niel0092

We have a BB canidate rank before 1st dan(kind of between 1st gup and 1st dan) but once you've completed the test for BB you Are a BB. We generally hand out a plain black belt for the student to wear until the embroiderd belt arrives.

Lots of our students and instructors cross train. It's generally seen as a good thing.

Yeah that's where things are at right now. I can really only afford to do the one art, time and financially speaking but I may switch over to one of the others eventually. I'm happy where I am right now though so it's all right with me. Who knows though, I may have already won the powerball tonight then I could do all three! LOL What about you Goju? How are you combining your arts? Could you describe them for me (maybe it's better suited for another thread however)? Wow, we've digressed a bit from the topic it seems. Anyone else have any patches on their uniforms?

Yep. I did judo at the UofM for a bit with Northstar martial arts in Mpls. Kali is kind of on again off again with the Minnesota Kali group. A number of our students train there as well and our friday night instructor trains there extensively and brings alot of that training to our classes.

He started MAs when we was in his mid thirties. He had done his service in the marine corps and studied kenpo for a while in New York before returning to MN. There wasn't a kenpo school here at the time so he looked into shotokan, Gung fu, and Taekwondo before choosing TKD with master Hyon. here's my school's website if you'd care to take a look: http://www.mntaekwondocenter.com

No, there's no required memorization involved but you do pick up on the meaning of the symbols we use after awhile and it is part of our school, who we are and where we come from. Dr Haaland is very into the connection of mind, body, and spirit so it's fitting that he chose to include those themes in the logo. The korean characters at the bottom of the symbol are the names of some of the forms we do so after a time in our school you really should be able to discuss those as well. When your head instructor is a pHD, 70yrs young, and still teaches he's bound to have had the oppertunity and knowledge to explore deeper levels of meaning. And that just adds to the experience dont you think? good luck in your training

Yeah, I just prefer the hanging heavy bags too. Let us know what kind of bag you end up buying.

Ugh, Dillman just makes me want to roll my eyes. Shows you what greed and a strong personallity can accomplish though.

No problem. He seemed like a very nice guy when I attended one of his classes to try it out. Best of luck in finding him and let us know how it goes.

I think there are as many different ways of handling stripes as there are MA schools. Not sure if a definative answer is even possible...

Hi Jiyong. Not sure where he ended up, why do you ask? Here's the thread tufrthanu was refering to: http://www.karateforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=16068

I'll just describe a typical friday's class, which are my favorite classes. 1) Warm up and stretch on your own before class 2) Focus mitt drills: 2-min drills, usually 5-6 in a row of different combinations. 3) blitz drill: 6min of punching going from one combo to the next non stop 4) Thai pads: punch and kick combos sometimes with elbows too, usually done in sets of 30, push ups inbetween sets. Oh, knees too. 5) switch and hold for your partner as they do #2-4 6) lock flows, grappling 7) kali stick work, maybe some knife defence 8 ) bow out and stretch before going home Class lasts about 1 hour and sometimes we dont get to #8 as we'll do extra sets of some of the drills. I usally leave this class exteremly worn out but vey happy

I wear one patch on my dobak but our school gave them to us for free and it was our choice if we wanted to wear it or not. <--- That's a picture of it under my name And here's what it means (taken from my schools website): "The Minnesota Taekwondo Center Logo — Based on one of the world's oldest mandalas (or symbols), the logo for the Minnesota Taekwondo Center combines several concepts. The circle is one of the most ancient symbols for the universe. The triangle stands for the unification of body, mind and spirit, a major goal when studying the martial arts. In the center is a small circle which represents the mind of humans, and the infinity sign represents our infinite potential." the two korean characters under that: "Chong Bong — The characters Chong Bong, or Blue Mountain, have very strong symbolism also. The color blue has traditionaly been the color of Um (or Yin) in the Um/Yang symbol. (This is the symbol that appears in the center of the Korean flag.) In this context it emphasizes the strength of the mind, as opposed to the strength of the body. The word chong also has other meanings in Korean, including "dignity", "fearlessness" and "restraint".* Mountain has traditionally been used to represent a mind that is centered, stable and that understands its relationship to the universe. Master Jay Hyon, the man who brought taekwondo to Minneapolis/St. Paul in the early 1970's, created his own set of forms called "Chong Bong". He was Dr. Haaland's (my instructor) first taekwondo instructor. Today, we teach these beautiful and unusual forms to preserve our heritage. (An interesting note about the word bong. It's actual meaning is closer to "small mountain" or "mountain top". Dr. Haaland believes that Master Hyon was well aware of the real meaning when he named his forms, but used it to symbolize humility.)" Say what you will, I kind of like the symbol, it's meaning, and the thought put into it's inception.

I too am close to testing for BB and am feeling a bit of what you discribe. Part of me is excited and knows i should be training more as my test date approaches (Nov 19th). The other part is feeling lackluster, slothful, and wishes it was over so I could focus on the parts of my training I enjoy without having the test looming over my head. These feelings seem to be universal. We all get a case of burnout from time to time. Now all we need to do is figure out how to get past those feelings and move on. (not sure that helped at all)

1) Our sparring is co-ed 2) It doesn't matter to me either way if I spar men of women. Some of the gals will rock your world if you slip up -that's a lesson I think we guys need to keep in mind 3) Yes, different opponents will give you different situations. 4) WTF rules. Contact must be a shocking blow to score -however we never keep score durring practice. We usually do two 2min rounds of continious action before switching partners. I think that more than a gender issue it is important to spar to the level of your opponent, man or woman. I've never seen the point of completely pasting the hapless green belt man just because I could. I also know that if I spar Katie, one of our BB's, I better watch my head and try as hard as I can. My teeth may depend on it...

Very true in regards to the range. Chances are you will end up close though and as no one mentioned that strike yet...

I always liked a nice elbow strike. It's quick, strong, and not too difficult. Lets hear it for elbow strikes!

In the US boxing has been around much longer than an equivilant eastern MA. It takes time for newer things to catch on. As the general public becomes accustomed to MA and advertizers realize they can make money off of MA broadcasts we should see more MA on TV. UFC finally making it onto regular cable tv was a step in that direction. Another question would be why is wrestling (the real kind, not WWE) not as popular or widely televised in the US as compared to Boxing? Both sports arrived at the same time, have a wide base of participants (I'd argue more kids participate in wrestling than boxing however), and almost every culture has a form of competative wrestling in its history.

Nice article. The rules and equipment really do have a large impact on a fight/match.

I added some judo to my MA regiment and the hardest thing to get used to was foot work. I was used to being mobile and light on my feet but in Judo that's a good way to get thrown quickly. I also found that I always wanted to strike in Judo and grapple when I was at TKD. Big fouls in both cases.

Oh, MA clubs at the U of M included: Judo Shotokan Vo Lam Kung Fu Tae Kwon Do Tai Chi Chuan Aikido Fencing (it is an art in my opinion, tough too) Ice Hockey (Just kidding, it is offered and pretty violent though -and tons of fun!) Classes were available for beginner levels in: Shotokan TKD Judo

I went to the Unniversity of Minnesota and there were/are a number of MA clubs as well as a few classes that are for credit. The classes tend to be for 1 credit and almost always are taught by a local instructor that has a school nearby and possibly an affiliation with one of the clubs on campus. I began TKD at the University club, continued at the main school after graduation, and even tried out judo for a semester so I could get an extra credit in to round out my schedule that term. As with all MAs and intructors, you need to check them out a bit before you sign on. Clubs tend to be much less expensive than taking a class for credit but that in no way means the quality is less.

We just tap as well. Now, we are really careful and dont apply a lock with excessive force but the same thoughts lapulid2 has had do occur to me from time to time. I guess I'd say be careful and know your partners well. Nice quote lapulid2. I've also heard hapkido refered to as origami with people LOL

I also like the Adidas brand.

I guess the testing fees would bother me too if I didn't know where the money went. Our instructors dont get paid so the monthly fees go for rent on the building, utilities etc. Testing fees go to new equipment. Given how many students we have, fees, rent and other charges, I cant see how anyone at our school is even close to making a profit. We just got in some new kicking shields on friday, cant wait to break them in!