My name is Adam Chan and I started martial arts in 1986 training in classical Wing Chun under sifu Joseph Boychuck. In 1993 I learned a hybrid version of kung-fu from sifu Mike Smith which contained elements of Tai-Chi, Ba Gua, Hsing Yi, Shaolin, natural gate boxing.
One of the greatest highlights of my training was meeting great martial arts teachers such as Jesse Glover and Ed Hart. I'm not qualified to say that I'm one of their students(I was only there for 2 months) but seeing the tip of the iceberg has given me a few basic ideas that have radically changed my approach to training, allowing me to use my past training in a more direct and effective manner.
For convenience sake, my system is called modified Wing Chun. Tracing back what I learned, I realized that it contains elements of fencing, boxing, savate and karate. Some of my own influences are Aikido and Yi-Quan. Another major influence was teaching the prison guards in Hong Kong. Talking to some of the veteran guards and their experiences dealing with maximum security criminals had a major impact on the direction of my training. Before that, my testing model was very unrealistic. It was based on crossing hands with other martial artists with a 'sparring' mentality.
In the end, names and styles do not matter. Most martial arts styles are very sports oriented today and they would not work without some kind of modification. One should study how criminals behave and start attacks. This study of self-protection can easily encompass more than what most would call a martial art. This research has led me into the basic ideas of criminology, sociology, psychology, sport-science and physics. That is why I always think it's funny when people ask me what style I do, I mean where do I start?
Fighting can lead one to confidence, creativity, compassion and other qualities. This led me to research Taoism, motivational psychology and Zen studies. Little by little, I realized that martial arts is a great way to help people.
Adam Chan - 2007