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.

Congratulations to soccer star Cael “McLegs” McCabe on earning his first black stripe.

After demonstrating red belt level kicking techniques with legs made like rubber bamboo,

and Hwa-Rang,

he broke 2 boards with each leg using back kicks.

Finally, he sparred with his cousin Finn.

We hope Cael has a successful fall soccer season and look forward to his return to the black belt path in winter.

Kent made his first appearance at a promotion test in Oneonta. He demonstrated Dan-Gun and basic techniques along with step sparring before finally breaking a board with a rear leg side kick.

Congratulations to Phineas Brown Collins on earning his blue belt. Blue belt signifies “the plant reaching up to the sky”, indicative of Finn’s strength and power. His precise movements in Yul-Gok are indicative of his dedicated practice and we are proud of his growth and successes.

It was fortunate that Finn could spar with his cousin Cael who earned his first black stripe:

The smooth and graceful movements of Guaire are nicely complemented by the intense powerful force of Jake as they earn their green stripes.
Congratulations to both boys on their fine achievement.

Congratulations to Lori and Ben for earning their yellow belts.  They performed very well, especially in their ability to stay synchronized during Chon-Ji.

Neither has practiced martial arts before and have worked very hard to earn their rank.  We are very proud of their commitment and determination.

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!

Master Paul Hoppe has been a teacher and respected senior of mine since the late 1990s.  His flawless technique and effortless sparring skill cannot be mistaken for anything other than countless hours of practice and disciplined mental training.

Recently, he completed a 28-day Grindathon, during which he played poker, then recorded a Hand of the Day video and a video blog every day. He made $30,000 in profits and raised $3,000 for cancer and autism charities.

Although I know nothing about poker or Texas Holdem, I took away a tremendous amount of wisdom from his book “Way of the Poker Warrior”.  After 13 years in the martial arts, I feel I’ve learned techniques to acquire success thanks to our common teacher, Grandmaster Suk Jun Kim.  Reading Master Hoppe’s book illuminated the parallels between mastery of Taekwon-Do and mastery of just about anything else.  In this case, it is poker.

Take this little quote:

Few players want to spend hours grinding out the minutiae. They don’t have the discipline to put the work in. These players are giving you an opportunity. If you consistently grind out these details of the game until you know this information cold, you will have a concrete edge on your opponents.

A warrior realizes and respects that he is in a competition, and Master Hoppe showed me that victory is reserved for those who create advantages for themselves.  In each chapter, he parallels a lesson learned from Taekwon-Do with a poker hand won or lost due to the application of the concept.

If you love to play Texas Holdem or any other poker game and have a few tricks or a few rules you play by, this book will give you what you need to get your game level way, way up.  Master Hoppe shows you how to train yourself, how to prepare for competition, how to lose, and how to improve, improve, improve.

Recently, I blew a demonstration by failing to break boards on the first attempt.  Taking a cue from Master Hoppe, I decided to “Go to the Video Tape”.  Taking time to objectively review my mistakes with honesty is something I never considered until I read this book.  The lessons I learned were so powerful, I felt obliged to write an article complete with pictures lest I forget these lessons ever again.  Learning from our mistakes is an essential part of success.

I jokingly told Master Hoppe that he should start a series for everything from Way of the Housekeeping Warrior to Way of the Computer Programming Warrior and apply the formulas he lays out to each skill.  The concepts and practical examples explained in this book are bound to make you more than a better poker player, more than a better martial artist, they will make you better at EVERYTHING.

Congratulations to Mary Manzanero and Dylan Windsor! On July 22nd Mary earned her green stripe while Dylan earned his blue stripe. Each had to perform their respective patterns (Mary had to perform Dan-Gun, while Dylan had to perform Won-Hyo), perform their self defense, and do their respective board breaks. Congratulations to you both!

Congratulations to our yellow belts for earning their first green stripe! On the 22nd of July Addison Harmon, Jaden Davis, Alex Mannion, Christina Mannion earned their first green stripe. They each performed Dan-Gun, had to break a board with a rear leg side kick and perform the self-defense techniques they had learned in class. Congratulations are in order for Devyn Servo who earned his Yellow Belt at the same test. Congratulations to all of you!