GrahamB over at wusource.org dug up some excellent thoughts on sparring from Tim Cartmell and, not content to just jibba jabba on the internet, put his training to the test, then reviewed the video to see what was working.

This is what we should all be doing, people.  It’s not enough to just go to class, practice your forms, and call it a day.  If you aren’t testing your training to see if you’re picking up what Sifu is laying down, you can’t be sure that you’ve learned anything at all.

If you can’t apply your stuff against a resisting opponent, it’s not a martial art anymore.  You can bet that the men and women who created your forms weren’t just hoping those techniques and principles would work.  They were out in the streets, experimenting.

Do your homework.