Chris Boughey Interview 1993
This article was first published by Martial Arts Illustrated in the December 1993 issue.
At over six-feet tall, Chris Boughey is without doubt one of the most colourful new generation of Lau Gar practitioners. Described by many as a trainer/ fighter, his obvious perseverance in both these spheres of activity have helped establish himself as one of Britain's leading all-rounders.
My own perception of Chris tells me he's one of the martial arts few success stories. A man who has discovered an even balance between teaching for a living and fighting for himself. A self-professed master at ruffling feathers, Chris Boughey is a man who is most definitely far from diplomatic when it comes to telling the truth.
Bob Sykes: Chris, it's been a couple of years since we last spoke; just for the readers who may know little about you, could you tell us how long you've been involved in the martial arts?
Chris Boughey: I've been training and teaching in the martial arts for seventeen years.
And in that time, Chris, what have you learned?
There are two different answers to that question, Bob; it depends on what level you ask that question. Many people might answer by mentioning all the technical aspects of how many punches and kicks they have learned, which is all true and very good because what you learn in the martial arts can become the tools of your trade. Having said that, the martial arts does change you and I think that the martial arts is one of the best addictions that you have. What I've learned is a considerable amount about myself. This comes with training two times a day, six days a week, and that's what I'm trying to say to people, stop lazing around, up your training and give it time to work into your system.
Taking into consideration the time that you've spent both studying and teaching the arts, have you witnessed an improvement in the overall standard of the U.K's black belt and black sash practitioners?
I've witnessed loads and loads of changes. From starting in Lau Gar Kung Fu it took me six years to attain my first degree black sash. That's travelling and training at various clubs around the UK, up to four or five times weekly. Eventually I was taken on by Master Yau as one of his private students which I remember at the time to be a great honour.
However, over the years, I've seen so much change regarding the standard of both black belts and coloured belts. I'm not Just talking about Lau Gar Kung Fu, but all across the board, and if we don't start to act on it now then we are going to end up like America, where in many schools, if you've got the money, then you've got a black belt.
You can't honestly advertise and guarantee somebody will achieve the standard of black belt in let's say two years, because everybody learns in different stages, everyone does things different ways. Besides, whoever puts a time limit on the martial arts?
Do you think that there is a growing upsurge in this 'fast food martial arts'?
I was in New York recently and on one avenue alone I counted five different (full-time) martial arts studios. Now, they've all got to compete with one another, so somewhere down the line someone's going to be giving grades in order to attract new students to train at their gym. Individuals don't usually go to the best gyms because, what is often the case, the best means that their gyms are too hard. For example, if you went to the best boxing gyms in Britain and you were just an average minded person, chances are you wouldn't last. What you get there is the best, the reason for that is their training methods are hard, although often you find that the gyms are invariably small and there's not a lot of people doing it.
These days, Chris, with many more instructors relying on their large class attendance, they are more and more under pressure to pass a poor standard student, frightened that if they don't then that student may go and train elsewhere...
I agree, but after saying that it is a hard job, people. That's one of the reasons I'm a great believer in grading panels. Ticky Donovan has the right idea, on his summer courses he's got a panel of first-rate 4th and 5th dans which means if you grade under them and pass then you've without doubt earned that grade.
Do you believe in what you teach?
The system I teach, I do believe in. If you don't, then often the case is it comes across to your students. If I teach self defence then I believe in it, if I didn't believe in it then I'd stop teaching professionally and just train myself.
Who has been your main Influence throughout your teaching career?
I could give a one-sided answer to that question, but I won't, I will give the answer that I believe is true. Various people have helped in various ways. For teaching professionally it has to be Master Yau, for both his teaching methods and his business advice. He's helped me to build my clubs with that professional image which is so important within today's martial arts structure. When you think about it Lau Gar was and still is the innovator of modem martial arts clubs. I have to thank Master Yau for all that, for his business acumen is second to none. When it comes to my kickboxing knowledge, it has to be a string of boxers who used to work out down the Manchester YMCA. I don't think you can learn boxing off anyone other than a boxer.
In tournament fighting I have to say Alfie helped and inspired me a lot when the Warriors were first initiated. Also, he is without doubt the best trainer and motivator there is in the arts today, and when he's in your corner you can't lose.
Coming through to today for motivating myself for tournaments and such like it has to be your brother, Tony Sykes. When I've got a big event like the Kumite or the Clash of the Titans I come across to Huddersfield and spar with Tony. Through training with Tony and the energy that he generates, he has helped me immeasurably.
Over the years we've seen you compete in many such tournaments Iike the Clash of the Titans and the Kumite, what further ambitions still remain for you as regards tournament fighting?
I don't pay too much attention to what other people say when they mention they only go to certain tournaments. I have over fifty trophies at home and the amount of tournaments I actually entered without winning anything at all is endless, however, that was during my early apprenticeship years. These days when you compete on the FSK circuit, the MAI circuit and such like, you often end up fighting the same old faces again and again, I would really love to fight in more tournaments abroad, both in Europe and America. At the moment in this country I mostly enjoy the Clash of the Titans events and the Kumite. I would dearly love it if we ever revived the Warriors to take part on another team clash.
Chris, what did the Warriors achieve during their short but successful lifespan?
They definitely took the showmanship within the martial arts up a level or two.
On reflection did the Warriors go out on to the mat to fight or were they out to entertain?
Personally, I feel we went out there to entertain, what the hell is wrong with that? When people are paying between ten and twelve pounds a ticket they don't want to see uss guss Gyakuzuki, what they want to see is characters, people with whom they can associate themselves. Let's go back to the first ever Clash event, I remember at the time the fact that the Warriors all strutted out in these bright yellow gis with the sleeves cut off, Just like the gis in the film Enter the Dragon. Then in later events the gis got even more outrageous and the showbiz element was beginning to take root and all this really began to bring the arena alive. Before that, going to martial arts tournaments wasn't too dissimilar to going to church, due to the fact that you had to walk out in an orderly manner, bow and so on. There was far too much etiquette involved. Whereas the Clash of the Titans events weren't about that, you had guys doing cartwheel kicks and jumping spinning kicks, all of a sudden the audience were being entertained. Sometimes you had to be nasty, because that's what the crowd expected. Tony Sykes was very often under a lot of pressure, as was Mark Ogbourne of the TAGB. The audience would watch their bouts and expect something to kick off. In the end though the technique of both these fighters shone through and I can't help thinking that many people were in fact disappointed. Peter O'Para always played up to the crowd and let's be honest, he's the one people always wanted to watch. Bob, it even put yourself onto another level, one which I'm sure you always knew was there. It was that sort of level which really got the crowd going.
What do you believe to be the most effective technique in self defence?
To all martial arts instructors reading: when were you last in a pub? When were you last at a nightclub? When was the last time you were out late at night in a city centre waiting to get some chips and a burger? Now if I've lost you there then the chances are that you will find much of what I say hard to understand. Ninety percent of most scraps end up with both parties rolling around on the deck. The movies aren't real, in reality you can't just drop into a fancy stance and simply dance onto the next scene. If you get the chance watch the next scrap and see what happens. If you're honest with yourself you will then realise just how much more you need to learn in order to make your martial arts effective. Let's face it, you're on the deck rolling around so you've got to learn ground-work. Most confrontations come into what we call 'pointing range'. When was the last time you shouted across the road at somebody you know and what happens, he walks across the road stares you in the face, all of a sudden you're in kneeing and elbow range. Forget the Thai-boxing influence, okay I know they like to brandish them as if they belong to them only. Remember Karate has empi strikes, Kung Fu has techniques such as Jarn, so all systems have them in the syllabus but it's the way that you work them that really counts. So to answer your question, knee strikes, elbow strikes and groundwork.
Chris, do you have any more gripes about the martial arts that you would like to give air to?
If you come down to my club I can at any time do one-hundred straight sit-ups without breaking sweat, or I can do three sets of fifty press-ups, I ask you then why are there so many fat, useless, out of shape black belts? Tell me where it stops. Once you get your black belt do you all of a sudden stop training or start eating like a pig so you put all this weight on, because either way I think it's disgusting.
I'm a private instructor and often act as a personal trainer, if you applied for a personal trainer to come along to your house and he turned up with a little pot-belly and a cigarette hanging out of his mouth, would you really want him to be your fitness instructor? Then why do we put up with black belts that act in this sort of manner? There should be a written law in the martial arts which says you show me then I will do it, I'm not talking about the side splits or anything like that, I'm talking about a basic kick, a basic punch, or a basic level of fitness. What I'd like to say to all these out of shape instructors is do your press ups with your students, do the sit-ups, get yourself back into condition and stop being a slob.
