sensei8

To the bold type above... I believe that the governing body that Mr. Smith was associated with splintered and/or closed after GM Jones passed away. AND/OR A strong desire to obtain his 8th and 9th Dan. Notice that Mr. Smith got his 8th Dan from one association, and then another different association awarded him his 9th Dan. Why not both from the same association is beyond me, except that there was a falling out or the first new association refused said 9th Dan for whatever reason(s). Mr. Smith totally ignored the staple concerning the minimum tenure, if his original governing body ever had a rule(s) addressing said situation. Mr. Smith, wanted rank, couldn't wait, so he found a way to satisfy his obsession: RANK!! Reasons vary; that's for sure.

There's a reason why the government doesn't regulate MA ranks, or the MA in general. The reason is that MA ranks are subjective to whom interprets said rank, as well as the validity of said styles. Therefore, rank, is proprietary to...WHOM?? The governing body? The CI? The school? The practitioner? The peers of said practitioner? Just WHOM?? Hypothetically speaking, for discussion purposes... Mr. Smith receives his black belt and all subsequent ranks through GM Jones up to 7th Dan; the highest non-honorary, non-political rank given by GM Jones in 1985. Mr. Smith becomes the Executive Vice President the governing body that was founded by GM Jones, and he held that position for the last 10 years GM Jones lived. Throughout this time, Mr. Smith was also instrumental in the development of the original syllabus/curriculum. After GM Jones's passing, other associations were formed, one of which promoted Mr. Smith to 8th Dan in 1991. Then in 1995, several associations joined together to promote him to 9th Dan. Through the skyrocketing promotions of Mr. Smith's 9th Dan, whom claims the proprietary rights to his 8th and 9th Dan? Certainly, GM Jones doesn't because he has passed away. The key word might be in the paragraph right above this one..."FORMED"! Nothing wrong with forming new governing bodies, they spring up quite often, some known about and some not. By the proprietary reasoning's, whom should take accountability? Mr. Smith could've remained a 7th Dan for the rest of his life, and this wouldn't have been such a bad thing. Integrity, I suppose, should've existed here. Others had obviously thought that Mr. Smith deserved said 8th Dan, and then 9th Dan, respectively because, after all, he did receive them from outside sources. Possibly, Mr. Smith can not claim any proprietary rights over his 8th and 9th Dan's because he hadn't earned them from GM Jones. Albeit, the proprietary rights belong to those outside sources because they awarded them to Mr. Smith. Yes, Mr. Smith did wear his 8th Dan, and he now wears his 9th Dan, and because possession is 9/10th the law, I guess he is the owners of his 8th and 9th Dan ranks. I don't know. What do you think??

For us? We actually rented a lodge each time. Stay in Scout huts or recreation centres. They usually have several dormitories, a kitchen and then one or two recreation rooms and a good number of bathroom facilities. Unfortunately no campfire for us either. We have considered doing proper camping but the hassle of having to put up tents swayed us to the dorm type "camping". I really do like the mindset that you had here in organizing the entire camp. Dorms outweigh having to camp outside, and in the USA, it would eliminate getting any permits that most certainly would've been required, and the Rangers would've been making sure that said permits were in order, at all of the time. Very smart of you!!

My sensei said something very poignant on this matter to me once years ago. If you look at a bunch of competitors, at least in my organization (JKA), you'll see that the people winning the championships both in kumite and especially kata are seldom below their thirties or late 20's at the very lowest (many are even in their 40s). Anyone over the age of 18 is allowed to participate, everyone is obviously considered on an individual basis in a competition, but still you see this trend. My sensei argued that this is because when looking at a karate-ka's performance over time, there are two important curves to consider: the physical peak, and the mental peak. Given a full life of training most people are at their physically strongest somewhere from 17 to 24 or so (thus most Olympians being so very young). However, with age one's experience level and mental incorporation of this experience into their karate can continue to increase. Where a karate-ka is most technically proficient and actually physically able to use techniques effectively is a combination of both of these two functions. Around 35 or so a person is still fairly strong, but what's more so, in the 10-15 years of training since their physical peak, they have learned so much through experience, even just on the level of how bodies move, that this increase offsets their decrease in physical stamina and strength. After 45-50 or so, the body decreases a bit more rapidly, but if the mind continues to improve enough, one's karate can accommodate. People who have done this in my opinion are the ones that have cracked the code. They are the ones I would like to train under. Most young masters will simply not have had to deal with the experience of a declining body yet, and may or may not rely too heavily on their heightened physical state to achieve good results. So it's not that their not good, just not experienced. I think that in a system where rank reflects technical ability in the art fairly well, rank will then naturally follow this trend where most high-level promotions (whatever they may be for your organization) happen from 30 up, depending on a person's special case of course. Sometimes people think too much about strength and misunderstand that this trend of 35-45 peak is artificial, but really, there are just other factors to consider, even just on a performance level alone. This is not even mentioning contribution to the art or responsibilities to students or research or whatever else have you. Great post. Do you think this is style/organization specific? I was always told that for ITF Taekwon-Do international competition, if you don't win a title by the time you are 25, you most likely won't win one. Perhaps tuls (our equivalent to kata) are more forgiving of age but certainly for sparring, you've got to be at your physical peak or you've got no hope. But then again that may be because of what our particular ruleset promotes compared to the JKA's ruleset. To the bold type above... I do think that this is more organizational than style. I discern style to speak about the dojo/dojang, and in that, I discern organization to speak about the governing body, the body that dictates to said style/dojo/dojang.

ROFL!! I know that must've been quite an embarrassment for him!!

Aikido; A Demonstration In Its Way!! I worded that totally wrong, I'm sorry!! I'm speaking about it's Do; way. Not that the demonstration was in its own way, like it was a fumble or something like that. Sometimes, my own big fat mouth gets in the way of what I mean to say!! A solid video, imho!!

Thanks for spotting that. Sorry. The link should work now. See what happens when a computer moron, ME, is let loose on the internet!! Thanks, wagnerk!!

Solid post!! Did the campers have to have camping permits? Did you have to have a permit to allow them to camp where they camped? Also, did you have to have a fire permit to allow the campers to make a campfire? Did you have to provide portable-bathrooms? Did you have to have a trash collection permit?

One reservation - injury ! I'm currently limited in my training after having the wrist tendons of my left hand sprained doing just that. All in all a good quality demo, far better than many I've seen. That's a good reason for not going full speed, etc! Allow the injury to fully heal first. Also, if the injury is a permanent one, then some type of exception must be provided while still getting the effectiveness understood. Good post, andym!!

My sensei said something very poignant on this matter to me once years ago. If you look at a bunch of competitors, at least in my organization (JKA), you'll see that the people winning the championships both in kumite and especially kata are seldom below their thirties or late 20's at the very lowest (many are even in their 40s). Anyone over the age of 18 is allowed to participate, everyone is obviously considered on an individual basis in a competition, but still you see this trend. My sensei argued that this is because when looking at a karate-ka's performance over time, there are two important curves to consider: the physical peak, and the mental peak. Given a full life of training most people are at their physically strongest somewhere from 17 to 24 or so (thus most Olympians being so very young). However, with age one's experience level and mental incorporation of this experience into their karate can continue to increase. Where a karate-ka is most technically proficient and actually physically able to use techniques effectively is a combination of both of these two functions. Around 35 or so a person is still fairly strong, but what's more so, in the 10-15 years of training since their physical peak, they have learned so much through experience, even just on the level of how bodies move, that this increase offsets their decrease in physical stamina and strength. After 45-50 or so, the body decreases a bit more rapidly, but if the mind continues to improve enough, one's karate can accommodate. People who have done this in my opinion are the ones that have cracked the code. They are the ones I would like to train under. Most young masters will simply not have had to deal with the experience of a declining body yet, and may or may not rely too heavily on their heightened physical state to achieve good results. So it's not that their not good, just not experienced. I think that in a system where rank reflects technical ability in the art fairly well, rank will then naturally follow this trend where most high-level promotions (whatever they may be for your organization) happen from 30 up, depending on a person's special case of course. Sometimes people think too much about strength and misunderstand that this trend of 35-45 peak is artificial, but really, there are just other factors to consider, even just on a performance level alone. This is not even mentioning contribution to the art or responsibilities to students or research or whatever else have you. Solid post!!

Not to derail this thread, but what the last few posts speak towards affects the core, and integrity the surrounds Traditional MA, from yesterday to today. If the integrity is auctioned off to the highest bidder, then what the forefathers of the MA had passed off to us, it's now tainted. So much so, that the layperson loses the respect for what the MA has fought so hard for. Not just for yesterday and today, but for the future of the MA. These types affect what little respect remains, and whatever else is felt towards the Traditons of the MA. In the video link provided by Kusotare shows how little respect is given to the Traditions handed down by the founders; some of the greatest MAist that ever lived, imho. This video link, I believe, shows Professor Gary Lee. I think he's the voice you hear, and he's the one that's seen passing out the certs, and introducing others, and so on and so on. Looking at Professor Gary Lee's MA Bio, it stretches from floor to ceiling. Traditions, imho, doesn't speak about the importance of oneself over the MA. But, it's seen over and over again because these individuals don't care about the integrity of the MA, nor its Traditions. Self-aggrandizement isn't a MA Tenet, and in that, it's not about the search of platitude's, but the MA is about the search for MA applied effective knowledge. I can fit all of my platitudes on a few sentences. Traditions are losing ground more and more each day. When I saw what I saw on the aforementioned video link, the more I watched it, the angrier I became. It's one thing to receive one platitude after another, if warranted and if they're legitimate, but to make that the soul purpose of their MA betterment is another thing. The layperson shouldn't determine the course of the MA! But they do. They dictate what a MAist should be if that said MAist wants to do business with us, or if that said school wants them to be their student. I suppose what irks me the most is that we're all lumped together by the layperson as one that lacks integrity. How can we be separated? By one thing, PROOF IS ON THE FLOOR!! It's not found around my waist and it's not hung upon any wall. Traditions ARE suppose to be a good thing!

At the start of the video, it shows "The Gathering", it appears to be organised by Soke Grandmaster Irving Soto who is the WOMA USA President. However I'm not sure if the hosting org (The Sport Karate Museum) is the same as the certifying org (which I would presume is the WOMA). However as I have never heard of either, can't say. Thanks for the information. It appeared to me that this organization, if it's the one shown in said link, has some deep Texas roots. The individual that conducted said tests, handed out said certs, and spoke on camera, doesn't appear to be Irving Soto. Still, I'm wondering. The link showed me two things about what I saw. One: Anyone in that organization can pass any said test. Two: If fees are paid, that makes it [passing said test] so. Who can respect that type of tradition? I can't!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se1y2R5QRKUl Did they have them in the order you thought they should've been in??

I stretch quite often per my teaching/administrative schedule. In short, each time I train, teach, work out, run/walk, and/or what have you. Especially at my age, I have to avoid unforeseen injuries by stretching before any activity. I don't think I can stretch too much...I could be wrong.

And that's fair enough, but unfortunatley there are many of your countrymen that bring shame to the whole "we do traditional" stuff! Frankly (imo) you can have the bits of tradition you want (the Gi's the Titles and the Belts to promote your business) but when you throw the baby out with the bath water you end up with this utter garbage... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFrM3KFAIsY K. What was the name of the hosting org in your video link?? I'm flabbergasted by what I watched!!

Here's what can happen if...well...watch this... http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=083_1388180755

Posture!! Very important!! Arm shouldn't be fully extended. The arm, at the elbow, should be ever so slightly bent. Keep elbows close and tight to the body. Keep shoulders down throughout the technique. Keep fingers together. Snap your technique, but only at the very last second. Kiai. Concentrating on your abs. Focus. Don't over analysis the darn thing. Use your hips, but not too early, and not too late. Watch your stance. Is it too wide or too long or too narrow. Remember everything that your instructor taught you concerning the "Do's" and "Don'ts". His/her teaching is paramount. Have your arms cross one another towards the very middle, but not to wide and/or way, way outside your opposite side. Break each part down, and in that, be specific without being ridicules; over analyzing. Depending on the style, things start and end at the same time, and with others, it's more of a domino effect. Good luck, have fun, and train hard.

Your doing a lot of Kumite/Sparring, right? If so, then that should be enough to compete with, well, it was for me, but I'm from the years and days way back when. I did my driving test the same day Fred Flintstone did!! If sport Karate is what you're looking for, and your current dojo isn't providing that, then the answer is clear to me. Find a dojo that will cater your needs. But, it's hard if none are around where you live. Sport Karate isn't all too much different than the sparring you're doing now in your dojo. However, the rules and regulations are!! Having to learn the rules and regulations can be learnt at their websites, but, training in said rules and regulations avoids a lot of costly mistakes. Mistakes cost points in the sporting karate world. Hopefully, you're sparring as many different practitioners as you can. Because sparring 1 or 2 will not give you a wide variety. Sure, same style, but people spar THEIR way, whether they'll admit it or not. Place some adds, asking interested partners to contact you so that you all can meet and reach same needs. There are many ways to contact other like-minded practitioners of the MA, but, some leg work is going to have to be done in order to find them. They're out there, but you have to search high and low. Another thing, is that many competitors are quite private. By that I mean, if they don't know you, they're not as willing to train/spar with you because they don't want to reveal their weaknesses and/or strengths to a fellow competitor that they might have to face in the future. Keep asking those in your dojo to help you, to help you spar until the wheels fall off. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Hopefully, I've been some better help to you than I was before. Hang in there!!

Well, there are, of course, many ways, methods, and ideas to reach what you want. First, get with your parents and your doctor because they are the best places to get this type of advice. You don't want to start any exercise without first discussing it with your doctor. I hesitate to advice anyone because I could lead you on a path that's not healthy for you. So please forgive me for not really helping you directly. I've advise to give you in this, but, what I do and what I have done or have not done, fit for me, and might not benefit you. Read Bruce Lee's book on fitness, Bruce Lee, The Art Of Expressing The Human Body, and abs are in there, for sure. Bruce's abs were solid across the board. Even then, contact your doctor and parents on this subject before following Bruce's book, or any book or advice, for that matter. Good luck, train hard, train well, and train smart.

Well, as I said, I'm not training totally on my own. I do belong to a dojo and usually train in class twice a week. And we do spar in class, it's just that competition is not a huge focus of what we do. So I'm basically looking to supplement my in-class training with some stuff I can do on my own to improve my abilities and understanding of karate. I'm looking for solo drills that will help, but it's also my hope that I can find a few karate companions with similar goals who will want to get together for some out-of-dojo training to work partner drills and spar and whatnot. Hopefully I can figure something out on that front. Thanks for the well wishes. Sorry for my misunderstanding. I took the word "ronin" literally, my mistake.

Indeed. For the circumstances of the demonstration, the willingness of the uke was necessary. If it were a more public demo, more restraint should have been used. I do not know for a fact if the demo was public or more of a seminar, though. Just my point of view on matters. Mori Shihan demonstrates an invaluable technique to deflect and react to multiple strikes being delivered in a rapid manner. Seemingly, more skeptics are prone to believe Aikido being ineffective due to a lack of strikes during a single technique. This disproves such theories, in my beliefs. Granted it is all choreographed, but as is all martial arts training. Thus the meaning of training be used to perfect one's technique to be available if the moment becomes necessary. Solid post!!

Not to repeat myself, but what saddens me is the outwardly opinions that "traditional" MA is ineffective in todays modern world; and in that, "traditions" were for yesterday, and not for today. However, yesterday's style's of the MA are still being taught, and in that, they are still being learnt today by an untold scores of practitioners world wide. Not being taught and learnt with just the mindset of today only, but what was taught and learnt with yesterday in mind. Just what is still being shared with students today, is still keeping yesterday alive on and off the floor. Change is inevitable, and in that, change must be accepted by MA practitioners day in and day out. Amending and/or adapting what was from yesterday for todays approach of the MA is critical if one is to improve ones MA betterment. Just what is traditional MA? Is their a definition that's written in stone, that's accepted by all MAists? Is it decided by "you" and not by me/us? Is it discovered by our perception, therefore, real? The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines "Tradition" as... 1) an inherited, established, or customary pattern of thought or action, 2) the handing down of beliefs and customs by word of mouth or by example without written instruction; also; a belief or custom thus handed down. If by this definition, are we to accept it or discard it? That choice, imho, is up to the individual. However, the dictionary explanation that I've provided, is something that should be weighed as worthy of our consideration as MAists. If my traditional ways are offensive in some how, my decision to uphold the values of yesterday, and/or my choice to practice it wholeheartedly, then let that be my sin, and if it's a sin, than let me be darned for doing so. I believe in both yesterday and today, but before I reject yesterday, I'd rather be without either in my life, especially as a MAist. I should be free to choice either without condemnation and/or reservation; whether it be traditional ways or modern ways, they are my ways to choice because my journey, my path, my desire is to be complete in my MA totality. I believe, I train, I teach that which is my interpretation of traditional MA. My Soke and Dai-Soke were from the yesterday world of the MA, but, as they improved/changed their own MA betterment, they never forgot where it was that they came from, and in that, they embraced both times, yesterday and today, as though they were one and in the same. I'm judged by those who've never meet me and/or trained with me as inferior because I wear the traditional MA badge proudly. It's as though my cover is tattered in their eyes, and that tattered cover reeks of yesterday, as though yesterday was a really bad thing. I embrace both yesterday and today because they sustain my training! My knowledge as well as my experience is the product of both era's, and what was then, is still for now, in that, what today is, is for yesterday as well. So much so, is that what I learn from other styles of the MA is from both worlds; yesterday and today, both are in concert, and what I hear, taste, smell, see, and touch in the MA are from both times, not to be cast away, but to be appreciated as though they sustain me...and I'm sustained!! Imho, traditions from both yesterday and today are effective. However, at times, it's the practitioner who's ineffective. Without traditions of yesterday being appreciated, how can traditions of today be appreciated. Aren't the traditions of the founders the cornerstone of all MA??

I'm glad you enjoyed it again. If one reads the comments that accompanied said video, you can see that many didn't like the Uke's willingness to go with everything. I, too, have no use for a Uke just going with me, unless, I'm teaching something brand new to them. After some time of practicing, I want the Uke to resist, to fight back, at every cost, without any reservation. It either works or it doesn't. I believe, and it's my own opinion, the instructor in this video could control his attacker effectively, and that's because his transitional movements are compact, and in sync with his entire body.

The ronin path that you're interested will be a very lonely journey. No feedback might lead to developing incorrect, thus bad, muscle memory. Memory that will take quite some time to correct, if and when, you seek out a credible, thus qualified instructor. One can take kihon, however one decides to learn it from whatever source, and within the ronin path, practicing it over and over and over, and then some, thus, if learnt correctly some how, will be a force to be reckoned with. Someone once said... "I fear not the one who can do 10,000 kicks, but I fear the one who has done one kick 10,000 times." Forgive me if I've not quoted this exactly as it should be. The most difficult thing about the ronin path is that no matter what knowledge, skills, experience, and the like, it will be quite void without sparring. No sparring equals no effectiveness and the like without that aspect in the ronin path. One can shadow box and the like all one wants to, but I've never been attacked by my shadow. I appreciate the training aspect of shadow boxing and the like, but it's limited drastically compared to engaging another person. A person that will challenge you in every way possible. I wish you the best, but it will be a lonely path, imho. Good luck on your MA journey!!

This is an informal invitation to whomever just wants to get together via Skype. No formal date, it's just for whenever we want to Skype one another. We can talk about anything, and it doesn't have to be surrounded by anything the MA. Again, it's an informal and unofficial invitation to talk within Skype's venue with one another, but, we can see one another while talking informally. Want to discuss some aspect of the MA, I'm willing for that as well. Thanks!! Bob