Is this a Mcdojo?

**Larus marinus** · Posted On: 2/17/2010 9:38am

Originally Posted by Monkfg

That's good marketing. Makes me want to become a BB asap. If a kid reads that it will find a way to make his parents pay. Mc Dojo, very much.

Edit: http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/...efault.htm#223

Just FYI (I looked on there myself yesterday),

http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/records/default.htm

"Please note that the featured records on these pages are only a tiny percentage of the records on the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ records database."

**PDA** · Posted On: 2/19/2010 7:47am

http://www.bullshido.net/forums/site...28293-p-3.html

I found this when i googled him.

If he is giving children black belts without proper training then its really dangerous for those children for obvious reasons.
If he is also lying to get them to come to his gym then its insult to injury.
Certainly worth some digging.

Ive written to the guiness world records:

Hi
A man called Tony Higo is claiming the following:
"In 1988 Tony broke the Guinness Book of Records fastest high kick record at 10, 25 and 60 seconds he broke them again twice more setting two still unbroken records the fastest of which still stands at 94 kicks in 10 seconds."
On his website: http://www.nat-mac.co.uk/www.nat-mac.co.uk/info.php?p=7
Would it be possible for you to varify these claims please?
many thanks

**Larus marinus** · Posted On: 2/19/2010 8:54am

Originally Posted by Mr P

http://www.bullshido.net/forums/site...28293-p-3.html

I found this when i googled him.

If he is giving children black belts without proper training then its really dangerous for those children for obvious reasons.
If he is also lying to get them to come to his gym then its insult to injury.
Certainly worth some digging.

Ive written to the guiness world records:

Hi
A man called Tony Higo is claiming the following:
"In 1988 Tony broke the Guinness Book of Records fastest high kick record at 10, 25 and 60 seconds he broke them again twice more setting two still unbroken records the fastest of which still stands at 94 kicks in 10 seconds."
On his website: http://www.nat-mac.co.uk/www.nat-mac.co.uk/info.php?p=7
Would it be possible for you to varify these claims please?
many thanks

Cool. I couldn't find a relevant email address for them (only the one that said 'any queries about records will be ignored'). I was going to go down my local library the next time I was in town to see if I could get ahold of the 1988 and '89 Guinness Book of Records.

Found the full promo vid (longer version of the vid I posted previously) for the school:
YouTube- The National Martial Arts College

Emphasis on fitness and personal development over fighting by the looks of things. Also, kid who looks about 14 with a blackbelt and apparently teaching.

Also - groundfighting in AEGIS:
YouTube- Essentials of Ground Fighting Part 1

I don't grapple, so I don't know if what he's saying is any good. I'll leave it to the jits guys to comment.

**PDA** · Posted On: 2/19/2010 9:38am

I just spoke directly to the records team at Guiness World Records H/O.
They searched back as far as 1983 . No records for Tony Higo, No records relating to High Kicks at all.
(couldnt wait for an email response :) )

**Larus marinus** · Posted On: 2/19/2010 9:53am

Originally Posted by Mr P

I just spoke directly to the records team at Guiness World Records H/O.
They searched back as far as 1983 . No records for Tony Higo, No records relating to High Kicks at all.
(couldnt wait for an email response :) )

Did you take down the name of the person you spoke to, just for the record (no pun intended) here? Might be a good idea to get it in writing (or email) too to remove any room for doubt before Mr Higo is contacted WRT to this...

Still. Looks as though someone's been caught with his hand in the cookie jar... :disgust:

**PDA** · Posted On: 2/19/2010 9:56am

Yes, and its recorded as it was made from my office and all the calls in our company are recorded.

**Larus marinus** · Posted On: 2/19/2010 10:20am

Originally Posted by Mr P

Yes, and its recorded as it was made from my office and all the calls in our company are recorded.

Clever. Very clever, sir.

**so_hat_yi** · Posted On: 2/22/2010 4:33am

Funny, I was attending a seminar being held by Terry Wingrove this weekend and got talking to an instructor who's a friend of mine and has been on the Leeds scene for a long time (I won't reveal who he is). He told me the following story. DISCLAIMER: This is what he told me, I don't know if it is 100% true, I'm just repeating what he said as close to verbatim as possible.

Tony appeared on the scene a few decades ago, he was a security guard at this point and a raw beginner. He turned up to my friend's classes for a few weeks and generally went around the Leeds MA community for a very short period. Then he went off to America and "learnt how to con people" (his words, basically learnt the ways of the McDojo). My friend went on to comment about the learning things from video tapes and presenting them as stuff he really new. A number of dojos in the area pick up the people who leave his place when they realise that they're not getting quite what they expected.

This new revelation of his worlds records being fake shows him in an extremely poor light. I'm shocked.

**Larus marinus** · Posted On: 2/22/2010 6:46am

Originally Posted by so_hat_yi

Funny, I was attending a seminar being held by Terry Wingrove this weekend and got talking to an instructor who's a friend of mine and has been on the Leeds scene for a long time (I won't reveal who he is). He told me the following story. DISCLAIMER: This is what he told me, I don't know if it is 100% true, I'm just repeating what he said as close to verbatim as possible.

Tony appeared on the scene a few decades ago, he was a security guard at this point and a raw beginner. He turned up to my friend's classes for a few weeks and generally went around the Leeds MA community for a very short period. Then he went off to America and "learnt how to con people" (his words, basically learnt the ways of the McDojo). My friend went on to comment about the learning things from video tapes and presenting them as stuff he really new. A number of dojos in the area pick up the people who leave his place when they realise that they're not getting quite what they expected.

This new revelation of his worlds records being fake shows him in an extremely poor light. I'm shocked.

Thanks for that, SHY. Would your friend be willing to sign up here to talk to us and share what he knows?

You've encountered Mr. Higo before in a martial arts setting (was it just the one sample lesson, or is there more to it?), right? Did you happen to take note of which arts he claims to be personally ranked in?

**so_hat_yi** · Posted On: 2/22/2010 7:35am

No, I've not had much personal exposure to Mr. Higo so I can't comment on how skilful he is, just the sample lesson which was about 10 minutes long, held in an office and just had me hit a pad a couple of times, which did not impress me. All I know about him I gathered from a visit to his new dojo (since closed), his website (which did at one point list the styles he teaches) and the various people in the Leeds MA community who end up with his ex students. For all I know he could be a fantastic kickboxer and martial artist in general, however the general impression in the area is not a favourable one.

I will ask Instructor X to join up but I don't think he spends much time online. I will try for you though.