Oracle

I agree with the last two responses. I don't see many instructors being honest with their assements...especially with black belts. Your right it's the person not the style that matters most.

This topic is sensitive to most instructors. I have said it before and I will say it again.......the best style is the one that wins, wether it's fighting or kata. Open your mind and understand that if you only compete against your own particular style, the most that you can accomplish is being a big fish in a small pond. I see more comments on instructors losing interest in tournaments because of judging or a host of other ancillary excuses. It's not always the judges fault..sometimes people just don't train hard enough . Don't raise a generation of victims, instructors need to be honest with students and let them know if their technique stinks.

The question was based on competiton and my answer was based on competiton. Look outside your box, the brainwashing many have about their own style being the best is foolish. If your practicing baseball, basketball or football every one wants to be the best they can be and they generally compare themselves with the best in these sports. Step outside your interschool tournaments/environments and see what is available. The person you mention as not loosing has probably not put themselves up against the best each style has to offer. My earlier answer about the bo being the predominate weapon in major competitons is not subjective, it is a common fact. You can use a large ax or whip if you want, you just won't win . As an example many ask the question about which fighting style is the best ie : taekwondo, okinawin,shotokan etc.. The answer is none of these styles are the best, the best style is the one that wins and none of the best fighters (pointfighters) use a specific style. Competition = money/time spent. If you want to be a contender and not waste you or your parents money, I would suggest staying away from the tonfas and learn bo. If you want to learn tonfas for the joy of knowledge than I would agree 100%. You do understand that IsshinRyu in it's simpliest form is a conglomeration of many other styles, except the notable exclusion of Sunsu. So everyone has their own idea of traditional. This all goes back to the control/influence many instructors have over their students and their understanding of the martial arts. It's a big world outside and people need to look past their particular style .

If your interested in competition, the bo is the most widely used with kamas (open weapons) a close second. I have seen a few compete with the boat oar nationally and they are very good. Few use sais and I have not seen anyone use tonfas for competition. I know of a couple of girls that compete with sais and they can really snap them. Generally they all have a hard time competing with the bo except in extreme weapons where the kamas usually win. When I say competition, I am talking the major circuits. Iknow these other weapons are widely used in inter-style competitons or school competitions.

Prep depends on how you compete. If your a regular NASKA/NBL/KRANE/FBBA/RSKC competitor who does a circuit, most train hard in the off season (Nov-early Feb). I agree that one week out you should have your forms polished. We train hard right up to 2-3 day before a event. If your sore from going all out your really not in shape. We only do segments of forms or weapons to polish certain moves.....not for training purposes. Their is a difference. You should try doing your tournament kata all out with full gi and sounds 3-4 times back to back to build stamina. Human nature tends to make people due parts of a form rather than the whole form because it's less burdonsome. Don't give in ! your only cheating yourself. As I have said before, you have to train like you compete. If you do a full kata, practice with a full kata.

I know of kids 8-10 years old that are as technically proficient as any adult. I agree this is not typical, but they do exist. If a junior can pass the same test as the adult, they deserve the belt regardless. It's up to the instructor to set the proper standards at the very beginning. The reason most kids do not reach a higher level is because of the pressure put on instructors by the parents to be politically correct.

We do disagree...with respect. Tokumine, Urashi and Shishi all require that the bo be held in thirds the majority of the time. I am sure you understand that the katas you see today are much different that what Tatsuo Shimabuku did back in the day. Contrary to popular myth, many of today's practitioners would easlily present a better form. Master Uezu by example, exemplifies this very well. Not to step on any toes, every style thinks they are the best. I can assure you that a properly executed Urashi Bo form would not do well in a top level open competition vs a very dynamic Casey Marks for example. Yes, it would do well at a IWKA,AOKA or Oikka event. If you train correctly not (politcally correctly) doing forward and reverse strikes, you have to by default hit hard. In fact, someone new to this type of training will have black and blue shoulders and ribs from the contact. Their is no way to get around this if you are doing the strikes properly. The problem is that you are equating my comments with working out with a war bo . It's very hard to move that weapon fast enough to generate a snap....which is my point. Nobody would pick up a tree log to defend themselves if a strong, lighter alternative was near by. Very few competitors do Isshin Ryu weapons katas, my comment about the bent back leg is pointed to the 98.5% of the other forms that are supposed to have proper forward stances. Watch next time you see a student transition from the circle blocks in tokumine to the zenkuts stance going the opposite direction and look for the bent back leg and you smile when you remember this discussion.

I stand corrected on #1, I shouldn't have said always, as in a baseball swing. Most when doing simple forward strikes/reverse strikes keep hands too close together. With regard to #2, I differ. All top competitors , in all of the major circuits strike hard. If your not striking hard your not striking fast. This is one thing that seperates the best from the rest. Most have bent legs because of lack of conditioning and training. I am not stereotyping anyone, these are common mistakes. As a example, many do deep front stances in their bo forms, the back leg is not supposed to be bent . The leg should be straight with the foot facing forward with heel on the ground. Next time you go to a school or competition look to see how many do this correctly. Maybe 1-2 out of 30 do this correctly. In reality their are only a handfull of schools in the US that actually train for Bo correctly. All of the top people migrate to these schools eventually. Arturo Espina in Miami, Joe Greenhalgh in Rhode Island, Casey Marks and Mike Bernado in Ontario, John Sharkey in Chicago to name a few.

Bo should be your height no smaller or bigger. Training with heavy bo does increase strength, however it messes up your timing (for competition). Biggest mistakes for traditional & open bo competitors: - Hands to close together......space bo in thirds...always!!! - Weak strikes......always strike hard and hit your body hard - Train as you compete........practice with full gi and sounds - Most concentrate on weapon and forget stances.....ie bent back leg don't let anyone give you the jive about traditional war bo's vs light bo's. If you were to fight someone in real life with a war bo you would be dead in very short order because of it's slowness. Someone adapt with a strong lightweight bo (and yes the best ones are strong) can hit you 10 times before you get one war bo strike. just watch Casey Marks and you will understand.

The other mistake people make with regard to a good side kick is telegraphing it with a step first. Done right, you should never have to step then kick...a large percentage of fighters always step first. Push off your back leg and thrust. I agree the low to mid level kicks will punish your competition. If people can grab your leg....keep training !! If you want to see a punishing side kick, go to MASLINC.com and watch Joey Greenhalgh's or Jason Tankson Bourelly's side/ax kick and you will understand.

Very few people do a side kick properly. I agree with the person about the front snap quick being less than effective in real life situations. For a proper side kick the chamber has to be correct. Most schools just have their students lift up their leg and thats a side kick. A properly chambered side kick (knee acrosss your body, thrust out) can drive people out of the ring everytime. Side/Ax , Side Hook is even more effective once you get proper control of your legs.

Daniel does mostly extreme forms and weapons these days. The last two years he hasn't competed much in the US. He does alot in Europe and is big into seminars and shows. It should be noted that he can do traditional forms with the best of them. Daniel will always be known as one of the best! I believe his style is Ninjitsu, however as with most of the best NASKA World competitors they all blend styles to make a competitive kata. Very, Very few use unaltered forms these days.

Karatedad..It sound like your a dad who really cares about his son's advancement in the martial arts. With that said, this is the best age for your son to learn fighting, why ? because kids don't have the same fears that we learn as adults . My son has absolutley no fear of fighting kids much larger and stronger. It's not a macho thing it's just that he thinks that it is normal because he started at such a young age. He has been fortunate to train old school methods vs the michelin man approach to sparring. I actually encourge the larger kids to test him physically and use a fair amount of contact. If your son gets hit in the street you just can't cry and run to your parents, every student deserves proper training to prepare him/her for a real life situation. The first thing a kid needs to learn is how to take a hit before he can give one. 98% of schools fail miserably to prepare students for the realities of life and real life situations in the street. Political correctness works on TV not in the street.

Look at some of the videos on Maslinc.com...this is a valuable resource for homework. In the pointfighting world, the best don't fight with a particular style ie: Taekwondo, Okinawin . Instead they develope blitzes, dynamic kicks, reverse punches and always move. The stand up straight style with no movement you see in alot of schools will not work with the better fighters.

KarateDad..........yes those names were black belt kids and your son would not have to compete against them at a tournament....yet However, they should be used as an example to see where he wants to go with his training. You will find that ..generally and I mean generally that you find two types of kids who compete reguarly. The first type of kid is one who goes to a competition and witness's the skill level of one of these competitors. He leaves with the inspiration to train harder and seek out the best instruction to become competitve. The second type of kid is one who is overwhelmed and thinks that he can never be that good and gives up on karate very shortly thereafter. Most kids unfortunatly fall into the second catagory when it comes to competition. This is why many schools frown upon students who compete at anything other than school tournaments. Most quit and the instructor loses money. It is also for very common to see the parents give up on the kid. I can tell you from experience that it costs approx 10k to compete on the world circuit not including all of the private lessons it takes to become competetive at this level. Many times the parents don't believe that their kids can do well so they don't spend the money for training and traveling, so they in effect give up. Somehow, competitive karate is different than many other sports because where a kid who is not a "starter" stays with the sport for the love of it, in karate you don't see kids who get 4-8th place consistently hang around to long on the circuits. Others have posted as to what the judges look for and I agree with most of what has been said, to help you further, I will give you a list of traits or habits of the best sportkarate competitiors. 1. Every single one of them trains religiously year round 4-7 day per week, at least 2 hrs per session. 2. They all have specialized coaches/instructors ie: trad forms, trad weapons, open forms etc. 3. Out of every geographic region you may only get 1-2 world class competitiors in each age group 4. The best kids usually outgrow their home based karate schools and have to seek outside private instruction. Why, because most schools cannot cater to the individual, they have to work with a larger less skilled student body. no offense meant!! 5. They all have better than average basics 6. The very best ones all started out with traditional and then went into open. It's very hard for young kids to start with open forms/weapons and develope the stances/basics necessary to become competitive. 7. Be wary of open only style schools if you want to compete. The kids/adults who are the best at "XMA" laugh at the stigma and they all develop their own material. To do all of the open forms your body needs the proper conditioning and most schools don't get their kids in shape. Proper kicks/punches requires body control which requires strength. I could go on and on, and hopefully I didn't hurt anybody's feelings. This is the best sport I know that can develop a young persons charachter, the best time are the ones you spend with your kids and competiton gives a family alot of time together.