WCI Review - James DeMile - Chi Sao: Made Easy
Sifu James DeMile was one of Bruce Lee's first students in Seattle when Bruce moved to the USA. At that time Bruce Lee was teaching Jun Fan Gung Fu, essentially modified Wing Chun. That was before Lee developed his own style called Jeet Kune Do. James DeMile, who passed away only a year ago, was the founder of his own art called Wing Chun Do.
Unfortunately, the video does not go in-depth in relation to Bruce Lee's Chi Sao. You do not get to see any trapping skills that made Lee famous, and the video only scratches the surface of Chi Sao.
The video starts with Sifu DeMile speaking and explaining what Chi Sao is and its significance. It is interesting to hear why Bruce Lee believed in the importance of being able to control your opponent. Sifu DeMile believed that although years of training in Chi Sao can improve your skills, you can learn Chi Sao very quickly and in modern times there is no time for people to spend years learning Chi Sao.
After Sifu James DeMile's speech, we move on to the practical stuff, and Sifu DeMile is joined by one of his students for the purposes of demonstration. Sifu DeMile explains that his Chi Sao is a closed position Chi Sao, unlike Wing Chun Chi Sao, which he said is a flip-flop Chi Sao that is more open and easier to get hit. He explains how to do Luk Sao and the four basic positions of Luk Sao. He then explains Tan Sao in detail before moving on to Fook Sao and Bong Sao.
These three basic Wing Chun tools are only explained in relation to Chi Sao and their use in Chi Sao. No applications are shown and their use in fighting is not explained. I was surprised to see Bong Sao, as used by Sifu DeMile, which is different to the classical Bong Sao. In most Wing Chun styles, the elbow is higher than the wrist when forming a Bong Sao, which is why Bong Sao is sometimes translated as "elbow-up block".
The late Bruce Lee also referred to Bong Sao as an "elbow-up block''. According to Sifu DeMile, training in Chi Sao with a traditional Bong Sao is tiring for the shoulders and can lead to injury, especially for the rotator cuff. He shares a story about how Bruce Lee found it entertaining that his students would get tired shoulders when practising Chi Sao. Sifu DeMile states that his Bong Sao is modified, and the reason being to avoid putting strain on the shoulder. In his Bong Sao, the wrist is higher than the elbow.
Sifu DeMile does not demonstrate any Chi Sao with his partner and does not show the various possible hits and traps. The video focuses only on the correct positions of Tan Sao, Bong Sao and Fook Sao during Chi Sao. I found it disappointing that we do not witness Bruce Lee's Chi Sao in this video, and we only get to see the very basics of Sifu DeMile's Chi Sao. Nonetheless, it was nice listening to a few stories about the late Bruce Lee.
James DeMile - Chi Sao: Made Easy
Language: English
Running Time: Approx. 66 min.
Availability: EWC Instant Access || ewc.deals/WCI-Reviews
