Kudo shodan at last.

[Dragn]

Today I passed my shodan test.

It was one of the hardest fights I've ever had.

After 1 and 1/2 hrs of kihon I had to fight 8 guys.

Usually its 10 but because of my age(36) I got it a bit easier.

THis wasnt sparring but real fighting. Each opponent was fresh and came at me with full intention of KOing me.

There were no breaks between rounds. As soon as one fight finished the next opponent would step into the ring and we'd start immediately.

There was only one 2 minute rest after the 4th round.

The rules were full contact. Head gear but no gloves.

1st 2 guys 1and1/2 mins MMA type rules, with ground fighting allowed.

Next 2 guys 1min sanshou type rules with knees elbows throws allowed.

Then 4 guys, 1min each under kyokushin rules.

Man! by the 2nd kyokushin guy I was fighting just to stay standing.

I wanted to press forward but my body just wouldnt work. I took a real pounding from low kicks and body blows. Trying to breathe and stay standing took all my will power.

I had to beat at least 4 opponents to get the belt.

I beat 3 of the first 4 then, it came to my last opponent and I had to beat him to pass. He came at me real hard with no mercy. Somehow I just managed to dig down deep and keep throwing techs. It was pretty even

Then in the last 10 secs I threw every thing I had into a spinning back kick that clocked my opponent right on the temple. Didnt KO him but it was enough to win me the fight.

So now I'm layed out at home. Both legs swollen and bruised.Cant walk.

Kidneys and body hurt every time I move.

But I'm happy as!

5 guys tried the test today.

I was the only one who passed.

I feel for the others who didnt pass. What a harsh Christmas. I sure wouldnt want to go through that again.

[AT]

grats

[Patrick]

Congrats.

[ninjanurse]

Congratulations-well done!

[ashworth]

well done sounds intense!!

[b3n]

You belong to a good club, well done on the pass.

[bushido_man96]

Congratulations!

[Dragn]

You belong to a good club, well done on the pass.

Thanks bro.

It really is a dream come true for me to earn my shodan in Japan.

I originally came here in 1990 for that purpose, but i lost the plot somewhere along the way, and it took me a while to get back on the path.

I ended up partying and drinking away the best years of my life, and almost ruining any chance I had of becoming a top class fighter. Now I'm almost at the end of my career as a fighter, in a rush against age, to try and have a good stab at making into the full contact fighting elite.

If only I had kept training throughout my 20's!

How many guys did you have to fight for nidan?

I was nervous before the test. But I just kept reminding myself that Oyama fought 300, and some of the top kyokushin guys have fought 100 men kumite. So it made 8 seem pretty insignificant.

If those guys could handle that many I'm sure I could get through 8!

It helped.

And now after going through that, it makes a regular tournament seem like a peice of cake. I'll have alot more confidence going for the All Japan trials in a few months.

[srv]

Congratulations!

Sounds like a tough test.

For my Nidan we had to do 30 x 2 minute rounds of sparring. Was very tough. We didn't have to beat a certain number of opponents though. It's more about mental toughness - keeping going through exhaustion.

[MisterRadley]

Congrats!