Origins of Musado Hapkido
The technical form of the Musado (The Way of the Warrior) Urban defensive fighting system began to take shape in 1969 but its fighting and street survival concepts go back further, to about 1962 under the tutelage of the founder's father - a fierce street fighter in his time.
As a boy, Dojunim Mike Fournier was small for his age and was often bullied by kids from other neighbourhoods and other school children. At about nine years old his father began to teach him street-fighting skills and instilled in him his Anishnàbe Warrior Spirit. This Warrior Spirit followed him into his high school wrestling career (1969-71) where he went undefeated. It was during this time that he developed his ability to deliver techniques in a more aggressive and punishing manner. He became both a respected and feared opponent.
He joined the military in 1972 and his first tour of duty was in Halifax, Nova Scotia, known to be a rough and tumble town. Over the next year and a half the Founder was involved in numerous tussles. Although he received his share of scrapes and bruises, the lessons his father taught him never failed him.
In 1973, Dojunim Mike enrolled in a local Uechi Ryu Karate club where he studied under the respected and internationally acclaimed Sensei Jim Maloney (now a 9th Dan). Sensei Maloney is a Mi'kmaq Native who was featured in Black Belt Magazine (c. Feb 1977) and touted to be the "Great Red Hope." Sensei Maloney was, and still is, a fearsome warrior who demonstrated great tenacity and tolerance toward others. The Founder studied under Sensei Jim Maloney until he left Halifax in 1980. Sensei Maloney was a major influence on Dojunim Fournier and contributed the most, of all his teachers and masters, in his formation as a martial artist, a warrior, and a teacher.
Service with the former Canadian Special Service Force in Petawawa, Ontario, located in his Native Algonquin homeland, also had an influence in the close quarters philosophies inherent in the Musado Hapkido and Urban Defensive Fighting System. There was a great deal of training with the Special Force commandos in the nasty business of hand to hand combat. The Musado Hapkido and Urban Defensive Fighting System was further influenced through certification training as a Combat Survival Instructor at the British SAS Army Base in Hereford, England. Training with the illustrious SAS gave the Founder new insights in survival concepts he then taught the Canadian Army's specialized troops such as snipers and advanced reconnaissance troops.
Dojunim returned to Halifax in 1993 and began studying Combat Hapkido, under head instructor Eric Rushton, and soon became a Black Belt and a certified instructor (the second ever in Canada) in the Chon-Tu Kwan Hapkido system. Over the years Dojunim Fournier, like most dedicated instructors, trained with world class masters from other martial arts to expand his own martial arts knowledge. He went on to achieve his 3rd Dan in Chon-Tu Kwan Hapkido and later, under the instruction of GM John Pelligrini, certified as a Police Defensive Tactics instructor with the International Police Defensive Tactics Institute.
The Musado Hapkido Urban Defensive Fighting System's philosophies and concepts further evolved as a result of the extensive, and in-depth instruction delivered to policing and correctional worker students between 2002 and 2006. During this time period Dojunim Mike Fournier wrote and formalized the Success College Correctional and Policing Foundation Program's close quarter defensive tactics training curriculum. The program was dynamic and evolved with each new class intake to meet ever-changing Officer Safety concerns on the streets. Without argument this program was the best law enforcement CQDT Program on Canada's East Coast and attracted many students to the college. In 2005, Dojunim Mike Fournier was inducted into the World Head of Family Sokeship Council International Martial Arts Hall of Fame, a result of his efforts to develop an effective Police Defensive Tactics Program at the college and doing his part in introducing Hapkido in Nova Scotia.
Dojunim Mike Fournier was later awarded his 4th Dan by the World Martial Artists Association and recognized as the Soke of Musado Hapkido after thoroughly studying the system's curriculum.