback riding.  I had the chance to ride horses in Italy last week and learned some valuable lessons during the class.

 

Martialforce.com: What is your definition of a good instructor?

MARK KLINE: One who can convey the message in such a way that the student can get a basic understanding of what you are trying to convey.  Noticing the different learning methods of people and adapting the presentation to the students learning style (auditory, visual, or kinesthetic).

 

 

Martialforce.com: You mentioned you are that you wrote books and also made DVD’s. Where can these items be purchased?

MARK KLINE: My videos can be found at this website: http://www.kaizenkidz.com/catalog.html

 

Martialforce.com: Well, thank you for this interview Master kline and we here at Martialforce.com wish you much success in all your future endeavors.

Martialforce.com: Thank you.