Meet Kaifei Song of Soaring Eagle Kung fu in Palatine

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kaifei Song.

Kaifei, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
A kung fu master’s journey starts at a young age in China. In China, many start the journey and almost just as many choose other paths along the way. One needs mental and physical stamina. Like many, I attended a kung fu boarding school in China, beginning at age 5. There really isn’t anything to compare it to in the U.S. We trained every day, starting very early in the morning. In the afternoons, I learned reading, writing, math, history, and culture. After our academics, there was more kung fu training into the late afternoon and evening. I was lucky. Many children in kung fu school cannot sustain their academics together with the training. My class work was good so I was able to continue on in regular middle school while attending the Tai’Er’ Zhuang Professional Martial Arts School by the time I was 11 years old.

Traditional kung fu training builds strength, flexibility, and stamina, needed to master the many fist and weapon forms with precision and speed. Modernized kung fu, separately known as wushu, requires additional practice and ability to execute complex jumps with gymnastic-like skills. In addition to honing physical abilities, there are many martial arts forms and skills to know. Besides the myriad of bare fist forms, there are weapon forms, categorized as long (such as staff, spear, or pudao), short (such as straight sword or broadsword), flexible (such as chain), other (such as double hammer). A kung fu master must master all the forms in order to pass the complete kung fu tradition to succeeding generations.

The training to be a kung fu master starts as a child. The training is tough and long, so many do not complete it. Again, I was lucky and I worked hard. I competed successfully at many local, city and regional competitions. I was asked to represent the school in competitions and in kung fu performances.

These opportunities, early successes, as well as a solid academic background, gave me the credentials to be admitted to the Chung Du Sports University, one of the 4 prestigious, tier 1 sports universities in China. Admittance is competitive. Together, these 4 universities only graduate approximately 2000 students every year and these graduates are in strong demand for top kung fu positions in China.

I continued to compete in college at the regional and national level. In my first year, in a campus wide competition, I took 1st place for tai chi and 1st place for tai chi sword. In the years to follow, I also took 1st place for sword, wushu sword, tai chi sword, spear, traditional martial arts, in various national competitions held in Tianjin, Henan Province, Fujian Province and took 1st place in a Chinese national San Da Chinese kickboxing competition in Hebei Province. I received my Chinese National 1st Degree Certification as a Martial Arts Athlete, Martial Arts Coach and Martial Arts Judge. Receiving all three of certifications together was unusual during that time. As a result of my successes, I was filmed in documentaries. I was grateful for all my opportunities.

My success in college and in competitions opened doors. I was hired as the head coach for Indonesia’s National Wushu Team. Two years later, I was asked by Yantai City to be their head coach of their Kung fu Team. Yantai City has a population of 6.5 million people (for perspective, its population is over double that of Chicago’s.) They were very proud of their kung fu athletes. My students enjoyed many successes. 26 of them won awards at the national competitions. Many were chosen to join the Chinese national kung fu team. I, myself, was asked to be a judge at the national level championships, which is an honor for any coach.

After some successes at Yantai City, I was asked to judge in a U.S. national kung fu competitions by University of California, Berkeley. I was excited for the opportunity to travel. At the time, the U.S. visa requirements were very strict and I was thrilled when my visa finally came through. During my time in the U.S., I found that kung fu and its authentic traditions were not well known in the U.S. Wanting to share my cultural heritage, I began my dream to teach in the U.S.

I am now a U.S. Citizen. My Kung fu School, Soaring Eagle Kung fu School is enjoying its 7th year. We participate and perform in many community and cultural events. I’ve trained over 500 students and made many lifetime friends. While my journey is far from complete, I look back on the many twists and turns of life and feel blessed by many friendships, teachers, and opportunities.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No journey is without challenges. Kung fu teaches that hard work and tenacity are important. In fact, kung fu translates literally into “Hard Work”. One cannot succeed without it.

Early on, kung fu practitioners truly know the meaning “hard work”. In China, the training is tough, long, and exacting: daily runs, hours of drills, forms, and strength and flexibility training. One certainly accumulates a good amount of aches as muscles become hard and strong. One needs mental toughness to keep going. My love and passion for the skill and the desire to share it with others saw me through the physical challenges at a younger age.

Building a life in a in the U.S., was an adventure and there were many new things to learn. My passion for my art, kung fu tenacity, and together with the support of many friends, helped me overcome the challenges of teaching and building a life in a country where I did not initially speak the language and adapt to the culture. Furthermore, there were not many successful examples of kung fu schools for me to learn from and follow. Trail blazing, I learned how to set up and run a business in the U.S., including all the nuances that come with it, such as the accounting, marketing, incorporation, communications, hiring employees, etc. I also learned to adjust my coaching style to fit the American culture, how to best teach American children and to connect with American parents. It’s been a fulfilling road. Most importantly, I find satisfaction in helping my students achieve their goals and develop their skills to be at their best.

Please tell us about Soaring Eagle Kung fu.
Soaring Eagle Kung fu is unique in the Northwest Suburbs. Our training is authentic to the training one receives in China. We help our students build the strength, flexibility and stamina required for kung fu as well as to improve their health and quality of life. Our Chinese certified kung fu masters, who have focused on Chinese martial arts almost 24 / 7 since an early age, are exceptionally qualified to teach the multi-facets of kung fu, tai chi and self defense.

We offer comprehensive training in the many kung fu bare-hand and weapon forms. After mastering foundational skills, as they are ready, students are introduced to weapons, such as staff, broad sword, straight sword, double sword, fan, halberd, chain, spear, etc., that leverage and further their particular strengths and skills, These many forms once only accessible to those who trained in China are available to American students through our Soaring Eagle Kung fu masters.

We also offer Tai Chi training, with its rich history of family clan traditions, styles, and weapons. Tai Chi is often thought of as slow motion martial arts and one imagines seniors practicing together in the park. It can be so much more. We have tai chi students, from teenagers to seniors, who find physical and meditation benefits in the many aspects of Tai Chi. Tai Chi is a martial art with much depth and practitioners at every level can find a remarkable journey of self-discovery for the mind, body and spirit in this art.

For those seeking self-defense and a high intensity kickboxing workout, our Chinese San Da classes offer opportunities to hone contact skills with our masters who customize the training to the students’ skill levels and goals. The training is comprehensive: one works on developing proper forms, speed, and contact and with that, strength, flexibility and stamina.

Many of our Soaring Eagle Kung fu students have demonstrated their martial skills in performances, won awards in regional and national competitions, and been invited to join the U.S. Wushu team. We also have students, who have gone on to choreograph performances and teach and mentor younger students, while other students have opened kung fu clubs and now teach classmates in college. We’re proud of our Soaring Eagle community, our students’ hard work and the skills they’ve developed with us. We’re proud to share and promote this ancient, culturally unique art called Kung fu!

Our mission is to share and promote Chinese martial arts. If you’re looking for a challenge and to learn a rich variety of martial arts in a friendly and supportive environment, Soaring Eagle Kung fu is for you! Students of all ages and skill levels are welcome!

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
I have a number of favorite childhood memories, which funny enough… many of them involve NOT practicing kung fu. Let me give you some examples.

As a child, most of our training was conducted outside. We practiced in well-trodden dirt grounds. Nothing made us happier than to hear that the weather was bad and we could not train that day. Instead of 10 mile runs and hours of kicks and drills, we got a break and could play games.

Sometimes, at night, after all the lights were out and our masters were sleeping, we would break out of the school to enjoy the night. There was a high wall that surrounded our kung fu school. We were young acrobats. We would quietly work together to jump and catapult each other over the wall. Scampering over the wall, we would enjoy the city and buy food. Before too long, we would ninja our way back into school with our masters none the wiser. Being a little tired for the next day’s practice was more than worth it!

Other favorite memories revolve around the many competitions we would participate in. After working very hard to hone our forms and skills, competing and winning medals and championships, the coaches would give us a celebration dinner and the night off. With the coaches off duty, we were free to do as we liked. How to describe the feeling of happiness and a heart so light? We had a full belly, victory at our backs, a night of freedom, and permissions from our coaches to cut loose, relax and enjoy.

Contact Info:

• Address: Soaring Eagle Kung fu
• Website: http://www.soaringeaglekungfu.com/
• Phone: (847)701-5588
• Email: info@soaringeaglekungfu.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Soaring-Eagle-Kung-Fu-251051105002780/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/search?q=soaring%20eagle%20kung%20fu&src=typd
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/soaring-eagle-kung-fu-school-palatine
• Other: https://www.youtube.com/user/soaringeaglekungfu

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