Seminar Reviews

Once again, Kevin Secours organized a fantastic seminar that featured two Systema greats; Vlad and Matin Wheeler. Both days were absolutely fantastic and the quality of the experience was not only in the instruction and the facilities, but especially in the participants, some of whom came from various other styles and kept a terrifically open mind and trained with great honesty and intensity.Vlad's strike work on the ground re-enforced the concept of continuity of motion and striking while transitioning to the ground. Martin's pearls of wisom were also matched by his graceful demonstrations of rolling and gun/knife disarms. The only thing lacking at this two day event was MORE TIME! My heartfelt thanks Vlad, Martin, Kevin and his awesome students for making this a most awesome and growing experience!

Somehow reviews of the Systema seminars & associated events may look suspiciously similar sharing expression of excitement, satisfaction & gratification. Such a unified view might strike as screened, orchestrated, self-promoting… It’s not! Second Systema summer camp in Canada was everything I’ve expected & more. The experience of carefully guided & masterfully assisted process of self-exploration that camp participants were fortunate to acquire was very personal & requires serious individual review prior to be shared. Although being back to the usual rhythm & routine I still have a hard time to detach from the passed two weeks of meeting old & making new friends; having my own & their bodies colored with knuckle/foot/knife/whip/shovel/stick/fork/etc. marks; accumulating dirt, sand, grass, wood, insects anywhere within clothing, footwear & body cavities; reverberating cabin’s plywood walls to assure roommates good sleep & their sincere appreciation; etc., etc. Once again an incredible amount of instructional, educational & sensory information was flowing into the conscience while body was fighting, falling, rolling, crawling, swimming & butt naked floating… Picture this: screaming silence of early morning, lukewarm water of the foggy forest lake with a mirror still surface, everything is left far behind ashore & pack of Canadian geese is flying by four feet above the water from & back into the fog… What would your inner voice tell ya?! Although hard to imagine, I can assume there were self-contained players who did not like something at the camp, but without a doubt among + 150 camp participants there was a soul that was not touched by what was happening there. Probably not all experiences of the training can qualify as pleasant – face punch, ribs kick, kidney stab, whip across the back – those unfamiliar with the Systema training details may jump into unnecessary conclusions. Not to worry - despite intense reality training local ambulance was not aware of our existence. Considering what was include into the camp program it is the accomplishment by itself & which must be credited to the camp instructors – Vladimir & Konstantin. Between two of them everyone had a chance to take on as much unique information as one could handle & I can assure you – we didn’t even begin scratching the surface. No expressed or implied questions were left unanswered, nothing was held back & reserved from the students. It was more challenging for the audience to formulate the question than for Vladimir & Konstantin to come up with a perfect answer. It is unfortunate that next summer camp is at least two years away, but learning from the best is still available & next summer we may have an opportunity to find three masters under one roof at the Masters Summit near Niagara Falls. Can’t wait. See you all there. Sergey Makarenko Norcal Systema

I would like to once again thank Mikhail Ryabko, Vladimir Vasiliez and Konstantine Komarov for all of there effort, patience and kindness is organizing and teaching this year’s Summit of Master’s seminar. I would also like to thank Daniel Ryabko for leading several classes and reminding us to have fun after training for the day had ended. As one of roughly 180 participants from around the world, not only did I have free access to Mikhail, Vladimir and Konstantine but was also able to train with senior instructors as well as fellow students who brought a wealth of Systema and other martial arts experience to the practice. In addition, the seminar was extremely well organized and Mikhail, Vladimir and Konstantine worked very hard, all of which permitted us to cover a wide range of topics in depth. I learned and enormous amount during the week and have made several good friends (from Scotland to Australia) as well. All in all, probably one of the best things that I have done in a long time.

I would like to thank Vladimir Vasiliev and Family Mikhal Ryabko and Family and Konstantin Komarov. This was truly a unique oppertunity to train with the masters also the level of instructors was fantastic. i was also fortunate to help new students to systema for the first time and helped to make there time more enjoyable as there comments where total satisfaction, and happy they came along. even though they where nervous for the first time. it was as rewarding to help them to find instructors in there area so they can continue with there ongoing traing. The Masters are friendly and warm to everone which is very infectious as the students help and support every body it is one big happy family. Keep up the good work and God Bless From Scotland to every one.

I do not think I can find the words to describe this event, hence I will be brief. The Summit was an experience I will remember the rest of my life. The location was beautiful (even if it lacked A/C), the group energizing and the instructors superb. The amount of information that was shared openly is mind numbing and will take many months of training to even begin to grasp. Thanks to all of those involved in making this such a wonderful event. Take care, Mark J.

The Summit of Masters was my first big Systema event and it exceeded all my expectations. We have a small group of people training here in Slovakia, but that is totally uncomparable to the training I received at Ridley`s. Vladimir was the most pleasant host and Mikhail and Konstantin both delivered on amazaing training, stories, tips and more. I especially enjoyed Konstantin`s sensitivity work - being blindfolded for an entire training in the evening was the highlight of Summit for me! I made a lot of new friends, met a lot of guys I knew from videos and DVDs and simply had a wonderful time. The training was hard, of course, but the atmosphere was excellent. I felt like being a part of big family and there`s no better feeling than that. Thank you Vladimir, Konstantin and Mikhail - I hope I`ll see you guys soon at the next event!

This was my first Summit exposure & I was floored by the 3 Master's level of expertise, openness & modesty. Mikhail's martial skills are undeniable and more surprisingly is his love towards others as revealed in his healing touch. Daniel is a priceless spirit who can warm any room w/ his infectious smile or his infamous 20 ct push-ups.. learn to count Daniel #19 doesn't follow 19 3X before reaching 20 :( Vlad & Konstantin counter-balance the physical & psychological work perfectly. Konstantin is a consummate professional who can go on for days if Alex K. doesn't cut his mic off. Never have I seen a teacher give so much of himself w/ total abandon.. it was an honor to finally meet you Konstantin! Thanks Vlad & Valerie for sharing these pearls w/ us in making this Summit happen. A special thanks to all those who donated their bodies to martial science (Mikhail & Vlad) so that we may better learn from live specimens. Systema's effectiveness is evidenced by the kind of people it produces, encourages & unites... that it is a highly effective martial art is icing on the cake!

The seminar was an excellent event! It was a pleasure and fortune to train under the masters’ supervision and share the experience with the students from all over the world. Many thanks to the masters, organizers and students!

Inspiring. The lessons learned from one week with Mikhail, Vladimir, Konstantine and Daniel will stay with me for a long time after the bruises fade. A great time.

The Summit of Masters was a really great experience. The skill, intensity, and gentleness of Mikhail,Vladimir and Konsatntin were a true inspiration. Also, the feeling of camaraderie and mutual respect among all participants was very helpful to surviving the physical and psychological demands of training 8+ hours per day. On the second day I wondered how I would survive a week and at the end of the week I wished for another week! The teaching of not feeling sorry for oneself and doing no harm together offer endless opportunity for reflection. The lessons of this experience will unfold for a long time. Bolshoi Spasibo!