Three years ago Julie and I bought our first lovely home.  Moving is always a nightmare but we managed it.  We did pretty well but one thing that didn't make it was my swivl and camera.

What is a swivl?  A swivl is a small robot that holds a camera and points that camera at a small remote.  The remote is also a microphone.  The swivl is essentially a robot cameraman and sound engineer.  My original was instrumental in building Hapkido Online and I felt it's loss.

The one pictured above is the Generation 1 Swivl.  Which is what I had.  This is obsolete nowadays but still works perfectly for making Hapkido tutorials.  Even a used swivl is still usually a couple of hundred dollars. 

I realize it's not a vast sum of money, however, I've always run Hapkido Online on a shoestring budget.  I keep my costs low and that way I can keep my fees low for you, my students.  In fact i haven't raised fees once in the eight years since I began Hapkido Online.

I've been watching Ebay and Amazon off and on hoping to find a used swivl that wouldn't break the bank.  Well I found one for $60 on Ebay this evening!  I ordered it and it should be here by mid January.

All of you, yes you, pray hard that this thing works.  We need it to bring new content to the site.  I have some camera options that I believe will work reasonably well. I'll keep you posted.

For now, very excited at the prospect of making new Hapkido videos.

Today I cleaned and updated every page under the Home tab, FAQ, JOIN, and Store.  My new Linux web editing software comes with spell check and it's a revelation.  I fixed a number of spelling errors, some have been there nearly eight years.  One thing I've been doing is refining the language so it's easier and faster to read.  I still need to replace camera gear and I need a swivl device to act as camera person.

One of the major updates added to the site is I've added language and links for Hapkido Dummies.  For many who have trouble keeping an uke available these dummies will be a game changer. 

I'll be tackling the Learning pages in the days ahead.  My major focus is to reduce the amounts of words not only on the page but spoken in the videos.  You would think that more words = better learning but actually the opposite is true.  It's always better to show than tell.

I hope you all have a great year and grow as Hapkidoin.  Tell your friends about Hapkido Online!

God Bless,
Jon F.

I've started a new local program at Covenant Baptist Church in Shepherdstown WV.  Class is held on Mondays 5PM-6:30PM.  Ages 13 and up.  Seniors welcome. Class size is limited to ten.  I do this so that I can focus on each student and nobody get's left out.  Next practice will be March 11th.  

In just a few few short days we Hapkido Online celebrates our six year anniversary! I'm happy to report that we are still going strong. I have many plans for 2018, high on my list is to update our film equipment and film new content. I also look forward to growing the content on the black belt site.

I want to share my most heartfelt thanks to all of you for supporting Hapkido Online over the years.

God Bless,
​Jon

Well 2017 like the year before has been a year of change so far.  My wife and I bought our first home this year in Harpers Ferry WV!  While that has been a milestone it's been a laborious one in that we've been renovating.

We are now just a stones throw from Mr. David Henry's excellent ProForm martial arts school in Martinsburg, WV.  I hope as I approach military retirement to attend his school more often.

Today I changed the domain name for the advanced site to: www.hapkidoonlineadvanced.com

Sorry for any inconvenience this has caused.

I'm still on the wicked wicked day night shifts for the military and I still look forward to retirement.

We have many excellent seminars and the THA conference coming up this year and I'll be updating those links.

God Bless to you all!
​Jon

Well I think we are in for another exciting year of Hapkido and Hapkido Online.  Many things happened in my life in 2015.  For one thing I was transferred to my new unit in Alexandria Virginia.  The Yorktown Hapkido Club continues to run under the leadership of CAPT Brad Bennett (ret) PHD.  Brad is an excellent student and teacher and I know that club is destined for greatness.

I am currently doing shift work which means that every other month I work entirely at night.  This has made it very difficult to teach with any regularity.  But I have made my fellow shift workers aware of my abilities and offered to teach them.  Also I've been a guest instructor at a fantastic club run by Pastor Conrad Smith at Grace Bible Church several times since transferring.

While my life has been turned up on it's ear I am proud to say that www.hapkido-online.com continues to grow and provide training for people all around the world.  It has proven it's viability and robustness even now.

Also it seems that the Tactical Hapkido Alliance continues to grow as well making in-roads into many new places and even countries due in no small part to this website.

While I realize we all face many new challenges this year I also accept that the core values I've learned and taught as a Christian Hapkidoin will serve me well in the days ahead.

I look forward to our continued journey.

God Bless,
​Jon

Grand Master chooses a theme every year and this year the theme is the Cutting Edge.  The Tactical Hapkido Alliance IS on the cutting edge, the system is revolutionary in that it approaches the art of Hapkido in a systematic conceptual way.  Hapkido is a already a modern art born in the modern age.  It is not a traditional art from antiquity.  Hapkido was born in the atomic age, when mankind was just beginning to explore space and break all records for speed and distance.  Hapkido sprang into a world that had just survived a global war with terrifying new technological weapons.  As martial arts go, Hapkido IS the cutting edge and Chon Sul Kwan is the newest and most scientific approach to learning Hapkido.  Chon Sul Kwan has cutting edge interception methods pioneered in modern American martial arts like Jeet Kun Do.

I occasionally get asked about traditional Hapkido, it doesn't exist.  All Hapkido is modern.

Ours was the first Hapkido system to explore online distance learning via this website.

This year, GM and Master Ziots have brought us brand new DVD's.  White Belt through Black Belt filmed with comprehensive instruction and from multiple camera angles.  It has been over ten years since the first white through black DVD's and I am happy to present them here for you.  Please visit the store and check out this incredible resource.

Finally I started building www.hapkido-online-black.com which is a Hapkido Online just for black belts.  It is customized for the needs of black belts and is an invaluable tool for any student pursuing mastery.

I have never been more excited about a martial arts system than I am for Chon Sul Kwan Hapkido it is the finest Hapkido program I have ever had the honor of learning and teaching.

Hello Hapkido Friends,

 

Well the Coast Guard is transferring me to the Alexandria Virginia region for the next four years.  I plan to leave the Yorktown Hapkido Club in place and in the capable hands of Captain Brad Bennett (ret) PhD.  Since my family is staying in the Yorktown area I will be returning to check on the club's progress and conduct promotions regularly.

 

If anybody on here lives in the Alexandria region I would love to hear from you.  For one thing I really need to find a room to rent to live in!  But also it would be nice to have a friend in the area.  For someone who wants to learn Hapkido in Alexandria it could be a tremendous opportunity for you.

 

I ask that prayers go out to my wife Julie and my family that they be safe and protected when I can't be at home.  And if any predator should read this, we have guns....

 

I plan to go ahead with the July 18 Hapkido Seminar here and I also plan to keep supporting and building Hapkido Online, I am in this for the long haul.

 

I also want to send out a prayer request for Master Tim Feathers and his family.  He recently survived a rather harrowing operation involving his heart.  The prognosis is good for him but I am sure he and his loved ones could use your prayers.

 

God Bless,

Jon