darksoul

Welcome! What part of Canada?

Welcome! I took a 12 year break before getting my black belt so it's never too late

Welcome!

Hmmm... 3 years old is VERY young. I teach my student's 4 year old because he likes it and it's given him some good self-esteem, but I won't even consider grading him until he's 6... maybe even 7. As for the topic at hand, a pass is earned, not given. You need to know and perform at the level required before you are allowed to pass.

Welcome!

Right. It's a myth. As a black belt, however, you may need to explain yourself more if you are arrested after an altercation. For example, you would have to explain why you used a certain technique as opposed to another in your repertoire that may have caused less injury.

Welcome!

Awesome! Congratulations Fang!

Hahaha, no, I didn't find it pretentious. I think it was a great explanation. In Shaolin Kempo, we don't use names at all. The only names are given to the Shaolin Katas (Stature of the Crane, 2 Man Fist Set, Swift Tiger, Iron Fortress, Hansuki, etc...) Our combinations and techniques are simply numbered. Works for me

Looks interesting. I'll see if I can grab the DVD sometime soon.

Legitimacy is everything sometimes. What faster way is there to sound legit when you're first starting up?I must be odd then because these just sound comical to me "THRUST OF FREEDOM!" I think MasterPain mentioned that the Ameri-Do-Te crew have a Kenpo background. Could be why.That would make sense. Like I said, from everything I've seen, American Kenpo is a solid style and it does share some elements with Shaolin Kempo. I just really don't think I could keep a straight face in the dojo with names like those

Yeah... I still get that sometimes. I still have yet to find a cure

Legitimacy is everything sometimes. What faster way is there to sound legit when you're first starting up?I must be odd then because these just sound comical to me "THRUST OF FREEDOM!"

Haha, absolutely. I had a yellow belt come to me the Wednesday class of the week asking how I can be so bouncy after the Monday class. I didn't know what to reply

Welcom!

"Flight to Freedom?" "Dance of Death?" "Thrusting Salute?" Wow, I never realized American Kenpo had such Ameri-do-te style names to their techniques. I'm sure the techniques are sound, it's just... I dunno. Odd?

It's awesome to see the martial arts so healthy in Norway! Now I have more than just Black Metal as a reason to go to Norway

Very cool! Great to hear!

Wow. If it's of any help, I love my Arawaza. Have you looked into their gis? http://www.arawaza.com/

Nee, maar mijn vrouw komt uit 's-Hertogenbosch en ik leer het voor haar.

Congrats!

Goede dag, Epyon. Honestly, it does not sound like a McDojo at all. Using gloves is just safer and smarter. All the competitions I've done have had gloves and foot pads. Bare-knuckle fights are rough and very very very rare. I believe Kyokushin does them, but require a certain rank to participate. 18euros is not a lot of money. It's close to what I pay (approx $30 Canadian/month) and twice a year grading is not a McDojo time frame. McDojo's will grade every couple of months. As for paying for exams, it depends. Are you paying for the belt you're working towards or for extra instructors to be there while you grade? What's the cost of the grading? All in all, I don't think you're in a McDojo. Cheers en succes!

Thanks to all! I'm hooked! I'll definitely sign up for judging at the next tournament

Congrats!!!

Awesome post! Thank you for that.