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Voice of the Black Triangle Silat Tribe 2010

Monday, 18 January 2010 11:16

By Pesilat Ian Llewellyn

My name is Ian Llewellyn. I am a pesilat (silat player) in the Black Triangle Silat tribe studying the Minangkabau Harimau Pencak Silat system from West Sumatra. My instructor is the exceptional Pendekar Scott McQuaid—an individual I am honored to call my friend. Within this interview I hope to capture a written view of the my teacher's origins and his perspective on silat, combat and life.

How long have you been studying in combative arts?

McQ: Just over 28 years.

And how much of that has been in Harimau (tiger) Pencak Silat?

McQ: Almost two decades... and I still got work to do.

Can you remember much of them early training days?

McQ: Actually I can't, especially the karate which was what I first started with. I just remember wanting something that was practical. I floated between different styles because I was searching for something that suited my body and that I could make work for me. I think ju-jitsu was a good base and boxing brought the realness of a fight. I was studying under Sensi Robert Lawrence who founded the British Fudoshin Association. He was an incredible guy—a 10th dan. He taught ju-jitsu, karate, judo, all Japanese weapons and kick boxing. He taught it all. He was the first instructor that I had met up until then that actually made all his fight game work, but he had evolved the Japanese systems, they were not so rigid and direct.

What weapons did you learn?

McQ: My weapon of choice was the ton-fa. It's so effective and very difficult to counter. But I learned the katana, sai, jo staff, nunchuka and kubotan. A lot of these weapons crossed over in their techniques like the sai and ton-fa so it was easy to continue to study a new weapon because you had the grounding of another.

Did you study kick boxing with him?

McQ: No, I should have. I can't remember why I didn't. I studied with a guy called Danny Haywood who was an Essex golden boy of kick boxing. I think he was the region's champion. He was a terrible teacher. He just used his students to dog on, but in retrospect that was good for me as I was only a fourteen year old kid and I was taking a beating from a heavyweight pro kick boxer and still standing.

You started your own fight club didn't you?

McQ: Yeah sort of. Me and a couple of school friends formed a underground boxing club. We would meet at weekends in the evenings and beat the shit outta each other, crazy stuff.

What was next?

McQ: Then I trained with Samuel Kwok in Wing Chun. He briefly opened a class in Southend. He's very good in what he does. I hadn't been training there long when I injured my hand and had to take a month's rest. When I went back, he had packed up and gone back to London. And that's when I found silat.

So finding silat was an accident?

McQ: I believe things are meant to be. I was searching for something but didn't know what or where to look for it and eventually it found me.

So what happened?

McQ: The guy at the reception told me that Kwok was gone but said some other guy was up there doing kung fu. So I went up to have a look and that's when I saw him. Pendekar Paul Bennett was like a young white Mike Tyson—he looked like a silverback gorilla in body shape. He was moving with the grace and speed that someone of that short stocky nature shouldn't be able to do. Silat is generally very hypnotic in its appearance so I was already transfixed but the fact this guy was just so flexible in his kudas (stances), the art just instantly grabbed me.

Did you know of him before?

McQ: No, I had never heard of him but I had friends that knew him. He was a bouncer on the door in Southend and he made his name, weighing off drug dealers and larger louts. It was the rave era in the early nineties so there was a lot of fighting going on. He use to bring all his bouncer mates to class and I would have to train with all these guys over six foot and weighing in at 15 stone. I was only sixteen years old. I lied to him as he was only taking students that were 18, he still laughs about that now.

How comes Essex has so much of the fight game going on?

McQ: Because that's what Essex boys do best, well that and steal cars. There's actually more combat schools there now then back then, especially with all the MMA stuff.

So tell us about your silat training?

McQ: Well, for the first year, we just done langkahs (footwork) and kudas (stances). No drills at all, no punching, no kicking, just sitting in low stances, with your legs burning like hell. We were so bashed up that it would take a week to recover. If anybody actually attacked you during that week, I would have been useless.

Have the teaching methods changed since?

McQ: Well, I train my students, as you know, the way I was trained but I've added things I've learned into the mix but the core remains the same.

One of the things that intrigued me about this system was that it had no official gradings or belts, although others schools have now introduced this Western custom. What's your reasoning behind this?

McQ: The term 'martial arts' translates to 'arts concerned with waging war', but very few fighting arts live up to this title. Harimau silat is one of the systems that does. 
To introduce grades would separate the tribe and give them an illusion of stature—this can leave them vulnerable. A piece of paper is nothing more than a piece of paper. Your reward is within your capability in your silat.

What do you look for in a potential student?

McQ: Humbleness and an open mind.

Has the process of selecting students changed since you first begun your journey?

McQ: Definitely... my pendekar kept me hanging for a month; after our initial meeting he interviewed me over the phone, asking random questions about life, my ambitions, but nothing about martial arts.

What has been the most important lesson you have learned in your journey?

McQ: Reality, if it's not real it won't work.

Can you tell us a little about training with Maha Guru Richard de-Bordes?

McQ: I've shared a lot of time with Guru but the most profound time would be during my training in Ghana. Guru prepared my mental state for war.
 I remember my feet being blistered from training on the sun-baked concrete floor and I had a black eye and a busted lip. He was telling me about a gun related situation he was in a couple weeks back. So to put me in the picture he suddenly pulled out this Glock 9mm and pointed it at my head. Guru's very animated and this was his way of putting his point across.

I remember one particularly grueling training session I had with you on a stone floor in Sumatra. Can you remember any moments or hard lessons like this during your early years?

McQ: Ok... so my pendekar enters the room on a metal crutch due to a knee operation. During the lesson he made us balance on one leg with the raised leg shin pointed out for defense. He usually kicks our shins, but today he decided to use the crutch.

Ouch!

McQ: Yeah.

You've studied with some highly respected fighters. What fighters have given you the most?

McQ: Well, Guru De-Bordes is the essence of war, he really shaped my mindset. Guru Randy Carthy is so efficient, he helped my application in silat. As for my pendekar, Paul Bennett, he gave it to me all. without him my silat would be worthless.
I’ve also learned a lot from Guru Jak Othman, he’s an exceptional blade fighter. Um... a few sessions I had with Dan Inosanto helped guide me. Aside from silat, boxers like Nigel Benn and Robin Reid shared valuable fight knowledge with me. But I suppose the tiger has been the biggest influence, its dynamics and approach to its prey has molded my silat.

How do you see the Harimau Silat developing?

McQ: I think it just becomes more efficient. The traditional structure and shape will always remain but the forms evolve. Guru de-Bordes focused on the bela-diri (self defense) aspects and brought that to the concrete jungle. And I think we, as his apprentices, have to further that focus.

Do you do study in any other silat styles?

McQ: For years I never did, but recently I started studying under Guru Jak Othman. Originally I wanted just to learn the advanced blade work from Jak's family Berantai Silat system. But I found myself embracing the entire art because it blends so well into the Minangkabau Harimau style. I don't think I'll ever be as natural in Berantai as I am in my Harimau Silat, but it's there. Jak often laughs because I do what he says but it's in the mould of Minangkabau Harimau Silat. It's a part of me, it's what I am.

Do you do any cross training in other martial art styles?

McQ: I'm always looking at various fighting systems but more specifically the techniques applied oppose to the entire system. I'm always workshopping stuff. I continue my boxing training and I meet up with a retired Filipino arnis instructor when I'm back in the Philippines. But aside from that I may take a seminar or weekend course in something that I feel may aid my silat. The important thing is never stop being a student... never stop learning. This is how your knowledge in combat develops and you become a more complete fighter.

Now you moved from England in 2004 and emmigrated to Asia, what's that been like?

McQ: It's been a journey... not just physically but more so within the mind. I spent over a year moving around South East Asia, honing and developing my silat particularly in Sumatra. Then I settled in Hong Kong for about three years and that's where I established the Black Triangle Silat school.

You moved to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, what's that like?

McQ: Well, there's a lot more silat here. Um... it's a lot more relaxed compared to the busy 24/7 Hong Kong and that's taken me time to adjust. But there's a lot of dimensions to Malaysia that isn't instantly seen when you're just visiting the country.

Do you visit our silat motherland of Indonesia much?

McQ: Not as much as I'd like, but I try to get there at least once a year, also to the Philippines.

How would you describe silat in Indonesia?

McQ: It's a dying art and since the introduction of the silat olahraga (sport) the traditional styles are fading out. Fact is most Indonesians are into premiership football. The West is still intrigued by their fighting arts and culture but they're kinda bored with it now.

So where does that leave your silat?

McQ: I'm a messenger... I continue to decipher it and when things go full circle as all living things naturally do, we will be the ones returning the message back to the natives.

Is this just in Indonesia?

McQ: I think most of Asia is like this. There are more people learning kick boxing than silat in Malaysia, and Hong Kong seem to only perform kung fu in movies and parks oppose to actually studying real fighting methods. I remember the first time I went to Indonesia in 1996. I was twenty years old and I went to the Minangkabau province to find the origins of my art. When I got there, I found an old Indonesian man that knew exactly what I was looking for. He told me this: "Go to London and seek out Richard de-Bordes," I mean, I just came from him to there.

Silat made its debut on the silver screen in the Merantau movie. What did you think of it?

McQ: I think the film as a martial arts film is entertaining. There are some good fight sequences and the direction is solid. As for the film showcasing Minangkabau Harimau silat, no, it didn't do a good job. There were a few moves I recognized but for the most part it was all window dressing, high kicks and constant knee strikes. Harimau style is ground work and there was hardly any of that, but I understand that it's difficult to dress up Harimau silat for the camera. This director has put silat on the map in the movie world, so it's all good.

Tell us about making The Dark Gift indie style documentary?

McQ: It's been in the making for seven years. I just shot footage and collected information from my travels and training sessions. Eventually, I decided it's time to put it all together so I wrote the script and filmed the interviews. I'm glad it's all done because it's now a historical document on what has been to date, although it's a bit rough in its appearance it's still of great worth.

It has got a lot of attention on the internet, have you sold many?

McQ: I had orders as soon as the preview trailer went up on our site. It's good because some of that money goes towards the Sumatran Tiger Trust Fund so they are helping the survival of the tiger.

Will you be bringing out any more silat DVD's?

McQ: Yeah, I'm working on a Black Triangle Silat demonstration DVD at the moment and then a book will be the next project.

Thank you for your time, pendekar.

McQ: Terima kasih (thank you).

 

The interview was conducted on 18th January, 2010. Exclusive publication for blacktrianglesilat.com, 2010.