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Full Instructor Jun Fan/Jeet Kune Do
Full Instructor Filipino Kali
Full Instructor Muay Thai
Director State of Florida for Thai Boxing Association of the
uSA
Dwight Woods is a martial artist with 30 years of experience. He is a native of Trinidad, West Indies who grew
up on the neighbouring island of Barbados. In 1983, he was the first Caribbean resident to attend a California
Martial Arts Academy seminar where he met and trained under
Dan Inosanto,
Cass Magda,
Francis Fong,
Paul Vunak,
Larry Hartsell and
Tim Tackett.
In 1985, he received his Apprentice Instructor
certificate from Inosanto and UMAA was started. At first, UMAA operated out of
the garage of Dwight's home in Barbados. That "backyard JKD mentality" continued
in 1986 when he relocated to Miami, Florida as UMAA moved through a succession
of parks, basketball courts, living rooms and garages.
In April 1988, the first step was taken to provide
instruction to a wider clientele with the opening of the first "solid" Academy
in the warehouse district of Tamiami Airport. This semi-private/semi-public
tradition continued for 4 years as the word about JKD was spread through the
South Florida area. In 1992, UMAA moved to its first "commercial" location on
busy Kendall Drive in southwest Miami-Dade county.
Today, in its second Kendall Drive incarnation, UMAA provides students from ages 7 and up with 2400 square feet of
state-of-the-art facilities, including heavy bag and wooden dummy stations, a pro shop (under construction) and
separate men's and women's shower and bathroom facilities. There is also UMAA affiliate branches in Barbados, where Sifu Dwight conducts annual seminars.
In 1997, Dwight Woods was awarded the rank of Full Instructor in Jun Fan Gung Fu/Jeet Kune Do and Filipino Martial
arts by Dan Inosanto. His other instructorship rankings are in Muay Thai under
Surachai Sirisute. Dwight has also
trained with and been trained by Salem Assli
(Boxe Française-Savate), Sifu
Francis Fong (Wing Chun Gung Fu),
Rick Faye,
Chris Kent, (the late)
Ted Lucaylucay,
Jean-Jacques Machado,
Cass Magda, Yorinaga Nakamura,
Erik Paulson,
Burton
Richardson, (the late) Edgar Sulite,
Paul Vunak and other luminaries in the martial art world.
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Office Manager
Fitness Kickboxing/Lean & Fit Instructor
Lil' Dragons Instructor
Jr. 2nd Rank student
in Jun Fan/JKD & Filipino Kali
Apprentice
Instructor candidate in Muay Thai
Marivel
has been studying at UMAA since 2000 and has been an instructor for the past 3
years. Her Fitness Kickboxing, Power Cables and Boot Camp classes are legendary
at UMAA. No matter how exhausted students THINK they are, Marivel is always able
to get one more rep of an exercise out of them!
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