Kicks

Best of luck to ya. You know what they say "You can't beat luck". OK, maybe only I say that.

Sam, I know what you mean, and feel, about not wanting to bow out to your instructor. I really didn't want to either and I felt that I would have won. I do a lot of training for tournaments and he doesn't, simply because he never competes. He doesn't have the experience. I also know that I should never say that I think I can take my instructor in a match because everybody will swarm all over me with stuff like "you think that only because he's never gone all out on you in class". Well, tell that to my nose he broke. But that's OK, I've sent him sliding across the floor a few times and rung his bell. But, anyway, after I did bow out a lot of people, including several masters and the sponsor of the tournament, said that I did the right thing. And they knew how much I love to compete. In fact, when I do compete and they have to draw lots to see who gets the bye, they don't even include me in the drawing because I've always asked not to be given a bye. So if they think I did the right thing, maybe they're right. Who really knows?

I find the Tae Gueks very easy to learn. What you do to the left you repeat on the right. However, to do them correctly and understand their application is a different story. Each punch, each kick, each block should be delivered with power and snap. Enough power to break bone. No one single technique has only one application for use in self defense. Each form has its own meaning and application.

I've only bowed out once, and that was to my head instructor in the finals at the our USTU state championships. I had heard that he was going to bow out to me, but I had won the division the 3 previous years and had nothing to prove and this was his first and only time competing. So it was sort of a combination of respect for him and no big deal for me, I guess. That's OK, cause 1 month later I won nationals.

I'm 47 and have arthritis in both my big toes from being broken and jammed so many times. I've have an AC (shoulder)-seperation. I also have bad knees. In a couple of months I'll have to have surgury on my nose to fix it from being broken a few times. It's causing me to have obstructive sleep apnea causing me to stop breathing when I'm at sleep. I do everything I can to take care of my aggrivations so I can continue to train, and it was hard for me to finally accept the fact that HAVE to listen to my body and back off when necessary. Right now I'm fighting off an infection and can't train. It's going to be tught getting back up to speed, but I'm determined to do so. I'm also facing another quandary. My 12 year old daughter is very involved in competing in WTF Olympic style sparring. She absoultely loves it and has dreams of being on the US Olympic in 2012. However, lately she's been saying her knees bother her. I would love to see her continue towards her dream but I don't want her to suffer for it the rest of her life. She competing in the AAU Jr Olympics this summer so she doesn't want to stop training. I don't quit know what to do.

Thank you Sai, a very informative link. How do you do it? Do you have all these links memorized?

OK, no one asked you to remind me.

I've heard that he got an 'honory black belt'. Does anybody know what his level of training really was? When I think of legendary martial artist I've never really thought of Elvis.

Usually the organizers try to match you up with someone from another dojang, if possible, for at least your first match. Sometimes there just aren't enough competitord from other dojangs so I've had to spar fellow members from my dojang. Now top this...in my last tournament, I not only had to fight a fellow member of my dojang, I had to fight a fellow member of my family....my own son!

Aodhan, you got sum 'splaining to do!

The lion knew the skunk could kill him. That's right, had the lion snatched the little skunk in his jaws he would have choked to death.

I supposed it was because bugs fell in it. BTW, a cracker barrel was just cookies and snacks. Sometimes we'd roast (or flame) marshmellows over the fire at night.

So there really is such a thing as smores. I thought that was just a girl scout urban legend. Us 'ole boy scouts didn't do smores, we had a cracker barrel and bug juice by the camp fire.

I think General Custer would disagree.

Glad to hear you passed this test. Good luck on the rest of your testing.

SO, how did it go? Any photos?

For one of my BB test I had to do a down punch through 5 boards stacked together suspended from cinder blocks. When practicing on a rebreakable board the week before the test I busted the two knuckles You're supposed to hit with. I thought I had broken them. On test day they were swollen up and still hurting pretty bad. So one of the masters judging that day told me I could use my left hand. I was embarresed when I ha dto tell him that I hadn't prepared with that hand. So he told me my only choice was to use my right hand but he would let me just attempt 3 boards. Another master told me I would only have 1 chance, because after hitting the boards my hand will be demolished. So prior to the board breaking part of the test I kept pumping my fist, open and closing it tightly. This made my hand and forarm sort of numb and all stiff. As I stood over my boards I saw my wife out the corner of my eye with the camera. She had tears coming out her eyes, she knew this was gonna hurt. I yelled and put everything into it and the boards broke. It took about 20 minutes after that before I could open my hand again.

Cool! You get to make smores and tell ghost stories around the campfire. Have a great trip! We're going camping this weekend, but no smores for us. We're doing a shake down in preparation for our 12 day pack packing trip in the Rocky Mountains next month.

Well, that's a good thing.

Congrats to all graduates!!! monkeygirl... where are you going on your senior trip? Where is anybody else going?

Thank you Patrick. Job well done.

Thanks...Got 'em!

Where? I couldn't find them.

WooWoo... Happy Birthday!!!

I don't have a video of Shannon and I sparring each other. But I can make one next week, probably. I'll let ya know. I do have my son beating me, but that's under lock and key.