Timing the Attack
The right time to attack is when your opponent is not able to use distance to his advantage and is therefore forced to parry your attack, or when your opponent makes the initial movement of his front foot in the step forward and it is impossible for him to suddenly change his mind.
There are two basic moments for attack:
- When your own will decides the time to attack.
- When it depends upon the opponent’s movements or the failure of his actions
By preliminary probing we can ascertain the opponent’s reactions – whether or not he uses distance, parries hard, tries to crash, etc., and then decide, without a moment’s hesitation, the best type of attack to accomplish the job. Once we have this information and are ready to attack, the following factors will increase the chances for success:
- Estimate the correct distance so your attack lands precisely on target and not too short or too far.
- Time your attack properly to catch the opponent in a moment of unpreparedness and regulate the speed of the attack to the speed of the opponent. In this way your attack will be "on time" and neither too fast nor too slow.
- Maintain a loose "pliable" awareness – constantly watching the opponent and being alert to the opponent’s attempts to stop hit, counterattack, etc.
- Try to keep the proper degree of relaxation in the muscles to be used so you can explode with your attack. If you’re too tense you will move slower – so try to stay loose.
In order to reduce the risk of the opponent stop-hitting or countering you in the mist of your attack you should:
- Maintain a well-covered position in attack.
- Fire the weapon straight from the neutral ready position (bi-jong) without telegraphing your intentions by winding up, pulling back, etc. In other words, kick or strike without preparation.
- Recover immediately to either:
- Continue the attack.
- Defend if necessary.
Excerpted from The Jeet Kune Do Textbook by Chris Kent and Tim Tackett
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Designed by Ovidiu Semenea
