REVIEW
OF GRANDTUHON GAJE'S AUGUST 2005 SEMINAR IN DETROIT.
PEKITI TIRSIA FAMILY GATHERING IN DETROIT, MICHIGAN
2005
This past August 27th & 28th in Detroit, Michigan
the always incomparable Supreme Grand Master of
the Pekiti-Tirsia Kali System, Grand Tuhon Leo T.
Gaje returned to once again share with all those
in attendance his family legacy and treasure, the
indigenous Filipino Fighting Art of Pekiti-Tirsia
Kali. The host of this event was the esteemed leader
of the Detroit Maphilindo's, and Detroit Pekiti
Tirsia chief instructor, Ka Jeff Davidson. Ka Jeff
Davidson is a long time student and follower of
GT Gaje, and is a man of great dedication, technical
skill, wonderful humour as well as welcoming, open
heart - a more gracious host you may never find,
and it was the honour of the Saskatchewan clan of
Pekiti-Tirsia to be counted among those who would
show their support to both Grand Master Gaje and
Ka Jeff by flying out from Canada to once again
be amongst our Pekiti-family. Most who came from
Saskatchewan were new to the art of Pekiti Tirsia,
with the exceptions of my assist. instructor Eddie,
and my student Lucas, so of course there was some
nervousness and trepidation amongst my newest students
as to their very first meeting with the legendary
blademaster, GT Gaje. And then of course there was
also meeting the Detroit Pekiti family for the first
time as well. But I wholeheartedly assured them,
and put their fears and doubts to rest, when I told
them that it would only be a matter of hours before
they realized that both GT Gaje and the Detroit
Pekiti-clan were more than just another Pekiti-group,
but that they were indeed members of our FAMILY,
and would find this fact out for themselves very
shortly. And so it was, that once we touched down
at the Detroit Airport, the Saskatchewan crew would
meet with our extended family in Detroit - Ka Jeff
and the Maphilindo's.
As they say, the rest is history. Almost immediately,
it was as if old family members who had not seen
each other in years were once again basking in the
joy and fun of each others presence as we shared
laughter, fun, great training, sweat, tears and
joy throughout the weekend. As the Saskatchewan
crew would repeat to me throughout the weekend -
never, ever have they felt so close and eveloped
family-like bonds so quickly, in martial arts circles
or otherwise, than they ever have with the men and
women of the Detroit Pekiti family. Truly, the spirit
of generosity, open hearts, and just the pure fun
and excitement of being in each others company was
what made this more than your average Martial Arts
Training Seminar. And of course, once GT Gaje took
the floor, and began leading all of us through our
training and instructions for the weekend, well..let's
just say that for every groan of pain inflicted
during the sometimes brutal training and workouts,
GT Gaje always made sure to balance it out with
his ever present charm, grace and patented 'Grand
Tuhon Gaje humour'. More classic "Tuhonisms"
(words of wisdom) where shared with all in attendance,
many of which the Saskatchewan crew and myself would
be repeating amongst ourselves with huge smiles
and grins on our rosy-cheeked, sweaty faces. Yes,
GT Gaje is a hard, sometimes demanding teacher and
instructor, but he always manages to balance it
out with his amazing wit and humour, which will
more than help one to forget the burning pain in
their legs from low squats, of the soreness in their
shoulders from power swinging the stick. Ka Jeff,
as always, was on hand as GT Gaje's 'training partner'
and happily suffered every slap, kick, choke, wrench,
throw and stab with a huge grin on his face and
a twinkle in his eye - who ever said getting the
**** beat out of you by the Grand Master of Pekiti-Tirsia
couldn't be fun? It was an amazing seminar, and
as always, GT Gaje has this uncanny ability to take
even raw beginners from the basic foundation into
higher learning acceleration techniques through
his incredibly innovative teaching methodology and
understanding of the universal principles of combat.
All in attendance left the weekend seminar much,
much better Pekiti students and practitioners thanks
to GT Gaje's always amazing communicative ability
to impart true, functional fighting skills, from
the newest beginner to the most seasoned teacher/instructor,
and all those in between.
During the evenings after the training, members
of the Detroit and Saskatchewan clans would get
together to share food, stories and many fun times,
thanks as always to GT Gaje's boundless energy and
sense of humour. Always one who is as quick with
a funny story or a joke as he is with a blade, Manong
Leo kept us all spellbound and entertained with
his constant smile and easy going demeanour, and
even treated all of us to some fun after hours impromptu
training which ran well into the evening. The Saskatchewan
crew, my father and myself would like to mention
a very special thanks to Pekiti brother Bassam,
a long time student of Ka Jeff, as well as Bassam's
family, for opening up their home to all of us and
preparing such a delicious meal. It truly was an
unforgetable evening, and we are all indebted to
you for your kindess, generosity and hospitality.
Following the weekend seminar, GT Gaje gave a special
Law Enforcement/Defensive Tactics/Use of Force Seminar
for officers and members of the Michigan L.E.O.
community. The special traning class was held in
Dearborn, Michigan, and counted amongst its attendees,
members of Def-Tac, SWAT, patrol, ERT, as well as
members of the RCMP and Military Police (of which
members of the Saskatchewan crew could be counted).
It was a great thrill for those in attendance to
finally meet the legendary star of the "finest
law enforcement training video ever made - Surviving
Edged Weapons" - Grand Tuhon Gaje, and as always,
GT Gaje gave a steller demonstration of Pekiti-Tirsia's
various methods of arrest & control, counter
knife, tactical baton, cuffing, etc. It goes without
saying that all in attendance were greatly impressed,
and hopefully this will be the beginning of a great
relationship between the Law Enforcement community
of Detroit, and Pekiti-Tirsia Kali. Of course, Guro
Jeff Davidson, once again playing host, made sure
everything ran smoothly and efficiently,with great
help and assistance from some of his senior students
and asst. instructors.
Upon returning back to Canada, I have had some time
to fully comprehend just how important an event
this Pekiti 'Family Gathering' truly was...you notice
I say FAMILY GATHERING, and not Martial Arts Seminar
- because all in attendance truly realized what
this gatering was all about. It had absolutely nothing
to do with egos, posturing, gossip, politics, or
any other ulterior motive - it was purely for the
joy of all of us getting together for the only reason
there is - the right reason - to show our collective
support (no matter how small or large in number
we may be, or how far a distance need be travelled)
for our leader, mentor and head of our collective
family in the Filipino fighting arts - Grand Tuhon
Leo T. Gaje, for without his leadership, patience,
kindness and open heartedness, none of this would
have been possible. GT Gaje can proudly say that
he accomplished two really amazing things this past
weekend...he shared and furthered exposed his family
treasure of Pekiti Tirsia with all who wished to
learn, and secondly, that he brought us all together,
as one united group coming together in the true
spirit of the Arts - FAMILY.
On behalf of myself, my father Leon Saludo Sr.,
and the Saskatchewan Pekiti-Tirsia Kali Pitbulls,
we all collective offer our thanks to our most gracious
hosts, friends, and family - the Supreme Grand Tuhon
Leo T. Gaje, Ka Jeff Davidson and the Detroit Maphilindos
for their unending hospitality, unwavering friendship,
and steadfast brotherhood/sisterhood - you truly
made our experience in Detroit one we will never
forget and we all cannot wait to return once again
to be with our extended Pekiti-family in Michigan.
In closing, I would just like to say that for those
of us who did make it out for this particular seminar
- it truly was one of the most amazing experiences
of kinship, generosity and sharing that any martial
artist could ever hope to experience. For those
who did not make it out...hopefully there will be
another opportunity for you to do so, because it
is events like this that truly make the martial
arts the life changing experience that it was meant
to be.
Always with love and respect,
Jay Saludo & Leon Saludo Sr.
The Saskatchewan P3K-9's
Sept/'05
