I have been fortunate to have had opportunity to seriously study
several Asian martial arts in past years, but none approach the
simplicity and efficacy of Fiore. There is no setup, no positioning,
and no preparation for these techniques. Standing in upright, natural
postures, you react instantly to a threat, and often the one movement
is both defense and offense and leaves your opponent on the ground,
or broken, or both. I cannot remember any that required more than two
movements to achieve dominance over your attacker. Disarms are a key
element of the style, and they are beautifully and simply
accomplished, at times being merely a byproduct of another
devastating technique.

Bob is not only a gifted martial artist but a gifted teacher as
well, with a keen sense of his students' progress. Knowing that some
in our company also belong to the Society for Creative Anachronism,
he was kind enough to point out those techniques that would work
(with restraint) within that rule set. Don't let that comment
deceive, the art he teaches is devastating and certainly not in any
sense a sport. I also noticed that Bob avoided all opportunities to
criticize other styles or approaches; he simply showed us the better
way without further comment.

You've eloquently described Bob's class, and I agree with your assessment of Fiore wholeheartedly.

It's such an elegant and economical use of energy, geared for survival.