Sifu Larry Hartsell - RIP

[BigAsTheSky]

August 15, 1942 - August 20, 2007

I have been training in Jeet Kune Do for many years. I have had the opportunity and privilege to train with some of the best fighters and teachers in the world. Among those I've trained with some of my highest respect and admiration has been for Larry Hartsell.

My primary instructor, Sifu/Guro Raymond Crow, and Sifu Hartsell were great friends going back nearly 25 years. Sifu Crow introduced me to Sifu Hartsell several years ago at a seminar and I was immediately struck by his presence and persona. Sifu Hartsell was one of those guys who, you could tell by just looking at him, had walked the walk a lot more than he had talked the talk. At 6' 2" his presence could be imposing; his rough, weathered look was intimidating. However, when he spoke he did so softly and calmly, his instructions were never harsh rather they were like a firm hand on your back always pushing you just a little bit farther than you though you could go.

Over the past several years I was fortunate enough to train, dine, laugh and joke with Sifu Hartsell on many occasions. He had a great sense of humor and would always regale us with stories of training with Bruce Lee in back yard, bodyguarding guys like Mr. T or kicking the hell out of drunk rednecks during his bouncer days in North Carolina. These are memories I will carry with me always.

Larry, you will be greatly missed.

Here is a brief bio of Sifu Hartsell (taken from Guro Dan Inosanto's website)...

Larry Hartsell is considered to be among the premier Jeet Kune Do fighters in the world. Larry began his martial arts training by studying Judo in North Carolina from 1957 - 1960. He then moved to California, and for the next four decades, studied exclusively with his mentor and personal friend, Guro Dan Inosanto.

During the 1960's, Guro Dan Inosanto introduced Hartsell to the famed Edmond Parker, Sr., and began his studies in Kenpo Karate. Shortly after receiving his black belt in Kenpo, he went into the army and served in Vietnam from 1966 - 1967. After his discharge, Hartsell returned to California, at which time, Guro Dan Inosanto introduced him to Si Gung Bruce Lee. Hartsell is an original student and member of the Los Angeles Chinatown Group founded by Si Gung Bruce Lee, for which Guro Dan Inosanto was the head instructor. Hartsell was also accepted as a private student of Bruce Lee's, and trained privately at his home in Bel Air, California.

Larry Hartsell's background and knowledge is not merely speculative. Over the past 40 years, he served in the following capacities: as military policeman in the jungles of Vietnam; on glamorous movie sets as a bodyguard to celebrities; "bouncing" in redneck bars in his native North Carolina, and in the august halls of justice. Hartsell states, "The experiences I've had in dealing with resisting criminals, crazies or drunks have only reinforced in me a gratitude for my instructors, initially Bruce Lee and Dan Inosanto, who encouraged me to specialize in grappling techniques."

As a long time practitioner of the martial arts - most notably Jeet Kune Do - Hartsell was one of the first in the United States to embrace and train in Shoot Wrestling when it was introduced at the Inosanto Academy. Hartsell has always been open-minded and eager to learn. Guro Dan states, "Larry has often joined me in training and researching systems, such as Indonesian Pencak Silat, Thai Boxing, and the Filipino Martial Arts. Over the years, Larry modified his fighting structure and geared his training more toward the arts of grappling and submission. Combining his knowledge in the arts of grappling and submission with his skill in the trapping and striking arts, Larry has taken his art to a new dimension.

Guro Dan states, "Larry is one of the few martial artists who has always been open-minded and known the benefits of cross-training. Knowing the importance roll-conditioning and physical fitness play in the complex game of survival in the martial arts, Larry incorporates the proven methods of the past alongside the cutting edge techniques of the future."

Larry Hartsell is the Founder/Chief Instructor of the Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do Grappling Association (Invalid Link Removed) and conducts seminars world wide. When not on the road travelling, he accepts a handful of private students, and is a full Senior Instructor at the Inosanto Academy of Martial Arts.

Here are some pictures I snapped while he an Randy White (who BTW is an insturctor under Sifu Hartsell... now that's scarry) messed around with knifes...
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[size]

A big loss.