Skip to main content

The Influential & The Influence by Mark Hatmaker

 


A landmark of the 20th and 21st century martial community has completed his sojourn on the planet—Mr. Gene LeBell.

I will not pretend to the sadness that his family and close relations feel. To horn in on that grief strikes me as a bit solipsistic and disrespectful of those tighter bonds that will shed tangible and visible salt-laden tears for Mr. LeBell.

Their loss, their pain weighs far heavier than my distant appreciation and affection can compass.

Am I saying I am unaffected? Oh, Hell No.

I simply offer the perspective that to equate with the proximate ones is a bit short-sighted and blunts the external empathy gaze a bit.

My take is likely eccentric and idiosyncratic and of no value.

On to the Influence of Mr. LeBell.

To say that he was [is] influential is an understatement.

If one is involved in the world of grappling, then I will say nothing here of his history that you do not already know.

Instead, I will step into the shallow waters of my own experience and offer that yes, Mr. LeBell was influential, so I’d like to say how he was influential—not to the community at large but to the anecdote of one man—me.

The Influence of the Influential

I had already been scufflin’ via my Grandfather [George Washington Goins] and my cousins for years before I ever came across Mr. LeBell.

What struck me at first, was likely what struck many—the over-the-top presentation borne of pro-wrestling rings around the world.

I’ll admit, this portion held no influence on me, but…what did, was this.

Mr. LeBell was once described as “A man who’s forgotten more finishing holds than you’ll ever know.” At that moment, I thought, “Oh, hell yeah—that’s a worthy trove of knowledge to shoot for.”

Mr. LeBell embodies [to me] the mindset that frees one from a linear dogmatic path to knowledge—be it in the grappling domain, or hell, anywhere else.

“To forget more than most know” means that he did not confine himself to a system or to a single path. It meant that he looked at anything and everything he deemed pertinent to his passion.

Yes, of course, he offered us all “Here’s some slick tricks” but more importantly he offered an eyes and mind wide-open gimlet-eyed gaze that was always willing to garner more tactics and more importantly [to my eye, at least] reverse-engineer what is or was known inside-out and say, “Yeah, but if you construct it this way, this pain changes to THIS PAIN.”

He offered us all how to think. How to not to accept all on a platter.

Being a legend himself he was skeptical of legends.

The history/mythology surrounding his judgment of Bruce Lee, no matter how much truth may or may not be within, allows us to see a spirit of “Don’t face value it, dig in for the pith and see what’s what.”

Admittedly not all of his lessons seat with many. Some miss the point, or perhaps I am the mistaken one.

Some respect his encyclopedic knowledge and seek to replicate the copious arsenal.

And…there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

I merely offer that this man’s powerful influence on my own thinking was not mere replication and duplication.

It goes deeper than that. It was and is a way to see each “finishing hold” as, yes, an entity unto itself, but also as part of a class of like mayhem, and even beyond that-- principles that concoct said mayhem to be pulled apart willy-nilly in an instruction-book free world where we understand how to create new mayhem.

To my mind, that influence has been monumental in my life, my thought, my world.

I am mighty grateful for that influence.

Mabitsiar’u Mr. LeBell

[To my mind, our recent piece Jugulations, Strangulations, Neck-Breakers, & Molar-Poppers, is reflective of this influence.]

[For more Rough& Tumble history, Indigenous Ability hacks, and for pragmatic applications of old school tactics historically accurate and viciously verified see our RAW/Black Box Subscription Service.]

Or our brand-spankin’ new podcast The Rough and Tumble Raconteur available on all platforms.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Apache Running by Mark Hatmaker

Of the many Native American tribes of the southwest United States and Mexico the various bands of Apache carry a reputation for fierceness, resourcefulness, and an almost superhuman stamina. The name “Apache” is perhaps a misnomer as it refers to several different tribes that are loosely and collectively referred to as Apache, which is actually a variant of a Zuni word Apachu that this pueblo tribe applied to the collective bands. Apachu in Zuni translates roughly to “enemy” which is a telling detail that shines a light on the warrior nature of these collective tribes.             Among the various Apache tribes you will find the Kiowa, Mescalero, Jicarilla, Chiricahua (or “Cherry-Cows” as early Texas settlers called them), and the Lipan. These bands sustained themselves by conducting raids on the various settled pueblo tribes, Mexican villages, and the encroaching American settlers. These American settlers were often immig...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Empirical Fighter: Rules for the Serious Combatant by Mark Hatmaker

  Part 1: Gear Idealized or World Ready? 1/A: Specificity of Fitness/Preparation If you’ve been in the training game for any length of time likely you have witnessed or been the subject of the following realization. You’ve trained HARD for the past 90 days, say, put in sprint work and have worked up to your fastest 5K. Your handy-dandy App says your VO2 Max is looking shipshape. You go to the lake, beach, local swimmin’ hole with your buddies and one says “ Race you to the other side!” You, with your newfound fleet-of-foot promotion to Captain Cardio, say, “ Hell, yeah!” You hit the river and cut that water like Buster Crabbe in “ Tarzan the Fearless ” with your overhand stroke….for the first 50 yards, then this thought hits as the lungs begin to gasp for air, “ Am a I gonna die in the middle of this river?” This experiment can be repeated across many domains of physical endeavor. ·         The man with the newfound Personal Reco...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Original Roadwork by Mark Hatmaker

  Mr. Muldoon Roadwork. That word, to the combat athlete, conjures images of pre-dawn runs, breath fogging the morning air and, to many, a drudgery that must be endured. Boxers, wrestlers, kickboxers the world over use roadwork as a wind builder, a leg conditioner, and a grit tester. The great Joe Frazier observed… “ You can map out a fight plan or a life plan, but when the action starts, it may not go the way you planned, and you're down to the reflexes you developed in training. That's where roadwork shows - the training you did in the dark of the mornin' will show when you're under the bright lights .” Roadwork has been used as a tool since man began pitting himself against others of his species in organized combat. But…today’s question . Has it always been the sweat-soaked old school gray sweat suit pounding out miles on dark roads or, was it something subtler, and, remarkably slower? And if it was, why did we transition to what, and I repeat myself,...
Post a Comment
Read more