[QUOTE=jnp;2639706]Ones that regularly compete and do well in San Shou and San Da competitions. Curiously enough, the exact same metric that is applied to Judo in judging it’s efficacy.
How about that?[/QUOTE]
Problem is that there are schools of Kung-Fu that fits that descriptions, not styles of Kung-Fu…except Shuai Jiao (a.k.a. the Chinese Judo style).
You can’t say of one style of Kung-Fu that it has a standard minimum quality level maintained over all the schools where that style is practised worldwide, which you can say of Judo and Kyokushin, if those schools are connected to a NGB.
I’ve walked into a (Wudang) Tai Chi Chuan school (Peter van Loo, student of Pete Doherty (SP?)) where it looked like they were “kickboxing” during sparring time.
Omega’s school would also fit into this category, yet he does Phoenix Rising Boxing, but in general rule these schools are the exceptions that prove the rule.
How are we going to advice a complete (15 y) noob over the internet, that Kung-Fu can be great if you look for certain points?
Here in Leuven there’s the Long Hu Men Kung-Fu school, which has the best Sanda team in Belgium. Their style is Baji Quan (my favorite after Shuai Jiao), yet they translate it as Pa Chi Chuan. Took me some time to decyphere that it was Baji Quan.
Back to the point: it’s the best Sanda team in Belgium and a good one in the Benelux. They organize every year The Golden Dragon Cup (Belgium Open championships Sanda) and in the weight categories where there are only Sanda fighters, they get podiumplaces.
In the weight categories where there are Muay Thaiers fighting, the podiumplaces go to the MTers.
So the club comes over as a good club with a good fighting team, especially for the untrained eye, but if you have been in the Kickboxing circuit here, you would see that they are a little bit better than mediocre. (if they crosstrained with one of the MT clubs here, they would become great).
So unless you personally know of a good Kung-Fu school in the neighbourhood of a poster, it’s better to consider that telling noobs “don’t bother your time now with kung-Fu” is the best thing to do.
Later when they have more experience, they can look at Kung-Fu schools and have the knowledge to base their own opinion over that school.