By Danniel Gomez
Contribution, 1999

've studied Sum Neng Wing Chun, De Su and WuDong chi-gung under Wong Wah (Tom Wong) since 1980. Despite my studies, I'm far from understanding all of Wong sifu's knowledge. The more I study the more I realized how little I know about martial arts. From my boxing training to the chi kung healing and power I have come a long way and realize it is not only punching and kicking anymore.

From my own sparring and lessons with Wong sifu to watching him send big Kirk Gloss (an 8 times wrestling champion at 6'4" and 220 lbs) flying across the room, I thought it was sifu's diet that caused it. I knew Kirk felt the same way. One day we were at Kirk's house. Kirk and I were shocked to witness sifu breaking a board with an inch power. Kirk could not wait to tell his friend Jesus who was the East coast kickboxing champion about it. Kirk brought Jesus and insisted that he sparred with sifu. Jesus closed in and in a flash he fell back like a log of wood, knocked out. Kirk who was an ambulance driver, performed CPR on Jesus. After waking up Jesus said all he remembered was a powerful punch landing on his face. Sifu said he used the pak sao technique. I could not see it because it was so fast. I wished I could have seen it again.

I saw a class of 30 people in which there were only two students, Choy and Jason, who could use sifu's pak sao technique. He taught me a lot about principles, which were very sophisticated for me. I understood only part of what he said and showed me.

We called Wong sifu the "Magician" after some interesting incidents.

One day I was with sifu in my backyard. I was trying to impress him by climbing a tree without using my legs, and doing a one arm pull up on a steel bar. He said he was impressed. Suddenly he used a screwdriver and threw it right through my old aquarium like a bullet without shattering the glass! I was amazed!

Another time, he used "Chi-Gung" to cure my coworker's chronic back pain. My friend said, "what kind of magic is that? Wow! Your sifu is like a Magician!" The name stuck in our minds.

Danniel Gomez teaches a few select students from his home in San Diego California. More information on Yuen-Kay-San-Sum-Neng-Tom-Wong's Wing Chun and others can be found at Rene Ritchie's web site or www.yahoo.WingChunKuen. Comments may be sent to Danniel Gomez sifu at Dan13win@hotmail.com