Unlike many instructor bios I've read over the years, I have to admit that mine is quite ordinary and unexciting. I don't come from a long family line of martial arts masters. I wasn't inspired by any movies I watched. I didn't get beat up one day and started training so that it would never happen again. So, how did I start training in the martial arts?

My mother made me. That's right. My mother made me.

Apparently, as a kid, I had no trouble just staying in the house reading or making something with my Legos, erector set and my chemistry set (yeah, I had a chemistry set...what of it?). By the time I was seven, my mother was signing me up for almost any activity, just to keep me out of the house and getting at least some exercise. I went to summer camps, did soccer, basketball, tennis, scouts, and on and on. As third grade was ending and summer break was about to start, my mother asked me, "There's a karate class and a gymnastics class coming up this summer. Which one do you want to take first?" I asked which one was starting first - the karate class was first, the gymnastics was a month later - and I made my choice, thinking, "I'll just do the karate for a month, get it over with and then go to the gymnastics class."

I never made it to the gymnastics class.

I received my black belt in Tang Soo Do in 1986 and began Eskrima training at about this time. - Between 1988 and 1994, I took as many opportunities I could to teach and train with practitioners of other arts. I gained exposure to Aikido, Olympic style Tae Kwon Do, Shorinji Kempo, Muay Thai and Kenpo. In January of 1995, I received the unofficial “nod” to teach Eskrima before I moved to Florida. In the mid to late 90’s my training focused on ChinNa from Tiger/Crane Kung Fu and three forms of QiGong. I continued my Eskrima training by teaching privately. In 2001, I received my Instructor’s certificate in QiGong after moving to Las Vegas, NV. I had intentions of teaching but the 9/11 incident ended a lot of hopes and dreams for many people, including me. In 2002, I moved to Phoenix, AZ and started teaching Eskrima privately. In 2007, I received my Guru rank in Eskrima.

Today, I still keep my tradition of private instruction but I've also started the journey of moving from the underground martial arts world and out into the public eye. In March of 2008, I began hosting the semi-annual AZ FMA Friendship Gathering and was one of the featured instructors. This gathering was the first time I publicly taught Eskrima outside of my own organization.