In his teens, Professor lansdale began studying Judo and Hapkido at the YMCA in Tyler, Texas. Professor Lansdale is surely one of the earliest students of Hapkido in the United States, and definitely in Texas. He also studied at the YMCA a maverick form of Kempo, as well as Chung Do Kwan Taekwondo. The YMCA also allowed him to be briefly introduced to SHOTOKAN KARATE, KOREAN JUDO (called YUDO) as well as numerous other styles of Karate. Though Professor Lansdale did not study these later arts long or in any detail, he believes his martial arts were affected by the brief exposure to those systems.

 

Later, Professor Lansdale studied Thai Boxing, and while living in the San Francisco bay area, was exposed to techniques from the WHITE CRANE KUNG FU SYSTEM, WING CHUN, MONKEY STYLE, PREYING MANTIS and others.

 

Returning to Texas, Professor Lansdale began developing his own personal self-defense system, which he loosely called MAVERICK KENPO, as the flowing strikes of Kenpo were a major influence on the system.

 

He continued his study of Taekwondo and Kickboxing, and on moving to Nacogdoches, Texas began a sparring and self-defense class that he taught until he decided to retire from martial arts to better pursue his writing career.

 

Lansdale began writing notes and developing a better understanding of the arts he had studied, and continued on this path, practicing and teaching privately now and then, until he finally stopped altogether for four years. This was however, very temporary.

 

When his son was old enough to entertain interest in martial arts, Professor Lansdale signed him up in a Taekwondo class and was soon involved himself. He studied traditional Taekwondo, even though he felt his personal interests were elsewhere.

 

In the early nineties Professor Lansdale began the study of Aikido. His Aikido instructor also randomly taught old style jujitsu, kobudo, Japanese and Okinawan Karate.

 

Professor Lansdale convinced his instructor that the system was lacking and should be better organized, and was allowed to incorporate his skills into the mix, making Lansdale Co-founder of what his instructor called MATSUKAZE BUDO.

 

Lansdale introduced his co-founder to Kysho-Jitsu, which he had been exposed to by the seminars of George Dillman and Rick Moneymaker, and convinced him to pursue that path as an addition to their system. He also brought Filipino weaponry into MATSUKAZE BUDO, as well as basic ground grappling and Chi-na.

 

Privately, Professor Lansdale was teaching his version of Maverick Kenpo to select students, Eugene Frizzell and Coy Harry. They are the only students of Professor Lansdale’s to receive Black Belt ranking in this system, which was one primarily of concepts and principles as applied to basic locks and strikes. Professor Lansdale felt the Kenpo name was too closely tied with established Kenpo systems, and his use of the name was more generic, so he dissolved MAVERICK KENPO.

 

In time, Lansdale broke off with his MATSUKAZE BUDO partner due to personal differences, as well as differences of vision. In the summer of 1996 Lansdale removed what he felt were impractical or parlor trick techniques from the system, and blended the better components of MATSUKAZE BUDO and MAVERICK KENPO into the system now called SHEN CHUAN. The name is Chinese for “Spirit Fist”, and pays tribute to China, the greatest laboratory for martial arts ever. The name also pays tribute to the fast, almost ghostly striking of the system, as well as to the internal facets of the style. Despite the Chinese name, Shen Chuan is an eclectic system of many arts, and is seen by the founder as most of all, American.

 

In January of 1997 Professor Lansdale established LANSDALE’S SELF-DEFENSE SYSTEMS at the current Stallings Drive Dojo. The dojo is referred to as the LANSDALE’S SELF-DEFENSE SYSTEMS dojo, with the main training hall being called VACHSS HALL after Professor Lansdale’s friend Andrew Vachss, who helped him make the jump into his own school and system by both financial support and friendship.

 

Other martial artists and system founders have recognized Professor Lansdale’s abilities and innovations. To validate this, Professor Lansdale was inducted into the INTERNATIONAL MARTIAL ARTS HALL OF FAME. You cannot vote yourself into this or be nominated by students. It is an honor given only by THE WORLD HEAD OF FAMILY SOKESHIP COUNCIL. This is a group of the world’s greatest martial artists, who invite membership to only a select few martial artists. Along with Professor Lansdale, the SHEN CHUAN system was also recognized as an international system, and it continues to grow and evolve.

 

In October 2008 Professor Lansdale named Coy Harry as his successor to take over, the system, Shen Chuan Martial Science. Coy Harry was promoted to Grand Master and Professor Lansdale assumed the title of Senior Grand Master. Within the naming of Coy Harry as Professor Lansdale’s successor, Billy Jack Worsham was promoted to Master. All three are referred to as Professor.

 

Today, the system, Shen Chuan Martial Science, is run by Coy Harry and Billy Jack Worsham, students of Professor Lansdale since its inception.

 

Shen Chuan Martial Science, when denoted this way as the entire system, encompasses all disciplines of Shen Chuan. This includes Shen Chuan… the hub and foundation of all concepts and principles we teach. Shen Chuan StreetBoxing… the youth division for ages 7 thru Teenage years. As well as Shen Chuan StickBoxing… our weapons division based on stick and knife arts.

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Professor Eugene Frizzell

 

Professor Frizzell began his training by studying what was initially an Aikido based system, and which after several evolutions became Matsukaze Budo. Professor Joe Lansdale, initially a student, became a driving force in this system. Professor Lansdale then took his concepts and principles, many which he fine-tuned in Matsukaze Budo, and formed Shen Chuan, Martial Science. Professor Frizzell has been with Professor Lansdale since, even before the forming of Shen Chuan, Martial Science. Professor Frizzell remains Professor Lansdale’s senior student and is the head of Shen Chuan StickBoxing,

 

Professor Lansdale has always encouraged all his students to investigate other systems and to become martial arts historians. Professor Frizzell, along with Professor Lansdale and Professor Coy Harry, have trained in numerous systems including Filipino Arnis, Combat Hapkido, Aiki-Jitsu, Daito Ryu Jujutsu. U.S.A., and Combat Knife. He has studied with Guro Hock Hochheim, Master Bram Frank, Grandmaster John Pelligrini, Professor John Denora, and has attended seminars with Professor Remy Presas, Professor Wally Jay, Professor George Kirby, and Master Rick Moneymaker.

 

Professor Frizzell is a 7th Dan in Shen Chuan, a 4th Dan in Shen Chuan Aikibujitsu, a 7th Dan in Shen Chuan Stickboxing, a 2nd Dan in Combat Hapkido, 1st Dan in Matsukaze Budo, a 1st Dan in Maverick Kenpo, and a 1st Dan in Daito Ryu Jujutsu, U.S.A. He has instructorships in Shen Chuan, Combat Hapkido, and Filipino Arnis.

 

In 1997 Professor Frizzell was recognized by the World Head of Family Sokeship, International Hall of Fame, as an Outstanding Instructor and Inducted as a Master Instructor in 1998.

 

Professor Frizzell retired from instruction in 2012.

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