Congratulations to our students who successfully tested at Oneonta Taekwon-Do last week.  The test featured demonstrations by Lori and Ben, Jake and Guaire, Kent and Finn, and Cael.

Please see their individual posts for videos or visit our YouTube channel to browse our entire archive.

Happy Birthday!

Aug 2 – Kent Heidenreich
Aug 3 – Nick Perez

Next promotion test

Our next test is scheduled for Thursday August 26th at 6pm.  Both adults and children will test and we will enjoy some pizza and beverages afterward.  Please be sure to complete your test form and give a check or cash for your test fee to a black belt prior to the day of testing.

Openings for 2 adults and 2 children

If you have friends or family who are ready to start taking classes, please encourage them to call us as soon as possible.  We will only have openings for 2 adults and 2 children.  We always try to give preference to friends and family.  Remember that when you refer a new student who pays for a 3 month tuition, you get your choice of a free uniform or a free test.  Be sure to email your friends and refer them to our website for videos and information.

More T-Shirts have arrived

Due to the quick sellout of the large t-shirts, we ordered a few more and have them in stock.  The price is $15 each.  Get one for yourself or as a gift to a family member.

New York Karate Kids

Recently, NBC news did a segment featuring Grandmaster Kim’s school. The video is cute, funny, and still shows a nice side of Grandmaster Kim and his students.  I highly recommend you take a moment and watch it on the home page of Grandmaster Kim’s Taekwon-Do website.

Mirrors have been ordered

We have ordered three 4′ x 6′ mirrors for the dojang and hope to have them installed before the test.

Board Breaking Tips

One of the things I love most about Taekwon-Do practitioners is their unique openness to trying new things despite potential failures. Not the least of which is our exposure when demonstrating a board break at a test.

Everyone wants to break on the first attempt (including the holders!) All eyes are upon you as you stand there staring at those boards knowing you just have to hit it hard in the center, but knowing there is the risk for failure. Missing on the first attempt can be embarrassing and even physically painful. Then, one begins to feel disappointed in oneself, especially if the board holders were injured in the process.

Having had more than my fair share of failures in Taekwon-Do, board breaking and otherwise, I decided to share some words of encouragement and also explain how to use your mistakes and failures to become a better practitioner.

At our last test, I decided to give a demonstration and failed to break the boards on the first (and second) attempt. The poor gentlemen holding boards for me claimed dislocated thumbs and other serious injuries as a result. I’m very grateful for their trust and support and it is in honor of their spirit and sacrifice that I decided I must “go to the video tape” to make sure it doesn’t happen again. (This idea was inspired by Master Paul Hoppe’s book, “Way of the Poker Warrior”)  As the images below indicate, I made several physical mistakes. My technique was off. But I made a big mistake before I even took my first step. I failed to commit my mind to my success.

The last time I did a board break, it was 5 boards and I had never broken 5 boards before. But when I stepped up to do the break that day, I heard myself say out loud and in my head “I’m gonna smash these boards right now”. I felt it in my heart. I felt in my stomach. I didn’t just THINK it, I KNEW it. The result was success and I can’t lose the look of Ken’s face after I broke through. It was utter bewilderment as if he couldn’t believe what had just happened.
Contrast that with the things that went through my mind this time: “I SHOULD be able to break 4 boards. I’ve done it before. It would be really embarrassing to fail in front of all these people. I’ll be fine. I’m sure I can do it.

Now, having a good attitude and confidence is a very significant part of successful board breaking, but no amount of confidence will overcome bad technique. After my second attempt, I knew that I was missing the proper extension. I hadn’t “stretched the rubber band” far enough to create the elastic snap needed to generate the speed and subsequent power. At this time, I also heard the enthusiastic and electric words of my teacher, Grandmaster Kim: “Just pick your knee up and KICK IT!”

At that point, I got a little mad and I decided there was no way I was going to miss a third time. I decided I would intentionally make my first motion stronger and faster and pick my knee up toward the target.

So, what can you take away from all of this? What does this teach us about mistakes? First and foremost, mistakes can and should be corrected whenever possible.

In order to correct the mistakes, you have to go backwards in time.
What was the mistake? I didn’t break the board.
Why didn’t I break the board? I didn’t hit the center.
Why didn’t I hit center? My knee wasn’t high enough.
Why wasn’t my knee high enough? I didn’t have enough speed.
Why didn’t I have enough speed? I didn’t elongate my leg and torsoe enough at the proper angle in order to cause the proper snap.
Why didn’t I elongate properly? I didn’t think to do it.
Why didn’t I think to do it? Because I didn’t commit to my success and I lacked confidence.
Why did I lack confidence? Because I hadn’t warmed up sufficiently or practiced diligently enough.

I think this method of thinking can be applied to all kinds of mistakes in our lives. Usually, we see only the last consequence, the unbroken boards and feel the pain. Sometimes, we see the prior event that led to the failure directly. Only by continuing to ask “and why did that happen?” can we trace back to the initial mistake and the subsequent mistakes made further on the journey.

Why did I lose my temper at work? I was upset.
Why was I upset? My boss took credit for my hard work.
Why did my boss take credit for my hard work? Because I didn’t sign my name to it…….

I urge you to take a look at something that happened to you recently which felt like a failure and ask yourself the “why” question 10 times. See if it provides any answers. I humbly offer my gratitude to Tom and Brian for agreeing to hold the boards for me and promise to be better prepared next time!

Congratulations to our new Black Belts!

After training long and hard Kristian Frye, John Buck and Priscilla McCabe have earned their first Dan.

Master Kelly, a friend of Mr. Mannion’s was supposed to attend and administer the test, but due to vehicular issues was sadly, unable to attend.

The black belt test was long and tested their strength. The test started at 3:30 pm yesterday with a 2 mile run that all three completed under 18 minutes. Afterwards, the three took a written exam to test their knowledge of Taekwon-Do. At the promotion test that evening, the three demonstrated four different three kick combinations followed by four different forms that the three had learned in their training. The four patterns that John, Priscilla and Kristian showed were Choong-Moo, Hwa-Rang, Joong-Gun, and Won-Hyo.

The three showed the outcome of their hard work, with strong and percise forms. After multiple rounds of free fighting amongst the participants, They each had to perform three different breaks, as can be seen in the embedded video(s).

The three performed excellently and we are very proud to welcome Mr. Buck, Mrs. McCabe and Mr. Frye as black belts.

John Buck, Priscilla McCabe, Ray Mannion, Kristian Frye

Oneonta Taekwon-Do School picture July 2010

John Buck, Priscilla McCabe, and Kristian Frye earned their black belts on July 22, 2010

Thanks to everyone who came for practice in the park!

It was great to have everyone together. This was my first time bringing students to the park and I learned a great deal to make the next time even more fun.

We began with a simple stretch in the dojang with 25 students and then took a light run to Neawha park where we were promptly kicked off the soccer field. We lined up for some extended basics including “6 skipping side kicks”.

Our yellow belt and white belt students got to practice front turning kicks while our higher belts enjoyed the freedom of space to do sparring.

Thanks also to Karl (Kent’s dad) for keeping everyone safe by blocking traffic as we crossed the streets.

Special thanks to Mr. Davis and his wife Betty for the photos. Click on the photos to see a larger version.

Looking for gifts for that special Taekwon-Do student?

Be careful, there is a lot of junk out there! What’s more, some Taekwon-Do practitioners are offended or disappointed when they receive “Karate” gifts or books associated with a different Taekwon-Do style than the one they practice.

Below, I’ve done the hard work of finding the best stuff out there from reliable sites and described, as best I can, the ideal recipient of the gift.

Yes, my wife makes a small commission from some of these links, but you’ll see that it doesn’t affect your price whether you buy through this site or not! ( Our school includes website income to offset the costs of running the school in order to keep prices low. )

For all practitioners:

Gifts for kids:

For adults:

For black belts and masters:

Belt/Plaque Display Holder

Gift certificates are an excellent idea for new or existing students! They can be redeemed for tuition, equipment, private lessons, or any other product or service offered.

Please note that we currently do not accept students under the age of 11. We are in the process of building an excellent children’s curriculum and program which we hope to launch in early 2010.

Gift certificates must be redeemed within 120 days.

Feel free to give us a call at 607.437.7866 to learn about any current specials for new students as well as family discounts. You can purchase a gift certificate here using a credit card or your PayPal account. You will receive a printed Gift Certificate via email and a printed copy via snail mail.

Gift certificate amount

$25 Gift certificate $25.00 $50 Gift certificate $50.00 $75 Gift certificate $75.00 $100 Gift certificate $100.00

Student’s Name

Alternatively, you can choose your own amount:
using this paypal link

Thank you for your interest in Taekwon-Do. When you sign up as a new student, you will begin with 2 private lessons from a 3rd Degree Blackbelt. In these sessions, you will learn the basic kicks, punches, and blocks before entering class.

You can either call us at 607-437-7866 to schedule your introductory lessons or simply fill out the form below and we will call you as soon as possible.  We have a price list with discounts for family memberships and we often have promotion specials that we don’t always have time to put on the internet.   Please call us for information on prices.  We remain one of the lowest prices in town and you’ll find no hard sells or pushy sales tactics by our blackbelts.

Please consider a gift certificate if you have a budget and are interested for a friend or child.  Gift certificates are also great for existing students as they can be used for equipment, t-shirts, uniforms, or tuition!

Taekwon-Do teachers are making a significant commitment to you, the student when you join. Each of your first several classes will require consideration and customization to make sure you receive the training you need, when you need it, while also providing instruction to the rest of the class.

Most students sign up for a 3 month tuition packages. Others sign up for 6 months to take advantage of the discounted savings. Black belts receive a discount and are expected to pay annually.

On your first day, you can wear comfortable clothes for your introductory lesson and a new uniform will be given to you at that time. A fellow student will likely take you through the school to explain the school rules and etiquette.

We look forward to working with you.

cforms contact form by delicious:days

We do our best to capture video at every promotion test.  Thank you very much to our students and family who graciously give us the files to put on the website!

All videos are tagged and categorized so that you can search our site by name, belt, pattern, etc.  Of course, we fully respect the privacy of our students who would prefer not to be shown.

Videos help us gain perspective on how far we have come and how much more we need to improve.  Feel free to leave complimentary comments to your fellow classmates and remember the tenets of Taekwon-Do should be maintained at all times!

Oneonta Taekwon-Do classes are always taught by certified black belt instructors.  Our membership and participation in Taekwon-Do International strengthen the ongoing training and development required to retain the ranks we have earned.

Instructors Davis, Goodrich, McCabe, and Mannion

Our lineage and connection with Taekwon-Do roots has enabled us to retain the original purpose of our art:  To cultivate wisdom, kindness, and courage throughout the world.  Each of our instructors takes the following oath at each promotion test.  We are grateful to the leaders of Taekwon-Do International for their foresight and commitment to traditional Taekwon-Do.

Taekwondo International Black belt Oath

• I shall always observe the school rules and lead by example.
• I shall always maintain my training to continue improving my mind and body.
• I shall always exemplify discipline and focus during practice.
• I shall always promote unity and honor amongst black belts.
• I shall always earn respect through my training and conduct.
• I shall always be faithful to my seniors.
• I shall always be faithful to my teacher.
• I shall always be faithful to the Union

Furthermore, black belt certification in Taekwon-Do International carries with it worldwide recognition and acceptance by other schools and federations.