Seattle Close Range Tactics

I tested out CRT for a few months. I paid for intro classes for myself, a buddy, and my gf. After that intro I paid for two months of classes. I really wanted to like CRT as it’s close to my job and because there’s a lot to like about the set up. Unfortunately, after that trial, only one person in the group wanted to go back.
See, as a former military member, I’m really into fitness and martial arts. In the last few months I’ve tried out 3 different wing chun places. So here’s an honest review of this place for other people.
First the good:
1) The student trainers are great. If you can work with Jackie, work with Jackie.
2) The progression that CRT uses are solid. Cory, the head instructor, has some pragmatic knowledge — what’s important are footwork, a straight punch, and only a few other things.
The bad:
I’ve had quite a few bad experiences with this place.
1) When I told Cory that I was attending multiple wing chun places — he wanted me to pick one and started bad mouthing the teacher at the other school. That other teacher says he’s never met Cory and that it would be a great idea for a new student to try out multiple schools. He knew the better school would win the student. And it did.
2) I checked out this school solely because of a great groupon deal — but wasn’t allowed to honor it, because of some other special they had going on. If anyone wants to buy those groupons for a discount, PM me – I won’t be needing them. :)
3) There have been multiple times where class location and times have changed with little or no notice. My friend and I have ended up working out by ourselves multiple times.
4) This school doesn’t spar. The say they have shock defense drills, which I haven’t experienced in my limited time there. From what was explained to me, I doubt there’s any real contact. It’s impossible to learn how to defend yourself, without being put into more stressful, low-​stakes combat scenarios.
Summary:
Come to CRT if you want to meet cool people. Don’t come to CRT if you want to learn how to defend yourself.

Sifu Cory knows his stuff! This is my second time taking a martial arts class and I must say, this class is educational and very entertaining at the same time.

I have been attending now for a few months and am so far very pleased with my beginning classes. I was looking for a school which wasn’t concerned with a color-​belted system, but rather something which taught practical skills as opposed to katas. Cory is very knowledgeable and is always concerned with making sure all students’ questions and concerns along the way are addressed. He has a logical introductory method for prospective students which allows for people to have a more accurate taste for how lessons are taught and what is expected. I look forward to seeing how much I will have learned by even summer’s end!

This was my first experience with the study of martial arts and I’m very lucky to have found CRT. What impresses me most about learning from Sifu Cory Walken is that if something doesn’t work, he gets rid of it. If there’s an easier way to accomplish your goal, that’s what he teaches. There’s no rigidity in his style of teaching and we learn to worry less about proper Wing Chun and more about what will keep us safe. Everyone is friendly, positive and encouraging. You couldn’t ask for more. I dread the day that I’ll have to leave Seattle because I’m so impressed with CRT.

I’m in town for just a few days & wanted to get a few Wing Chun classes while I’m here. I basically just searched maps for someone close & got a hold of instructor Sifu Cory Walken. I can not express how impressed I was with my private lesson. In fact even to the point that I wanna vacation in Seattle just to come back for more lessons.
Cory’s knowledge of this art form & his way of instructing is a perfect 10. He is obviously very dedicated to this & is passionate about instruction. Well worth every penny spent.
If you want to study Wing Chun this is the place!

CRT is a wonderful class where Sifu Cory teaches the style of Wing Chun and blends it with the range of Muay Thai to create a truly useful martial art. The class is designed to be practical for surprise encounters and not for the ring. Sifu Cory is friendly and welcomes anyone who wishes to learn a martial art no matter what your experience level is. Sifu Cory is an excellent instructor that complements at the right time, analyzes all questions and movements and always has a drill or trick to improve a maneuver.

Growing up in Honolulu, I was involved with kung fu and lion dance. Unfortunately, my old school closed down, and I have bounced around a few martial arts establishments, trying to find a place that combines a close-​knit community feeling with fighting strategy and physical development.
After moving to Seattle, I’ve finally found a school that I truly love — Seattle Close Range Tactics! The Sifu here is extremely welcoming, and he inspires a great sense of teamwork in his classes. The curriculum is a blend of Wing Chun, Eskrima, and Muay Thai. The Sije and Sihing at Seattle CRT are super helpful, and they seem very invested in students’ progress!

I could rhapsodize on all the things I love about this school until I hit the character limit. There are a lot of things to like. Instead, I’ll try to restrict this to things that haven’t been said in other reviews that might be of use to somebody deciding whether or not to give CRT a shot.
— The curriculum is designed to impart not only a mastery of techniques from classical Wing Chun (and Escrima and Muay Thai), but also a deep understanding of the principles that render these techniques effective.
— The «challenge by choice» principle on which classes are driven allows students of any level of ability to improve constantly without compromising safety and comfort. We’re always being pushed, but never being pushed harder than we want to be.
— The instructors are approachable and always open to questions. They go out of their way to make themselves available to students and address their concerns. This, in my experience, is rare and extremely valuable to the learning experience.
I’ll end on this note; if you’re at all considering pursuing martial arts or self-​defense classes of any kind, it’s at least worth your while to attend a free introductory class. There’s no review that could adequately represent how all the various positive qualities of CRT hang together and augment one another to provide a truly top-​notch education in a practical combat system. So come check it out.

This school is excellent. My last teacher was very cruel — he used us as punching bags, threw us against the wall and beat us; basically just demonstrated how pathetic we were compared to him. This place is a little different than what I am used to, but it works. I have learned a lot, but there are some drawbacks — I’m not allowed to crush anyone at my free will, which is very disappointing. Not allowed to put anyone down or show them how dreadfully wrong they are — bummer. No flashy belts that I can show off to my friends and victims — annoying. This is obviously not a Cobra worthy Dojo; I mean what is the point of being in a martial arts school, if you can’t show off/​hurt people? But, I guess if I had to do it all over again, I might — especially because it is satisfying to compare your newly found power, after a few days, to the new ants that are enrolling!
Pros:
Excellent Material
Friendly Classmates
Great atmosphere
Good Structure
Cons:
Friendly classmates
Great Atmosphere
NO bullying

I love coming here. Classes are accessible and convenient. Content is challenging, but I always feel like I’ve made progress. The instructor is wonderful: knowledgeable, approachable, and friendly. And amongst the students there is a warm community. I recommend CRT to anyone who is serious about learning a martial art or self defense, but without the pressure.

I have spent my entire life being belittled and beat down — thanks to Wing Chun I am now only belittled and not beat down.

Seattle CRT is probably one of the best things I ever decided to do. It’s truly practical self defense that puts pretty much all other martial arts to shame.
I don’t care who you are, you will benefit from CRT. Both Sifu Cory Walken and Sihing RJ Dealy are very knowledgeable, patient, honest, and truly respectful of each and every student. They go out of their way to help us in our individual strengths and weaknesses and show us that no body type is more capable than another. And to top it off, this group is like a big family. We push each other but in a healthy way and I can honestly say I like every person there enough to call them all friends.
And unlike every other martial art I have seen, CRT teaches and stresses the importance of verbal deescalation, to stop a fight from ever needing to happen, and adrenal conditioning, so when the fight does happen you won’t freeze, you won’t give up, and you will strike hard, strike fast, and strike first.
And a special call out to all the ladies out there who’re looking for a self defense class you can feel comfortable in. I have never been looked down upon for my gender by my teachers, and over time and training so has each male in the class. In the last six months I have probably gained more confidence than I have my whole life. As someone with a lifetime of extraordinarily low self-​esteem and who has always struggled to feel strong in any way, whether through suggestions of media or from socialization, I now am able to truly care for and respect myself.
Oh, and did I mention it’s cheaper than any other school I’ve seen? Seriously, what are you waiting for?

This class is awesome. You learn a modern art here which is practical and not just fancy. They teach applications based on scenarios, the day you start. It draws inspiration from Wing Chun (Read — Yip Man and Bruce Lee).
As the name suggests, you learn here how to fight yourself out. I am attending this class since 2 months now, and I cannot get enough. I developed patience, physical strength, situational awareness, confidence and a positive intention towards life-​its problems and opportunities. You understand the human body, what works in it and what doesn’t. You learn how to channel the energy inside you in that one punch which becomes your ticket out of an unwanted confrontation with an assaulter.
Sifu Cory Walken is a great teacher. He pays personal attention to each and everyone in class. He loves his students. Makes sure everyone is doing good. You practise with fellow students — from people who have just joined to seniors; people who are bigger /​stronger than you; people who are fun loving and serious at learning and improving.

I’ve participated in different schools of self-​defense, on and off, for quite some time and I very much enjoy Seattle CRT and highly recommend it. I hope my opinions (and that’s all they are) help you make your decision to join up.
I’ve received instruction in Brazilian Jujitsu in the past and am a big fan of it. If you find yourself on the ground, which often happens in a fight, I don’t believe there’s a better system. I, however, would like to not end up on the ground with an attacker for a myriad of reasons. In reality, the threat is never singular. Tapping someone out is fine and dandy until his buddy puts a steel-​toe boot to the side of your melon. If you have a weapon on your person, you run the risk of that person getting his/​her hands on it and the situation immediately bumps up to a deadly force situation (not that it wasn’t before). So on and so forth. Plus, BJJ is still a competition martial art. Not a combat martial art.
Sifu, I apologize ahead of time if any of the following is incorrect.
I understand Wing Chun to be a very efficient form of combat, whereas it addresses a threat/​threats as quickly and efficiently as possible. Why block then strike when you can do both at the same time? Every block is a punch and every punch, a block.
What I like most about Seattle CRT is it acknowledges there may be more efficient ways than traditional Wing Chun to address certain threats in the modern world. Because of this, it incorporates kicks, knee strikes and kick defenses from Muay Thai and also odds and ends from Filipino Escrima. I’m not a huge fan of martial arts systems which refuse to deviate from tradition or concrete forms. Seattle CRT is not a Wing Chun school; rather a complete, well thought-​out system of self-​defense deeply steeped in Wing Chun.
Sifu and his other instructors are excellent teachers. You can be the most brilliant and talented person in the world, but if you don’t know how to teach, it’s impossible to impart that knowledge on to others. It makes learning the system that much easier.
Class is relaxed and stress-​free and full of nice, everyday folk from all walks of life. There are no big egos present and it’s an excellent learning environment. You don’t have to be an MMA practitioner or a cage fighter to join. I think you’re first taught if you can avoid the fight, altogether, avoid the fight, altogether. But if you find yourself forced into a fight, finish it, absolutely.
Seattle CRT stresses having a warrior mindset in order to win battles through swift and decisive violence of action, maintaining physical and psychological momentum in the fight until the threat against you is destroyed. This is not a normal, everyday mindset which most people possess. Training yourself to have that mindset when needed and being able to immediately go from 0 to 100 when you are threatened is just as important as learning the physical techniques. The phrase «forward intention» is used in every class. Move to and through your threat in order to move onto the next one. The world is not a happy/​fuzzy place, unfortunately, and they’re not teaching us to bake cupcakes. Although, I do enjoy cupcakes.

Concise and thoughtful instruction
Sound teaching and a great vibe