About NW KALI
NW Kali was founded by Sifu/Guro Christopher Clarke who has offered martial arts instruction of Kali, Jun Fan Gung Fu, and Thai Boxing in Oregon and Washington for nearly forty years.
Sifu / Guro Clarke, an instructor in the Inosanto method of FMA / JKD since 1987 opened the first Kali / JKD school in Portland, OR under the Inosanto lineage, and the first commercial Muay Thai school in Portland as well.
Clarke has extensive teaching experience and expertise working with law enforcement professionals and security entities throughout Oregon, Washington and California.
For decades he has assisted in teaching all levels of law enforcement, from recruits to seasoned officers, including agency instructors and tactical personnel.
One of the highest obligations for Clarke and NW Kali is to transmit and convey the true martial art traditions, philosophies and cultures of the Inosanto lineage. That transmission is what is offered here -the actual curriculum, taught by an instructor who has studied it for decades.
Instruction is available privately — one student at a time, or in small groups by arrangement. The curriculum can be approached through the Praxis track (functional self-defense, armed and unarmed) or the Legacy track (full curriculum, rank, and instructor certification).
Arts, Lineage, Masters
Primary Curriculum and Honoring Our Lineage
Kali - Eskrima - Arnis
The Filipino Martial Arts
Kali is uniquely suited for self-defense, as it was bred as a fighting art centered on weapons. Our Filipino martial arts program at NW Kali is garnered from over 40 years of training in the Inosanto Blend method. With more than 30 different instructors and over 65 years of experience, Inosanto has accumulated an almost unimaginable depth of knowledge in the styles and techniques of Kali, Eskrima, and Arnis. Our Kali method features multiple areas of study, including the staff, spear, swords, sticks, knives, and flexible weapons, as well as an extensive empty-hand system further organized into boxing, elbow and knee strikes, joint locks, throws, and grappling and submissions known as Dumog. Learn fundamental and advanced skills in both the offensive and defensive use of bladed weapons (knife, machete) and impact weapons (stick, cane, flashlight, racket, rock, etc.). Our Filipino martial arts training curriculum of Kali, Eskrima, and Arnis will help you quickly gain effective skills through a safe and practical progression.
Muay Thai
Thai Boxing
Muay Thai, known as "the Art of Eight Limbs," is a striking art that utilizes fists, elbows, knees, and shins as weapons, making it one of the most comprehensive stand-up combat systems in the world. Training is demanding and rooted in both physical conditioning and technical refinement. Pad work forms the backbone of most sessions — fighters sharpen combinations, timing, and power by working with a partner holding Thai pads, as well as focus mitts. Clinch work — not allowed in boxing or kickboxing — and Lin Chen, a deliberate light-style timing sparring allowing fighters to train without injury and thereby able to compete frequently. Beyond the physical, traditional Muay Thai training emphasizes discipline, respect for training partners and instructors, and a patient step-by-step approach to skill development — values central to Ajarn Sirisute's teaching philosophy and the culture he has worked to preserve and share across the world. Ajarn Sirisute began teaching Muay Thai in the United States in 1968 and is widely recognized as the father of Thai Boxing in America. He became known for deliberately incorporating elements of Western boxing into his Muay Thai curriculum, blending hand combinations, footwork, and defensive boxing principles with traditional Muay Thai's devastating kicks, knees, and elbows — creating a more complete and adaptable system suited to Western fighters and competition formats. In 1982, Ajarn Sirisute led the first American team to compete at the Muay Thai World Championships in Thailand, a historic milestone. Legendary martial artist Dan Inosanto began training with Ajarn Sirisute and later introduced him to the Kali/JKD community, dramatically expanding Muay Thai's reach. Through Inosanto, Ajarn Sirisute was connected to Dallas Cowboys head coach Tom Landry in 1983, and Muay Thai conditioning became part of the Cowboys' pre-season program through 1990. His Thai Boxing Association, now the World Thai Boxing Association (WTBA), has since grown to over 70 US branches and representation in 15 countries. Here in the Pacific Northwest, that legacy took root early. NW Kali has been promoting and sharing Muay Thai under the TBA in the Northwest since 1988 and opened the first formal TBA Muay Thai gym in Portland, Oregon in 1992.
Jun Fan Gung Fu
Jeet Kune Do
The Art and Philosophy of Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee and Dan Inosanto coined Jeet Kune Do (JKD) in 1967 — a philosophy of cross-training and personal expression in martial arts that remains widely misunderstood, partly because Lee's approach never stopped evolving. Its foundation, Jun Fan Gung Fu, blends modified Wing Chun with kickboxing, throws, locks, and takedowns. At least 30 years ahead of its time, it's the forerunner to modern Mixed Martial Arts, but designed for real self-defense — no rules, no weight classes, no time limits. Eight of Black Belt magazine's top-ten fighting styles trace back directly or indirectly to Lee and Inosanto. The core values: economy, simplicity, and effectiveness. Born in San Francisco and an American citizen, Lee was raised in Hong Kong, where he trained Wing Chun under Ip Man, competed in boxing, and trained in fencing with his brother. After relocating to Seattle, he opened the Jun Fan Gung Fu Institute, later expanding to Los Angeles with Inosanto as head instructor. In an era when cross-training was frowned upon, Lee broke every convention — teaching non-Chinese students, training across multiple styles, and openly dismissing rigid traditional methods as "the classical mess." His vocal admiration for boxers and wrestlers further alienated him from the mainstream martial arts community. Those controversial attitudes ultimately became the philosophical and technical backbone of JKD.
Silat
Maphilindo Martial Arts
Maphilindo Silat draws from multiple Southeast Asian silat traditions — primarily from Malaysia, the Philippines, and Indonesia (hence "Maphilindo"). Inosanto studied under numerous masters from these regions, including Master John Lacoste (Pangamut, Kali-Silat), Pendekar Paul DeThouars (Pentjak Silat Serak/Bukti Negara), and Pendekar Herman Suwanda (Pentjak Silat Mande Muda), weaving their teachings into a cohesive curriculum. Silat is primarily a close-quarter style known for fluid stances, intricate footwork patterns with both standing and ground mobility, and the use of angles to evade and counter simultaneously. It is rich in trapping hands, off-balancing, sweeps, takedowns, and destructions (preemptive striking to limbs), and integrates both empty-hand and weapons work, including the knife and flexible weapons such as the sarong, cord, and scarf. Empty-hand techniques make extensive use of knees, elbows, and most every hard and sharp body surface — including environmental structures — for impact on an opponent.
Training Tailored To You
Personalized training specific to your needs and interests
• Legacy Track: Kali, JKD, Silat, and Muay Thai
• Structured progression and skill refinement
• Praxis Track: Focus on functional Self Defense Skills
• Private instruction or seminar-based learning
Limited availability Serious Inquiries Only please.