Kicks

Let me add to what jnpnshr411 said about "strike with punches when you are closer". Don't go stright in, use an angle attack. Fake a direct foward attach, then slide 45 degrees in or out and then attack.

Thanks guys. I think she's ready. She's looking really good at training. We're hopeing that the girl who won both the AAU Nationals and USAT Elite Open will be there. Shannon wants to fight her. Shannon will be in the 12 - 13 year old black belt under 94 lbs division. She is 12, 2nd Dan, 81 lbs. So there's a chance she could fight a 13 or almost 14 year old, 94 lb 3rd dan. She's been sparring a lot with a 106 lb, 15 year old 3rd dan who's also competing, so she's up to the challenge. I've previously posted several photos of her in the Photo Album section of Karate Forums. Look for photos of SHANNON. I'll post some more from the JOs next week.

The 2005 AAU Junior Olympics are being held in the New Orleans area this and next week. The Tae Kwon Do competitions are: Sunday 7/31/05 Individual Forms and Team Forms Monday 8/01/05 Olympic Sparring Tuesday 8/02/05 Point Sparring The Karate copmpetitions schedule is: Sunday 7/31/05 Kubodo, Kata Monday 8/01/05 Kumite My daughter is competiting in the TKD forms and Olympic sparring competitions. Are any of you guys coming?

That's supposed to be my little graphic of me selecting the third option "All the Above". I said I was a Martial Artist, not a Graphic Artist.

(*) All the Above

Scott, Maybe you ought to consider changing organizations, to one that enforces a more uniformed set of standards. You may have to start over, but at least you'll be in an organization that is stable. I belong to both USA Taekwondo (the old USTU) and the AAU. Both organizations require that competitors wear the triditional white gui, and only black belts can have black collars. Neither allow school names on the dobaks, bur USA TKD allows state names whereas AAU does not allow anthing other than brand logos. USA TKD is WTF and does Olympic style sparring, while AAU does both point sparring and Olympic style. USA TKD requires the TaeGuek forms, but AAU allows the IFT, WTF, and TSD forms. Since each school teaches some variation in their forms you can expect to see that in competition. However, any major variation (XMA stuff) will result in lower scores. Another organization is the ITA. There are even more strick. They have regular regional training for instructors so thay are all teaching the same way. They even have a CD with video of the forms that students can buy. This way everyone knows exactly what is expected of them. ITA does point sparring.

Laurie, The photo I posted is one I found on the web. I'll have to post a photo of mine, it's very similar. I got it in 1973 or 74. My first songs were "Heart of Gold" and "Take Me Home Country Roads". I was weaned on groups like Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, Wishbone Ash, Beatles, and America. In the early 80's I played in a 'reception' type band and we did everything from Hank Williams to Led Zeppelin (yes, we did Stairway To Heaven). In the mid 80's I got into a New Wave band where we did covers as well as wrote our own songs. I started playing Country in the 90's, ie: George Strait, Alabama, Paul Overstreet, etc. I haven't played in a while, but I am currently teaching my 12 year old daughter how to play. She wants to play Ironman (Ozzy), Stairway to Heaven, Dueling Banjos, and a song by Simple Plan (I Don't Wanna Think About You). Just last night I started learning "Canon in D major" by Johann Pachelbel, aka "Christmas Canon" by Trans-Siberian Orchestra. One of my sons plays melodic bells (Xylophone) and the other can pick up songs on keyboard, so I'm hoping that we can put together an arrangement with guitar, keyboard, and bells that we can play at our annual Christmas Eve party this year. This is the arrangemet I'm going for: http://wm.atlrec.com/Trans-Siberian_Orchestra/new_03/christmascanon_300.wmv

I found out what happened to him. He had just dropped a friend off at his appartment when some kids came up to him and asked "You know what time it is?". He told them "about midnight" and one pulled a 9mm pistol to his head and said"No its time to give me your truck". My friend hit the gas but the kid fired the gun and shot him. The bullet went through the bottom of his chin (left side), through his tongue, busted some teeth and lodged between his cheek bone and skin on his right side. The bullet is still lodged in there. I don't know of any plans to remove it. But he's doing fine and is out and about living life as normal. Oh, and the kids that tried to car jack him were caught. They are ages 14, 12 and 10. The 14 year old was the trigger man. Do you know where your kids are at 12:00 midnight? Car jacking and shooting people? A local minister here says that kids like this are innocent, they are just trying to get a "piece of the American pie". Geez!!!!

Touche! Good one!

Are the belt test at your school all strict and disciplined, or is it somewhat relaxed and enjoyable? We just had a belt test this past weekend and it was a typical day of testing. In answering my own question I'd have to say that we, as instructors and judges, try to make it an enjoyable expierence for the canidates. I find, however, that the mood for the test day is set by how well the canidates do on the first part of the test, their forms. If they do well then the day is more relaxed and not as strict as if they did poorly on their forms. Sometimes we have humerous things happen and we all get a good laugh. Sometimes we have to crack a joke about what's going on to lighten the mood. We allow our students to cheer each other on during breaking and free sparring. Friday night our head instructor was asking the black belts to do demostrations throughout the testing phases. His son got up to do a break where he does what's called a split kick, or siccor kick? It where he jupms high and with left leg does a front kick to the left and with his right leg does like a side kick to his right. Standing on a chair I held the board to his right. As I got up there I saw he was very nervous, this was his first time doing this in front of people. So I announced "This is a demo of the proper way to hold a board for breaking. So when Thanh does the break everyone should be focused on me." The whole place started laughing, including Thanh. When he did attempt the break he only brok the board I was holding, so I announced "Now that's the proper way to hold a board". It took the edge off of him not completing the break.

Summer break is when kids everywhere play on the internet all day bogging it down for the rest of us who use it for work.

Well deserved

I'm still playing my black Gibson Les Paul Custom, vintage 1969 - 1971, original humbucker pick ups and all! http://www.vintageandrareguitars.com/images/t_2039_1.jpg

Hey gang, remember when I posted this video (see first post) of the young kid walking the wall? He's about 18 or 19 now and still active in sports, even thought he is not doing TKD. Tonight I found out that last week he was assualted in an attempted car-jacking. I'm told he was released from the hospital and is doing fine but may need surgery. If you're the praying kind, please say one for him. Thanks,

Thanks aefi

June1 wrote: I heard it had good music.

We had the pagent on because my son was watching it. I asked him why was he watching it and he replied "I like the music".

Since I'm in the work force I don't get a "summer break". However, that's when my kids are on break so we take our family vacations. In the past 7 years these vacations mave mostly been when we took our kids to compete in either USTU or AAU tae Kwon Do National Championships. We did take a couple of years off to do some other traveling. Maybe you cane do some traveling to compete in tournaments against folks from other states. See how you match up against them. Learn some new techniques or stratgies. Make some new friends. Hey...one of our KF members is hosting a gathering this summer, maybe you would want to meet some of the folks from this forum and attend his gathering and training. Enjoy!

bumping for Aodhan

Congrats CANADA

OK, nobody should be on KF right now. You all should be watching the Miss Universe pagent :pony: pulling for your home country.

Some gyms have a neck strengthing maching. I've used one. It provides resistence to both left and right.

Gain more weight? Move to New Orleans.

Oooo, I'm telling Hey Laurie! guess what???.......

but what about the ADHD kids? (H = Hyperactivity)