"... one of the few"

"Sensei Crutchfield is a soft spoken, wise, respectful man with a unique attribute...  He’s “old school.” I was introduced to him through a friend of a friend.  I came to him with zero previous martial art or real fighting experience.  He told me that was good because I had no bad habits to break.  Even though I’ve only been training under him since September 19, 2007, my life has changed 180 degrees for the better.  I asked him to teach me some self defense, and that he has.  I’ve come a long way since day one, but what I didn’t expect was for him to introduce me to something that would forever be mine and would never leave me.  He’s humbled me and helped me find my path while strengthening my spirit, mind and body.  Sensei is an accomplished man with many different kinds of experiences and has achieved more in 3 decades then most men could in many life times over.  He encompasses these into his methods of teaching.  The training goes far beyond strikes and blocks.  It has impacted my life and inspired new hope.  He’s a man of true character and of his word.  I trust him with my life and couldn’t imagine not being able to be one of his loyal students.  One could spend the better part of their life trying to repay the man who taught them the skills he’s taught me, but knowing him, mastering and tailoring them to myself would be all he’d desire.  There are no great men, but some men do great things.  Sensei Crutchfield is one of the few."


Scott Root
Orange Belt
Began training Sep. 2007

"...true martial artist"

Before I met Sensei Octavio Crutchfield I had a belief in my life that everyone disqualified and belittled - I knew a Martial Arts practitioner could reach grand heights of physical, mental, and spiritual prowess, where a man became more than a man, where the practitioner can perform amazing feats way beyond those of your typical boxer.  There was a constant urging inside of me and it would tell me - “this attainment is real.”  I would ask other martial arts practitioners if they believed that a man could reach grander heights of power, such as the stories you hear of men killing bulls, jumping ten feet in the air, or catching arrows in flight with their bare hands, they’re typical answer was - “that’s ONLY in the movies.”

I met Sensei Crutchfield by chance or by fate, you decide which one best fits your belief system. I was on a trip to Orlando, where an old Goju Ryu buddy of mine named Jorge Navarro, who had recently moved away from our dojo, and was then a student of Sensei Crutchfield’s, was going to participate with us from his old dojo - the Lion Karate Dojo, in a karate demonstration for the Florida Black Belt Hall of Fame.  The demonstration was on Saturday, but we left on Friday to be able to enjoy the full weekend in Orlando, as we were driving up in a caravan of three cars, one of the cars broke down, but luckily the car happened to break down less than two miles from Jorge’s home.  I hopped everyone in my car and went to Jorge’s home to wait for the tow truck to pull the car to a secure destination.  Jorge showed us around his new home, which was a very nice house, and then asked me if I wanted to go meet his new Sensei - Sensei Crutchfield, I said “sure, why not,” as we had some time to spend.

We went to Sensei Crutchfield’s dojo, we bowed in and we started to have a basic conversation, he was a nice guy, and he liked the fact we respected his dojo.  After some time, Sensei Crutchfield asked me if wanted to see something “I would enjoy,” I said sure, he asked me to stand about five feet from a chair, barely touched me with his finger tips, and I flew backwards five feet into that chair. I had just been introduced to Fa Jin, a high level of energy/chi control. I was shocked, amazed, appalled, stunned, confused, curious, and most importantly I knew that there was such a thing as that “True Martial Arts” that I always knew in my heart to be real, and I had met that “True Martial Artist”, I had always wanted to know and train with.

For the next few months, almost every Saturday, I would travel two hours to, and two hours back from Sensei Crutchfield’s dojo to train with him. Sensei Crutchfield introduced me to some solid basic concepts that would change my Karate forever.  Unfortunately, Sensei Crutchfield moved to a different state some time later, but since that day Sensei Crutchfield has been my inspiration for Karate.  Since training with Sensei Crutchfield, I have sought great tutelage; I have trained with Sensei Higaonna, president of the IOGKF, and with Shifu Shi Yan Ming, founder of the USA Shaolin temple, and can make this statement with the utmost of confidence - that Sensei Crutchfield can easily find his way to the status of these great practitioners.  If I were to amass one tenth of Sensei Crutchfield’s skill, I would be a great man.


Norlys Rodriguez
Gojo Ryu Shodan
Miami, FL

"...caliber and integrity"

Master Crutchfleld is a man which words cannot possibly describe.  Before embarking in Hawaiian Kenpo, I was a practitioner of USA Goju Ryu.  Master Crutchfield normally goes by Sensei but I feel that a man of such caliber and integrity deserves a title well above that.  Through my years of training with Master Crutchfield, I have learned much more than just drills, kicks, and punches.  I have learned through his teachings and expertise that it is a never ending journey; and that it is about fulfilling oneself completely in his entirety.  His methods and applications may be considered unorthodox by some, yet effective.  It is extremely difficult to put into words the capabilities he has developed through his 26 years of application; for some may see it unreal or difficult to fathom.  I personally have witnessed things which I thought were camera and movie oriented.  Little did I know that with much training and development, these techniques and applications are truly something that could be achieved. With all that said, Master Crutchfield is one of those instructors that are really difficult to come by.  Once you find that type of quality, you know that you will continue to pursue this journey as long as he is willing to guide you through it!


Jorge Luis Navarro, Jr.
Black Belt Florida Representative
Port St. Lucie, FL

"...witnessing it firsthand"

My name is Emerson Moe and I live in Port Saint Lucie, Florida, where I trained under Tavo Crutchfield for a period of about two years.  Studying under Tavo, I have achieved the rank of blue belt in Hawaiian Kenpo.  I call Tavo by the title “Sensei’ because he has earned this title.  He has taken me in as a student, taught and trained me.  He’s invested much time and sweat into me, constantly molding me to be better and to improve as a Kenpo practitioner.  I have gained knowledge and learned lessons that no one can ever take from me, and with this knowledge I have been able to live a more disciplined life.  I have a better understanding of the capabilities of the human mind and body.  There are lessons that have been learned that have transferred over to other areas of my life.

I had received Tavo’s phone number from a one of his students and I called him up.  I was invited down to his home to check out where his students train.  When I met Tavo, he shared some demonstrations with me, including the “attention getter” as he dubbed it.  This is when he lightly strikes one’s thigh with his shin, hitting a nerve causing one’s leg to feel tingly and useless.  He also had me feel his knee, which was about 1.5 times the length of a normal man’s knee would be.  From his knee I felt his shin, which to my horror, felt like a rocky road with potholes.  What came to my mind was the torment and conditioning this man had put his legs through to have his bone feel that way.  I watched as Tavo told his Sempai to come at him with a random attack, in which Sempai did, and got blocked, while, simultaneously, a multitude of strikes came from Tavo, overwhelming Sempai, and Tavo then trapped his arm and began to place him in a wrist lock, then in a shoulder lock, taking Sempai to the ground where the joint locks continued.

By far, the most amazing thing that I experienced being around Tavo was the day I witnessed him use ki energy.  It was during one of our classes when the conversation came about of ki energy and how it may be used. Tavo used me to show the class how my body would react to a push, using just his hands and fingers.  The class saw me step back and as quickly compensate and shift myself in order to retain balance.  Then Tavo told us to “Watch” as he pushed me with his fingers softly and just as I was thinking “it didn’t work” I felt a force push my chest, knocking me backwards.  I was amazed I then watched as he did it to another student, and he flung backwards, his arm and leg hitting the wall behind him. Then another student, who ended up on his back on the floor ... I never thought that such a thing was real or even possible and here I was witnessing it firsthand.

Emerson Moes
Port St. Lucie, FL