aefibird

I'd say get a BOB, rather than a Wavemaster, if you can. I've trained with a Wavemaster before and I found that they moved about, even when the base is jam-packed with sand. Plus, a heavy hanging bag seems to offer more 'oomph' than a standing Wavemaster.

I own: Karate-do Kyohan Karate-do Nyumon Karate-do - My Way of Life Karate Jutsu The Twenty Giding Principles of Karate (all by Gichin Funakoshi) Bunkai Jutsu: The Practical Application of Karate Kata Throws For Strikers Karate's Grapling Methods (all by Ian Abernethy) Bo: Karate Weapon of Self Defence Sai: Karate Weapon of Self Defence Tonfa: Karate Weapon of Self Defence Nunchaku: Karate Weapon of Self Defence (all by Fumio Demura) The Bubishi Patrick McCarthy The Empty Hand Rui Umezawa Secret Karate Ashley Croft Karate Kata Applications The Advanced Karate Manual (both by Aidan Trimble & Vince Morris) The Karate Handbook Ray Pawlett A Dictionary of the Martial Arts Louis Frederic Essential Martial Arts Simon Mugford Hagakure: The boof of the Samurai Yamamoto Tsunetomo Beyond the Black Belt Gary Purdue Shotokan Karate Free Fighting Techniques Shotokan Karate: 10th Kyu to 6th Kyu Shotokan Karate: 5th kyu to Black Belt (all by Keinosuke Enoeda) Karate: Mastering the Art Sanette Smit Pressure Point Fighting 75 Down Blocks: Refining Karate Technique (both by Rick Clark) Five Years, One Kata Bill Burgar The Beginner's Guide to Shotokan Karate Advanced Shotokan Karate Kata Vol 1 (both by John van Weenan) A Book Of Five Rings Miyamoto Musashi Okinawan Goju-Ryu Seikichi Toguchi The Shotokan Karate Handbook Gursharan Sahota Karate Fighting Techniques: The Complete Kumite Hirokazu Kanazawa Best Karate (volumes 1-11) Dynamic Karate (all by Masatoshi Nakayama) Advanced Pressure Point Fighting of Ryukyu Kempo Kyusho Jitsu (both by George Dilman) Plus, I have other MA books about Wing Chun, Aikido, Aiki-Jutsu, Tai Chi, Judo, TaeKwonDo, Muay Thai, Kendo and JuJutsu, as well as a couple of general fitness and stretching books. Yes, my house IS like a library...

Luigio, sorry to hear of your loss.

An update - I came first in the pattern competition! I had to perform in 6 rounds in total, I was very tired (especially mentally) by that final round, as the breaks between the rounds were v v short. My instructor and his assistant were very supportive, which helped a lot.

Is there a phone number for the association and/or club? If so, phone them up and have your questions at the ready. If they know that you are a potential new student then they're likely to be willing to answer your Q's over the phone. Good luck with moving, BTW!

I'd suggest for you to try kickboxing or full-contact TKD, or see if your instructor would be willing for you to (help?) organise local competitons with your club and others in the area. It might not be just what you're looking for, but it would be a start. There are clubs in the styles on that list who fight full contact (my dojo is one example) but they tend to be the minority rather than the majority, as most of those styles tend to be more into points or semi contact competition fighting.

Congratulations coe!! That's a great thing to focus on!

Congratulations Khan!

ditto for my karate school, as it is Shotokan based. ...and ditto again for the rant! I personally do not like all of the belts that we have in my dojo - if it were up to me I would certainly ditch the striped belts, even if nothing else. Brown with 2 white stripes??? Just seems like another way to make some £££ for me. Now, that's not really the reason in my dojo (we kept the same grading and belt system that my instructor had in his dojo with Shotokan Karate International, back in 'the good ol days' of the 70's), but it just seems a little unnecessary. My instructor has not been a member of the SKI for years and years. He has now also left the break-away association which formed from the SKI and used the same grading structure. So, he (theoretically) now has no ties with this belt system and could make changes to it. I would certainly like to see him do so. However, it isn't my dojo and I must respect Sensei's wishes. He knows I have 'issues' with the whole belt/grading system thing anyway.

'tis a great book and I highly recommend it.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do! Do you think you may continue in Shotokan (at another school) or are you leaning towards starting afresh in a totally different MA?

I used to have 'martial arts' pets too - a pair of cockatiels named Heian and Yondan (after the karate kata!). I think the next pet I get will probably have a martial arts name. A friend of mine also had a hamster called Kiai, who became our karate club mascot until his demise.

Welcome, welcome sdargie.

Hi Qui Gon Tzu! Welcome to the forums!

Hi androsovic! Welcome to the forums.

Sorry to hear that. It was partly because of the way that blackbelt tests were conducted that my Sensei decided to leave the karate organisation he was with. It had aslo become very moneygrabbing - a sorry state for a once-excellent organisation. Because of that experience, and others to do with that organisation, I now feel that my own blackbelt grading is worthless. My instructor is a great man and a fantastic teacher, but those who graded me for my Shodan have shown themselves to be shallow and materialistic and not really interested in true martial ways or the spirit of Budo. Although my situation isn't very similar to yours, I do understand a little of what you're going through. PM me if you wanna chat and we can have a good old moan about cruddy MA organisations together...

I like rabbits, but I have to say I prefer my Guinea Pigs. Rabbits are very cute, though (even when they scratch you!)

Good luck jctkd!! Try to stay calm and just do your best. Any medals/trophies will be a bonus. An impeccable attitude and dedication will be worth more to your school and instructor (and to yourself) than a shed-load of trophies that have been won with a bad attitude. Now, I'm NOT saying you have a bad attitude - I'm sure you don't - but having respectful and dedicated students is priceless to any decent instructor. Go and do you club proud! I've got my first TKD tourney on Sunday. I've done loads of Karate and open MA tournies, but I'm still nervous about this one. I'm only competing in patterns but I'm still looking forward to representing my school. I only hope that I don't forget Sa Jang half way though....

I'd say that 45 years in MA is enough to have earned that 9th degree. Besides, if some two-bit guy who has only had 10 or so years of 'experience' can self-promote and call himself a 9th or 10th or 10zillionth dan then I'd certainly say that Hee Il Cho deserves a little self-promotion.

My brother was caught up in the Kings Cross blast but thankfully wasn't injured (he hadn't got his tube train yet, but was about to go and catch one when it happened). My thoughts and prayers are with those who are involved in this terrible incident.

Find a GOOD tattooist and have a chat with him/her. Tell the tattooist that you want a martial arts tattoo - he/she will probably be able to draw you something unique that is personal to you. Don't just get something because someone else thinks it looks good - get what you want. Good luck with it!

What MA books do you own? Which would you really recommend as great reading for any MAist?

Yes, it's pretty good, especially for the price (compared to Tokaido, Shureido etc). It's a decent gi and a good investment, although you do need a larger size than normal.

Looks like a good website. Give it a go and see what you think! That's the best way to find out about a place.

Just because he 'only' has 2nd Dan and 1st Gup ranks doesn't mean that he isn't any good. Some people simply don't like testing (I know, I'm one of those people!) Go and watch a couple of classes and try a few before you make your mind up. Personally, I'd rather train with a 1st Dan who had good ability and correct martial spirit than someone who was 8th Dan but was simply in it for the money. Good luck!